The Ghost From Her Past

Chapter 7

Chapter 7: The Secret Girlfriend

After wrapping up my conversation with Eric's parents, I decided to give Jack a call. I shared with him what I had learned from Jerry - that Eric and Jerry were good friends and that there were no apparent issues between them. Jerry also mentioned that the person who had shot him, Jordan, and Debbie, did not sound like Eric. Jack seemed to be puzzled and frustrated with Eric's silence and asked me why he wasn't talking. I told him that I believed Eric was innocent and that he might be taking the blame to protect someone, or someone could be threatening him. I then shared with Jack what Stan had told me about Eric having a girlfriend and stealing for Ted Goldman to buy her gifts. Perhaps this could be a motive for someone else to have committed the crime and put the blame on Eric. Jack listened carefully and said he would look into it further.

"What is the name of Eric's girlfriend?" Jack asked.

"Stan didn't know. He mentioned that Eric had been acting strangely. After discovering that Eric had been fired for stealing, he suspected that Eric might have a girlfriend. Stan followed Eric and saw him kissing a girl, but he never introduced her to him or his wife." I replied.

After hearing this, Jack suggested, "It seems like we'll have a difficult time finding her without a name. Let's go back and talk to Jerry to see if he knew anything about Eric's girlfriend."

Later, we went to visit Jerry at the hospital. Jerry was eating his dinner. "Hello, Jerry, I'm Jack Cooper and you may remember Willow Mills," Jack replied.

"What can I do for you?" Jerry asks.

"Stan informed us that Eric had a girlfriend, but he was unaware of the name of Eric's girlfriend. Stan believes that Eric stole from Ted Goldman in order to purchase gifts for his girlfriend. Did you know about Eric's girlfriend?' Jack asks. "Stan was asking me about Eric's girlfriend, but I was unaware that Eric was in a relationship." I suspect that Eric had a girlfriend, but Eric never disclosed his relationship status to me.

Eric and I used to hang out a lot. When he moved out of his parents' house we did not hang out as much. He was acting weird," Jerry replied.

"What do you mean he was acting weird?" Jack asks.

"He wanted to make more money. I was surprised because Eric had never shown any interest in money. Eric was never materialistic," Jerry replied.

"When was the last time you spoke with Eric?" Jack asks.

"The day he got fired for stealing," Jerry replied.

"Thank you, Jerry," Jack replied.

We left the hospital. "We need to talk to Stan and ask him where he saw his son kissing this girl," Jack suggests.

Later, we went to see Stan. "Hello, Stan, I am Jack Cooper. You remember Willow. I'm sorry to bother you, but I need to ask you some more questions," Jack requested.

"I want to thank you for helping my son. I want to do whatever I can to help my son," Stan replied.

"Where did you see your son kissing this girl? Jack asks.

"I saw them kissing at a trashy bar called the Blue Crystal. Blue Crystal is located in Forks Washington. Do you think this girl might be a suspect?" Stan asks. "We just want to question her to see what she knows," Jack explained.

After departing from Stan's place, we estimated that it would take us three and a half hours to reach Forks. Our expectation was that the Blue Crystal establishment had security cameras that could help us identify the girl we were searching for, who we suspected might be employed there. We concluded to postpone our trip to Forks until the following day, which I was pleased about since I had not slept since arriving in Seattle and needed to rest due to exhaustion.