How to Kill a Man in Thirty Seconds

Chapter 35: Winter is Here

"I'm sorry you had to see that," Kimberly said to me later that night.

She had seen me seated on the stairs, oblivious to the conundrum that the party had become and my eyes red with tears I had shed once the haze of shock had passed away. They had carried his body out in a stretcher, mopped up his blood off the tiled floor like it was vomit from a bad night out.

Good to know at least your sense of humour isn't dead yet.

The words I had said to Caleb during our last encounter crossed my mind. He had laughed. They haunted me now.

"You're sorry I had to see that? Or sorry that it happened?" my voice was hoarse, my tone unforgiving.

Kimberly's face was morose, "I wasn't in charge of the arrest, Charley." Her hand touched my shoulder in an effort to comfort, and I felt myself stiffen. "I promise I'll have it investigated, okay? That's all I can do. He jumped for the officer's gun. I'll do what I can."

My gaze flickered to the detective. Kim's expression was earnest, her eyes mirroring my despair. My heart sank; I nodded.

"So in the end, it was bribery they charged Val for, not murder?"

Valeria may not have deserved the pain she felt tonight. Her brother certainly had not. Selfishly enough, that didn't mean I could ignore the suspicions I had of her.

Kim sighed, "She's not responsible for your father's death, Charley."

"And you're sure?"

"She was at a party when it happened. She has hundreds of people able to alibi both her and her brother out."

"And you're certain nobody else did it for her?"

There was a heavy sigh from the detective, "There's no evidence, Charley. No evidence of them ever making contact in the years before the murder. No reason for their hate to rekindle. No evidence of her ever paying a hitman. Thus, no reason for her to kill him."

"Who is it then?" I replied, and I too sensed the desperation that had seeped into my voice.

Kim looked sadly at me.

"Someone besides her."

I sat there, long after Kimberly had left, reality slowly beginning to sink in. Valeria was not the culprit. I had been wrong all along.

I had no leads and now Caleb was dead.

Maybe Brian had been right. I was just a kid. What could I possibly do that the police couldn't?

My heart sank in my chest. I imagine it was the feeling one gets when stuck in quicksand. You struggle to move, to rise a bit higher but the more you fight, the deeper you sink, the floor beneath you giving away, and all you can do is watch, helpless.

I was sinking.

I looked up at the sight of Isaac sitting down beside me. He too was in apparent shock. The colour had drained from his face, and he was morose.

You think Isaac and Sam are the angels they pretend to be? Caleb's final words echoed in my mind. What had he meant by that?

We stared ahead of us in silence, and despite everything, I took solace in his presence. There were only a few partygoers that remained now, and they were huddled close in mourning.

"They were together," I finally blurted out.

Isaac's gaze shifted to me, "What?"

"Val and Caleb. They were together. Val kicked him out. I overhead everything."