A murderous summer

Chapter 14

She was sitting in the backseat of a patrol car, a heavy blanket around her shoulders. She watched the police going everywhere. She touched with her fingertips the bandage a paramedic had done. Her scratches itched a lot. Once her wounds cleaned, the paramedic had turned to the victim. They got the stretcher up after placing the body in a body bag. They took the stretcher to the ambulance. Joelle closed her eyes and sobbed. Her parents would be here soon, as her friends. Marco came first. He joined the girl and took her in his arms to comfort her while crying too. They wept together for a moment.

"I'm really sorry..." Joelle sobbed. "I... I couldn't do it..."

"It's not your fault," Marco said, wiping his cheeks. "Nobody can do it on the first time."

"I tried to warn him, but he didn't hear. And I attacked him."

"Have you managed to hurt him?"

Joelle shook her head. She heard the voices of her parents discussing with the police. Then they headed towards the. The officer joined them, accompanied by her parents. He asked them all some questions about their friend's habits. Joelle gave him a description of the murderer, but refused to reveal how she could have seen him. The inspectors Brennan and Nolan asked her too. They wanted to know how she could give a description of the murderer without have actually been there. They surely couldn't believe her if she told them about her dreams. She was good for the asylum!

"You know you should not hide to us what you know" inspector Nolan said in a tone that would surely be a little threatening. "And you have to tell the truth. Were you with your friend when it happened?"

She didn't answer.

"How do you explain all your scratches?" Brennan asked, crossing his arms.

Her mother frowned slightly, pushing the blanket to know what the inspector was talking about. The girl tightened the blanket around her, glaring at the inspector who now was on her case.

"Why you don't want to leave her alone?" her mother retorted, passing an arm around her shoulders. "My daughter has just found the body of a friend!"

"I know," Noland said, "but..."

"She's going through a very difficult time and you don't seem to understand it."

"We just want to explain..."

"There's nothing to explain, inspector. My daughter was in her room. We assumed she was resting. She suddenly went out."

The girl couldn't believe it. Her mother took her defense and had given her an idea.

"I was suffocating," she said. "I had to get out, get some air. I ran to the bike path, crying."

"And your scratches?" Brennan asked.

"I stumbled while running through the forest. I think I cut my hand on a stone."

Inspector Nolan noted everything on his little notebook. He asked her why she had refused to talk to them before her mother's intervention. She shrugged.

"I didn't like your accusatory tone."

"Are we done?" her mother intervened. "My daughter needs to rest."

"We will contact you if necessary."

The girl stood up. Her mother went to join her father.

"The description," Brennan began," how can you be certain because your friend was dead when you found him?"