Missy was still thinking about something Lianna said a few days ago. She basically said we'd be better off without police and courts because no one can control whether they commit crime or not.
How could that be true? She knew there were times she had thought about drinking or smoking or eating a piece of decadent chocolate cake but then decided not to do it. Wasn't she doing that by willpower? Wasn't that responsibility?
But then maybe she only had her willpower because of how her parents raised her. And she didn't control that.
This was all just dumb philosophy and she had a murder to solve. But maybe there was a connection. Murder isn't that uncommon. There were murders on the news every day. And what Lianna said made it seem like there might be a murderer who wasn't really the worst person in the world. That wasn't crazy. Maybe whoever killed Lianna actually meant to do good things but somehow ended up on the wrong path.
Missy had read somewhere that when people are killed, the perpetrator is usually someone they know. It was a paradox. How could the people close to you be so dangerous? On the other hand, if someone was a total stranger to you, what would motivate them to kill you?
Who was close to Adelina? Her mom was practically her only family. She mentioned a cousin once but it didn't sound like they were close. You know how when somebody tells a story about someone in their life, you can instantly hear in their voice how much they matter to them? Yeah this cousin didn't matter.
She had a lot of friends at school. She hung out with Madison, Lianna, and Missy. Obviously York was her lover. Just kidding, he was her boyfriend. There were some teachers that liked her, not in a creepy way, but it's a good school and some teachers just vibed with her. Her history teacher Miss Thompson and her writing teacher Mr. Heup were like that.
But then there was Julius. Julius and Adelina went to the Freshman Formal together. Adelina started a rumor that Julius was a drug dealer. Julius hated her ever since.
YOU ARE READING
Aurora, Illinois
Mystery / ThrillerIt starts with a shocking crime. Kids at the local high school collapse into grief. The police try to unravel the mystery, but this one may be more than they can handle. Meanwhile, criminals are bringing drugs and sex workers into a town that can't...
