The Collector and a murder

Prologue

Red and blue lights flashed in front of what was left of the Jameson house. The fire department, ambulance, and the police were there. The raging inferno had completely destroyed the home, as the firefighters battled the blaze to save what was left of it.

The neighborhood grew increasingly curious and concerned as the fight seemed to wage on. After several minutes, the blaze was out, and it was deemed safe enough for the paramedics, and the police to walk in. Once they walked in,  the smell of burning flesh and wood assaulted their nostrils as they found two corpses of a married couple, Mr. and Mrs. Jameson. The paramedics and police bagged up the corpses and brought them into the ambulance so an autopsy could by done. However, concerned shifted when a police officer said that the child was missing.

For three weeks, the townsfolk searched for Jennifer Jameson, the Jameson's 9 year old daughter. Photos of the red headed child circulated the news, the police department opening their phone lines to allow people from out of town to make calls with potential leads. They searched everywhere they could think of that a sweet, energetic and kind child would go.

However, with the dead end leads, and the searches turning up empty every single time, slowly, people began to give up on the hope of ever finding Jennifer alive.  But only a few held out hope that Jennifer would come back, and those people were her playmates, her friends. Peter B Parker, Jessica Drew, Hobie Brown, and Miguel O'Hara. They were a tight knit group of kids, and because there wasn't a lot of kids in the neighbourhood, they kind of had to be close.

The eldest of the group was Miguel O'Hara, a 12 year old, Hispanic-Irish boy. He had dark brown hair, cinnamon dusted skin, mahogany eyes, and was quite tall for a boy his age. He made himself responsible for the group's wellbeing, and hearing about Jennifer, one of the youngest, one of their own, just vanished without a trace, hit him harder than he could have ever imagined. He didn't want to believe Jennifer was gone, as he knew her to be somewhat of a cheater in their games of Hide and Seek. But every clever thing he had witnessed her doing, and checking every area he could think off, it disheartened him to see those spaces to be empty. Even though the searches turned up fruitless and hopeless, he still held to the subconscious hope that Jennifer will come back, one way or another.

Peter B Parker was the second oldest. He was also 12 years old, but just a few months younger her than Miguel. His brown hair and brown eyes complemented his pale peach skin, and he was just a few inches shorter than Miguel. He often encouraged  Jennifer to be a little bit of a trouble maker, and often got in trouble with the other kids for it. But he viewed Jennifer as a little sister, and just wanted to ensure she was enjoying her time with them. He held this same view with all of them, just wanting to have fun with. However, seeing the lights, hearing the sirens and the searches coming up empty, his need to ensure everyone was having fun only increased. He wanted to ensure that if Jennifer was still around, hearing them play, laugh, and maybe even the town joining in their games would draw her out.

Jessica Drew, a 10 year old African-American girl, would have been considered in the middle of the group. Her dark hair, eyes and skin contrasted with the bright blue, pink, and yellow dresses her parents would often make her wear. At first, she didn't like Jennifer too much, viewing her as messy and too energetic for her liking. But, her opinion of Jennifer slowly changed the more she spent time with the troublesome redhead. Eventually, she saw Jennifer like friend, and joined in occasionally on whatever prank she and Hobie had cooked up. However, knowing Jennifer was a troublemaker, she didn't think much of the whole situation and believed this was Jennifer's elaborate prank. She would come back once she realized people aren't going to play anymore, right?

The youngest of the group, next to Jennifer, was Hobie Brown. He was also 9 years old, much like Jessica, he was also African-American, with dark hair in dreadlocks and dark eyes. He connected with Jennifer on a different level, sharing many interests like pranks, music and he would sometimes invite her to his dinner table, with his parents permission of course. The pair of them were two peas in a pod, and one wouldn't be seen too far from the other. She would share her favourite hiding spots with him, and sometimes throw rocks at his bullies. He was a British immigrant, and was often teased for his accent, but he didn't need to worry about that with Jennifer, Miguel, Peter and Jessica. He felt happy with them. So knowing Jennifer was gone, sent his emotional state on a rollercoaster. He would help Miguel search the areas he was assigned too, and became more angry and restless. He didn't want to believe she was gone, and held out hope she would come back one day.

As time continued to pass, the less time the group had to spend with eachother, the more distant they became. Eventually, they too stopped holding on to their child-like hopes, as cruel reality set it for them. At the ages of 19, 17, and 16 respectively, the police, who had kept the investigation open in hopes Jennifer would be found, had to close the case and officially declare Jennifer Jameson legally dead. With no family members surviving, the town held a candlelight vigil for her and her family. Since they couldn't find a body, they had nothing to bury, so the vigil would serve as her funeral too.

The town held the vigil by Mr. and Mrs. Jameson's graves, who were buried side by side. Many of the elders placed teddy bears, flowers, and dolls by the picture of Jennifer with her family, her friends offered something a little more personal.