A Deadly Sorority (Book #1 Sorority Horrors)

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Kayla: Kennedy, don't worry! I'm calling Detective Sterling now. 

Kennedy: Please keep me updated! I won't be able to eat or sleep otherwise. 

Kayla: I'll keep you updated. I promise.

I nervously paced back and forth across my bedroom. The rough, worn gray carpet snagging between my toes. The phone balanced on my shoulder, my heart thumping with each ring. It would be a miracle if Detective Johnson actually answered.

Disrupting my thoughts, the doorbell buzzed. My eyes widened.

Who could that be?

I quickly ended the call, realizing how useless and pointless it was to call Detective Johnson. I literally had tried one hundred times already.

Stepping out of my bedroom, I went to the front door. My steps echoed throughout the silence of the house. Peering through the peephole, I saw none other than my former roommate and best college friend, Lorena. Two suitcases planted on each side of her while she stood on the front porch. I unlocked the bottom and top locks, and while doing so, butterflies swarmed in my stomach as a sense of giddiness washed over me.

"Lorena!" I shouted happily. A smile hastily formed on her face, and her eyes lit up with happiness.

"Kayla!" She wrapped her arms around me, giving me a tight and warm hug, "It's been forever!"

"I know, it has," I replied as she released her arms from around me, "Come inside."

Lorena lifted up her suitcases, strolling them inside. Their wheels rattled as she rolled them onto the hardwood floor.

"Let me show you where you'll be staying." I gestured for her to follow me.

She raised her eyebrows, "Why is it so quiet? Where's your Mom?

"Oh, she's out of town visiting her sister, my aunt Della."

"Ah, Ok." Lorena replied, "Maybe we should host a party." She laughed mischievously, "Don't you miss our party days back in Irinve. We had so much fun!"

Lorena was the ultimate party girl. She was the one who would drag me out barhopping or partying with the hippest fraternity.

"No parties," I replied, slightly joking, "I mean, I do miss partying and barhopping while we were down in Irvine. But honestly, we need to focus on digging up the truth about Steve and determining who the Crimson Lake Killer could be."

"I was only joking," Lorena replied, her eyes veering down in shame, "I know we need to stay focused."

"So, what's the plan?" I inquired, plopping down on Mom's brown couch.

Lorena's eyes widened in excitement, "We have to go down to the prison and meet with Albert Schiff." She said, plopping down on the couch beside me, "He's harboring a ton of information that just might lead us to discover the identity behind the Crimson Lake Killer."

My eyebrows shot up curiously, "What about Steve? Do you think he has information on Steve?"

Lorena shook her head, "No, I highly doubt it." Her lips now a straight line, in a serious tone, she continued, " He doesn't have any information on Steve or anybody else for that matter, so don't get your hopes up. However, I'm sure he knows who's behind the murders -I'm betting a hundred bucks he knows who the Crimson Lake Killer is."

"I'm dreading this visit. Only because the son of a bitch killed my father!" I admitted as a heatwave of anger rose within me, "He took someone special from me. Someone who I couldn't even develop a relationship with because I was a baby." A tear slid down my cheek.

Lorena's mouth curved into a frown. "I'm sorry, Kayla, but look at it this way: if we want to end this madness and prevent other families from suffering like yours, we have to find out who the lunatic behind CLK is. Meaning, we must visit Albert Schiff."

I sighed, "Yeah, you're right." I nodded.

Kayla gently patted my back.

"How far away is this prison from my house?"

Lorena shrugged, "Let's go grab something to eat and talk about it."

***

Lorena and I found ourselves at a dive bar called the Moonlight Den, nestled right in the heart of Sedona. I had always passed by this place on my way to the grocery store or the local mall, never imagining that one day I'd be inside, sipping a martini and discussing our plan to take down a serial killer.

Gazing around the establishment, I noticed the place was dingy and run-down. The patrons seemed like regulars. You know the old, drunken men playing pool, another older man putting coins in a jukebox, and a few older women with dyed hair brushing up against them, looking for companionship.

Lorena and I hopped on the barstools and sat in front of the bartender. A woman who appeared to be in her 30s. Her black hair was cut into a short bob, framing her heart-shaped face, and she wore a black tank top and bright red lipstick.

"What can I get you guys?" She inquired, her eyes staring at us impatiently as if she had been waiting for our response for hours.

"I'll have a Martini in a cute little glass," Lorena replied with a smile.

"I'll have the same, minus the cute little glass." I laughed.

The bartender smiled, "It'll be right up!"

"So, how are we gonna plan this visit to Albert?" I asked, turning my head to face Lorena as she sat next to me.

She let out a long breath, "We can pretend we're investigative reporters."

I gazed up at the ceiling as I pondered on it.

"Two martinis," the bartender announced, placing a red napkin in front of me and another in front of Lorena. Then, she set down two cute glasses on the napkins, each with a tiny umbrella straw inside.

Lorena's eyes drifted down to the martini resting on the bar in its cute little glass as she had requested, complete with the perky little umbrella. "Oh my gosh, I love it!" she exclaimed, smiling. "So cute!" she gushed as if gazing at a newborn puppy.

"Let me know if I can get you two anything else." The bartender smiled, "I'm Trisha, by the way. Trisha Schiff."

The smile on Lorena's face immediately disappeared, only to be replaced by a serious and intense stare.

"Trisha Schiff?" Lorena asked, her eyes locked into Trisha's.

Trisha nodded, "Yeah, why?" she smirked.

"Are you related to Albert Schiff?" Lorena inquired.

Trisha's eyebrows shot inward as a surge of anger overtook her. "That's none of your damn business!" she snapped, her voice rising.

"Look, we don't mean any harm," I assured her, trying to keep things calm. "We're just curious, that's all."

"Why?" she demanded, her tone sharp.

"We're actually writing a story about him," Lorena said, her voice steady. "We find him... intriguing."

Trisha's neck jerked back in surprise, her eyes widening. "Really? You're writing a story about my uncle?"

In that moment, Trisha unknowingly gave herself away. We now had all the information we needed. Albert Schiff was her uncle.

Lorena nodded, playing it cool. "Yeah, we heard about his killing spree in Phoenix back in the early 2000s," she said casually. "He sounded like a real killer."

Trisha's expression shifted, and she nodded slowly. "Yeah, it's too bad he was so psychotic. My mom told me that, growing up, he was really smart and excelled in science. My grandparents thought for sure he was going to be a doctor." She looked down, her lips curling into a frown.

"So, he's really your uncle?!" Lorena inquired, shock evident in her tone.

Trisha nodded, folding her arms across her chest, "Yep, Albert Schiff is indeed my uncle. Unfortunately."