Dancing With Murder

Begin Again

I rolled out of bed and onto the floor, I was still trying to wake up and get ready for school. It was an endless battle and right now I was losing. My thick brown hair hung down in my face and I sighed. I might as well get up, if I didn't get up before my parents then they would freak out. Ever since Amber DeCastle was murdered every parent in Salem, Oregon was scared.

Giving up I climbed off the floor and over to my closet. I pulled out a plain green t-shirt and a pair of worn jeans. After getting dressed I headed downstairs to the kitchen. There was still some cocoa puffs left so I poured the rest in my bowl. As I was finishing my bowl my mother walked in. She was decked out in some business suit that she had found on her last trip into New York. "A lawyer always has to look her best," was what she would always say.

Still tired I grabbed my backpack and hurried out the door and unlocked my bike. Hopping on I dashed down the street and was soon rolling up to the school's parking lot. My best friend Jemma was waiting for me at the bike rack and gave me a huge grin.

"Hey I was waiting for you." I rolled my eyes.

"Clearly." I smiled and finished locking my bike up. "What's up?"

"We're still planning on ransacking the entire neighborhood this Halloween, right?"

"Well." She noticed my pause and raised her eyebrows. "It's just that this whole murder thing has my parents jumpier than ever." I rubbed the back of my head. "I'm afraid that they won't let us go."

"Hey they can't do that!" Jemma screeched.

"Quiet!" My hands flew to her mouth and she glared.

"Sorry." She mumbled. I nodded. "Let's get inside, the bell's going to ring nay minute." We hurried inside and split up to go to our other classes. The classes passed in a blur and I could barely remember what I had for lunch. The final bell had soon rung and dismissed us. I slowly made my way over to my bike and was surprised to find a note attached to the handles. Glancing around I decided that there was no one near and ripped the note off. Sliding it into my back pocket I took off down the street heading over to my favorite place in the woods.

The path I took was bumpy and covered with crunchy Fall leaves. My bike sped along moving with the ups and downs of the trail, the wind blowing gently in my face. Ever so gently I eased on the brakes as I came upon a huge oak tree. Shading my eyes I looked up and saw my tree house hidden among the branches and what was left of summers leaves. I stuffed my bike under a large bush and shimmied up the tree. There were some leaves dancing on the floor and I pulled the note out of my pocket.

Hello my dear, I hope that your day has been wonderful. I wish you luck on this journey that I shall set out for you. Little clues will guide you to the answer that you seek.

One hand reaches and the other comes to a halt. Tears stain it's face, making it want to run, but it's roots have stopped. Help it's blood flow and you will be able to find the next clue.

Allow your dreams and imagination to soar, you dearest watcher.

I flipped the note over and stared at it. What the hell? Shrugging I lifted up one of the floorboards and placed the note inside. When it talked about hands and a face it must mean a clock. The tears may be rain and the blood must be it's gears. There was an old great clock tower in the center of town, but what did it mean by roots? I sat back against the wood of the tree house and sighed. Suddenly there was the sound of crunching leaves. I slid over of the boards and scanned the area. About ten feet away there was a group of guys walking in my direction. My hand flew to my hidden floor board and I moved it to grab my BB gun. The boys were no below me and I held my breath. They were joking and laughing like a bunch of idiots.  I recognized one of the boys as the head of the soccer team. He was taller and stronger than me and could probably climbed up the tree like I did. So far no one had noticed me and I planned on keeping it that way.

"Man I am so freaking bored." One of the boys said. Another one laughed and threw a rock at him. They started to horse around when one of them shoved another onto the ground.

"Oh cool, check out that tree house!" I ducked as they all looked up in my direction.

"How do we get up there?" One of the boys asked.

"How else, climb."