The stairs

Chapter 9

Cassie joined up with Lex. He was curious about what Mark said. Cassie told him, as the two of them left the mall and walked towards the bus stand. Lex remained silent for while.

"Mark changed the second he heard that Robin was Lorna's ex. Something's off there. The best person to ask would have been Lorna, but..."

"Yeah, she's dead," said Cassie, "Mark doesn't want to talk to us, so I suppose..."

"Wait up, you two!" yelled Phillip behind them, running up the steps on the overhead crossing. 

He reached them, stopped, tried to speak, but had to stop because he was completely out of breath. Cassie wan't really surprised, since everything about him screamed of a sedentary lifestyle with insufficient sleep. 

"So what did you learn about the cameras?" asked Lex.

"They got nothing," gasped Phillip, "Weekend - no one at  - the office - security won't - let them - without permission - they gave up - after 5..."

"So, let's wait until Monday, then," said Cassie. 

"Or he could hack the system," suggested Lex, "you're a CS student, right? Can you hack it and find the video?"

Phillip was just managing to catch his breath, but he managed to glare at Lex nevertheless. "A, it has to be networked, and I'm not sure it is, and B, well, I have no idea where it is, and C, my specialty is image processing and I'm getting a little into AI, but it's not stealing the data to be processed."

"That's strange, the security office should have allowed them to check it. The security works around the clock and it's a murder case," said Cassie.

"You're assuming the security believed them," said Phillip, "Yeah, we're going to have to try on Monday. Or, we could tell Clark, and she'll just sail in and box the security guy until she gets what she wants. I have a feeling she's capable of it."

"Where are the others anyway?" asked Lex.

"Robin and Rosa are at the bus stand, and I think Mark and Beryl are planning to take a taxi. Let's let them leave, and take a later bus," said Cassie, "I don't want to be in a crowded bus with any of them right now. We'd be safer if they split up, but two of them are in the same vehicle, we won't be able to know who did it if they strike again."

"Yeah, we can't be too cautious," said Lex.

"Do you live in a single room, Cassie, Lex?" asked Phillip, as they reached the other side of the road.

"Why do you ask?" asked Cassie.

"You have friends you can stay with, right? Lex, you could stay with me if you want to, or go stay with a friend. If you're not coming over, I'll crash in the lab. Look, why don't all three of us crash in the lab? That's a lot safer than..."

"All they'd have to do is to gas us, or set the lab on fire, and all three of us will be dead in no time," said Cassie, "no, there is no need to change our sleeping arrangements. By the way, Anna sent me a text. They've sent the recording. Basically, Lorna was a regular customer. Mark also visited the shop regularly, and sometimes Rosa did, too. The cashier recognized Robin, but he apparently shows up with a bunch of friends if he shows up at all now, though he used to go there regularly with Lorna. Beryl is an irregular, but frequent customer."

"So again, it's basically anyone," said Lex, "What did she say about us?"

"Apparently, I never visit the shop, and neither do you, Lex, and apparently you weren't recognised, either, Phillip."

"Can't be helped, If I go there, it's because I was dragged there by friends," said Phillip, "and that hasn't happened in quite a while. Look, those two left by the same bus. Let's catch the next bus."

"Yeah," said Cassie. 

She was worried that both Rosa and Robin might not reach the campus alive, but given the other would be only one with a motive, Cassie didn't think either of them would be stupid enough. Soon, Lex started talking about a project he was doing for fun, and the other two joined in. The next bus came about fifteen minutes later, and the three of them took it.

Lex insisted that they stick together until they reached the dorms. Once they reached the dorms, the three split up. Cassie took a shower and changed into her pajamas, and crashed on her bed. She remembered that she hadn't bought dinner, but to do so, she'd have to get dressed again. Cassie wasn't that hungry, so she decided to skip dinner. 

She crashed on her bed, and opened Anna's email on her phone. The recording was sent as an attachment. She opened it and listened to it. The audio quality was abysmal. Still the recording simply confirmed what Anna's text had said. 

So far, the cyanide was taken from the lab. Cassie decided she had to study that lab on Sunday, once she was back from work. If it was on the ground floor, someone could have climbed in through one of the windows. If it wasn't, a window was still a possibility if the building had a balcony connected to another room.

The other problem was evidence. That was, more accurately, the police's problem, but if they reached different conclusions, Cassie had to find evidence to prove her case. Right now, she had no case.

After some half an hour of turning it over and over in her head, Cassie gave up. Just thinking about it wasn't going to help. She decided she'd get dressed and have dinner. She could take another look at the case the next morning.

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Cassie woke quite early on Sunday. She looked at her phone - it was two in the morning. She could sleep until seven. She didn't know why she woke up. She turned over, and she was just about to go back to sleep, when a sudden sound made her sit up. It was a high pitched sound, possibly a woman's scream, from quite far away. She looked at her phone again. It really was 2 in the morning.