The Perfect Date *Completed*

Day 38

The sound of a thousand voices echoing against each other filled the air. Reporters from all the stations possible where shouting against the barricade of policemen who tried to keep them at bay by merely blocking their way into the station.

But the reporters were insatiable with their endless questions and querulous remarks. They were like vultures hanging on the edge of chief inspectors every word and shooting questions before he could even finish his sentence.

When DI Morgan; the inspector in charge of the investigation took over, the media went into a frenzy, throwing questions after question.

"Is it true that Olivia Henderson was murdered and buried in a lake?"

"Do the police have any leads, any possible suspects?"

"Is there a serial killer on the loose?"

"Can the police comment on the leaked information of the dead girl found in Lake Nockamixon two days ago?"

"Is the dead girl missing person Olivia Henderson?"

When the detective cleared his throat to speak everyone fell dead silent. The eager reporters were perched over each other, each inching closer to catch every detail.

"I suppose since it's now out in the open there's no point denying it but it will be better if you hear the truth from us instead of unknown sources on the internet. It has been recently confirmed that the person found in Lake Nockamixon two days ago is Olivia Henderson," the detective spoke slowly and clearly like he was spelling out for school children.

When he paused their voices buzzed through the air again but this time it was more desperate, more frenzied. They sounded like a bunch of locusts that just wouldn't stop humming to a point where it became deafening.

It was sheer mania all because an article of a dead person found in that lake was published two days ago on an online website. An article which soon went viral not only because of its content but because of the graphic photos it displayed of a human body lying on the mud with pale skin that was severely wrinkled by prolonged exposure to water and dark soulless eyes that stared unseeingly to heaven.

Ben sat in the waiting room staring at the scene before him. He had arrived a few hours earlier when the detective called him. By then he already knew the Olivia Henderson case was now a homicide case but it was what the detective told him after that made the bile rise up to his throat and his insides twist with panic.

To Ben the voices were all a blurr, a small buzz in his ear, a welcome distraction to the silence in his room and the town hall. He could only imagine what was going on in the Greenberg's minds at the moment. Obviously they mourned for the girl but they were definitely thinking of Samantha. About whether she had suffered the same fate.

He knew this because he had thought the exact same thing when he read the article online. He knew he should have been with them right know, giving them the support they needed. But he just couldn't look them in the eyes. Especially not after what DI Morgan had told him earlier that evening.

Ben noticed the room had fallen silent again and he looked up to see the detective had risen his hand to indicate he was going to speak.

"I can assure everyone here that we are doing the best we can to solve this case as soon as possible. I am sorry but for now we are unable to disclose any information about the investigation. And I would like to ask the public to not buy into any other articles that may surface on the internet before going through us first. Thank you." And with that the detective turned around and motioned for the other officers to close the doors on the reporters.

He walked towards Ben all the while cursing under his breath. "Darn reporters, couldn't they wait for the press release? All because of that stupid article. Ducain! Get me our IT guy, ask him to track down that bloody website and shut the damn thing down."