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Meghan

Meghan

Wait. This doesn't make any sense. Didn't we just see the murderer out for the McArty family being hauled away by the police?
Sure, it could have been an accident. Maria could have fallen out the window.

Although, I doubt it. The window was perfectly closed--it was a heavy glass window, the type that's really hard to open.

I remember leaning against it while I was waiting for Deanna to be able to talk to me. It was closed. I know it!

Maria never could never have the strength to open it to be able to fall out anyways. She's 3. Also, she can barely open her toy box, let alone a window I couldn't even open.

Besides, the window is out of Maria's reach. She couldn't have scaled the wall to reach a window two feet above her.

I gape out the window and stare down at the sidewalk in absolute horror. Maria's small, lifeless body was spread out on the hard concrete sidewalk without movement.

"How did this happen?" Deanna sputtered. "The only possible way Maria could have fallen out the window is if somebody pushed her. The only person capable of that is the guy that was just arrested. ARRESTED. Dragged away by two cops!"

"It might not have been the man," mom points out. "Could have been someone else."

"We're the only ones in this room that are awake!" I say. "Everyone else is asleep! The other people left before Maria wandered off!"

"Okay," mom huffs. "You don't have to bite my head off."

"Maybe...there's other people working with the man?" dad suggests. "Maybe they're all out for us. Perhaps there's more than one."

The thought of an entire gang of grown men out for my family sent chills up my spine. But that's probably what's true.

"Oh no," sobs Dee. "There could be so many other men out to kill us!"

"But, like, I said," I croaked softly. "We didn't see anyone else in the room."

"Meghan...these people killed your sisters," dad softly says. "Chloe was murdered five feet behind you, and you didn't even see it. These people are quick and crafty, Meg."

"No," I say. "Choe's death was my fault. She was killed five feet behind me, and I didn't turn around quick enough."

"What I'm saying is that they're sneaky," dad continues. "And capable of anything. They're getting away with much more than they should be. Murdered three people and no one saw them!"

"Then we need to be more careful," Deanna whispers, suddenly joining us. "Doctors just took Maria inside the hospital to get her checked out, and the police are on their way."
"Again," I mutter to myself.

I've seen the police so many times this month. Wherever I go they might as well have police officers holding a welcome banner with my name in big block letters on it.

Maria was pulled into the room in a cot, hurried by two doctors.

What if they're just like the man? Away in hiding, at the same hospital? Are they part of the 'kill the McArtys Gang'?

I know I'm just making myself paranoid. I know these doctors. They've been working here since I broke my wrist in second grade, and they're the nicest people my family knows.

"Doctor Tessi, will Maria survive?" mom asks, her voice filled with hope.

Doctor Tessi doesn't answer at first. She sort of hesitates and shoots mom a sad look, which isn't reassuring at all.

"It is unlikely she will live after such a tragic fall from that height," she says finally. "But we'll try our best, Mrs. McArty."

The other doctor, Doctor Jensen, grasped Maria's shoulder with his hand, and I could hear him whispering hopes that she would live.

We were no longer allowed to be in the hospital room due to hospital rules, so I sat in the waiting room and FaceTimed Emi and Tyo.

"Hey Meg," Emi says. "How are you doing? Are you good?"

"It looks like you've been crying," Tyo says with concern.

Then, I explain to them everything, about the bookshelf, the man, the arresting, and Maria falling out the window.

"The man that pushed a bookshelf onto Deanna...FLEW out the window?" Tyo asks in disbelief. "Like a bird, or like superman style?"

"We found more clues in the shed," Emi says as she digs around in her purse.

She pulls out a silver, worn out case bordered with thick black stripes.

"What's that?" I ask curiously as I examine the case in Emi's hand.

"We found it in the corner of the community shed," Emi says, slowly opening the case and pulling a small cloth pocket out from the top. "Wait until you see what's inside."

Emi lifts up a small beaded bracelet and a bright purple earring from the cloth pocket and shows it to me through the video chat.

"Recognize these?" Tyo asks, holding up the earring as Emi lifts up the bracelet. "It was in a box labeled 'McArty Tokens' in French. Emi knows french, so she told me what it says."
"Yeah, I recognize those," I tell them. "That bracelet is the one dad hand-made and gave Julia for her Sweet Sixteen. She cried when she saw it, even with all her friends watching. She loved it so much.

"That purple earring is the one dad had custom-made for Chloe when she won an academic school wide award. They're her favourite pair of earrings too, and there's no other pair like them on earth. Chloe wore them every single day.

"They cried tears of joy when they received them. They were so extremely happy, and they wore them every chance they got to."

Emi and Tyo stared at me in shock with raised eyebrows and dropped jaws.

"They would never store it in some musty old shed, I assume," Tyo states, eyeing the jewelry some more. "Since these are so special."

Suddenly, it dawns on me. Chloe and Julia would never just stuff them in an old case and toss it into some ancient community shed. They would store it in a bolt-lock box and hide in the back of their closets. They could be annoying at times, but my sisters aren't two careless idiots.

"You're right," I say. "They wouldn't do that. Those items are way too important to them. But...then why would they be there?"
"Maybe," Emi slowly says as she thinks. "That gang wanted to keep them. You know...like a trophy or a reward."

I stare at my phone screen for what seems like an eternity. Emi is probably right. But I didn't want to think about it.

"Sorry, guys," I sniff, blinking back another tidal wave of tears. "But I should go now. To check on Maria. Bye."

I quickly end the video chat with Tyo and Emi And click off my phone. Wiping away my tears, I sat and tried to push away the thought of the criminals keeping my sister's favourite belongings as nothing more than a trophy, or a reward.

The hospital staff finally let my family go and check on Maria, but I refused to go in. It was way too soon for me; I didn't want to be reminded of the accident that quickly.

With a long sigh, I just curled myself into a ball and sat there while the rest of my family went to Maria's hospital room.

A few minutes later, everyone in my family shuffled out of the room, their heads down. I braced myself for bad news.

"Maria didn't survive the fall," mom whispers mournfully.

My jaw dropped in shock and sadness as dad walked over to me.

"You and your friends continue your investigation," he whispered in my ear. "Find out who's doing this to our family."