Panic Room

Chapter 2

This teenage girl didn't look unusual in the least, far from it actually.  She was cute, but not pretty enough for her to be noticed by many boys.  She wore some makeup, foundation and black eyeliner.  She had long wavy brown hair that reached down to her hips, it was usually adorned with a bow of some sort or maybe a headband.  Today it was a baby pink headband that dug into her head uncomfortably.   She was wearing a plain pastel yellow T-shirt with some blue jeans, these both were clean seeing as how she just bought them a week ago.  She wore her (not so) white Reeboks today, she had recently changed her plain white shoelaces in for some sparkly rainbow ones.  Though her shoes had mud on them it was just proof of her many 'adventures'. 

Nikki was a very adventurous person.  Too adventurous, her mother used to say.  She was usually seen inside on her computer doing research for her newest mysteries. Her computer wasn't the best or the fastest computer but it was hers.  It was a Dell laptop with some cat stickers on it, a 'present' from her baby sister.  She couldn't stay mad at her for long though,  she was just a baby after all.  

Her mysteries consisted of strange occurrences in her neighborhood.  One of the best ones was the case of the missing calico, though the solution really was a sad one...  One of the neighborhood dogs got a little too hungry.  Nikki found that out in only two days opposed to the owners two weeks of looking for her beloved Mittens. 

Today you could find Nikki outside in her neighborhood.  She was looking for a new mystery to take on, preferably one that would take a week or so.  As she was walking around she saw one of her neighbors on their steps crying.  He had an envelope in his hands.  He was looking at it blankly as tears poured out his bloodshot eyes.  Nikki walked over to him.   

"Mr. Bradly?  What's wrong..."  She asked curiously. 

"They got her.  They got my Delilah." He said quietly.  He then held up something, it seemed to be a necklace with a Ruby on it.  Nikki recognized it as his daughters necklace.  A couple of minutes passed until she connected the dots.  Her own eyes started to sting as she thought about his twenty year old daughter.   Nikki felt hot tears stream down her face.   She quickly wiped it off and hugged her elderly neighbor.

"I'm so sorry for your loss..." She said while patting his back, trying her best to soothe him.  He waved her away and handed her the, now empty, envelope he had in his hands.  

"I know you're into mysteries and such, and I know how much you have been trying to get your hands on one of these for your 'research'... My daughter would have wanted you to have this."  He said as he looked at her kindly.  "Now I have to go clean up my house." He got up slowly and was able to stand up without trouble as he slowly wobbled into his creaky home.