by A. L. Martin
****
Emerson was waiting by the Jeep for me after school. I told her I had to run her home real quick and pick up Kurt. All the way home, she begged me to take her with us to Starbucks. Reluctantly, I gave in to her incessant begging when we pulled into our driveway. She ran inside to put her stuff in her room and get Kurt for me. Ten minutes later, they walked out of the house, laughing and playing around. Kurt got in the front seat, while Emerson got in behind him.
“Emerson said something about going to Starbucks. Why are we going there?” Kurt asked, fastening his seatbelt.
“We are meeting Sophie and Braedon there. Sophie wants to talk to us about something since the police didn’t want to help us,” I said, pulling out of the driveway. Kurt and I talked about what it could be that she wanted to talk about, but we came up with nothing.
Sophie was in her car waiting for us when we pulled into the parking lot. By the time I was out of the Jeep, Sophie was standing next to the entrance, twisting her curly hair between her fingers, while looking at her phone as usual.
“Hey, Karsyn. Where’s Braedon?” Sophie asked.
“He texted me a few minutes ago that he was on his way.” I turned to look back at the entrance, and I saw his truck coming up. “He’s pulling in now. What do you want to talk to us about?”
“I will tell you once we get our drinks and sit down at one of the tables. It’s nothing bad if that’s what you are worried about. You might actually agree with me once you hear my idea. Come on, I’m dying for an iced coffee,” she said, opening the door.
“Sorry, I’m late,” Braedon said, holding the door open for me. “I made a quick stop by Tyler’s house to see why he wasn’t at school today.”
“You aren’t late. We just got here right before you pulled in the parking lot. Sophie is already inside getting her drink and a table. I am really curious about why she wants to talk to all of us. I hope Tyler is okay.”
“He should be back to school tomorrow. He’s getting over being sick.”
Sophie, Emerson, and Kurt had their drinks and were seated at a table in the far corner. We got our drinks and joined them at the table. I was worried about what she had to talk to us about, seeing she picked the farthest table away from other customers. I asked her what she wanted to talk to us about before I could even set my drink down on the table. She looked around Starbucks at the rest of the customers in there with us. I didn’t know why she was scoping the place out. People were either sitting alone, working on their laptops or in a group talking. I’m sure sitting and eavesdropping on a bunch of teenagers was the last thing they wanted to do. She took another look around, then took a drink of her iced coffee.
“Sophie!” I whispered through gritted teeth.
“Have some patience.” She giggled. “I went home and did something last night, and I think I have a plan.”
“Plan?” I asked.
“Well, maybe not a plan, but it is a definite idea.” She took another drink and went on to explain. She figured since the police didn’t want to listen to anything she had to say about me, then it was up to us to help Alexina before it was too late. She talked about how I mentioned my visions happen before the person’s death, and that maybe it hadn’t happened yet.
“What are you talking about, Sophie?” I grasped my drink in my hands.
“I’m getting there. Patience.”
I glanced over at Braedon, trying to keep calm. He wrapped his arm around me, caressing my arm.
She took another drink and asked where she left off.
“Sophie!” I practically yelled this time.
She went back to explaining that maybe Alexina was still alive and that maybe we could show up before her death happened. We could save her that way. We just had to figure out where it happened. I couldn’t believe that came out of her mouth, or the fact I was still sitting there listening to her. I knew it was such a bad idea, and that it would never work. I tried that with Rylee, and next thing I knew, I was sitting in court being accused of her murder. The only thing I could do was sit there and shake my head no. Sophie kept on talking about her idea, not even realizing I was sitting there shaking my head. I didn’t want to be rude by getting up and leaving, but I didn’t want any part of this idea. They wouldn’t be the ones on trial for murder. I took a couple of drinks of my iced coffee to prevent from saying her idea was bad. They wouldn’t be the ones being questioned by police, or have to deal with the hell it would put my family through again. Before I was able to stop myself, I was up and halfway out the door.
“Karsyn, where are you going?” Braedon asked, trying to beat me to the door.
“Were you not listening to her?”
“Yeah, I heard what she was saying. What if she’s right though? I mean we just have to figure out the place, and you are the one with the answers.”
“That’s the thing. I’m the one with the answers. Maybe I’m not supposed to have the answers. I can’t always swoop in and save the day. I tried that with Rylee, and I told you where it landed me. I can’t go through that again. I know that makes me sound like a bitch, but she has no idea what she’s asking me to do. All of you won’t be the one who gets interrogated by the police, then to have them not believe you.”
He didn’t say anything. He wrapped his arms around me and whispered in my ear. “You’re an amazing girl. I love you, Karsyn.”
I tilted my head back a little so I could look up into his beautiful blue eyes. “What did you say?” I whispered.
He smiled down at me. “I love you.” He leaned down and kissed my forehead. “Do you want me to take you home, and Kurt can drive your Jeep home later?”
I don’t know what came over me, but I took his hand and walked back over to the table.
“Karsyn, I can take you home,” Braedon said again, as we sat back down.
“I know, but I want to stay.”
“I’m sorry, Karsyn. I didn’t mean to upset you,” Sophie lowered her head.
I didn’t know if I would be able to help them, but I couldn’t turn my back on them either. I had a feeling I was about to unleash a lot of trouble for myself, but I knew I could handle it with Braedon and everyone else by my side.
Sophie asked me the “Million Dollar Question,” if I knew where Alexina’s body was supposed to be. I again had to remind her that I hadn’t seen Alexina’s face in the vision so it may not be her. I told her I had several visions about a particular place, but I didn’t know where to find it. I told them that it was in a meadow that I had never been to before. I told them the first visions there were white wildflowers all throughout the meadow and a knotted tree, then the rest of them there were no flowers. Sophie and Braedon looked at each other, then tried to figure out if they knew of any place like that around here. Sophie asked if there was anything else about the meadow beside the flowers and distorted tree. I told her the flowers were replaced by high grass or weeds. She immediately reached for her phone and started to search for places close by that could have a meadow like I described to them. Kurt reached for my hand and smiled. He knew I was on the verge of a major anxiety attack with everything going on.
“I’m sorry, but I need to get Emerson home. I’m sorry I couldn’t be more help,” I sighed.
“Karsyn, it took a lot of courage to tell us details about the location. I’m going to go home and get on my laptop and see what I can find. Hopefully, something will pop up before it’s too late,” Sophie smiled. “I will text you later tonight.”
Braedon walked me to the Jeep and told me he would be over in a little bit after he went by his house for a minute. I meant what I said earlier, Karsyn. I love you.”
“I love you too. I will see you in a little bit,” I smiled.
Chapter 17
By the time we got home, Mom and Dad were already home. There was no way I was going to tell them about Sophie’s wild idea. They would for sure pack us up and leave tomorrow morning without a warning. I told Emerson to not say a word to Mom and Dad a
bout talking to Sophie at Starbucks after school. We opened the front door, and let them know we were home. Of course, Mom was in the kitchen fixing dinner, and Dad was over on the loveseat watching TV.
“Where did you all go earlier?” Mom asked, putting what looked like chicken pot pie in the oven.
“We went to Starbucks for a little bit with Braedon. He’s going to come over in a little bit. I hope you don’t mind. He wants to come over and spend some time with me,” I smiled.
“No, we don’t mind if he comes over for a little bit. Dinner will be ready in about 45 minutes,” Mom said, walking around the couch and sitting next to Dad on the loveseat. I grabbed my drink and went upstairs to my room to get started on what little homework I had before Braedon got there. I sat my drink on my nightstand before flopping my book bag on my bed. Right as I got up on the bed and got situated to get to work on my homework, Kurt pried open the door enough to barely stick his head through it. “Sorry, to bother you. Do you care if I come in and sit with you?
I moved my stuff over to the other side of me and scooted over enough to give Kurt some more room on the bed. “You don’t ever have to ask me if you can come in and sit with me.”
He closed the door behind him and sat beside me on the bed. I gave him one of my big fluffy pillows to put behind him, so he wasn’t leaning against the hard headboard. “I couldn’t believe Sophie at Starbucks today. Surely, you aren’t going to go along with her stupid ass idea?”
I looked down at my books and laptop on the bed. I was scared that it was going to happen all over again, but if Braedon and Sophie stuck by me, then I was pretty positive I could handle anything. “I want to help Alexina if I can, but then again, I am still terrified of what people will say about me. That I had something to do with her disappearance since I knew where to find her. That is if we find her alive. If we find her dead, I will be accused of murder again.”
“I don’t want to see you go through that hell again, Karsyn. I know you are my cousin, but you are also my best friend.” He wrapped his arm around me, pulling me closer to him. “Are you going to tell Aunt Jenna and Uncle Stephen? You know what will happen if they find out what you are planning to do. They will pack you all up and move far away. I don’t think you want to leave Braedon. I know this is going against what I told you the other night when I got here, but I don’t know if you should go along with her idea.”
I looked up at him and laid my head back down on his shoulder. He was right though. I didn’t want to leave Braedon, and especially since he told me he loved me.
The doorbell rang right as I put my books back in my book bag, ready for school in the morning. Mom yelled for me from the bottom of the stairs that Braedon was here. I ran down the stairs and jumped into his arms. “I missed you.”
“You just saw me a little bit ago, but I missed you too.” He let me slide slowly out of his arms onto the floor. I took his hand and led him into the family room where Kurt and Dad were getting ready to watch an action movie. Mom was in the kitchen, finishing up dinner. I looked over at Braedon sitting on the couch, talking to Dad and Kurt, and I couldn’t help but smile despite the nightmare that was awaiting me.
****
The next few days Sophie didn’t bring up her idea, probably because she knew I thought it was bad on so many levels. I knew she wanted to help her best friend despite what Alexina did at the party. She had no idea what she tried to ask me to do, or the anguish it would put my family through to sit there unable to help me.
I just wanted to concentrate on me and Braedon, but I knew that would never be possible. Someone’s death would always be waiting for me to see it, no matter how hard I tried to block the visions. I haven’t had a vision in the last few days, and I found myself daring to hope that maybe this time was going to be different.
Friday morning came quick, even with the hellish week that felt like it drug on forever. I looked in the mirror and was relieved to see that my dark circles were starting to become a distant memory. I went to the bathroom to take a quick shower before school. I managed to get my shower done without hearing Emerson bang on the door, telling me to hurry up. I went back to my bedroom to get dressed and fix my hair. I picked a pair of ripped jeans, a pink cowl neck sweater, and a pair of brown ankle boots.
Sophie was waiting for me when I walked out of the last class before lunch. Her curly hair was hanging down around her face, while she looked on her phone. “Did you think any more about what we talked about the other day?”
“I am going to be honest, Sophie. I didn’t get much time to think about anything. Aren’t the police looking for her by now?”
“Yeah. They started looking for her the other day, but they don’t know where she is or if she is even alive. We need to do something fast before we run out of time. Do we still have time?” She asked, glancing over at me.
“I don’t know. I really don’t know.” I lowered my head as we made our way to the cafeteria. I knew Braedon would be waiting for me, and to be honest, I wasn’t even nervous about having to deal with Blair. In fact, I was kind of hoping she would try to start shit with me because I wanted to say something this time instead of Braedon. We walked into the cafeteria together, and then we split up long enough to get our lunches. Braedon went through the lunch line while Sophie and I got salads.
“You look amazing today,” Braedon whispered in my ear, from behind me.
“Thank you,” I looked over my shoulder and smiled at him. He placed his right hand on the small of my back as we made our way to the table. Again, I found myself between Sophie and Braedon, which was fine with me. I thought we would be able to sit and enjoy our lunches like normal seniors, but I was wrong again. Fifteen minutes into our lunch, I was paged to the office. I looked at Braedon and Sophie as I got up from my seat. I grabbed my plate, and pieces of lettuce skipped across the plate onto the table. Braedon looked down at the lettuce on the table and took the plate out of my hand. “Do you want me to go with you?” he asked, getting up from his chair.
“Yes.”
Braedon put my plate on his tray and took them over to the window for trays and dishes. I was gathering up my stuff when he picked up my stuff in his left hand, holding my hand in his. We made our way out of the cafeteria and down the hall toward the office to see why they paged me. We tried to walk as slowly as we could, but the secretary came looking for us. She told me I had to hurry up and get to the office. I looked through the big window of the office and saw Detective Alvarez standing next to the front desk. I squeezed Braedon’s hand as we walked through the office door. Braedon didn’t let go of my hand while we stood there in awkward silence in front of the detective.
“Miss Alexander. I’m here to escort you to the police station for questioning,” Detective Alvarez said.
“What did she do wrong?” Braedon asked, stepping in front of me.
“Nothing.”
“If she did nothing wrong, then why does she need to go with you?”
“We just want to ask her some questions.”
“Miss Alexander, would you please come with us?” Detective Alvarez said, holding the door open.
“Braedon, could you go to the house and let Kurt know? I don’t want my parents to know about this.”
I walked out of the office with Detective Alvarez and who I assumed was his partner. The detective opened the entrance door for me, then opened the squad car door for me too. I climbed in and scooted over behind the passenger seat as Detective Alvarez sat in the driver’s seat. I didn’t want to say anything to either of them until I got to the police station. Then again, I had done nothing wrong. I tried to figure out why I was being taken in for questioning unless it was about what he found on the internet about me.
We all sat in uncomfortable silence on the way to the station, while the beating of my heart echoed in my ears. If they had said something, I wouldn’t have been able to hear them. We arrived at the station about fifteen minutes later, and his partner opened the door for me. They w
alked on each side of me as we entered the station. The officer behind the window buzzed us in through the same door I went through the other day with Sophie. It wasn’t the same officer, this one was younger and quite a bit thinner with a lot more hair.
They escorted me into a room with a table and a couple of chairs. I looked around the bare eggshell colored walls and instantly felt like I was back in Evansville, being questioned about Rylee’s death all over again.
Detective Alvarez pulled out a chair and motioned for me to sit down, while they sat on the other side of the table. I sat there, gazing back and forth between Detective Alvarez and his partner who seemed to be a lot younger. His partner was probably in his late ‘20s if I had to guess. His hair was dark red and buzzed on the sides and back. The top was a little longer and spiked up in the front. He was more muscular by the way his suit jacket hugged his biceps.
“Miss Alexander, we wanted to ask you questions about your best friend’s murder almost two years ago,” Detective Alvarez asked.
“Do I need a lawyer?” I stammered the words.
Detective Alvarez looked at me from across the table. “No. We just wanted to ask you some questions.”
“They why did you take me from school? I thought you couldn’t take me into custody without a reason.” I glared back at him.
“You are right, but I knew you wouldn’t come in on your own. So, I thought I would go and get you. Trust me, I can get away with it.”
I looked at both detectives, then asked if I could get a bottle of water. Alvarez’s partner got up to go get it and was back within a few minutes. I was trying to stall as long as possible, but I know they would eventually catch on. I wasn’t going to give up any information voluntary; I was going to make them work for it.
“Miss Alexander, there’s quite a bit of information about you on the internet. I looked up your name after you left the other night. You were on trial for your best friend’s murder, but the charges were dropped mid-trial. Why were they dropped? How did you convince the jury you were innocent?” he asked as he motioned his partner to head out of the room. “How did you get away with it?”