A Murder Like No Other...

Countless faces, numerous points of views…

Either everyone is telling a lie or their own versions of truth…

“Last time we spoke, about the call… You denied even knowing Emily, stating that she was ‘just a classmate’ but her diary had a completely different story to tell!” Sheriff Fred Williams asked being frustrated. Before him sat on the chair, a boy with moss green eyes and brown hair of seventeen years, he had a sharp jaw-line and an irritated smirk. The room in which the boy and the Sheriff sat, was almost empty expect for the table which was placed right in the middle of the room. Adjacent to the table, there were two chairs on opposite sides where the boy and the Sheriff sat.

“Look sheriff…” the boy said almost arrogantly “I don’t know why she took my name on that call… I wasn’t there. I already have witnesses to prove that. And neither do I have any idea about what was written in that bloody diary…” he sounded confident “I didn’t know Emily… There was nothing going on between me and Emily! I have a girlfriend, you can ask anyone!” Sheriff Fred Williams stared in his eyes but the boy didn’t even flinch. As the days passed, the mystery around Emily’s murder was getting darker.

         Before Sheriff Williams could ask another question, there was a knock on the door. Some other officers entered the room and whispered something in Sheriff Williams’ ear. “You may go now…” the sheriff said being irritated. The boy chuckled and got up from the chair in an insultingly graceful manner. “-This is far from over,” Sheriff Williams said trying to suppress his irritation. The boy moved towards the door unaffected and when he placed his hand on the door knob, he said firmly “-My answers aren’t going to change…” He then halted as if deciding whether or not to say something. “-Until next time Sheriff.” He said swinging the door behind him.

         “Dammit!” Sheriff Williams said banging his fist on the table in front of him. “Every time I try to extract information out of this boy, he is somehow released from my custody…He knows something… The more his lawyer tries to protect him, the stronger my doubt becomes…” He opened the file kept in front of him and started flipping through the pages “I don’t even believe for a minute that Emily was just another classmate of his! Everybody is hiding something, everyone has a secret!” A vicious smirk appeared on his lips as he halted on a random page “But I am going to unravel them.” His eyes were sparkling “I am going to find out the truth about what exactly happened that night! I am going to find out the person who killed Emily Smith…”

         He tapped his finger on the page and an evil smirk appeared across his face. “You are not going to rest until you solve this mystery, aren’t you?” the other officer said sighing “-You got that right Timmy!”Sheriff Williams’ grin got wider. He took the file from the table and told Officer Timmy to get back to work. He came out of the inquiry room and sat on his chair placing the file on the table, staring at it for a minute and letting out a deep breath.

He then opened his drawer. The drawer was almost empty except for some staplers, pens and other stationary items. It was cleaned and organized. However, Sheriff’s eyes had stopped upon a diary which was kept in the corner of the drawer. The diary had a certain antique look to it. It was an average size black leather covered diary. From outside it looked nothing special. Who would have thought it would contain someone’s soul! Emily’s life was scribbled all over its pages. It held so many moments, happy, sad. “Emily loved to write.” Sheriff Williams remembered Emily’s mother statement.

If it weren’t for this diary then twisted case would have gotten even more complex. For Sheriff, reading Emily’s diary felt like talking to her. It was like viewing the world from her perspective. But there was one thing particularly disturbing about the diary. He flipped through pages until he came to the page with the book mark.

Something terrible has happened to me. Something which I am even ashamed to write about... Saying that I am just scared would be an understatement, because I am terrified. To think he would do such a thing to me… I still don’t know whether I should report this to the principal or not. Would anyone believe me???

The rest of the page was blank. The craters formed due to tears on that page were still visible. Who could be that person? What was she going to report? And could that person have killed Emily? After all a few days later Emily was found dead.

He closed the diary and then shut the drawer, closed his eyes, and resting his head on the chair started remembering, almost visualizing what had happened on that fateful night. That last call that Emily ever made, to this very sheriff’s station, begging to save her life… Everything started flashing before his eyes…

It was dark outside but the Sheriff’s Station in Irisvile was brightly lighted. There was a stack of files lying before Sheriff Williams and he was scrolling through them lazily. There were few officers along with him at the station, all of them not peculiarly enthusiastic to work. This often happened when they were on night duty. He stamped one of the files and placed it disinterestedly on the pile beside him while taking a sip of hot coffee.

Sheriff Williams was a middle aged man with a descent physique. He had golden brown hair and brown eyes. He had been working as a Sheriff for Irisvile for the past seven years. Irisvile also seemed like a regular small peaceful town. It had been ages since anything particularly violent had happened here and yet there was this eeriness which surrounded the town, a dark side, hiding a lot of dangerous secrets, secrets that were soon going destroy lives of few people.  

It was 10:30 pm and it was a slow night. Sheriff Williams was eyeing the clock every ten minutes as if this night was never going to end, little did he know that the night had just begun. The phone in front of him rang and he picked it up. “Hello Iris County Sheriff’s Station …” he said assuming it to be a call about the spotting of masked men. There was a lot of buzz regarding them recently. They were the notorious drug dealers. These hounds took shelter of darkness, worked from shadows in the silence of the night. They were wanted not only in Irisvile but throughout Iris County. They were damn good as they left no trace behind. There was absolutely no information available about them.

 “Hello, anyone there?” he spoke again cracking his neck as there was no reply from another side. After failing to get an answer for a few minutes he placed the receiver back in its place. The same thing happened thrice. Now he was agitated. Someone was pulling a prank!

The phone rang again and he picked it up roughly. He filled his mouth with air, ready to yell and threaten on whosoever, thinking, pulling such a stunt was funny. As he was about to blast out he heard panting and a terrified voice spoke from the other side. “Please help me.” A girl was begging.

“-Hello…” Sheriff Williams had all ears now “Who is this? From where…”-He is here. He is going to kill me. Please...” the girl spoke again. “Oh my God… He…” the sound suggested that she had tripped over something “He has a knife.” Her voice was trembling “Don’t! Please stop!”

“-Hello! Tell me where you are…” Sheriff Williams was yelling on the phone. The serious tone of his voice quickly grabbed the attention of the officers present in the station. “-I swear I will never talk about it again. Oh my God!” The unknown girl continued “Ch…” She chocked and there was a loud thud “You?” she sounded shocked and her breathing became more rapid.

“-Who? Who is there? Who are you and where are you?” Sheriff Williams asked on top of his voice“-What are you doing here? No! Chase help me…” there was another loud noise “I… What did I ever do to you? Please just let me go, I promise I will never speak of this again, to anyone… I swear…” there was a crashing sound.

The girl seemed to have fallen down. “Somebody please help me. No…” now there was a thumping sound. The sheriff held his breath and for that one second when he couldn’t hear her voice his heart literally stopped! “-Where are you? Tell me your exact location!” he urged her, all his muscles were tensed. “I…” The girl was begging for life but fortunately was still alive. The question was, for how long... “I…” it seemed like she was running, her breathing so rapid that she barely had the strength to utter words “am at Lane 13, near A…” There was yet another sound and a scream, the phone got disconnected. “Near?” Sheriff Williams still kept asking hoping to get a reply, “Hello… Near? Where are you?”

After grasping the reality, that the call had been disconnected, he quickly placed the receiver back. “Trace this call…” he ordered. The officers near him obliged quickly. Every second was precious. Survive! Survive! His insides were screaming. “-Yeah!” after what felt like an eternity, the officer spoke at last “The last location of this number was Lane 13, near Annex Theatre, Glenn Road…” “-Let’s Go!” Sheriff Williams said as he ran out of the Sheriff’s station and sat in the first jeep he saw. Another two of his officers followed him in the jeep. As soon as he started the jeep, the red and blue lights, as well as the sound of the siren, flooded the area.

Glenn road was almost fifteen minutes distance by car from the Sheriff’s Station. Don’t die! Sheriff Williams was driving the car as fast as he could and yet there was this voice that was echoing inside his head telling him that he wasn’t going fast enough. The roads were clear and that gave him an advantage. He made a sharp right turn. “Keep trying that number” he commanded the officers sitting back in the jeep. The officers followed his orders but it was of no use, the phone had been switched off! He made another few turns and finally, he could see the Annex Theatre.

He stopped the jeep so roughly that the jerk almost made the officers sitting at the back tumble ahead. As the sound of siren stopped, harrowing silence engulfed the area. Now the sound of the lights flickering in front of the theatre along with minor sounds like humming, buzzing and chirping of insects and other nocturnal animals could be heard with occasional hooting of owls. He opened and shut the door without even waiting for a second and the officers followed him as he got down from the car.

Annex theatre was shut down for renovation purposes. Glenn road was adjacent to the forest and as a result, was always isolated after the shutting down of theatre. Some scattered shops were seen but even they were closed at this time. There was absolutely no one to be seen in the vicinity. What the girl could be doing here at this hour was something absolutely out of the thinking capacity of Sheriff Williams!

He switched on the torch. “George you go left, Adam you go right, I’ll go inside the theatre, just in case…” He commanded the officers and all of them scattered to search the girl. The door of the theatre was open and he knew this wasn’t a good sign. The old rusty door made a creaking sound as he entered the theatre. There was no electricity in the theatre and hence, the only part which was illuminated by the light of the torch carried by Sheriff Williams was visible. As he moved the torch light around he saw that there were ladders and paints and many other tools required for renovation purposes scattered everywhere. Sheriff Williams almost tripped a few times along the way due to lack of light. The theatre could have made perfect set for a horror film.

“Anyone there?” he said a bit loudly.

His voice echoed through the darkness creating a spectral vibe. However, Sheriff Williams through years of experience had become well acquainted with this feeling. It no longer scared him. “Anybody hear me?” he yelled again. He then checked every nook and corner of the theatre but there was no sign of any person. His walkie-talkie buzzed “Sheriff. This is Officer Adam. There is no one here and I checked the entire area! Over and out.” He waited a few seconds and even officer George called stating the same. For a moment he thought that all of this was a prank, but the girl’s voice seemed too real for her situation to be a joke.

Now there were two choices before him, to search in the forest at night or to go back to Sheriff’s station and come tomorrow with a search team for finding the girl. But he knew too well that it would be very late by then! He decided to go to the forest at that time. But as soon as he was about to tell this to his officers, he suddenly remembered, that there was one area in the theatre which he had slipped out of his mind. The parking lot in the basement! 

He briskly went at the back of the theatre and took the stairs which led to the parking lot. It was huge. But unlike the theatre, there were some lights flickering there. There were large numbered pillars at specific distances. “Hey… Is someone here?” he spoke clearly “Can anyone hear my voice?” He said while he carefully walked and scanned the entire place. Then he came to a sudden halt when he saw a hand and a shoulder in the flickering light. There seemed a person leaning behind the pillar. He continued to walk towards that place. “Hey!” he said in an audible voice, but there was no reply. He swallowed.

He increased his pace. From his view, only the back of the person and the gigantic pillar could be seen. He reached there and placed his palm on the shoulder from behind. As he went ahead for viewing the person, his eyes grew wider in horror as he quickly took back his hand. There sat a girl, a teenage girl who had been stabbed in the stomach, blood covering her pink shirt. Her pants were also torn in the knee area and there was blood dripping through that cloth. The eyes of the girl bore a terrified look. She was badly bruised. The bruises on her neck suggested that someone had tried to strangle her. Sheriff Williams placed his hand over her nose and his other handheld her left hand to check for a pulse. She was dead.

“This is Sheriff Williams.” He spoke in the walkie-talkie at last. “I am speaking from the parking lot of the Annex theatre. A dead body of a girl has been found. Call the forensic team. We have a homicide case.” As he switched off the walkie-talkie he realized that there was a phone lying a few inches away from the girl. The condition of that phone was pathetic. It seemed like it had been tossed from the girl’s hand. It had broken into two pieces. But the battery of that cell phone was missing. He waited a few minutes as first the officers, and then the forensic team arrived in the basement.

As he saw her cold body, with eyes open wide

He knew in his heart somewhere, that the justice had died…

The sudden ringing of the phone brought him back to the present. He blinked his eyes as if casing the environment. He picked up the phone “Hello Iris County Sheriff’s Station.” He spoke. It was a regular complaint call about some drunken malicious teenagers. Kids these days! He ordered a few of his officers to handle the situation. They left. He turned his attention back to the file over which he was tapping from few minutes unconsciously. With a sigh, he opened the file for the thousandth time.

As he started turning pages, reading the names, each and every person’s face, and their statements started streaming through his mind. Dylan Baker, age seventeen. Skinny fellow. Black eyes, black hair. He seemed too sharp while giving answers. He was Emily’s lab partner.

“So since when do you know Emily?”

“-From three months, since she became my lab partner.”

“Was she your friend?”

“-Nope. Just a classmate.”

“Do you know any of her friends?”

“-Sorry I have no idea.”

“How was she? Did you guys talk much?”

“-I guess I can say that she was an introvert. I don’t remember talking with her outside the laboratory.”

“Do you know anyone at school who could have grudge against her?”

“-No. Not a clue!”

The way he gave answers, short and precise. He was so composed. It seemed like either he was telling the truth or this wasn’t his first time. The later seemed more probable. Sheriff Williams flipped the page.

Massie Anderson. Cheerleader. Miss popular. Arrogant and dumb according to some of her classmates. But hardworking I suppose. She has managed to top the exams every single time. The way she was giving answers clearly told that she didn’t have a particular liking towards Emily. She only came into the picture as her name was mentioned in Emily’s diary. There was some argument between them. Turns out Emily had slapped her.

“-Slapped me?” Massie had said being annoyed “Oh that bitch doesn’t have the guts to do so! I punched her. She dared to say that Chase cheated on me with her.” she halted “With her!” she quoted “Does she think I was born yesterday or something? Don’t I know that she had a crush on my boyfriend since a sophomore year! And now accusing him… How cheap can you get!”

“-But she wrote the same thing in her diary. Why would she lie in her personal diary?” Sheriff Williams asked her with an obvious look on his face.

“-How would I know that Sheriff!” she stopped and inhaling continued in a slow firm tone. “Chase didn’t cheat on me with her, I asked him. He never lies to me.” Although Massie didn’t like Emily, there was a conviction in her every statement. Either she was innocent or damn good at portraying it!

As he flipped through the pages, names of students like Matthew Cooper, Isaac Turner, Linda Holland, Sophie Tennant, popped up. All of their names were mentioned in that diary. None of them particularly important. All of them accepted being acquaintances of Emily. Linda said that Emily was really sweet and always helped people. Sophie said, “She was quiet but was a nice person.” Matthew Cooper and Isaac Turner confirmed that whatever incidences were written in that diary ‘about them’ were true. They denied knowing details about any other instances. Fred Williams turned to the next page.

Rose Martin! She was an old lady of 60 years. She was the previous neighbor of Emily. She knew Emily and her family since she was a child. Emily originally wasn’t a resident of the Iris County. She moved here when her foster parents adopted her. “Poor poor little girl!” Rose said painfully. “The awful things she had to go through...” She told the entire history of Emily. “Her father was a real demon, used to lock up Emily, her sisters, and mother inside the house used to hit them… That drunken bastard! He only used to let them out when Mary used to go to her job, and girls to go to school. Sometimes we used to hear their screams or at times see their bruises. We, me and my husband Luther, even called police on him, but Mary denied all the charges, she was too gentle. If only she could gather courage at that time…”

The sigh of Rose Martin echoed in Sheriff Williams’ ears. “Now that I think of it, maybe calling the police was a mistake. I should have talked with Mary first! Turns out Mary and kids were beaten hard that day. That bastard didn’t even take them to the hospital. After three days, bloody beaten Emily came running to our house asking for help. I still cannot forget the terror in her eyes. She told me that her mother, and her sisters, Penny and Lucy, were not waking up!” Sheriff Williams remembered the painful look on Rose’s face.

“She had escaped the captivity of her father when he went out of the house. She jumped through the window of the hall which he had left open by mistake and had come running straight to our house.” Rose almost let out a snob “We called the police again. But… But her mother, her sisters, all of them had died by the time police arrived. From post mortem we came to know that monster had hit Mary on the head with a steel rod that night, she died right on the spot from its impact. The girls, on the other hand, survived another day but died due to starvation and loss of too much blood. After all, Lucy was only four and Penny was seven years old at that time. Although Emily was the eldest yet she was just a child, nine years old.”

“To even think that a nine-year-old kid had to go through all this, staying with corpses for a day… That trauma!” he remembered how she stopped talking as if too overwhelmed and lost for words “She stayed at our place for a few days. She was so silent. She didn’t even cry. I still can’t forget the lost look in her eyes. But then she was soon moved to an orphanage from where her current foster parents, James and Bella adopted her. We kept in touch though. She even visited our house many times during her holidays. She reminded me so much of Mary. So gentle and loving and caring. And to think that this happened to E…”

“-Sheriff… Sheriff Williams!” a firm voice brought him back to the present. “-Yes.” Sheriff Williams replied disoriented. “-We got the CCTV footage of T.V. High School since the term started, just as you asked.” The officer who disturbed him said with a smirk. Sheriff Williams got up from his chair “-That’s great. Let me see it…” The officer handed the pen drive which contained the footage to the Sheriff and got back to his work. Sheriff Williams placed a pencil in the file which he was previously looking in, and then closed it. Thomas Vanguard High School, what secrets are you hiding! He looked at the pen drive as if it was the solution to all his problems.

He quickly opened his computer and inserted the pen drive containing footage. He breathed as he clicked the cursor and the footage began to play. In the beginning, there wasn’t anything amusing in the footage. There were students coming, going, few of them making out. There were a few times when even Emily was captured in the cameras. After spending five hours watching worthless crap Sheriff Williams was almost about to give up. But then what do we have here! A grin appeared on Sheriff’s face. Chase Reed, I am eagerly waiting how you are going to explain this!

The next morning, Chase was sitting again in the interrogation room, high and mighty as ever. Those same moss green eyes without even a hint of guilt or fear. “Two days in a row Sheriff!” he said casually. “You seem to have a lot of free time.” But this time Sheriff Williams was calm. He was composed. He had proof against Chase. “-Yesterday you said… What did you say…?” Sheriff Williams said sarcastically “Yeah right. You have a girlfriend and Emily was just another classmate. What do you have to say about this?” Sheriff Williams played the CCTV footage. Chase narrowed his eyes at Sheriff.

“It’s me…” he smirked slyly “Making out…”

“-Yes.” Sheriff Williams said, “But that girl I suppose isn’t Massie.” Chase chuckled as if Sheriff had cracked some kind of joke. “-No. It isn’t!” he said in an obvious tone. “It’s Skyler Davis. Isn’t she beautiful?” he said unaffected “Since when do you have so much interest in my private life Sheriff?”

This boy! Sheriff Williams forced a smile and continued “Since the time you lied to my face boy!”

 “-When did I ever lie to you Sheriff?” Chase said with a forced confused look.

“You said you have a girlfriend.” Sheriff said

“-Which I do!” Chase smiled

“-But the footage shows…”Sheriff continued

“-It shows me making out with another girl. I never told you I was a saint or anything.” Chase continued in his regular tone. “I don’t see why do you think that I lied to you Sheriff?” What the hell!

“-How do you think Massie will react after seeing this? She thinks that Emily was lying about everything! ” Sheriff Williams said as obnoxiously as Chase.

Chase leaned forward resting his face on his elbow and continued in his non-caring attitude. “As far as Massie is concerned, it’s our personal matter. And Sheriff I still don’t understand how my making out with Skyler Davis, has to do anything at all with Emily!” Sheriff Williams was speechless. It seemed like he had decided to talk with Chase hastily.

Chase continued with the same irritating smile “Sheriff. I still stick by my answer, there was nothing going on between me and Emily. I didn’t even know who that girl was until Massie confronted me about her! Everything written in that diary about me and her is bullshit! I don’t go sleeping around with charity cases. I have standards you know.” Sheriff Williams had a strong urge to hit Chase hard in his face but he controlled.

“Look, Sheriff, what you made me do!” Chase had started enjoying this “You made me speak ill of the dead. It is the truth anyways, but still… Can’t help but feel sad for that poor girl!” He said mockingly “Now that everything is clear, may I take your leave Sheriff?” he said getting up from the chair in the same insulting manner like he had done yesterday. Sheriff Williams just nodded his head. I won’t repeat the same mistake again. Next time I will surely get you, boy! “Always nice seeing you, Sheriff. Keep in touch…” he said as he left the room banging the door behind him. One day I am going to wipe off that smug look from your face!

I need to have a chat with Massie Anderson. He ordered an officer to call Massie in the interrogation room. In the meantime, he continued to see the footage. Nothing significant was happening. One hour had passed. “Sheriff” an officer called Sheriff Williams. Massie Anderson had reached. “-Send her to the interrogation room. That day she was too confident regarding her boyfriend. Let’s see what she has to say now.” Sheriff Williams showed the footage to Massie on the laptop. He expected a shocked reaction or an enraged one, but the expressions on Massie’s face were incomprehensive. The sheriff wasn’t able to place his finger on them.

“So…” Sheriff Williams said “What do you have to say now? That day you said so confidently that Chase…”

“-I knew.” Massie swallowed. “I knew that Chase was... About Chase and Skyler!”

“-What!” this was the last answer Sheriff Williams was expecting. What the hell is going on here! Do these teens think I am a fool!

“-He had told me about Skyler. Said that I am free to decide whatever I want. He said that…” Massie halted as if saying anything further would do no good.

“-What did he say to you? Did he make some sort of excuse? Cause let me tell you this, he sure as hell didn’t look sorry when I called him to interrogate this morning.” Sheriff Williams was confused.

“-I know he isn’t sorry.” She snorted “He never will be!” Massie’s sounded frustrated but she kept calm “This is a regular thing for Chase. I am fed up with him but…”

“-But?” Sheriff couldn’t think of a reason to be in such a toxic relationship.

“-I love him,” Massie said clenching her fists. There was something about this confession. She said it with full conviction and yet the lack of faith was evident. It was as if she was saying truth and lie at the same time.

“-So you lied when you said that day, there wasn’t going on anything between Chase and Emily?” Sheriff Williams asked her in a calm tone.

“-No.” she murmured. “I am damn sure that there wasn’t going on anything between Chase and Emily.”

“-Right now you said that this was a regular thing for Chase… And yet you are adamant about your answer. Did Chase threaten you or something?” Sheriff Williams’ asked her lifting his eyebrow.

Massie picked up the glass kept on the table. She drank the water in it and then said in a low voice. “No. Chase didn’t... I am sure that Chase didn’t cheat on me with Emily.”

“-How the fuck are you so sure that Chase wasn’t with Emily?” this time Massie was taken aback suddenly by the loud voice of Sheriff Williams.

She swallowed “I…” she wasn’t her usual snobbish self. The girl sitting in front of the Sheriff was scared. She was trembling. “I…”

“-Playing an idiot won’t help you Massie. Tell me how you are so confident that your boyfriend was never with Emily Smith?”Sheriff Williams lowered his voice but his anger was pretty visible. 

 “-I know because…” Massie took a deep breath. “Chase never tried to hide any of this from me. I know every girl he has been with since we were in a relationship. And so…” she almost chocked “I know it for fact that he was never with Emily. He would have told me if he was!” What the hell!

“Get out!” Sheriff said biting his tongue. Massie still sat in the chair lost in her own thoughts. “GET OUT!” Sheriff yelled loudly and Massie tripping over the chair at once ran out of the room.

We two can forever play this game,

But don’t you think it’s getting kind of lame…

Tell me your secret, at least give me a little clue.

Oh honey, I am dying to see your face turn blue!

A few more days had passed, where Sheriff Williams kept on watching the CCTV footage, interrogating the possible suspects on certain occasions. He found out from the tape that Emily was always alone in the school. Even in cafeteria, she used to find a silent corner to eat and sit there all by herself. She used to wave at few people but there wasn’t a person with whom she was seen constantly. Sheriff almost was losing hope now. There was no significant information in the footage that could connect to Emily’s murder.

And then he saw the CCTV footage of the day of fight between Massie and Emily. He couldn’t get the footage of fight itself as it happened in the girl’s locker room but he saw something which caught his attention instantly. Chase Reed was winking at Emily. But Sheriff decided to hold his horses this time. Chase was too smart. He had the ability to turn the situations around in his favor. After all, every time Sheriff Williams had anything against him, he had successfully cleared his name from it. Sheriff needed concrete proof from which Chase couldn’t talk his way out.

Another thing that instantly drew the Sheriff’s attention was the mark on Emily’s cheek which she tried to cover with her long hair. However, her attempt was futile as the mark was clearly visible. Massie did say while interrogation that she punched Emily. I guess she was telling the truth.

Another day passed. It was night and Sheriff’s eyes were paining as he had been constantly looking at the computer screen. Still nothing! God damn NOTHING! He stretched his arms above his head and casually started rotating his neck. What the…! He still couldn’t believe his eyes. He re-winded the tape in order to confirm whatever he had seen was correct. He played that particular scene three to four times until he was sure. This was the incident Emily was talking about!

He paused the footage, placed his hands over his face and let out a sigh. He leaned back in the chair for a few moments not moving his palms. Bloody wolf in sheep’s skin! He could have never thought in a million years that this person would be responsible for committing such a horrendous act. Sheriff needed answers, he needed them now. Prof Philip Jones, you are so busted. I am coming for you! Sheriff looked at the clock and it was 9:30 pm. He decided to confront Mr. Jones in the morning.

After a long night, the next day arose rather slowly. It was 10 am and Sheriff Williams was playing with a pen in his hand to pass the time. He was restless. His eyes were locked on the door of his cabin. He was eagerly waiting for Prof. Jones. After five minutes one of the officers entered the cabin. “Sheriff. Prof Jones…” Before he could even complete his statement, Sheriff rushed to interrogation room. There sat in the chair, an attractive looking man. He was in his late twenties. He had black curly hair and grey eyes. While fingers of both his hands were entangled with one another, on them rested his chin, his elbows that were supporting his palms were placed on the table. His face bore a tensed look.

As soon as he saw Sheriff he stood up bearing a nervous smile. Sheriff Williams smiled in confidence in return. “Prof Jones…” he said as he came to sit in the chair. “Please sit. There is a lot to talk about. But before we begin, there is something that I wanted to ask you.” Prof sat in his chair hesitantly. “What were you doing on the 13^th July?”

Professor Jones swallowed. “I… I was…” he was striving to find words. “I…”

“-Yes. You. What were you doing on 13^th July? Did anything happen on 13^th July?” Sheriff asked calmly.

Prof. Jones’ eyes grew wider. Fear was clearly visible in them. “I…” he pressed his lips “Nothing particular comes to mind. It was just…” he halted as if torn between his desire to speak and remain silent. He buried his face in his palms and let out a deep sigh. “You saw the footage, didn’t you?” he said in a helpless tone.

“-Good.”Sheriff Williams said with a smirk “So you are going to confess.”

“-Confess?” Prof Jones said being confused.

“-Yes. Confess. Confess that you molested your student.” Sheriff Williams’ voice increased with every statement. “You are here to confess that you assaulted Emily Smith and when she threatened to expose you, you killed here. You killed her in the A…”

“-Wait! What?” Philip Jones said loudly. “That’s outrageous. I didn’t kill Emily.” He continued confidently. “I am not here to confess anything. I am here to clarify what exactly happened on 13^th July. F.Y.I, I didn’t even touch Emily.”

Sheriff Williams laughed as if he had heard some kind of hilarious joke. “-Do you want me to play the footage again professor. May be that will jog your memory. It clearly shows…”

“-I know what it looks like…” Prof. Jones interrupted in the middle. “But trust me, everything is a huge misunderstanding.”

“-Misunderstanding!” Sheriff Williams snorted. “The recording clearly shows Emily running out of the classroom crying. Her clothes were torn. You followed her a moment later. And you are saying that all of this is some sort of misunderstanding. It looks pretty clear to me!”

“-Yes.” Philip Jones continued confidently “It is a misunderstanding.”

“-Do you think I was born yesterday?”

“-No. But you got to listen to the truth.”

“-The truth is what I saw in the tape. You molested that sweet innocent girl. She was so traumatized by the incident that she didn’t even mention it in her diary. Confess. Or else…” Sheriff Williams banged his fist harshly on the table. Demons were staring back at Prof. Jones “I will make you.”

Philip Jones sat silently on the chair, his fists clenched. After a moment or two, he started running his hand through hair. He sighed. Sheriff Williams remained unaffected by any of his gestures. “-Look.” Philip Jones said trying to suppress his agitation.

“I know that the death of Emily Smith was disturbing. Even I was moved by it. Emily was one of my favorite students. She had a knack for writing. I even assisted her when she decided to write for the school magazine. You have to listen to me, please… I didn’t kill Emily. I didn’t even molest her. She was like my little sister.” Prof. Jones said with all the conviction he had. “You saw in the footage what happened outside the classroom, but you don’t know what happened inside it. Just listen to my side of the story once. I know it’s hard to believe but at least give me an opportunity to be heard.”

Sheriff Williams nodded but he knew in his mind, that he wasn’t going to believe a single word which would come out of this man’s filthy mouth. He had already decided that whatever story he is going to make up was going to be a big fat lie. “-Ok.”Sheriff Williams said being annoyed “Let's listen to your truth professor. What happened on 13^{th of} July?”

Philip Jones inhaled and sighed. “I had told Emily to wait as I wanted to discuss something important about the school magazine.” He started to speak without pausing even for a moment. “I was a bit late as the staff meeting took longer than I had anticipated. When I entered the classroom, I saw Emily hiding under one of the benches. Her clothes were already torn. I even tried to comfort her but she pushed me and told that I should stay away from her. I was so taken aback by her sudden outburst that I couldn’t even ask her what had happened! Before I could confront her, she ran out of the classroom. And that’s what you saw in the CCTV footage. I was just following her because I was worried about her. But even after searching for a long time I couldn’t find her anywhere. I even told my fiancé about this incident that night itself! After that incident, Emily started bunking my lectures. I even tried to talk to her but she started avoiding me.”

He stopped abruptly and started running his hand through his hair again before continuing “I think that there was someone threatening her. It was someone else. You…” Looking at an indifferent look on Sheriff’s face, Mr. Jones tried to justify his side with even more conviction “Emily could have taken any action against me if she wanted! But she didn’t! It’s because I didn’t do anything to her.” Sheriff Williams was listening to professor’s story without uttering a single word. “You… You got to believe me.” He waited for the professor to sit silently.

“-Are you done telling your crappy story?” Sheriff Williams said at last with a firm look on his face. “A bit late. It was 6:30 pm.”

“-Yes. But it was because of…”

“-Now I will speak.” Sheriff Williams ordered “Emily entered the classroom smiling. Her clothes were not torn. She seemed normal. In fact, she was happy.”

“-There could have been someone in the classroom from before.”

“-No. There wasn’t anyone but you. I saw absolutely no one entering or exiting from that classroom except you. I played the footage till next morning. Now I will tell you what’s the truth.” Sheriff Williams said in an authoritative voice “You saw Emily alone that day in the classroom. Taking advantage of that situation you molested her.”

“-No. That’s not…

“-But she pushed you and ran for her life!”

“-It’s…”

“-Maybe she was afraid to report the incident at first and so she didn’t file the complaint right away. But when she decided to do that, you killed her…”

“-No. No. That’s not true.”

“-The last dialed number before Sheriff’s station is yours.”

“-It is but…”

“-Another lie. I even asked you while taking your statement for the first time, why was she calling you?”

“-Yes. But I was scared…”

“-You said that she wanted to meet you for ‘school magazine purpose’.” Sheriff Williams quoted.

“-Because she did!”

“-Do you fucking think I am dumb!” Sheriff Williams yelled on top of his voice banging the fist on the table with such strength that its impact shook the entire table. Philip Jones was terrified by this sudden rage. He sat in the chair unable to even blink his eyes. “You didn’t even mention this incident until today when you had no other option but to confess. If you were that innocent, then you could have come clean and would have given the same explanation on the first day itself.”

“-I know. I know.” Prof. Jones said begging “It’s just that I was scared. I thought that no one will believe me. My career. My reputation. Everything would be put at stake for something which I didn’t even do!”

“-No one will believe you because whatever story you are telling, is a lie.” Sheriff Williams continued. Philip Jones sat in the chair without uttering a word. He knew that Sheriff had already made up his mind “Confess.” Sheriff got up from his chair and walked towards Philip Jones, like a predator advancing towards its prey. He bent a bit so that his face was right in front of terrified professor “How did you kill Emily? What did you say to her that she came running to the isolated Glenn road?” Prof. Philip Jones covered his ears as if hearing every word was very painful for him “How did you manage to erase your finger prints from that knife and cell phone?” The sheriff’s tone was becoming more affirmative with every statement.

“-Stop it.” Professor Philip Jones murmured.

“-Did you know that the CCTV cameras in Annex theatre were not working due to renovation?”

“-Stop IT!” His voice was audible now.

“-And how did you manage to strangle Emily using her own hands?”

“-STOP IT! STOP IT!” Philip Jones screamed at last “I didn’t kill Emily. I already told you that I was out of town that day. I came back Monday afternoon. I wasn’t even there in Irisvile on 25^th July.” Philip Jones suddenly got up from his chair. Sheriff Williams was taken aback by this action. “Every word I told to you now, was the truth. The complete truth and nothing but the truth.” He said staring in Sheriff’s eyes. “I was scared that day. Any normal person would be!” He sighed and placed his palms over his eyes. “It was foolish of me to think that you would believe me.”

Philip Jones swallowed “Either way I have already submitted the proofs stating that I was out of town that day. I have a right to call my lawyer, I would like to use that.” He said in a hopeless tone. Sheriff Williams nodded reluctantly. Sometime later Philip Jones’ lawyer took him from Sheriff’s station. And just like that, a heated interrogation session came to an end.

Deceitful faces covered with flawless masks

Only lies are told when the truth is asked

Disingenuous person how long are you going to hide?

Remember it takes less than seven hours to turn the tide…

“Is he here?” Sheriff Williams asked while taking a sip of his hot morning coffee the next day. He had a smirk on his face. After a long time, the tensed muscles on his forehead were relaxed. So much had happened a day before.

“No Sir. But he will arrive at any moment.” The officer replied. Sheriff Williams nodded with a smile. In front of him lied the same file of suspects. I must say, you had me there! A page of the file was kept open. But I guess the truth is like the sun, however long and dark the night might be it never fails to rise, to shine. He took another sip of coffee eyeing the file, looking at the photo.

“He is here.” The officer returned “He is waiting for you in the interrogation room.” No, I have been waiting for him since last night. Sheriff Williams got up from his chair taking his own sweet time. He went to the interrogation room and he opened the door. There sat in the chair, a skinny teenage boy, black hair, black eyes. “Dylan Baker.” Sheriff Williams said with a sly grin. The boy smiled shyly. “Who would have thought that you were behind all this?” The boy sat in his chair uninfluenced.

“-Behind what?” he asked inquisitively.

“-Emily Smith’s murder.” Sheriff Williams said normally

“-I am sorry?” Dylan said being confused

“-You should be. But sorry isn’t going to get you out of this situation. So you better start spilling the truth right away.” Sheriff Williams said as he leaned towards the table.

“-I didn’t kill Emily. I was only her…”

“-Her lab partner.” Sheriff Williams interrupted “Yeah yeah I have heard that story. Now I want to hear the truth.”

“-It’s true that I was only her lab partner. I didn’t even know her.” Dylan said more pressingly.

“-The truth.”

“-This is the truth. I…”

“-Ok. So you want to do this the hard way. Fine by me!” The sheriff got up from his chair and came on the side of Dylan’s chair. He sat leaning against the table so that he was at a more elevated platform. He smiled. “From the moment I saw you I thought that you were way too smart. Those precise answers you gave. It was as if you have already run all probable scenarios several times in your head. I must say, I am mighty impressed.” Dylan Baker raised his eyebrow but didn’t even flinch. Sheriff Williams tilted his neck “Ryans Hilfigure Retail Store. Does that ring a bell?”

For a fraction of second, just for a fraction of second, Sheriff saw the color drain from Dylan’s face. After that uncalled reflex, Dylan was back to being the same composed person. “Ah…” he took another moment “Yes. I know that retail store. The owner is a good friend of my mom’s!” he said confidently.

“-Oh so you know Mrs. Collins. What a wonderful old lady she is!” Sheriff Williams complimented. “You know she had some interesting things to say about you and your pretty girlfriend, Danny boy!” Dylan Baker swallowed involuntarily.

 “That old lady was feeling bad about what happened to her. She was worried about you. She didn’t know how you must be holding out!” Dylan’s eyes grew wider. “It was her, who was the first-hand witness” Sheriff Williams raised one of his eyebrows in a meddlesome manner and continued “The only witness to your love story. You used to meet your girl friend at her store, right?” What excuse are you going to make now?

Dylan Baker sat there still unable to comprehend what had just happened “Don’t strain your mind.” Sheriff Williams held the glass of water in front of him “-You…” he tried to speak. Sheriff Williams placed the glass on the table in front of him. “It was just…”

“-Ryans Hilfigure Retail Store. A small store at the edge of the town.” Sheriff Williams continued pretending as if he had heard nothing “A perfect place. A safe zone. Far away from school. It must have been empty in the afternoon. No one would even suspect that you could be meeting Emily there. Question. Why were you meeting Emily there?”

“-It was just a coincidence. Mrs. Collins must have misapprehended...”

“-Misapprehended huh! So you even thought of this.” Sheriff Williams slowly walked and stood behind Dylan’s chair in such a manner that his face was exactly at the back side of Dylan’s left ear. “Wrong answer. That’s strike one.” He whispered. “Hint. I know all the right answers.” Sheriff Williams folded his hands and started ambling behind Dylan.

“-Those parcels which you used to give Emily, wrapped in brown paper, what were those?” Dylan opened his mouth but only air came out of it. “No answer.” Sheriff smiled

“-Mrs. Collins must be confused.”

“-Wrong answer.” Sheriff Williams stopped behind Dylan’s chair in the same manner as he did before and whispered again but this time in his right ear “Hear the question properly boy. You are losing chances. What did you give to Emily in that brown paper?”

“-Nothing. She must have…” Dylan Baker flinched for the first time. “Ohh… That’s strike two.” You must be going nuts right now. Very well then, I am not going to let you calm down.

Sheriff Williams placed his palm gently on Dylan’s shoulder but even that subtle gesture, made him jump up from his chair. Sheriff chuckled. “Nervous?” he asked in a fake concerned voice “You should be.” He said in an apprehensive tone. “Next question. Is Chase Reed involved in this?”

“I don’t…” before Dylan Baker could complete his answer Sheriff said clearly “-That’s strike three.” In a swift movement, Sheriff Williams pulled Dylan’s chair backwards in such a manner that it inclined in an obtuse angle making Dylan’s feet dangle in mid air. His face was now in front of Sheriff Williams. Dylan Baker was now entirely at mercy of Sheriff Williams. “I told you before that I know all the correct answers. So think hundred times before you try lying to my face.” He placed Dylan’s chair back to its original position and continued. “Next time I won’t think twice before breaking your skull. We’ll start over again. Answer correctly this time.” Drops of sweat were formed on Dylan’s forehead.

 “Why were you meeting Emily in the Ryans Hilfigure Retail Store?” Sheriff Williams was dawdling around the room. “What was inside those parcels which you used to give to Emily? And finally my favorite question how was Chase Reed involved in all this?” Sheriff Williams came back and sat in his original place.

Dylan Baker drank the water from the glass which was kept in front of him by Sheriff Williams. He covered his mouth with his hands and let out a deep sigh. Placing his palm on his forehead he moved his tongue behind his teeth. He bit his lip and leaned back on the chair. He then stared at the ceiling for few moments. Sheriff Williams was watching all of his actions patiently. He sighed again “You got me.” He said at last. “Alright, then I will come clean. But I want an assurance from you that my sentence would be reduced to a minimum if I tell the names of all the people who were involved me.” Dylan Baker was trying to make the best out of this situation. Bastard! Sheriff nodded reluctantly.

“Answering your first question, I used to meet Emily in that secluded retail store to give her drugs.” Now he is talking. “That also answers your second question. And finally coming to your third question, yes Chase Reed was involved with me.” Good.

“-Please continue…” Sheriff Williams said his hand gesturing the same.

“-I along with Chase Reed and Peter Scott supply drugs in the school. Emily…” he looked the other way.

“-Peter Scott as in son of Mr. Andrew Scott, the mayor?” Sheriff Williams asked to confirm. Dylan simply nodded and continued.

“-Emily was not involved with us from the beginning. But she saw us once with drugs while making a deal. So we planted the drugs in her bag. Threatened her that if she tells about this to anyone, then we’ll take her down with us.” Dylan gently scratched his forehead and chuckled “It scared the shit out of her. Realizing that we could use her, we made a plan. I called her to the Ryans Retail store as it is cut-off from the town. I started giving her packets of drugs in that store. I always used to smile at her in a friendly manner when I handed over the packets in order to avoid suspicion and so Mrs. Collins misinterpreted the situation. I never tried to ratify her as it was working in my favor. She was so excited by this news that the foolish old lady lied to my parents that I was working at her Store after school.”

“-Then why kill Emily?” Sheriff Williams asked in a low tone

“-Kill her?” Dylan asked as if he heard the question wrong “Why would I kill her? She was making our life so much easy. Keep the stock of drugs with her until there was a deal. She was such a coward and hence very efficient. In fact, all of us were ourselves shocked when we came to know about her death.”

“-Don’t waste my time boy.” Sheriff Williams said trying to suppress his anger “The only reason I haven’t touched you is because you promised to tell me the entire truth.”

“-What I just told you is the truth!” Dylan Baker used his obvious tone “You tell me, why we would kill Emily? What could we possibly gain by murdering her? Everything was going so smoothly. Killing her would mean attracting unwanted attention.”

“-I don’t know. Maybe she threatened to expose you all, maybe she flushed your stock down the toilet, maybe she called quits... There could be a million reasons. You tell me the correct one…”

“-We didn’t kill Emily.” Dylan Baker remained adamant on his statement.

“-Ok for a moment let’s believe that you didn’t kill her.” A smirk appeared on Dylan’s face “How are you so sure that neither of partners was involved in her murder?”

“-Because…” Dylan Baker controlled his tongue

“-Because?” Sheriff asked. He waited for a few seconds but Dylan sat there mum “Silence will be considered as acceptance of all charges.”

Dylan Baker ran his hands through his hair. He chuckled again. He knew that he was trapped between the devil and the deep sea. He clenched his fists and continued. “-Because they were with me at that time.”

“-Ok. And where were you?” Sheriff asked in an annoyed tone “Because I am sure that you weren’t in the Eden’s Park like you confidently said in your statement before! We have already checked the CCTV footage of the surrounding area and neither of you were there.” Dylan again became silent. Sheriff continued “I will tell you where all of you were!” Sheriff’s tone was rising “You were in the parking lot of Annex theatre. All of you together killed Emily. She even took the name of your bff Chase over the phone.” Let’s play a game of rapid fire. I am not going to let your smart ass mind think…

“-No. It’s not possible. Chase was with me.”

“Yeah. In the parking…”

“-No. We weren’t there…”

“-Where were you then?”

“-I was…”

“-In the Annex…”

“-No!”

“-Confess. All of you pals were in the basement of Annex theatre murdering Emily.”

“-No. We weren’t there…”

“-Then where were all of you on the night of 25^th July?”

“-At Peaken road.” Dylan Baker regretted those words as soon as they came out of his mouth. He bit his tongue reflexively.

“-Wait! What? Peaken Road?” Sheriff Williams’ eyes grew wide in exasperation. “So you are the ones…” Dylan Baker closing his eyes sank in his chair. Shit! It took Sheriff Williams a few more moments to get back to his usual self. To think they are the men behind masks. “Confess. Now.” Sheriff Williams commanded.

“-Yes,” Dylan Baker said sighing “We are the masked men, the notorious drug dealers.”

“-You might want to call your lawyer.” Sheriff Williams said looking at Dylan Baker after he confessed the entire truth. That rest of the day passed verifying statements given by Dylan.  

Chase Reed and Peter Scott were soon brought to the Sheriff’s station where they also were made to confess everything. For the first time Chase wasn’t that confident. He seemed worried. Sheriff Williams, on the other hand, didn’t know how to react. He had unknowingly solved the mystery of the masked men. He had arrested the drug dealers who were creating havoc in Iris County from the past year. To think that the dreaded masked men were just three lousy teenagers. Pathetic! I guess Dylan was as smart as I used to give him credit for, and with Chase’s money and Peter’s connections, it all seemed possible.

Before he realized, the evening turned into night and Sheriff sat on his table remembering the events of the day before. How the non-availability of his favorite brand of cookies made him go to the Ryans Hilfigure Retail Store. How Mrs. Collins recognized him instantly. How a casual conversation provided him with all the answers which he thought he was searching for. But I am back to square one on Emily’s murder case!

At times it better to remain blind fold 

Some stories rather not be told

But what to do of this curious mind

It craves for answers all the time…

It had been three months since Dylan Bakers’ shocking confession. Even their court proceedings had ended. Sheriff Williams was also presented with various awards for catching masked men. However the case of Emily Smith’s murder had become one of those unsolved mysteries. All the suspects that Sheriff had dug out from CCTV footage, diary and every other possible source had proved their innocence. Sheriff Williams had left no stone unturned but sadly was always met with a dead end every time. Mr. Philip Jones never formally accepted the allegations of molestation against him. But due to lack of evidence, he was sent to prison. At least one person got what he deserved!

There was ostensible peace in Irisvile. But the enigma of Emily Smith’s death was still haunting Sheriff Williams. Who killed Emily Smith? There was a killer roaming freely on the streets of Irisvile and this thought itself was very disturbing for the Sheriff. Every medal on his chest taunted him about being incapacitated to find the killer of a teenage girl. The petrified face of the girl used to haunt him almost every night.

“-Sheriff.” An officer was knocking on the door of his cabin “There is someone who wants to meet you.”

 “-Who is it?” Sheriff Williams asked disinterestedly

“-Ah…” The officer looked at the name written on the cheat and said “Dr. Amanda Sanders.” Sheriff Williams gave him a vague look. “She says she wants to talk to you about Emily Smith’s murder.” Sheriff Williams raised his eyebrow disbelievingly. There was no person named Amanda Sanders who was even acquaintance of Emily. Who is this woman? What does she know?

“-Tell her to wait in the interrogation room. I will join her in a minute.” Sheriff Williams said as he pulled out the suspect’s file. The officer left. He placed the file back on his table and rubbed his palms together. He stood up and started walking around his cabin toying with his hands. He then stopped abruptly and sighed. Don’t get your hopes high! He swallowed and went to the interrogation room.

As soon as he entered the room, the woman sitting in the chair stood up. Her features were fairly impressive. She had a decent height and dark brown hair which were tied-up in a neat bun. She had blue eyes and an attractive figure. She seemed in her mid-thirties. She shook hands with Sheriff bearing a pleasant smile. “Dr. Amanda… Sanders?” Sheriff asked to reconfirm. She nodded her head affirmatively. “Please sit.”

“I have been told that you wanted to talk about Emily Smith. May I know how both were acquainted?” Sheriff asked softly.

“-I was her doctor. She used to come to me for her treatment.” Amanda said with a gentle smile.

“-Her doctor?” Sheriff’s confusion was evidently visible on his face “I am sorry but there is no mention of you anywhere. What kind of treatment was Emily taking from you?”

“-I am a psychologist. Emily used to come to me for medication and therapy.”

“-Therapy?” Sheriff Williams asked not believing his ears. “Her parents… Actually nobody said anything about Emily taking a therapy.”

“-I know.” She said “Because nobody knew about this except me and Emily. It was our little secret.” Sheriff Williams gave her a mistrusting look. She removed an old file from her bag kept near her foot. “This is Emily’s file.”

She sighed “I know it’s a lot to take in, but just bear with me. I have been treating Emily since she was 8yrs old.”

“-But that means…”

“-Yes.” She said with a knowing look “I have known Emily even before she moved to Iris County.” She paused for a moment to let that fact sink in “I recently moved out of country so I have been unaware of the events that took place. Mrs. Martin told me everything about Emily’s murder.”

“In the last conversation I had with Emily over the phone, it was on the night of 19^th July, she told me what happened with Professor Philip Jones. She told me how he tried to assault her and she begged him to let her go… How he entered her bedroom one night and tried to repeat that same act again.” Wait what! “She told me how he used to follow her everywhere, how he used to keep an eye on her.” Rascal  

“-I didn’t know about the bedroom incidence.” Sheriff Williams said in a low tone.

“-She told me that the incident had happened with her the previous night.” She continued not acknowledging what Sheriff had said “Means the night of 18^th July.” She stopped.

“-Ok.” Sheriff said in a slow quizzical tone.

“-On the night of 18^th July.” She repeated stressing on the same fact “It was a Sunday.”

“-So?” Sheriff Williams didn’t understand what was so important about Sunday night.

“-Ok.” She started speaking slowly giving emphasis on each and every word “She said to me that he came to her house around 9 pm saying that there was some important school magazine work. She reluctantly opened the door. He followed her to her bedroom and as soon as they reached the bedroom he shut the door. He came close to her and tried to touch her. In fear, she screamed loudly. Her mother entered the room but before she could spot him he jumped out of the window.” What the…!

“-But how?”

“-Exactly Emily’s window has a steel grill. It is impossible for someone to jump out of the window! Moreover, her parents were at home. They confirmed that nobody came home Sunday night.”

“-So you want to say… That Emily lied to you?” Sheriff Williams asked her in a nonchalant manner.

“-Not exactly.” She covered her mouth, in an attempt to find the right words. “Emily was telling the truth, but many times her truths were lies. Emily’s reality was a lie.”

“-Ah…” Sheriff Williams said frowning. He wasn’t able to make sense out of anything this woman was saying.

“-Emily was suffering from childhood schizophrenia.” She opened the old file. “These are Emily’s reports since she was eight years old.” Sheriff Williams started scrolling through pages while Dr. Amanda Sanders continued with her story. “Emily was very quiet as a child. She always seemed disassociated with what was going around her. So while a random health check-up with the permission of her mother, the school did some tests on her. It was detected that she was suffering from acute schizophrenia.”

Sheriff Williams was glancing through the pages of the file while cautiously paying attention to Dr. Amanda’s every word. This was rather a shock for him. “Childhood schizophrenia is a rarest among rare, but Emily, unfortunately, was suffering from it.”

“-So you are trying to say that the bedroom incident never happened?”

“-No. I am trying to say that anything with Mr. Philip Jones never happened. I think he is innocent.” Sheriff Williams was now frustrated.

“-You don’t know anything about this case. Did you even see the CCTV footage?”

“-Actually I do. I agree that I haven’t seen the footage but… I came here about a week ago. Since then, I have been putting this puzzle together.”

“-From a week!” Sheriff Williams snorted “I have been trying to solve it for months.”

“-I know” Dr. Amanda said respectfully “But you didn’t have all the pieces. Just listen to me once.” Sheriff Williams couldn’t disagree with this fact.

“-Ok. Then tell me who do you think killed Emily Smith?”

“-Emily herself.”

“-What? You think that she committed suicide. That is the most absurd explanation I have ever heard.”

“-Suicide. Not exactly.”

“-Then how…?”

“-Let's start from the beginning shall we?” Dr. Amanda said stretching her arms. “-About Philip Jones. Emily said to me on the phone that he tried to molest her at around 4:30 pm.” Sheriff Williams who was first staring at the ceiling suddenly started paying attention. “Having hallucinations in schizophrenia is very common. Thinking that one of the person who is closest to you is a threat to your life or trying to harm you...”

“-But the CCTV footage clearly showed Emily running out of the classroom with her clothes torn and Prof. Philip Jones following her.”

“-Yes. But what you are missing, is what might have happened inside that classroom!” Mr. Philip’s statement was ringing in Sheriff’s ears.

“-Maybe Emily had an illusion that the professor was trying to molest her. And while hallucinating she herself, tore her clothes. And when she saw Mr. Jones approaching her she got terrified and ran out of the classroom. Mr. Jones followed her being concerned which got captured on the camera.” Whatever explanation Dr. Amanda was giving seemed quiet viable.

“-Ok. Let’s believe for now that whatever you are saying about Prof. Jones is the truth. But on what basis are you stating that Emily killed herself?”

Dr. Amanda Smith rubbed her palms together and sighed “From here it gets tricky.” Sheriff Williams closed the file in which he had stopped looking a long time back and stared at Amada. “I think that there was no one following Emily in the first place.”

“-What?”

“-Yes. Sheriff. That day Emily was just unluckily delusional.” She leaned forward-looking at the confused expression on the Sheriff’s face. “Ok. I will explain. Three things are of prime importance over here. First there are absolutely no traces of the person following Emily. Second the bruises and scratched over Emily’s body were made by her own hands as only her skin was found in her fingernails.”

“-But that could have been done after killing her.”

“-Possible. But there is absolutely no evidence of the existence of any other person except for Emily.” Before Sheriff could interrupt her again she continued “And the third thing the knife with which Emily was stabbed was her own.”

“-Making it impossible to identify who killed her. A perfect murder weapon.”

“-Only her fingerprints were found on it.”

“-The murderer could have wiped off his or her fingerprints.”

“-Or there was never a murderer in the first place.”

Sheriff Williams rubbed his eyes, leaned back on his chair and sat staring at the ceiling for a few moments. Amanda Sanders continued “This isn’t the first time something like this has happened. After Emily’s father was arrested for murdering his wife and daughters, Emily was still found with new bruises for few days. When I used to ask her about them, she used to say that her father did this. At times she even mentioned her dead mother and sisters being bitten brutally. The details of the same are mentioned in the file.” Amanda Sanders sat in a chair silently.

Sheriff Williams inhaled sharply. “If she was that unstable then how come her current foster parents adopted her? How was she so normal until now? Did she magically get cured?” Sheriff said sarcastically as he looked at Dr. Amanda again.

“-Emily wasn’t directly shifted to an orphanage from Mrs. Martin’s house. She was shifted to Heisenberg Psychiatric centre where she was given proper treatment. She had regular therapy sessions with me over there. She got better after some time. Only then she was moved to the orphanage from where she was adopted by her current foster parents.” She waited but seeing that Sheriff remained kept his mouth shut she continued “This information was kept confidential for her own good. When she used to come to stay at Mrs. Martin’s place, she also used to visit me for her periodic check-ups.”

“-Then what happened. How come all of a sudden…?”

“-At times certain traumatizing incidents can act like a trigger. Schizophrenia can relapse in such cases. I read in the newspaper about the masked men… And how Emily was involved…”

“-So you think that acted as a trigger.”

“-Yeah.” Sheriff Williams sank his face in his hands. “All the information regarding our session and Emily’s condition is mentioned in the file.” She removed a pen drive from her purse “Ah… I have a habit of recording my sessions and conversations. This is a copy of them.” She handed the pen drive to Sheriff Williams. “I am here for a month. You can call me anytime.” She got up from her chair. “I would like to take your leave Sheriff.” Sheriff Williams nodded absent mindedly. She left the room swinging the door behind her, answering every question in Sheriff’s mind and yet leaving him with a question mark.

I got the answer to my every question

And yet I want to go in a different direction…

The truth was so complicated

Or was it this simple but so unrelated!

Another week had passed. Sheriff Williams was sitting on his chair, words of Dr. Sanders ringing in his mind. Everything she said was making perfect sense and yet it was making no sense at all. Emily. Schizophrenia. Killed herself. “Sheriff. You might want to see this.” Sheriff Williams looked at the officer who had come running in without bothering to knock. “It was the owner of one of the pharmacy stores from Glenn road. His CCTV captured some interesting footage on the night of 25^th July.” Sheriff Williams swallowed. Every person gave a new angle to this case.

He quickly got the CD of the footage and placed it in the CD drive. He was chewing his fingers subconsciously. “He is going to kill me. Please...” Emily Smith was talking on the phone. Sheriff Williams with a huge sigh placed his hands over his mouth. “Oh my God… He…” there was no one to be seen around. She looked back and tripped over her own foot. Shit! “He has a knife.” Her voice was trembling, as she was staring into nothing “Don’t! Please stop!” She dodged an invisible blow.

 “I swear I will never talk about it again.” She struggled to get up on her feet “Oh my God!” with a loud thud she fell again “Ch… You?” she was staring panic-struck into nothingness as she was fighting with her own self. Sheriff Williams did not believe his eyes. The next moment she hastily got up and ran clumsily towards the Annex theatre disappearing from the view. CCTV footage kept on playing for another few minutes till Sheriff Williams switched it off. Now it was finally confirmed who had murdered Emily Smith, and yet he was never going to find out who had killed Emily Smith! When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains however improbable, must be the truth. Finally, Sheriff had understood the true meaning of this Sherlock’s quotes. And just like that, the twisted complicated Emily Smith murder case was solved.