by Ivy Dawson
“That is quite a big slip-up,” Shae said, shaking her head at Trinity’s actions.
“It was a mistake,” Serenity said tearfully, “and you don’t know the whole story. Can you imagine what it was like for Trinity? Stuck in a marriage with that idiot?”
“We don’t talk that way, dear,” Kelly said absently, patting her daughter’s hand.
“What does this have to do with anything?” Mark asked, trying to be patient, but failing miserably.
“The wife always hated Trinity,” John explained, “and she couldn’t let go of what happened. And now our daughter’s been murdered.”
“You think the wife could’ve killed Trinity?” Shae summarized. “Why would you think that?”
“Jessica disappeared about a day after Trinity and the others. No one has seen her since. We think she could be on the ship.”
“We can verify that now,” Mark said with a shrug, walking over to one of the computers. “What’s her surname?”
“Jessica Mohl,” Kelly said.
“No,” Mark shook his head. “The only Jessica aboard is someone named Jessica Stewart.”
“That’s her.” Kelly said, getting up. “It’s her maiden name. She wouldn’t use her real name if she were going to murder someone. Please, you’ve got to arrest her.”
“Thank you for your help,” Shae said kindly. “We’ll bring her in for questioning. We’ll show you to your cabin and let you know if we find anything.”
Mark tapped away on the computer and pulled out his phone. He quickly called Ivan while Shae shuffled the family out of the office. Before they left, Kelly turned to Shae. She looked around quickly before shoving a DVD case into her hand. She smiled thinly then quickly hurried off. Shae opened the cover to see what was in it. The disc inside had a simple label.
“The Twins’ Sweet Sixteen.”
It wasn’t long before a young woman was sitting in the makeshift interrogation room. They’d checked to see if she was the woman they were looking for, and it turned out that it was. Jessica Mohl was married to Andrew Mohl and had two children named Emily and Brett. Their little family was in the same church as Trinity’s family.
Now Jessica was examining her nails as she waited for her interrogation to begin. They’d found her on the beach in a polka-dot bikini, looking incredible for a mother of two. She’d chosen to put on a sundress as she was escorted to the interrogation room.
“You know,” Shae said as she walked in with Mark behind her, “this is just too big of a coincidence. You’re on the same cruise ship as your husband’s mistress around the time that she’s murdered. What do you have to say about that?”
“I’m innocent,” Jessica said, sounding bored. “Can I go now?”
“I don’t think so,” Mark said, frowning at her. “You’re in big trouble.”
“No,” Jessica scoffed. “What are you going to do? Keep me in a little cell until we get back to America? With your rent-a-cop guarding me until we get there. Whatever. I’ll just get a lawyer. You can’t prove anything.”
“It wouldn’t be hard to find out if you brought the syringe with you,” Shae said, shrugging slightly. “We also found out that your husband works on a mine. It wouldn’t be hard for you to get the poison. You already have a clear motive. We don’t need much more evidence than that.”
Jessica’s eyes widened slightly, and Shae knew that she had her. Jessica was paying attention now.
“I didn’t do anything,” Jessica said, leaning forward as she spoke. She rested her elbows on the table and sighed deeply. “I have an alibi; I’ve been shopping all week. You can check my receipts. I’m not sure when she died, but I think I was on the other side of the ship.”
“We’ll be checking that,” Mark warned, leaning back in his chair.
“Wait,” Shae said with a frown, “why did you choose this ship? Why did you come here?”
“It’s a long story,” Jessica said, shrugging slightly.
“We’ve got time,” Shae pointed out.
“Okay, look. I loved Andrew. We’ve been together since high school. I love my kids, and I loved my life. Then he went and had an affair. I don’t know if either of you’ve ever been in that position but let me tell you: it sucks. It hurts so much. After that, I couldn’t trust him. I heard that Trinity was going on vacation, and suddenly Andrew was going away for the weekend too. I decided to catch them in the act.”
“Is he also here?” Shae asked in shock. Jessica’s dyed blonde hair bounced as she shook her head. Shae saw that the woman’s eyes were slightly watery, and her heart went out to her.
“No, he wasn’t, but now I don’t know who he was meeting. So I decided that I didn’t want to think about it anymore. I brought his credit card, and I decided to have some fun.”
“Great,” Mark said in annoyance. “So you didn’t kill her. Any ideas about who did?”
Jessica shrugged lamely and shook her head.
“I know what you must be thinking, but I’m not glad she’s dead.”
“We didn’t think you were,” Shae said comfortingly.
“You’re probably learning a lot about her,” Jessica continued as if Shae hadn’t spoken, “but I don’t think you have any idea what she was really like. What she did to me was only the tip of the iceberg. Trinity was born to test us. She was much worse than you think. She hurt people for fun. There was this sadistic streak in her. I’m not happy she’s dead, I’m just happy for her sister. Serenity’s finally free.”
Chapter 9
“What do you think?” Shae asked as they walked out of the interrogation room. She looked at the door absently and wondered if they should just leave it as it was. They were doing a lot of interrogations; it was nice to have somewhere private to do them.
“I think she’s telling the truth,” Mark admitted. “She didn’t have any reason to kill Trinity anymore. Her husband is off with a different woman. It’s clear that Trinity wasn’t the problem with their marriage.”
“Should we look through her things just to make sure?” she asked.
“I don’t see a need to do that,” he said with a shrug, “but maybe we should do it just to be safe.”
She was about to agree with him when they walked into yet another awkward moment involving Trinity’s family. Tony was still in prison as he was their main suspect. Although he was technically allowed to leave, he hadn’t protested yet.
“You’ve always been poison,” John said, his eyes blazing.
Trinity’s parents were glaring hatefully at Tony, and he was hunched over in his cell, a pitiful expression on his face.
“You ruined my daughter, you’re nothing. I wish she’d never met you.”
“There’s no need for this,” Mark announced, walking up to them, his eyes blazing. It was the first time that Shae saw him stand up for another person. She was glad that he chose this moment to do it. Tony looked shattered, and she suddenly understood that he didn’t kill his wife. He loved her more than anyone could know. “We’ve got everything under control.”
“We know you took out a life insurance policy on her,” John said. It was unsettling how he was keeping his voice level while he hurled insults. This wasn’t coming from the recent hurt of losing his daughter. He was unleashing all the anger he’d built up toward Tony over the years. “But you won’t see one cent of that money.”
“We’re giving it to someone who actually loved Trinity,” Kelly hissed. “Serenity never left her sister. She was always there. She stood by her, even after you ruined her.”
“I didn’t ruin your daughter,” Tony said dully, not looking at them. “She chose to leave with me. I only ever loved her. You couldn’t forgive her, could you? She didn’t fit into your perfect world anymore, and so you made her pay. You only tolerated her. You never let her back in.”
“You took her away from us!” Kelly shouted, grabbing the bars as she tried to get through. Mark pulled her back and set her on her feet. He gave them a warning glance and started shepherding them ou
t.
“That was rough,” Shae said, wincing as Kelly started crying again.
“I’m used to it,” Tony said, shrugging slightly.
“You know, I’m sure they can’t cut you out of that policy. You were her husband. I’m sure you’ll be able to get some money.”
“I never thought I’d get that money,” Tony admitted. “I only took that thing out because Trinity asked me to. I didn’t even put my name as the beneficiary. The money was always going to Serenity.”
“Why?” Shae asked in shock. “Don’t you need that money more?”
“I’ll be fine,” Tony scoffed. “I can take care of myself. Serenity can’t. She’s always lived in Trinity’s shadow. She’s been bullied into submission since the day she was born. Did you know that Serenity was supposed to be born first? I’m not even kidding. They say that Trinity’s foot got in the way and they had to take her out first. Can you believe it? From birth already.”
Shae realized that he was talking more to himself. Then she looked at the bars and understood why he hadn’t asked to be released yet. He was grieving, and that was a lonely process. He didn’t care where he was. It didn’t matter anymore. Trinity was gone.
She walked away, taking one last look at the heartbroken husband. He had his head in his hands, and his shoulders were shaking ever so slightly.
As she walked out into the sun, her mind whirled with all the information that she’d gathered so far. Trinity was much worse than they could ever imagine. That was what Jessica had said. Trinity had bullied Serenity for years, up to the point where she was just a shell of a person. With Trinity gone, her personality could begin to peek through.
Shae quickly walked over to her room and started up her laptop. She opened the DVD tray and put Kelly’s disc in. The video started up almost immediately.
“Look at the camera,” John said, his voice happy, “say hello.”
“Hi,” Serenity said, waving shyly. Her black hair was cut into bangs that she used to hide her eyes. She was dressed in a pretty white dress, and she looked radiant.
“Hello, world!” Trinity jumped onto Serenity’s lap and grabbed the camera. “Are you ready?” she asked conspiratorially, then leaned in and kissed the camera. Her dad laughed indulgently, and Serenity just sat there. Not doing anything.
“My party is going to be epic,” Trinity promised the camera, getting up and motioning for her father to follow. Her hair was pinned up with jeweled pins, and her dress was dark red, pushing the limits of modesty.
“It’s not just your party,” John chided lightly.
“All my friends are coming,” Trinity pointed out, “they’re all going to be here for me.”
“People love Serenity just as much,” but he didn’t sound too convinced of his own words.
“Dad,” Trinity widened her eyes and looked at Serenity, “don’t be mean. You know she doesn’t have any friends. Sorry, Seren, you know how clueless dad can be.”
“It’s fine,” Serenity said quietly, looking down at her shoes. Shae felt like reaching through the camera and smacking Trinity. How could her parents let her get away with that?
The rest of the video continued in that vein. Trinity would put her sister down, and Serenity would say it was fine. Shae found it hard to watch, and she saw what Jessica meant. Trinity would constantly push Serenity out of the way, stealing the spotlight if she had to.
The two of them looked exactly alike, down to every eyelash. The difference came from the way they acted. No one would mistake them for each other as soon as one of them spoke. The last shot was of the twins cutting their cake. It made a pretty picture, Trinity cutting herself a massive slice out of the middle while Serenity cut a tiny piece from the bottom.
Shae got up from her bed and quickly dialed Alexa.
“Hey, can you find out where Serenity Harris is right now?”
What would happen when the meek and mild sister was pushed too far? What if Serenity had dreams of her own, but needed money, life insurance money, to get there? Every person had a breaking point, and it was a wonder that Serenity had lasted this long.
Unfortunately, the longer the feelings were pushed down, the more damage was done when the person broke. Alexa was able to give her Serenity’s location. It didn’t take long to find her.
To Shae’s surprise, the sister was sitting with Caleb, smiling slightly to herself.
“Hey,” Shae said, walking up to them, “do you mind if I sit?”
“Sure,” Caleb pulled a chair out for her and patted it in welcome. Serenity smiled, but Shae could see that she minded the interruption very much.
What if the catalyst for Serenity’s breaking point was Caleb? He was handsome, and spiritual. He would be intoxicating to a person like Serenity. And then, her sister swooped in and made the pastor fall in love with her. Would that be enough to push Serenity over the edge?
“So,” Caleb said brightly, “what’s new?”
“Nothing much,” Shae admitted. “We’ve hit a bit of a wall. I’m out of ideas, and I don’t know where to go next. Trinity was so loved; I can’t imagine why anyone would want to kill her.”
“Me neither,” Serenity said, her eyes brimming with tears. “There’s this hole inside of me now. I don’t think it will ever go away.”
“I never had a sister,” Shae admitted, “but I always wanted one. I can’t imagine what you must be feeling like.”
“I can’t imagine not having siblings,” Caleb admitted, shaking his head. “I had five older ones, and then three younger ones.”
“Woah,” Shae said, her eyes wide, “that was a full house.”
“We’re a big family,” Caleb shrugged, “but we all took care of each other. I still call them every week, just to see what’s happening in their lives.”
“Having a sister is amazing,” Serenity said, smiling slightly at Caleb’s story. “It’s like having a built-in best friend. Trinity was always looking out for me. She was always showing me how to dress and do my make-up. She helped me get my first boyfriend. I appreciate the way she was always there.”
Shae made a mental note of the statement but kept her expression neutral.
“You two must’ve been very close,” Shae said, waving a waiter over and quickly ordering a drink.
“You’ve got no idea,” Serenity said with a little laugh. “When you’ve got the same face, it’s impossible not to be close. I used to pretend to be her so that she could pass math. And she helped me with drama when I got too shy.”
“And it worked?” Shae asked in surprise.
“No,” Serenity said, shaking her head as she remembered what happened, “we were always caught. Everyone knew how shy I was, and how bad she was at math. They kind of expected us to pull a switch. The last time we did it, my mom made me get bangs. It took me forever to grow them out.” She ran her fingers through her hair, picked a piece up then let it fall to her shoulders.
“Why didn’t Trinity also get her hair cut?” Shae asked, frowning.
“Oh,” Serenity said in surprise, “she was in a beauty pageant, and my mom didn’t want to ruin her chances by cutting her hair. It’s okay, I liked it for a while. It made me stand out.”
“What a good attitude to have,” Caleb praised her, causing her to smile sweetly at him. Shae watched the interaction with interest.
“I agree,” Shae said, cutting through their moment. “You’re such a good sport. Trinity was lucky to have you.”
“I was lucky to have her,” Serenity admitted, flipping her hair and taking a sip of her drink. Shae smiled again, but something was bothering her. It sat at the back of her head; she was missing something.
“I’ll bet,” Shae said thoughtfully, “although I’m sure there must’ve been some fighting in your house. I can’t imagine two teenage girls living together in peace.”
“We never really fought,” Serenity shrugged. “We didn’t always get along, but I don’t like conflict. Besides, it was never anything big. It was just stu
pid stuff, like when she was in the bathroom too long or when I wanted to leave a party early. And even if we did fight, it wasn’t long until we said sorry and made up. You can’t stay mad at your sister forever.”
Serenity smiled fondly and took another sip of her smoothie. Shae watched as Serenity lifted the cup to her lips and suddenly everything clicked into place.
“Now wait just a minute,” Shae breathed, her eyes wide.
Chapter 10
“I don’t understand,” Serenity said with a frown. “Why do I have to sign the insurance papers now? And shouldn’t my parents be here for this?”
“They’re tired after their long trip,” Captain Tim said soothingly, “and this should really get done as soon as possible. If you sign it while we’re around, then you’ll have official witnesses who can vouch for you.”
“Okay,” Serenity said with a shrug. She took the pen he gave her and quickly signed her name. She didn’t notice as Shae discreetly took a video of the action. Captain Tim looked at Shae who nodded. His mouth set in a grim line and he shook his head.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, looking around in confusion. “Did I sign in the wrong place?”
“Serenity,” Shae said, sitting down on the chair next to her while Mark moved to stand in front of the door. “Tell us about your sister.”
“I’ve already told you about her,” Serenity said, her brow furrowing deeper. “What’s going on here? I thought I just had to sign the papers.”
“You’re right,” Shae said thoughtfully. “You’ve told us about her. Tell us about you. What’s your favorite movie? What are your hopes and dreams?”
“I don’t understand,” Serenity said stubbornly. It dawned on her that something was going on. Their focus was solely on her, and their expressions ranged from anger to disgust.
“You told me that you were shy,” Shae continued thoughtfully, “but that you liked having bangs because it made you stand out. That doesn’t make sense. Everything you’ve told me about you and your sister, you told me from Trinity’s point of view. Never from Serenity’s. Can you explain that to me?”