BLACK DIAMOND

CHAPTER 1

THE MISSING GIRL
Black Diamond is a sister town to Turner Valley, Alberta in Canada. Living in Black Diamond offers its residents a rural feel as it is a small town, very calm and serene place to live in. Crime rates are very low and there's no sign of any felony being committed. The town got its name because of its coal mines, which consist of high graded coal. People in town seem to value their connections with the town.

Black Diamond Police Department has 4 officers Jonathan Nolan, Kelvin Tomph, Cane Sebastian and me, their Chief Alfred Scow. Jonathan is more than just a police officer; he is an individual with a strong sense of duty and a warm heart. Cane is an officer who stands out not for his imposing stature , but for his simplicity and humility. Jonathan and Cane were in the same batch with me in the academy . Then came Kelvin Tomph, new to our department, he was notably tall with broad shoulders and muscular build that gave him an intimidating and powerful aura . He came as a replacement for Karl Parker who retired a month ago. I won't call our department one of the best in the county, as cases were quite few in the town. Laborers from the factories and mines were the only ones who used to steal food that too to satisfy their hunger.

One day it was raining heavily with a soft rumble of thunder outside, came a man drenched and panting came into our department. He came to the front desk shouting "PLEASE HELP! MY DAUGHTER IS MISSING". Jonathan who was at the front desk was baffled by the sudden appearance of the stranger, nonetheless he directed the helpless man into my room.

"Sir, Please help me find my daughter. She is the only one I got in this world. Please I beg you" the stranger pleaded.

I inhaled the last puff of my cigarette deeply and after putting it down I told him to sit down first.

"Now tell me what happened from the start" I took my pen and a dusty old note pad which had not been used for a long time. He tried to hold back his tears and gave all the details. After an hour-long conversation, he left my office weeping.

Before he left I said "Mr. Quin don't worry we will find her soon." Wiping his tears from his face he nodded and walked away. I reached into the pocket of my leather jacket and extracted a crumbled pack of cigarettes , after lighting the cigarette, I handed over my notepad to Kelvin to do the needful.

                                                                                       MISSING FILE
                                                                                CASE NO. : BD- 980257                                                                          DATE OF MISSING: 9th  AUGUST 2019

Time: 03:15 pm

Name: Becky Quinn

Age : 19

Gender : Female

Father Name: George Quinn 

Height: 5'5"

Further Description: She got fair skin, blond hair  , crystal blue eyes with a Cat-eyed specs.

"We did not get much information from him but now we know where to start from" after saying this, Kelvin and I left for our interrogation.

It was windy and had the smell of petrichor all-around due to the rain. It was his first case with me after joining the department, so the car ride which was supposed to be pleasant like the weather transformed into an awkward journey, the tension was palpable between us , the radio was muted and the hum of the engine seemed quieter.

4:30 p.m.

We finally arrived at Becky's friend's house. The house was a quintessential example of Canadian countryside architecture, featuring a two story structure with steeply-sloped roof and a front porch entwined with creeping vines.

We pressed the doorbell that had a profound impact on its surroundings. A woman in her mid-forty opened the door and greeted us with a concerned face as we were in our official uniforms. "Ma'am, can we talk to your daughter? It's regarding her friend Becky. She is missing and we have information that your daughter was with her last night".

"Yes, come on in. I will get her here in a minute." she said while feeling a deep sense of concern.

After sometime Anna came downstairs. She was nervous and was continuously looking down. But I continued "Anna, relax we just want to ask you a few questions. Can you explain what happened?" .After a few seconds of silence, she looked at her mother apologetically and then she collected all her guts and spoke.

We didn't have any project work. We were at Steve's place umm... he is Becky's Ex-boyfriend. They must have dated only for a week or so. Steve was the popular kid of our school and because of that he got a lot of attention. Yesterday he called us for a house-party at his place, and when Steve throws a party, IT IS ALWAYS A HELL OF A PARTY. Everyone was there and were having their best time. We all were having drinks but Becky refused.

After a while, I saw Steve talking and offering her a shot of tequila to which she resisted but he was persistent on making her drunk. Becky also agreed in the end on having shots with him and his friends. Me and Limya, Steve's sister, joined them. I observed Becky conversing with Steve as though their past disagreement had no bearing on the moment. They looked as if they were still having feelings and were enjoying each other's company. We played ping-pong , consumed a great deal of alcohol and laughed our hearts out. As I said sir, Steve's parties are something everyone looks forward to and Becky was happy with the host , so I also did not say anything.

It was around 10:30pm when I asked Becky to leave the party as I knew mom would come home soon from the hospital after her shift. But she was reluctant to leave and decided to stay with them for a little longer. I asked her if she would be okay to come back home alone to which Steve interrupted and replied in an arrogant way "Yes, I will drop her, don't worry Anna". I wasn't happy with the way he talked but was glad to see Becky in glee as I know how heartbroken she was after their break-up.

"This is all I know. I would have never left her alone if I knew what was going to transpire. I could never forgive myself if something awful happens to her " Anna said while sobbing.

I stood up and said " We will find your friend and bring her back to you. Have faith in us".

I walked out of the room and Kelvin followed me. The wind outside acted as a silent accomplice in the chilling narrative creating a suspenseful and eerie atmosphere .I reached for my favorite cigar, brought it closer to my lips and drew the tip of the cigar closer to the flame. The ember ignited with a seductive hiss and I inhaled a puff with that fragrant smoke swirled around me.

And in that moment I knew I WAS BACK IN GAME!!

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