Woodsfield

Chapter 2: The Body

Song - Laughing On The Outside
~
Berdanette Carol

Woodsfield High was calm once again. No big incident had happened since September 4th, and it was now the twelfth. It wasn't that people didn't notice that Ally was still missing, but it was more an instance where the lack of bad news was seen as good news. But the good tidings had yet to last, as later that day the situation with Ally would take a turn for the worse.

Ally's disappearance had died down quite a bit, if you exclude the ever so often whispers as you walk down the hall. In some aspects, it had almost gotten worse. One week ago, most people could have easily brushed off the incident as an act of teenage rebellion. However, people were beginning to get frantic after a week of Ally missing.

In her place as queen bee was Natalia Smith, one of Ally's former best friends. If you were to ask almost any student at Woodsfield High, they would say the spot of queen bee was a good enough motive for Natalia, but we all had our suspicions, mine included. And it was on that same day that those who didn't yet suspect someone for the cause of Ally's disappearance, would.

It was right after second period that it happened. The time period in which at least a few of the many questions having to do with Ally's disappearance were answered. It was all thanks to a guy named Jacob Weston.

As students flooded into the school that eerie morning and headed to class, one person in particular lingered for a longer period of time. The name of this person was Will Ashton, a previously mentioned friend of Becka's and mine. And it wouldn't be until some time later that we would figure out what he was up to from eight to nine 'o clock, or if he had any involvement in the disappearance of Ally Bridgewood.

~~~~

Will, a guy, probably quite high up on the social ladder, skipped first period on September twelfth. His whereabouts? That's where things get kind of peculiar. None of us thought of Will as able to do what he did, but I guess that's what people do when they're worried about being caught up in a situation, especially when that situation is Ally Bridgewood's alleged murder.

Not until weeks, maybe months later would we know the full story, but today we knew all that we thought we needed: Carol Woods spotted Will  behind the school trying to hide Ally's body in a dumpster.

Before any of us knew what had happened, school was let out early, several police cars had littered the area, and Will was sent to the police for questioning. Will Ashton. Will who we thought could do no wrong, beloved by the entire high school. Behind caught up in a case as serious as a murder.

The following days of school were dark times, although we all supposed that we were safe, as Ally's murderer was caught, I guess that we all still had an ounce of hope that Ally was still out there. And now we knew the truth, that she wasn't. Ally's supposed friends didn't seem that affected, probably because it ensured their spots as rulers of the school, or possibly because they had something to do with it. Either way, though, Will was in jail, paying for someone else's dirty work or his own. No one was really sure which one they hoped it would be; none of us hoped that Will was truly the culprit, but then again, if he wasn't, who was?

~~~~

Will got released from jail just two days later. There was no solid evidence that he did it, but he could be charged with tampering with evidence. Either way, the whole school obviously avoided him, me included. Thinking back on it now, it was a selfish thing to do; this guy, who we had been friends with our whole lives, we just immediately pinned as a murderer. That was, until we would obtain further leads on the crime, but until then, our greatest suspect would remain to be Will Ashton.

The autopsy got back to the police two days later, and according to Tallie White, daughter of chief of police, it was confirmed that Ally's death took place on September fourth. How she was killed? By gun, apparently. We couldn't get Will to talk, since he seemed too shaken up by the entire incident. He'd refuse to look any of us in the eyes, and had been going out of his way to avoid us lately. Maybe it was guilt, or maybe it was something else.