Treasured (Book Two)

Chapter 4: Makeout

As soon as the police arrive, they inspected the body and covered it with a white blanket. The audience, including Dad and Stacy, stood by as the doctors carried the body out of the gazebo and into ambulance.

They sadly watched the vehicle as it drove away. "Who was that?" I asked Stacy. Stacy looked at me with blurry eyes and sighed. "That was my half-sister, Ellen Lee." "Oh," I said softly. "How-" "Cole," Dad said. "Not now."

I ignored him. "Does your half-sister have any enemies or friends?" Stacy shook her head. "She was a loner," Stacy replied, staring at me. "Shouldn't the police ask me about this?" "They already have," I reminded. "Cole," Dad sighed. "You can't be involved with the police."

"And yet you were involve with another woman," I argued. "You know, behind Mom's back." Stacy looked appalled while Dad sucked his cheeks. He was about to say something until Luke grabbed my arm.

He took me outside of the gate and pulled me close. For an instant, I thought that he was going to kiss me. Not that I liked him or anything. "Cole," Luke began. "There is something that you should see." I nodded eagerly as he plucked out his Verizon.

On the screen was the photos of Ellen, lying on the ground. He zoomed it forward and showed it to me. It was a piece of metal inside of the wound. "Is it a knife?" I asked hopefully. Luke shook his head. "I don't know," Luke said. "The metal looks a bit small than a usual knife. I need to inspect this."

"Does the woman have a name?" "Yeah," I answered. "Her name is Ellen Lee and she was Stacy's half-sister." "Maybe we could ask her a couple of questions before the murder-" Luke suggested. "We can't," I sighed. "First of all, we are in a wedding. Second, if we keep asking her and her relatives more questions, then they will get uncomfortable."

"Great," Luke sighed. "And besides," I added. "My dad is watching me, like a hawk. What do we do?" "Check inside the house," Luke instructs. "See if there are any clues lying around." "Okay," I breathed. "I'll keep you posted. What are you going to do?" "Ask a favor," Luke replied. I gave him a puzzled look. Shrugging, I headed towards Stacy's house.

I checked just to be sure that no one saw me and twisted the knob. When the knob wouldn't turn, I moaned. All of a sudden, I thought of something. I removed my hair pin and shoved its tip into the lock. As I turned the knob, it opened, leaving a tiny squeak.

"Thank you eighth grade," I whispered to myself. I slipped into the door crack and closed the door behind me. The insides of Stacy's house has never changed. Wood was everywhere, from the floors to the walls. It looked as if it was a huge box or an attic. Covering the walls, were umbrellas, coats, and boots hanging from the racks.

In front of me was a wooden door. As I turned the knob, the door opened as if it was on cue. The living room has light brown wooden floors, a grand dining table, and a huge kitchen which much to my surprise, was covered in gray metal.

I walked carefully on the fragile wood, hoping that no one could hear my loud footsteps. I regretted my decision of wearing sneakers. I managed to tiptoe all the way until I reached the wooden staircase. After I crept up the steps, I found a large hallway.

But when I looked at the floorboards, I saw crimson dots scattered like marbles. Curious, I fished out my IPhone and took a couple of pictures of the floors. How did the blood get onto the floor? I wondered. I avoided the blood drops and followed the trail. Somehow, it lead me to Stacy's room.

Just when I was about to open the door, someone tapped on my shoulder. I recoiled at the touch. As I turned around, I saw Luke, panting. "Luke!" I hissed. "Have you went to Stacy's room?" Luke breathed. "Didn't you see me opening the door?" I asked, looking annoyed. "Anyway, what did you find out?"

"I enhanced the images," Luke began."And I saw something inside the wound. It was a point of a pen." "You're saying someone stabbed Ellen with a pen?" I asked in disbelief. Luke nodded. "How?" I asked. "With a lot of force," Luke began.

"Okay," I said slowly. "But even if it was some sort of a pen, who was using it?" "And why stab Ellen?" Luke asked. "For now," I said. "Let's try and list all the possible suspects." "Your relatives, Stacy's, Stacy, and your dad."

"It can't be my dad," I insisted. "Even though he is a cheater, he's still my dad." "Just in case," Luke replied. "We'll explain what we found, but first we need to get some Intel on my family," I said. "Way ahead of you," Luke snorted. "I hacked into the surveillance cameras and downloaded them into my laptop."

"But what about your 'helper'?" I asked. "Seth and Josh are on it," Luke said. "They're pickpocketing items that we need." I stared at him in confusion. "What?" Luke asked. "You used children that way?" I shrieked. "They want to help," Luke insisted. "Why?" I asked. Luke sighed. "They wanted your number," Luke admitted.

"You gave them my number?" I shrieked again. "I didn't like it either," Luke said in defense. "But they gave me no choice, and besides, you were going to kill me if I did it anyway." "Oh, thank you for the reminder!" I snapped, walking up to him.

"What is going on?" someone cried. The voice belonged to Stacy. We both looked at each other. "We need to hide!" Luke whispered. Her footsteps were banging against the steps. "It's too late for that!" I cried in frustration. "What do we do?" Luke asked. Stacy's footsteps were getting closer.

"I have an idea," I groaned. "But you are going to hate this." "What is it?" Luke asked impatiently. I leaned and kissed him hard on the lips. I shuddered at the taste. Has he been eating anchovies, lately? "Cole?" Stacy cried. After we parted, I slung my arm around his shoulder. "Stacy!" I cried. "Rude, much?" "What is this?" Stacy asked. "Uh, we're making out." I answered. "What?" Stacy asked. "Make out," Luke said. " It's when two people-"

"I know what that means," Stacy sighed. "It's just-" "I know that we have gotten on the wrong foot," I interrupted. "With my dad and you getting married, I have never told you what a confident woman you are." "Really?" Luke asked. "Really?" Stacy exclaimed. "Yeah," I continued. "So, I would appreciate it very much, if you wouldn't tell this to anyone."

Stacy nodded very eagerly as she puts a "key" on a "lock". "Great," I said. "Well, it's time to go." Luke and I held hands as we walked down the steps. After Stacy was gone, we let go of them. "We are never doing it again," I vowed. Luke nodded in agreement.