Fanficwriter01's Anthology (Completed)

Broken Window Part II: Hidden

A/N: After a lot of thinking I have decided to continue Broken Window, the good news is I was had already started on the middle part, and finished it last night, then made some adjustments. I intend to wrap up this mini book with two different alternative endings, which will be published seperate. I hope you all enjoy Part II Hidden. Apologise it may be a little longer. Enjoy.

-Fanficwriter01

Caleb came out of daze, bounding across the floor, assisting her to sit down at the kitchen table, careful not to tread on any glass, the puppy was smart enough to stay back. Neither noticed the sound of the timer going off, his only focus was ensuring his girlfriend was alright, and the popcorn was soon long forgotten.

As he fretted over the sandy blonde-haired woman, despite her protests, he looked again for any wounds. She insisted she was alright, and unharmed. He was still worried.

She secretly enjoyed the attention though was a little wary of the event that had just happened. The note lay heavy in her pocket.

"Annah, what happened?" His eyes expressed worry for her. It was a cute look on him but then she realised, he had said something about the police, and asked him to repeat it. He had wanted to call them and report the incident.

'No, I can't let him contact the police, if they suspect something, whoever sent brick, everything I've done will come undone. They'll find out about him and what happened. Can't let that happen.'

"No." she blurted out. Caleb gave her a confused look.

"No? Sweety, someone just broke the window and might hit you."

"No. I'm still a bit shaken. Would it be better to contact them in the morning? It'll be easier in the daytime."

"If we leave it until morning, we may forget something. Better to have them come sooner to have a look and make sure whoever broke the window isn't still around. Please!" he empathized.

In the end she couldn't say no. He called the non-emergency number and fifteen minutes later, the sound of a vehicle pulled up, two pairs of footsteps approaching front door and knocked on the door. Caleb made her stay where she was and let the officers inside. "She's this way."

Two uniformed men entered the room, stopping before the glass. One an elderly man with pepper hair, light blue eyes, and a mustache. The other was younger, although older than herself with chestnut brown hair, brown eyes, and dimples. Both wore badges, introduced themselves as Constable Hanson and Jenkins. They said they they'd come about the broken window and asked if either of them had been hurt. Caleb assured they were fine.

Constable Jenkins asked to inspect the scene while the older man asked them both questions about the incident. She refused to be separated from her boyfriend.

He spoke first. They were watching an old movie, and Annah had volunteered to make more popcorn. He heard something broken and went to see what it was. Found Annah on the floor surrounded by glass and shaken. Got her away from there and sat down.

When it was her turn, she tried to keep it together and straight as possible, only leaving out the part about the note and refer to. It seemed to become heavier and hot in her pocket. A dirty secret.

Her palms were sweating but she kept them neatly folded on her lap. He was silent but nodded along. They were both asked if they knew anyone that may have a grudge against them or didn't like them? They both said no, they get along with everyone in their small country community. Annah subconsciously quickly nudged the fragile white paper back into her pocket, aware that two pair of eyes noticed the movement. But nothing was said.

Constable Jenkins had gone outside to look around outside and when he came back, the officers excused themselves and left the room. When they returned, they said they hadn't found any lurkers near the house, and it may have been a bunch of pranksters messing around. They asked if the house was insured. She said it was.

They asked if there was anything else they should know about, anything at all. The thought of last Friday came up and she mentally pushed it to the back of her mind. She looked him in the eyes, smiled and said, no, nothing came to mind. Constable Hanson's eyes pierced straight through her, to the very depths of her being and her lie. She felt a bead of sweat go down the back of her top and tried to keep calm. The next moment he simply nodded and finished up.

Third POV

The two Constables thanked them for their time, wished the couple good night and hopped into police car.

"I can't put my finger on it, but something about Annah's story doesn't add up. "Constable Hansom said, from the corner of his eye, Jenkins looked at him.

"What do you mean?"

"Drawing from my experience on the force. You learn a few things when it comes to people. It's not just what they say, it's what they're not saying speaks louder than words. She seemed nervous, more than she normally should and I saw her put a hand close to her pocket to nudge a piece of paper inside."

"Her window was just broken. Maybe you imagined it?"

"Don't know. I may be getting old and gray, but my eyes are as sharp as a hawk, it was a piece of paper. And my gut telling me she's hiding something."

Jenkins turned to his older partner. Constable Hanson may be the oldest one, but his hunches were always right. He'd trust him on this one and asked what to do.

"First things first, we need to speak to the chief and get Senior Detective Jackson onto the case, to ask around and see if he can dig anything up. Keep your ears and eyes open. Whatever she's hiding, it could be something big."

Later

As the couple lay in bed, and the young cocker spaniel lay asleep in little dog bed, one of them stayed awake, staring into space, then towards the jewellery box, where a parchment was hidden. Her phone was silent. She looked back to her sleeping partner and watched his chest rising and falling. He was handsome and everything any girl could dream of. He was hers. They shared things with each other. Tears welled up in her eyes and silently trekked down her cheeks, onto the soft pillow.

I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.

End of Broken Window Part II Hidden