The Sun In Her Eyes

Chapter One 🩸 - A Bloody Welcome Home

The bloodred Mercedes SUV sat idle for almost an hour. Its bright lights lit the bluish board with proud and bold letters 'WELCOME TO SILVERREST'.

She grew up in this town, where everyone knew each other and the boy next door was the quarterback. But she had left during high school and hasn't been back since. She had heard though that the town had grown considerably in the past years.

The population has grown and it's now home to a lot of other people. Alana supposed she was glad for that change, she didn't think she could handle condolences even if it's been seven years since she lost her mother. Her hands tightened on the wheel, this town was her mother's hometown and the best place according to her.

Currently, though, it felt like a glass museum of memories. She would see her mother everywhere and then her grief would blossom again. And she had tried so hard not to let it see the sunlight ever again.

"This was a bad idea," She muttered. She made a swift U-turn and it was halfway complete when her phone rang, startling her. She did not even have to check the caller ID to know who it was, it was her special ring. "Hmm?" She answered the phone through her car speakers.

"Don't even think about it!" Tessa Blake's voice ordered firmly.

For the first time that day, Alana cracked a half-amused smile. "Don't even think about what? " She asked, checking outside her windows for any signs of her best friend. Although it was dark outside and the only light was coming from her car.

"Attempting a U-turn! It's time to come home, Lana. Come on, I am closing up the shop. Pick me up in five?"

Alana could hear her best friend's expectant answer from the way she held her breath. "Alright, I will be there."

"Good. I will be waiting on the front porch," Tessa said happily before she hung up.

Alana wished she could share her sentiments. Taking a deep breath, she pulled the car into drive and passed the welcome sign. The sky rumbled when she did and faint lightning could be heard from miles.

Alana tried not to think about anything else but her current situation. At around ten minutes to seven, Alana parked outside Tessa's shop. Tessa was an esteemed florist and has been making a decent income for years. She was surprised not to find Tessa waiting for her out in front like she promised. The shop seemed locked and the light was off.

Unplugging her phone, Alana decided to call her. If it was going to rain tonight, she preferred she was in bed, all warm and cosy. She answered on the second ring, her voice sounding panicky, definitely not the sure Tessa that she had talked to a mere minutes ago. And she parrotted into the phone without breathing.

"Tessa, calm down. What do you mean you have been arrested?" Alana asked, aghast.

"They say I am their prime suspect or something," Tessa cried, "Anyways get here fast, please! I told them you are my emergency contact. And Lana, I called Sawyer as well."

Then she hung up. It was so Tessa to cause chaos, drop a bomb like that and then cut the call. The rumbling sounded closer and the sky was illuminated by purple lights. It was definitely going to rain and Alana doubted she would get some sleep.

Sawyer Raid. He was what Tessa called Alana's epic love. They started dating freshman year, and Alana fell fast for him. He was every girl's dream with his sandy brown hair that fell into his eyes and his eyes - hazel eyes that seemed to light up whenever she was around. She had fallen hard for those eyes.

He was her first in everything - her first love, her first boyfriend and the first one to deflower her.   And then he turned around and broke her heart into a million pieces right before her parents whisked her out of town. And now she was going to see him, on her first night back in town. Great!

She drove towards the police station, her heart hammering in her chest. Suddenly she felt apprehensive about the whole ordeal. She felt it before she drove into town, something had changed. A lot had changed, she felt it in the air. But so had she, she wasn't the same, ordinary Alana Everhart.

She parked her car in one of the parking spots reserved for civilians. The air had gotten chillier and the sky even stormier,  she pulled her jacket tighter around herself and hurried into the police station. There was a massive change to the station, almost the entire building was covered by glass now and it was at least four stories high. I guess it was an upgrade that came with the growth of the town.

Alana followed all the signs that led towards the offices, where all questioning was done and there were a few holding cells. The last time they had been to a police station together was when Alana had crashed Tessa's father's new car. He was so angry he suffered a mini heart attack.

The office was packed with lots of civilians being questioned. Alana didn't recognise half of them, she tried to see past the sea of people, hoping to spot a head full of honey-blonde waves. Being short wasn't helping as she had to increase her height to see past people's heads.

"Lana!"

Someone shrieked her name and she turned to find her best friend. Her face transformed with pure happiness at seeing her as though she wasn't just arrested and being interrogated at the moment. Alana rushed by her side where she was pulled into a tight embrace.

"Thank goodness, you are here!" Tessa cried into her hair.

"It's not like you gave me much of a choice," Alana complained. Tessa laughed, finally releasing her.

Alana smiled at seeing her best friend. She was still the gorgeous cheerleading captain alright. Her beauty was as timeless as she once claimed when they were teens. But something lurked behind those chocolate brown eyes of hers.

"Are you her lawyer?" A gruff voice made both girls look up. The officer's eyes widened considerably when he took in the other girl in front of him. "Alana?" he asked, shocked.

"Hello, Eric," Alana responded stiffly. Eric was Alana's bully in middle school,  she never forgave him for the hell that he had put her through. He had left before Tessa moved into town. It's no wonder they didn't know each other well.

Tessa raised an eyebrow at the brisk greeting but Alana ignored her. She trained her eyes on Eric, reminding herself that she should focus on the presence and not the past. "So what is she in for?" she asked intently.

Eric seemed a little disappointed at the lack of excitement from the girl. He cleared his throat and his face turned solemn, "Murder."

There was a stunned silence at first. And then Alana began laughing, and Tessa joined in. Eric sat there looking confused. The two best friends stopped laughing abruptly before he could process what was happening.

"What?" They both asked simultaneously. 

Eric looked from Alana to Tessa and sighed heavily. He opened his drawers and removed pictures, "Brace yourselves," he warned. And then he dropped the photos in front of the girls and they stared. 

"A bloody welcome home, Lana," Tessa said, her voice tight and without a trace of humour at all.

"Shit," Was all Alana said.