The Strange Case of Dr. Meadows and Kyle

THE BROKEN STATUE CASE

About a week later, the school was racked with another mystery. The local feminist club was allowed to place a women empowering sculpture in the main courtyard. The first sculpture had broken during its unveiling interview a month earlier, and the new statue suffered a similar fate. However, the new statue was broken in the middle of night in the presence of a handful of students. And unlike the first statue, the new statue was broken intentionally. The suspects to the crime said that a muscular man wearing sunglasses beat the statue with a two by four and then toppled the remaining parts of the statue onto the ground. They said the man yelled profanities at the shattered pieces then disappeared into the night.

Melanie heard sirens roaring a little after midnight, grabbed her voice recorder, and rushed into the school courtyard. Even without the testimony of the witnesses she knew immediately who had broken the statue. There were crushed energy drink cans scattered all over the courtyard and misspelled swear words covered a wall not too far from the statue.

The police were in the process of interviewing the suspects when Melanie forced her way into the conversation. She quickly informed the officers that the statue was the feminist club's 'vagina flower' statue and that she believed Kyle was responsible.

"We're going to have another feminist protest on our hands," one officer said to the other.

"Yeah, and to be honest, I'd rather deal with another homicide," the other officer said.

"What is wrong with you both," Melanie gasped, "Kyle might be getting away."

During the week Melanie discovered Kyle had found an apartment of his own on the north end of campus. The face of the apartment had windows covered with cardboard and duct tape, bricks were broken and missing along the corners of the building, and the front door had a screen which was torn in two. The rusted, black gate in front of the building made an eerie creaking sound as it swayed in the cool, gentle wind. And a mess of a woman, a prostitute or junkie of some sort, sat on the front steps asking for change to any passerby, including Melanie and the officers.

"Spare some money for an old woman," the wrinkled lady said, reaching out toward the officers.

"Put your hand down or I will taser you," the first officer said, placing his hand on his belt.

"I just want some money and I'll tell you everything you want to know about the angry man," the woman croaked.

"How do you know we're here to see an angry man?" Melanie asked.

"He came rushing through here with a worried look on his face less than an hour ago," the woman replied.

With that the officers and Melanie ran past the woman, who flipped them off, into the apartment building up to the third floor, and into Kyle's apartment. The apartment was a single room with the raggedy bed where a couch should be and broken appliances filled the kitchen. Energy drink can were scattered across the ground, although some were placed like trophies atop a single board poorly hammered into the wall above the television. Fresh holes and half fixed holes covered each wall in the room. And, sure enough, Kyle was gone. The only clue to his whereabouts was a photo he posted online of himself holding part of the statue, and riding a bus to an unknown destination.