by Milda Harris
"Anything else?" Mrs. Rowan asked because I had been just standing there in silence, thinking in my head.
"No," I said.
Then I turned and ran to Chemistry class. My brain was whirling as I dodged around people in my rush to get to class. Was this how Kait felt trying to solve murder mysteries? I didn't really like it. I felt a little sick. Kait seemed to like it, though. I guess I could see why if I thought about it. If you actually solved the case, the reward was solving the puzzle. In my case, my reward was getting my necklace back. I'd be pretty happy with that result. I had to focus on that and try to not to throw up with worry in the meantime.
Okay. Although I wasn’t a sleuth like Kait, I had read some mysteries, so the first step seemed to be to narrow down the suspects. Who had the opportunity to steal my necklace? Even better, who had a motive to steal it?
I thought about the five girls with lockers in my section of the locker room. I didn’t know Sarah and Megan that well. Thus, the difficulty I had in telling them apart from each other even though they were not twins at all. I mostly just knew that they were Ariel’s friends and that they were popular. I thought of them as a unit. They seemed sort of like her henchmen. I didn’t know if they’d steal my necklace or not, so I was inconclusive on if they had a motive. They did both have the opportunity to steal it before class, though.
Then there was Ariel. If I were Kait, maybe she would have stolen it to torment me. Since I wasn’t, I kind of doubted that she’d do it. She seemed to have everything. Ariel always wore the most expensive and stylish clothes. There was no reason why she’d steal something of mine. She could just go to the mall and buy herself the same necklace if she wanted to or order it online or even have her boyfriend Troy buy it for her. So, I didn't have a motive for Ariel either, although I did suppose she had the opportunity before swim class actually started when I left her, Sarah, and Megan talking about their boyfriends. Hmmm. I’d put her last on my list. I didn’t want to antagonize Ariel if I didn’t have to. I didn’t want it to come around on Kait because she was my friend now. I also knew how horrible Ariel could be if she thought you were her enemy. Mostly everyone just left me alone. I preferred it that way.
Then there was Scarlett. I thought she’d be more likely to steal something from Ariel, Sarah, or Megan just because she thought that they were ridiculous. The necklace didn’t even seem to be her style. Still, Scarlett would have had the opportunity to take my necklace while I was in the shower since she didn’t take one.
And my last suspect was Claire. The only motive I could think of for her was that I knew she wasn't rich. There were like six kids in her family and they did not have much money. I didn't know much more about her except that she was like me. She wasn't popular and she wasn't unpopular. We just didn't know each other. Still, maybe Claire took it to sell it or something. Wait. Claire went out to the swimming pool before me and came back from the showers after me. Didn’t that take her off my suspect’s list? I thought about it. Technically, she could have stolen it when she went to grab her shampoo. I just didn’t see her when she did that. Still, Scarlett probably would have been there at that point. Most people didn’t obviously commit a crime in front of someone else, especially a stranger who might tattle on them. I thought about it. Okay. I’d put Claire last on my list of suspects and move Ariel up to spot number four.
Ariel. What about her, Sarah, and Megan? Would one of them steal my necklace in front of the others? Yeah, I had no doubt that they would if they were so inclined. If one of them took it, I was probably out of luck too. They'd all have each other's backs against a foreign threat.
Well, I was back at step zero or close to it. At least I was pretty sure that Claire was innocent. Maybe.
I made it to Chemistry class just as the bell rang. It was the second class in a row where I was almost late. It was so unlike me. I usually made it to class early so that I could get in a few pages of whatever book I was reading. Kait was already sitting next to Kyle when I walked in. I felt a little disappointed. I enjoyed talking to Kyle alone before class started. Now I wouldn’t have the chance.
At the thought of Kyle, I automatically put my hand to my throat feeling for my non-existent necklace. Well, maybe for today that was a good thing. I didn’t know how I was going to tell Kyle that it was missing. Maybe he wouldn’t notice. My shirt could in theory be covering it.
I walked past Kyle, looking down. I knew that if my eyes met his that I’d have to tell him. I couldn't. Seriously, how could I do that? He’d be devastated. Giving that necklace to me meant so much to him. He’d think I didn’t care about it, that I'd been careless with it. That was worse than anything else because it so wasn’t true. I loved him so much that it hurt to think of him feeling any sort of pain because of me.
I felt Kyle’s eyes on me as I walked past, willing me to look up. It took all of my willpower, but I didn’t. It also felt like I was walking in slow motion through gelatin. It took forever to get to my table. I almost collapsed into my chair when I got there. It had taken everything out of me to make the walk from the door to my chair. It was like I had relived that first day of Chemistry class over again, except a billion times more stressful.
I looked up as our Chemistry teacher started to lecture. As I did so, out of the corner of my eye I caught Kyle looking at me. I couldn’t help myself. I looked back at him. He was frowning at me. Oh no. He knew. He knew I had lost his necklace. Fear shot through my chest. I wanted to put my hand to my throat again to feel for the necklace, but I didn’t dare. I had to tell him. I had to let him know what happened and that it didn’t mean that I didn’t love him. He had to know that I hadn’t meant to lose it.
“Are you okay?” Kyle mouthed.
Relief coursed through me. He didn't know. Of course he didn't know. Yet. I noticed that Kait had turned to look at me too. Oh no. I didn’t want to drag her into this. Yet.
What should I do? My brain answered me without pause. I needed to tell Kyle. No matter how much I didn't want to, the cornerstone of a relationship was honesty and this was something important. I couldn’t lie to him about this even if all I wanted to do was protect his feelings. I had to tell him even though every inch of my body was screaming not to.
I somehow managed to shake my head no to Kyle's question, answering that that I was not okay, even though my stomach twisted in knots at the mere thought of telling Kyle the truth. It was going to be hard, but I had to do it. The frown already on Kyle’s face deepened. I wondered for a second if he was going to come back to my table and ask me what was wrong even though he couldn’t do that without disrupting the teacher’s lecture. Kyle didn't, although he kept looking back at me between writing notes. I kept smiling to reassure him that I'd make it through class. Besides, I needed that time. I had forty-five minutes to figure out how to tell him that I had lost my necklace and it wasn't nearly long enough.
The bell rang and Chemistry was over. Kyle immediately snatched his books up and walked over to me like I knew he would. I saw Kait exit the classroom. At least Kyle didn't say anything to her. It was going to take everything I had to just tell Kyle the truth.
"What's wrong?" Kyle asked as I gathered up my own books.
I was shaking, so gathering up my books wasn't the simple task it should have been. I stopped, put my books back down, and looked up at Kyle. I just had to say it.
"My necklace is gone," I said hearing my voice tremble.
I felt like I was going to burst into tears. It had been ridiculous to think that I was going to find it myself. I simply wasn't a teen sleuth.
"Gone?" Kyle looked confused. "What do you mean?"
I froze. Kyle never looked confused. He always had a very rational answer, so him being confused made my chest ache worse.
Still, I took a deep breath and told him the story. As I spoke, my tears dissipated, and I just got more and more angry. I was sure that one of those girls had taken my necklace.
Kyle listened without saying anything. L
ike me, he was a good listener. He liked to take in all the facts and then make a decision. He was very analytical. That made sense since he was a scientist at heart. I finished talking.
Kyle met my eyes, "Suzie, it's okay."
"No, Kyle, it's not. I want to get the necklace back," I said.
"I can get you another one," Kyle said.
"No. I want that one," And I did. That necklace meant something to me.
I knew in my head that a two-month anniversary wasn't that big of a deal in the overall scheme of things, but it was to me. Plus it was the first present Kyle had ever given me. More simply than that, I loved it like I loved him.
Next period's Chemistry students were starting to fill the room. A girl I didn't know was waiting for us to move. I was surprised that she was so patient.
"Sorry," I said, grabbing my books and then turned to Kyle. "Let's go."
He nodded. We walked toward the exit together. Kyle grabbed for my hand to hold it. I shuffled my books under my arm and grasped his left hand in my right one.
"I'm going to find that necklace," I said as we walked out of Chemistry and into the hallway crowded with students going to their next classes. "I was thinking that I might ask Kait for her help. She's good at mysteries."
Kyle frowned. "That might not be the best idea."
"Why not?" I asked.
I was surprised. I thought Kyle would be all for it. I thought that maybe I wouldn't ask Kait because Ariel was a suspect, but I was desperate. I really wanted my necklace back. Still, if Kyle thought that was reason enough too, then...
"Well..." Kyle started, but seemed unsure.
"What?" I asked.
"I'm not sure I'm supposed to say anything. It sounded like he was telling me in confidence, but..." Kyle said.
"But what?" I was dying of anticipation now.
Kyle looked at me. "Ethan really doesn't want Kait to investigate any more mysteries."
"He said that? Why not?" I asked.
"He's afraid she's going to get hurt," Kyle said.
I nodded. I could see why Ethan would be afraid of that. Kait had gotten herself into many dangerous situations while she was investigating murder mysteries. I didn't know how Ethan planned to stop her, though. It was becoming part of Kait's personality. She enjoyed it. If another mystery came up, I didn't see how Ethan was going to stop her. Then again, Kait was interning at the police station now. Maybe that would squash her urges for investigating mysteries on her own. I wouldn't bet on it, though.
"When did Ethan tell you this?" I asked instead of telling Kyle my theories about Kait not investigating mysteries anymore.
I was actually surprised that Ethan had confided in Kyle. Sure, they knew each other through Kait, but they weren't BFFs or anything. They definitely weren't in the same social circles. I was glad of that, though. Ethan was nice, but I didn't want his crowd to ruin Kyle.
"He came into the craft store," Kyle said.
Kyle was working at a craft store some nights and on weekends. His parents knew the owners, but Kyle liked it because they also had all sorts of neat science-y kits that he got a discount on. Even though we were both working after school to save up for the most amazing junior prom ever, I knew that Kyle was splurging part of his paychecks on science kits. That was okay, though. He was going to be an amazing scientist someday. Those kits might be the start of some cool invention or maybe give him an idea how to cure some horrible disease. Still, I suppose that's why I was super surprised at the anniversary gift. Besides the fact that it was so close to the holidays, we were supposed to be saving our money for prom.
"Why was Ethan at the craft store?" I didn't picture Ethan making arts and crafts.
"His sister needed something for a school project," Kyle said.
Okay. That made sense. But... "So, did he just bring it up? How did it come up?"
"I mentioned you and then he mentioned Kait and we just started talking," Kyle said.
"But this isn't that crazy of a mystery," I said, feeling desperate. "It's just looking for my necklace."
Kyle shrugged. "I suppose you're right."
"So, I should ask for her help?" I asked hopefully.
"Sure," Kyle said.
Huh. This was a first. I felt like maybe Kyle was placating me by telling me what I wanted to hear. "You really think so?"
"It's up to you," Kyle said.
So, he didn't think I should talk to Kait, but he didn't want to tell me that outright. This was weird. Usually Kyle and I were on the same wavelength. What was going on?
Whoa. I knew what was going on. Whoever stole my necklace was totally ruining our relationship vibe. This was so unfair. I had to get that necklace back.
That settled it for me. I'd catch Kait at her locker after school. It was the only time during the school day that I knew where to find her. Still, that meant that we'd only have one day before the holiday break to find my necklace thief. I hoped it was enough.
I needed to get that necklace back to put my relationship with Kyle back on the right track. We were only a short time away from important relationship milestones like our first Christmas together, not to mention the all-important New Year's date and our first New Year's kiss. We could not start having problems now. I took a deep breath. I was normally pretty calm and level headed, but this was totally throwing everything in my life off kilter.
Chapter 3: Interrogating
My plan was to wait to talk to Kait before I did any more investigating. I wanted her advice on what steps to take next because I didn't want to inadvertently mess things up. That really was my plan, but then extenuating circumstances happened. Megan and Sarah were in my English class after lunch. Normally I didn't talk to them, which wasn't that unusual. I didn't know what to say since I wasn't friends with them, so it was just easier and more fun to read a book before class started.
Today, though, as I opened up my copy of Jane Eyre, Megan turned to me from across the aisle and said, "Are you reading that for fun?"
She didn't say it in a casual way like she really wanted to know, she said it like Jane Eyre had to be the most distasteful, boring book ever. Being that I'd already read it twice, I disagreed. Normally I didn't get angry or annoyed with people and I was pretty happy go lucky, but when you criticized the books I loved, I had a definite opinion.
I looked up from my book. "Yes, I am reading it for fun."
Okay, so my tirade about Jane Eyre didn't come out the way I'd hoped, but my tiny sentence really was a lengthy dissertation on how Jane Eyre was a great book in my head. I had to work on that. Eventually.
Megan looked at me like I was crazy, but then turned away from me without another word about Jane Eyre. Maybe she sensed the real meaning underneath my simple sentence or maybe she'd just gotten distracted by the fact that Sarah leaned into whisper something to her. Megan laughed. Oh yeah, they were making fun of me for reading Jane Eyre. I didn't need super hearing to know that. Whatever.
I only had another minute or so before the bell rang and class started. It would be easy to ignore them and read my book. The thing is, now I was annoyed. Why had they chosen today to comment on my book? Megan had sat across the aisle from me in English for the last couple of months and I had already read a billion books in front of her. Had she noticed me today because she was the one that had stolen my necklace? Or was it Sarah? I eyed them. Now I was suspicious. Seriously, why had Megan just talked to me?
"Hey, did either of you see my star necklace in gym class?" I asked before I could second-guess myself. I could barely believe I'd asked it. It was like my brain had spoken on its own.
Megan and Sarah looked at me like they were surprised I had spoken too. I guess this was the longest conversation that we'd ever had in high school. Then again, maybe they were surprised that I'd dare speak to them when they had the ability to make fun of me.
"What does it look like?" Megan asked.
"It's a silver star with a dark stone in the middle," I said.
&nbs
p; "Wait. Were you wearing it when you walked into gym?" Sarah asked.
"Yeah," I was surprised Sarah had noticed it.
"Did you lose it or something?" Sarah asked.
"Sort of," I said, purposely being vague. I didn't want to accuse them of stealing it if they weren't guilty. Yeah, I so wasn't good at this. Kait was going to be so much better at the interrogating part.
"I didn't see it," Megan said and then added. "I didn't even notice it."
"It was different," Sarah said and then looked past Megan and at me, "I like to make jewelry. I notice those things. What kind of stone was it?"
"It was a meteorite," I said, smiling.
Sarah sounded genuinely interested in the necklace. I had a sudden urge to brag about Kyle. I didn't.
Sarah nodded. "That's neat. I like funky jewelry like that."
Okay. So, was Sarah too interested in my necklace? Did Sarah steal my necklace because it was funky? Or was she going to break it down into another piece of jewelry? I'd never find it then. Or was I just jumping to random conclusions? I tried to clear my head and think about this rationally. Sarah seemed more interested than anything else. Surely she wouldn't be interested at all if she had stolen it. She'd probably have ignored my statement about the necklace instead. Right? I really wished Kait were here to listen to this conversation so that she could tell me her opinion. I should have waited to talk to Sarah and Megan. It was too late now, though.
"You didn't see anyone pick it up or anything did you?" I asked.
I watched them very closely for their reactions. Neither of them flinched or had an eye twitch or anything. Did that mean that they weren't guilty?