Double Faced Twins

Chapter 17

Detective Sam Kidwell

I've been having a slow morning, so I'm getting caught up on paperwork. It's not my favorite thing to do, but it's a necessary evil. After an hour of paperwork, I practically beg my phone to ring with a case. It startles me when it does ring.

"Detective Kidwell," I answer.

"Detective, this is Officer Hart. I'm on the scene of a missing person's case that concerns me. The victim's sister made a 911 call at 9:15 a.m. The victim has only been missing for about 24 hours, but the scene shows that there was a struggle," she explains.

"Give me the address. I'll be right there." I assure the officer. I gladly leave my paperwork and make my way to my vehicle.

As a young boy, crime has always intrigued me. Whenever my parents would lose or misplace something, I was on the case. I would collect information by asking them when they realized the item had gone missing and would take my notepad to take notes as they told me their steps since the item went missing. I would backtrack their steps till I found the thing. I'm pretty sure that they placed "missing" items around the house just for me to play out my detective game.

Damn, I miss them. My parents retired last year and have been traveling the country in a camper. We speak once a week, and they fill me in on where they've been, where they are, and where they're going. They're having the time of their lives, and I look forward all week to our call.

Rush hour is over, so traffic is light. I arrive at the large brownstone and see a couple embracing on the front lawn. Officer Hart is guarding the front door. I can see neighbors peaking out of their windows or blatantly standing on their porches, watching unashamedly. I park and get out of my car.

I nod my acknowledgment towards the officer, then walk towards the couple. I take out my notepad. "Hello, Detective Kidwell; I'm sorry we have to meet under these circumstances."

I reach out my hand, and the young woman takes it. "Hello, my name is Faith Henson, and this is my, um, boyfriend, Benson Easton."

I notice that the man, Mr. Easton, smiles lovingly at Miss Henson, and she blushes. I shake hands with Mr. Easton. His name rings a bell, but I can't quite place it.

"Miss Henson, could you please tell me everything from the last twenty-four hours, starting with the last time you saw your sister?"

She takes a deep breath before she speaks, "Yesterday morning, Benson informed me that journalist Lance Crawford's Entrepreneur magazine article about young successful businessmen and women painted my sister and me in a negative light. Benson's parents are lawyers, so he called them to meet with us to review our options. My sister got called out of the meeting by our intern. I haven't seen or heard from her since. I left the office after the meeting with Benson, and we spent the day and night together. I texted Grace yesterday, telling her that I needed a ride to the office this morning. Benson's driver drove me home this morning, and I entered my home through the garage. That's when I saw our destroyed home, and I realized that Grace was missing. She wouldn't have gone anywhere without me, and her car is still in the garage."

Tears are now streaming down her pretty face, and her boyfriend pulls her close to him protectively. Lucky guy.

"Now, before you get upset by my question, please know I must ask this question. It doesn't mean that I think either of you two is involved. Okay?" They both nod in understanding, so I ask my question. "I know you mentioned that you were together since you left your office yesterday. Where exactly did you go, and can anyone verify your location?"

Mr. Easton speaks up, "When we left Double Faced..."

I interrupt, "Double Faced?"

He continues, "It is the name of Faith and Grace's advertising business."