Sisters Till Death

XX

     This is the second death. The second tragedy. The second murder.

     After a few minutes, Noki was being carried out of the cabin in a black duffel bag. A few more minutes after that, news reporters tried to force a recap of the night from me. But I couldn't do it. I couldn't. I wouldn't. I refused. I didn't want to remember Noki's face. I didn't want to reimagine the thick rope digging into her neck. I didn't want to conger up the feeling of hopelessness that pulled at my heart because there was nothing I could do about it. But I had to. Because a few more minutes after that the police brought me into the station for questioning.

     I sat in the colorless room. At the metal table. In the metal chair. In silence.

     The door swung open as two women officers in pantsuits walked in. They sat down in the two chairs that were directly across from me at the table. They had badges hanging on beaded chains around their necks. They had stern looks on their faces as they started to talk.

     "Hello," one of them started, "My name is Detective Simmons, and this is my partner, Detective Walsh."

     They reached their hands over the table one by one and I shook them, "Melena Norwood."

     "Ms. Norwood," Detective Simmons spoke again, "Can you possibly give me a recap of the events that took place tonight?"

     I stared down at the table blankly. What was I going to tell them? Do I tell them that she had been murdered or do I tell them that it's a coincidence?

     "Well," I started, uncertain of my words, "I got a phone call earlier this afternoon."

     "And what was this call pertaining to?" Detective Simmons asked.

     I hesitated for a second, then finally gathering words to speak, "The person told me to go to the cabin."

     "Do you know who this person is?"

     I sat there, then shook my head.

     "And what happened next?"

     "I got to the cabin." I said, "I looked around and...and..."

     "And what, Ms. Norwood?"

     A tear rolled down my cheek, but as soon as it did, I wiped it away with the sleeve of my shirt, "And there she was."

     "When you got there," Detective Simmons asked, "was she alive or dead?"

     "Dead." I answered.

     "So you get to the cabin and see that she had committed suicide—"

     "No." I quickly answered, a little sharper than intended.

     "No?" Detective Simmons asked.

     "She didn't commit suicide."

     Detective Simmons raised her eyebrow, crossed her arms, and sat back in the chair, "Explain it to me."

     "Someone knew that she was there. Yet they didn't call the police. Whoever called me knew she was dead. And probably killed her." I said.

     "The person could've possibly been scared, making them not want to call the police." She replied.

     "No." I said, "They told me to go to the cabin in a mocking voice."

     "Well maybe the person was trying to play a prank on you at the cabin, saw Noki's body there, got scared, and ran away." Detective Simmons suggested.