Murdering Meredith Barr (Halliston City Stories)

            If you follow route 44 south east from the cross towards Kingsfield and take it out past the marshes on the right, you may notice on the left, about a half mile out, there’s a little road that runs straight up to a large iron gate.  If you can afford to procure passage through the gate, you will enter the village of Bradley Heights on the outskirts of Halliston City.  If you follow the windy road up the hill, you will begin to see the enormous houses of Halliston’s elite.  A cynical person might say that the richest men in Halliston are the ones who make the laws and the ones who break them.  An even more cynical man might say there isn’t much difference either way.

            The first house on the left, with the big green hedge and the helipad on top, belongs to Jack Merger, when he’s not in occupying his seat in the U.S. Senate.  A few minutes down the road is the home of Sam Baker, his wife Wendy, their son Greg and their daughter Elliot.  Sam is the District Attorney of Halliston City.  The next house over(about a half mile away), belongs to a Tommy Hennessy.  For the past five years, Tommy’s neighbor, Sam, has been trying to build a case against Tommy for charges ranging from human trafficking to racketeering to the drug trade.  More important than any of these charges, in Sam’s eyes, was the murder of Sam’s neighbor on the other side and the father of his daughter’s best friend: Edward Abrams.

            Farther down the road, you might find the homes of other important Halliston families.  The Sibley’s and the Delmonts both have mansions in the Heights, on opposite sides of the Village, naturally.  The Hadley’s, who owned majorities shares of both the Harris Building and the King’s Tower, lived next to the Quentin’s who, though once were suspected to be connected to the Hennessy Organization, had carved out an impressive fortune in Real Estate in the upscale beach neighborhood of Whiteshore.  Their families were the closest of friends from the moment they bought houses next door to one another. 

            As you drive back down the hill to the other side of the Village, you might notice two smaller houses standing by themselves on either side of the road out to Heberton.  The house on south side of the road belongs to Jeffrey and Morgan Becker and their son Todd.  The house across the street belonged to Roger Barr and his only daughter Meredith, whose disappearance tore her father’s world apart and turned the quite, rich little neighborhood of Bradley Heights on its head.

Murdering Meredith Bar

            It was, without question, a crime of passion; but one carried out with such cold precision, you might have thought it planned for months.  Hannah Abrams learned at a young age how to focus her rage so efficiently that it could burn a hole through steel.  Though raised by a family generally agreed to be upstanding and of high regard, extenuating circumstances allowed Hannah’s development into a sociopath to go unchecked until it was far too late.

At the tender age of eleven, Hannah learned that her father Edward, who she barely knew, had been killed by a mugger on the streets Halliston as he walked to his car from a rather seedy motel.  What he was doing at this location was a mystery, though, if you asked his wife she would tell you that he was visiting one of his many mistresses.  If you asked Sam Baker, Edward was killed by a soldier of the Hennessy Crime Syndicate. 

Edward, you see, worked for an import/export company with stockyards up and down the coast.  As a middle manager of the business, he would go from city to city and run audits on the merchandise being shipped into each port.  One day at the Halliston Docks Edward quite accidentally stumbled upon a meeting between James Hennessey (Tommy’s brother) and the purveyor of high quality Colombian narcotics.  Edward, being the fine upstanding citizen that he was, went straight to his friend Sam Baker and asked for witness protection.  Sam told him he would do his best.  Two days later, Edward was found dead in the street.

The news of her father’s death arrived at their door in the form of one Detective Henry Fox, a veteran of the HCPD and a friend of the family.  Even as her Mother broke down into tears, no part of this event struck her as terrible news.  Edward Abrams, Hannah’s father, saw his daughter an average of eight weeks out of the year and rarely for more than two days at a time.  Her parents were not separated; however, Edward was always on the move for work.  Michelle, Hannah’s mother, could not tolerate so much moving around and insisted on staying near Halliston.  Each time Edward came home, he promised Michelle and Hannah that the day would soon come when he could find a position in Halliston and live there with them permanently.  Soon after his death, the family found this to be a lie.  In actuality, Edward had been offered stationary positions in the Halliston area on several occasions and each time he had turned them down.  When news of this reached the family, again, the gravity of the situation never occurred to Hannah.

            No, not a single part of this family ordeal struck Hannah Abrams as remotely noteworthy.  Nothing about the death of her father meant a thing to her.  What Hannah did realexe, however, was that her destructive tendencies once deemed punishable offenses, now became excusable cries for attention from a deeply afflicted young girl.  This did not stop as the years passed and before long, her behavior just seemed normal. 

            She was a sweet girl, at times.  She was kind to her boyfriend Jacob, even when he told her they should see other people.  This may have been because Jacob’s sister was Hannah’s good friend Lex Hadley, but it was more likely due to Hannah’s inability to force emotional attachments to other human beings.  At other times, however, she was generally agreed to be a terror.  In one instance, Bradley Heights Academy rejected application to the Homecoming Court because she was a sophomore and the court was always made up of juniors and seniors.  Hannah felt that, given her extensive extra-curriculars and outstanding academic performance, an exception should be made in her case.  The Administration did not feel the same way.  The day of the homecoming parade, the exhaust pipe to the homecoming float exploded, injuring four of the court members.  A police investigation found that the pipe had been clogged with a mixture of kerosene and sawdust.  They were not able to trace the material and the case remains open to this day.  Hannah was intelligent, cunning, and when she was angry she could scare the horns off the devil himself.

            There was one person who was not afraid of Hannah.  In the fall of Hannah’s junior year, Meredith Barr, a classmate, decided to throw a party at her home.  Meredith invited all the most popular boys and girls, including Hannah’s three closest friends: Mary Kate Quentin, Lex Hadley, and Elliot Baker.  (Hannah called them Mary, Lexi and Ellie.  This was not out of affection, however.  Rather, Hannah ended each of their names with a ‘y’ sound in order to separate, and in her mind elevate, herself from the three of them.)  Meredith did not, however, invite Hanna Abrams.  She did not do this out of spite, as Hannah perceived it.  Meredith chose not to invite Hannah because she had just begun dating Hannah’s ex-boyfriend Jacob and wanted to avoid any awkward moments.  Had she realexed that the break up had been amicable, she may have saved herself and the four other girls a lot of trouble.

            Hannah was livid when Lex came by her house after leaving the party early.

            “Well, how was it?” she said scornfully.  Lex, who had actually had a very good time, grimaced and stuck out her tongue. 

            “Lame,” she replied.  “Just a bunch of boring losers dancing to crappy music.  You know, the usual Meredith stuff.”  Hannah nodded.  She knew Lex was exaggerating, but she liked the fact that her friend was afraid to defy her. 

            “Who was there?” she asked, feigning interest as though she didn’t already know everyone who attended.  Lex shifted a little in the big fluffy bean bag chair that sat in the corner of Hannah’s room.

            “Oh, you know,” she said, twirling her hair idly.  “Elliot was there for a bit but she left to go pick up her brother or something.  Mary Kate was there with Todd.  You know he and Jake are always together.”  She paused awkwardly and looked around the room a bit.  “No one else good,” she said and dropped her hands into her lap.  Hannah nodded and laid back on her bed.

            “I don’t know what your brother sees in Meredith.  She thinks she’s all hot but she’s got a little dog face.  Just gross.”  Lex, who did not in any way dislike Meredith, just smiled and tried to look like she agreed.  Hannah knew she didn’t, but a plan was beginning to form in her mind.  This bitch Meredith thought she was good enough to leave her out of her party and that was definitely not ok.  She was going to teach her a lesson, but she was going to need a little help.  Donning a concerned face, she sat up and looked Lex right in the eye.

            “Hey, Lexi?” she said, he voice softening like a caring parent.  “I think I should tell you something.”  Lex was taken aback by the swift change in Hannah’s mood.

            “Oh, what is it, Hannah?”  Hannah sighed with a tragic look.

            “Ok, Lex, I’ll tell you, but only because I care about you and your brother.”  Lex nodded, already captivated by her friends supposed concern.

            “Well,” Hannah continued.  “I was talking to Ben Morris the other day and he told me that he overheard Rick Messner telling his friends that he had hooked up with Meredith the last week.  Ben said he figured he Rick was making it up at first, but then he saw the two of them at Snarky’s and he had his hand on her knee.  Apparently he paid for both their burgers.”

            “Oh my God,” Lex gasped. 

            “I know,” said Hannah, shaking her head.  “I guess she thinks she’s so great she can do whatever she wants.”  Lex was still in shock.  Her and Meredith had known each other for four years and she never got the impression that she would do something like that.  She was even a little happy when her and Jacob started dating.  Oh my God, Jacob, she thought.  He’ll be devastated. 

            “I have to tell Jacob!” Lex said, grabbing her phone.  Before she could look up his number, Hannah snatched it away from her. 

            “Whoa, slow down Lexi.  You can’t just tell him, there’s no way to prove it.  Plus, if he does believe it he’ll feel terrible.  Can you imagine being cheated on with a loser like Rick?”  Lex dropped her hands to her side with a sigh.

            “You’re right,” she said.  “But what can we do?  We can’t just let this happen.”  Hanna nodded comfortingly and moved over to sit beside her friend.

            “I don’t know, but we’ll think of something.”  She put her arm around Lex and could feel her begin to tremble with rage.

            “She can’t just do that to my brother,” Lex said, anger bubbling in her voice.  “We have to do something to her to scare her off.  Make her afraid of us so she’ll leave my brother alone.”  Hanna smiled inwardly.  This was exactly what she wanted.

            “I don’t know, Lexi,” she said, remaining coy.  “I mean, she certainly deserves it, but have to be careful about this.  We can’t just go around attacking people.”

            “Right,” Lex said, her voice still quivering.  “Well, we’ll just rough her up a little.  You know, just to scare her.  We could put her in the trunk or something and leave her by the marshes.  Not like, in the marshes, just close enough that she gets really scared and doesn’t want to mess with my brother anymore.”  Lex finished, still shaking a little; her eyes growing mad.  Hannah smiled.  The plan was excellent and she didn’t even have to think of it all herself. 

            “Ok,” she said.  “Let’s do it.  We should tell Mary and Ellie though, they’ll want to help.  Any good friend would.”  Lex nodded.  Never the strongest minded individual, Lex accepted Hannah’s story and conformed to her wicked design without even being cognizant of it.  She jumped to her feet with a determined look on her face.

            “Alright, I’ll go tell Mary Kate and Elliot.  We’ll do it tonight!”  Lex was halfway out the door before Hannah stopped her.

            “Whoa, wait a minute, Lexi,” she said in a calming voice.  “Let’s not get hasty.  We want this to work.  Go tell Mary and Ellie to meet at your house in an hour.  We’ll do it tomorrow night, once we’ve made the perfect plan.”  Lex nodded and headed back out the door.  She paused for a moment and turned back.

            “Hey, Hannah?” she said with a smile.

            “Yeah?” Hannah replied.

            “Thanks,” said Lex, and she hurried out the door.  Hannah smiled wickedly as Lex left and flopped down on her bed.  She looked over at her dresser with a pleasured sigh.  In the top left drawer underneath an old hairbrush and her curling iron lay a thin metal knitting needle with a razor sharp edge.  Hannah reminisced for a moment about a little black cat that she had wanted.  At the time, the kitten belonged to her cousin and Hannah had demanded that she give it to her.  Her cousin refused.  After Hannah left to go home, the kitten was never seen again, unless you count the worms.  She thought fondly of the look on her cousin’s face the next time she saw her.  Her Aunt and Uncle, of course, refused to believe that Hannah had anything to do with the kitten’s disappearance and even grounded her cousin when she would not rescind her claim.  This was an added bonus that Hannah had not expected.  She spent the day at her cousin’s house playing with her cousin’s toys in full view of her cousin’s window. 

            Hannah remembered the incident with a twisted eroticism.  Nothing gave her greater pleasure than the thought of her past victories.  She was certain this time would be no different.  Her friends would lure Meredith out and she would exact her revenge.  The knitting needle would be the perfect tool.  If I do it right, she reasoned, I might not even get any blood on my clothes.  She smiled at this thought, because she never went anywhere looking anything but chic, but it would be a tragedy if she should damage one of her outfits over a little piece of trash like Meredith.  Her victory would be complete and she would look hot the whole time.  Maybe once I’m done, I’ll go sleep with Jacob.  Hannah rolled over on her side and squeezed a fluffy pink pillow.  This is going to be so much fun…

****

            Mary Kate Quentin was trying very hard not to hurt Todd’s feelings as she explained to him why she had to leave the party and break their date.  Todd had made big plans for that night.  They were going to the party and then he was going to take Mary Kate to see a movie.  After the movie, he was going to take her to the north crest of Bradley Heights to the little cliffs overlooking Sibley and give her the necklace he had been saving his money for three months to buy.  He was, of course, going to make sure that she did not get the wrong idea.  Todd Becker, after all, was a gentleman and the gift was not intended to solicit any sort of physical return.  That being said, Todd Becker was also a teenage boy and he was kind of hoping they might make out.  This new development threatened to derail his entire plan.

            “Because Lex said she needed me, Todd.  I’m sorry, but I have to go,” Mary Kate said, beginning to feel antsy. 

            “I just don’t understand what is so pressing.  I know she’s your friend and all, but I feel like this kind of thing always happens when we have a night planned,” Todd replied.  Mary Kate knew he was right, but she also knew that Hannah was really behind the meeting and one doesn’t just say no to Hannah Abrams, but how could she explain that to Todd?

            “Look, I’m sorry.  We’ll do it another night, Todd.  I have to go because Lex really needs us.  Hannah and Elliot are going to see her too.”  Elliot Baker, who was standing nearby, overheard this last part with a bit of surprise.

            “I’m…sorry, what is this?”  Elliot said, walking over to them.

            “Didn’t you get Lexi’s text?” Mary Kate asked.  Elliot shook her head blankly.  Mary Kate tried to look confused for a moment before continuing.

            “Well, she texted me and said both of us should come.  I’m surprised she forgot to send it to you.”  In fact, Mary Kate was not terribly surprised.  For whatever reason, Elliot was often an afterthought to Hannah and Lex.  Mary Kate didn’t think it was because they didn’t really like her.  She assumed it was just because she and Elliot were together so often.  The real reason was that Elliot was a little more individually minded than Lex and Mary Kate and Hannah preferred to make her get her information second hand.  This kept Elliot at arm’s length and prevented her from gaining too much influence over the group’s activities. 

            “Anyway, we have to go,” Mary Kate grabbed Elliot by the arm and pulled her towards the door.  “I’ll call you later, honey,” she said as she walked away and left Todd standing alone at the party, utterly dumbfounded and most definitely not making out.

****

            “Yeah, I’m not really sure I wanted to leave just yet,” Elliot said as Mary Kate dragged her to her car. 

            “Ellie,” she said in a serious tone.  “Lex needs us.  We can’t be out partying all night when our friend needs us!”  Elliot shook her head.  She was still a little confused as to what was happening.

            “Yeah about that.  What exactly happened?  Why did she leave the party anyway?”  Mary Kate was not interested in questions.

            “I don’t know, Ellie.  She had to go see Hannah or something.  Does it really matter?”  Elliot pulled her arm free from Mary Kate’s grasp and stop stubbornly.

            “Well yeah, Mary, I’d say it does matter a little.  You’re just going to run right over there because they told you too?” she said incredulously.  Mary Kate resented the implication that she could not think for herself, but at the moment she was unable to come up with a good reason why she was right.  Rather, she settled for the low road.

            “I’m your ride home,” Mary Kate replied stubbornly.  “You’ll have to come with me or walk home.”  Elliot sighed and resigned herself to the meeting.  She got in the passenger side of Mary Kate’s car and they pulled away from the Barr family home.  The drive passed mostly in silence with Mary Kate occasionally attempting to start up a conversation and Elliot shooting her down with an impatient grunt.  When they arrived at the Hadley house, Hannah was waiting by the window.  She opened the door for them with a solemn look on her face and they walked into the living room.  Lex was sitting on the couch with tears in her eyes and Mary Kate rushed over to her side immediately.

            “What happened!” she said, putting her arm around Lex.  “We came as fast as we could.”  Hannah sat down in an arm chair across the room and shook her head.

            “Meredith is cheating on Jacob with Rick Messner.  That’s why we wanted you to leave so quickly,” she said, a dash of anger spicing her speech.  Mary Kate’s eyes grew wide and her jaw fell open.  Lex sobbed a little and Mary Kate began to rub her back.

            “What?” said Elliot, skeptically.  “No way, that doesn’t make any sense at all.  Meredith has never been like that before and Rick’s so…guh.”  Hannah knew Elliot would be an issue, but she wanted her involved just in case things got messy.  She tried to run with Elliot’s disbelief and slowly turn it into agreement.

            “Right?” she said.  “It just seems so bizarre.”  She donned a bewildered look.  Elliot still couldn’t fathom how this could be true.  She’d known Meredith for years and this just didn’t seem right.

            “Are you sure?” she said.  “Where did you hear all this?”  Lex looked up with tears streaming down her face.

            “Ben Morris saw them!  He’s the one who originally told Hannah all about it.”  Lex went back to sobbing and Mary Kate looked up at Elliot, her face a portrait of concern.

            “We have to do something,” she said.  “We have to tell him right away.  She’s still at the party with him, probably laughing at him on the inside!”

            “We can’t tell him,” Hanna cut in.  “That would destroy him.  Being replaced by Rick?  That would be completely emasculating.”  Elliot was forced to agree, but what exactly could they do otherwise?  Lex sobbed loudly and cried out.

            “I wanna kill her,” she said, her body shaking with anger.  No one caught the excited look on Hannah’s face as she jumped out of her chair and she quickly covered it with concern.  She walked over to Lex and put her hand on her shoulder.

            “Calm down now, Lexi,” she said in a soothing tone.  “Remember what I said about keeping it together?  We’re not going to hurt her, ok?  We just want to scare her a little.”  Lex nodded and dried her eyes a little on her shirt.  Mary Kate nodded in agreement and continued rubbing her back, but Elliot was still uncertain. 

            “What does that mean?” she said apprehensively.  Hannah looked at her, fighting back her scorn.  She cursed her internally but forced down any outward signs of her disdain.

            “Well,” she said.  “Lexzie was thinking maybe we could pretend like we were kidnapping her than leave her down off Route 44 by the marshes.  She’ll just stumble around in the dark for awhile until she gets to the road and someone will pick her up.  It’s mean, sure, but she’s got it coming.  She shouldn’t have done that to Jacob.”  Hannah finished with a compassionate look and sat down next to Lex.  Only Elliot still stood and she could tell the rest had made up their minds and if she held out much longer, they would turn against her.  She liked Meredith, but she didn’t seem worth fighting Hannah, Mary Kate and Lex over. 

            “Ok,” she said.  “As long as we’re absolutely careful not to hurt her then I’ll help.”  Hannah looked up at her and smiled a cold victory smile that was blocked out by Lex jumping out of her seat and running over to hug Elliot.  She accepted the hug awkwardly and soon felt Lex’s tears soaking through her shirt.  She sighed and patted her on the back.  With the amount of mascara Lex normally wore, her shirt would now almost certainly be stained.

            “Oh, thank you Elliot.  This means a lot to me,” Lex said between sobs.  When at last she withdrew from the embrace, Elliot took a seat in the armchair Hannah had vacated and Lex returned to her spot on the couch. 

            “So how are we going to avoid her knowing who we are and telling the police?” Elliot asked in her usual pragmatic manner.  Hannah cursed under her breath and kept her eyes averted.  She hadn’t thought about the fact that the others would want some sort of anonymity.  She had figured since Meredith would most likely not survive the ordeal, it didn’t matter who she saw.  She had to think quickly.

            “Well,” she said, pausing briefly as quickly processed an idea.  “One of us will have to lure her out of the house.  The rest of us will have to jump her before she gets where she’s going and put her in the trunk so it just seems like a kidnapping.  Then we just take her down to the marshes and leave her there.”

            “Right,” Elliot replied skeptically.  “But then, how does this result in her leaving Jacob alone?”  Mary Kate looked up at Elliot with a hint of confusion in her eyes.  Hannah could tell that if she didn’t act quickly, Mary Kate might start to think about the illogical nature of the plan. 

            “Well, Elliot,” Hannah said, trying to fight down her rage.  “We’ll just keep telling her she’s been a ‘bad little bitch’ and stuff like that until she wonders what she could have done.  Then, like, subconsciously she’ll realexe that this happened to her because she was running around with boys like a little slut and she’ll just tuck herself away in shame.  That’s the best case scenario anyway.”  Hannah finished with a smile and a confident nod.  She looked over at Mary Kate and could see in her eyes that she had successfully negated Elliot’s argument.  Elliot, on the other hand, still looked unsure, but she certainly wasn’t interested in fighting Hannah any more. 

            “Ok,” she said.  “So who’s going to do the luring?”  Hanna opened her mouth to speak but Mary Kate, without hesitation, blurted out:

            “I’ll do it!  Meredith and I have seen each other a lot because Todd and Jacob are so close.  I’ll just pretend like I wanted to hang out with her or something.”  Hannah nodded.  She was going to suggest something similar, but, it was better to hear Mary Kate think of it on her own.  Hannah Abrams valued loyalty.

            “Right,” said Hannah.  “That’s a good plan.  Her father always works, so we should be able to jump her outside her house without anyone knowing.”  Mary Kate and Lex nodded, but the fact that Hannah kept using the word ‘jump’ made Elliot nervous.

            “Ok, so we grab her,” Elliot said, trying to change the tone of the plan in any way she could.  “Then I guess we take her to the marshes, but make sure you call her while she’s gone, Mary Kate.”  The three others were shocked by this suggestion.

            “Why the hell would she do that?” Hannah said, almost shouting at Elliot.  Elliot couldn’t believe that someone as smart as Hannah hadn’t thought so far ahead.

            “Well think about it,” she said.  “We’re about to ask Mary Kate to lure Meredith out of the house so we can kidnap her.  Of course she’s going to report this to the police.  If the police know she was going to see Mary Kate, but then Mary Kate never calls wondering where Meredith is, that kind of suggests Mary Kate already knew where she was.”  Mary Kate gasped.  Lex turned to her with a panicked look.

            “Oh no, we couldn’t ask you to take that risk, Mary,” she said, embracing her friend.  Elliot sat back in her chair with a sigh and Hannah rolled her eyes, growing irate.

            “No, look,” Hannah said.  “Like Elliot said, we just need to make sure you call her while she’s out.  We’ll toss her phone in the grass when we take her so she can’t answer.  So…” Elliot cut her off as she continued.

            “And, of course, you’ll be somewhere else.  Go wherever you say you’ll meet her so everyone sees you there.”  Hannah nodded, ignoring the interruption for the moment.  She had wanted everyone to be involved, but Elliot had a point.  If Mary Kate could be linked to the crime than she could too.  As much as it enraged her to admit to herself, having Elliot’s level head involved in the planning was definitely a help. 

            “Right,” she said.  “So that’s the plan then.  Mary Kate, can you call her first thing tomorrow morning about going out?”  Mary Kate nodded eagerly. 

            “I’ll make sure she’s coming,” she said.  Lex hugged her and Hanna smiled.  They sat for a while in silence and Elliot turned the plan over in her head.  A foreboding feeling was hanging over her and she knew in her heart that she should walk away right now, but she’d seen Hannah when she was angry.  Not only did she not want to get on Hannah’s bad side, but she was a little concerned that she might take things too far.  Elliot pushed all her uncertainties aside and focused on the day ahead.  She would have to go a long to make sure things didn’t get out of hand.  She would have to protect everyone as best she could.

****

            Todd Becker was ecstatic when Mary Kate called him just an hour after she had left the party and told him to pick her up at her house for the movie.  He hummed happily the entire drive over and gave her a huge bear hug when she came out of her house.  She giggled nervously and got in the car.  He asked her about Lex, but she just shrugged and looked out the window.  Though he was a caring boyfriend, Todd tended to leave these things be.  He was awkward with the dramatic side of the fairer sex and if she didn’t want to talk about it, that meant he didn’t have to try to understand.  Todd sighed happily and put his hand on Mary Kate’s knee.  She looked over at him with an absent minded smile and then turned back to the window.  Todd could tell she was distracted, but the spirit of the smile didn’t matter to him.  Every time he saw her lips turn upwards and her glistening white teeth peek out from behind them a little chill pulsed through his body.  However she felt about him, he was in love.

            They held hands through the movie and Todd even put his arm around her towards the end.  After the movie, he asked if she would like to go to the cliffs that over looked Sibley and see the lights of Halliston City in the late night dark.  She said yes, and Todd’s heart leapt up into his throat.  It was a thirty minute drive from the movie theater in Heberton to the cliffs on the north side of Bradley Heights.  It didn’t mean much to Mary Kate, but Todd loved to drive past the huge mansions and manors of Bradley Heights and dream of owning one himself someday.         Mary Kate grew up in Bradley Heights and was accustom to its grandeur.   Todd knew that, while he didn’t necessarily need to be rich to earn her affections (she was a kind hearted girl, albeit a little short of sense), he knew she would prefer to maintain her life style.  Todd grew up outside of Bradley Heights about two miles down Route 39 towards Heberton.  He came from a modest, middle class family, but hoped that, if he worked hard, he would someday find his fortune.  And he did work hard; he was one of the best students at Bradley Heights Academy and was the number one wide receiver for the football team.  Though only a junior, he had already heard from several colleges interested in recruiting him and even a scout from the Halliston Hornets stopped by for one of his games.  Yes, things looked very good for Todd Becker and the only thing he was missing was the love and devotion of his perfect woman.  He felt the hard case of the jewelry box that contained the necklace he had bought her and he knew she would see his full worth soon.

            Todd parked his car next to a small wooden fence that marked the farthest safe place to stand by the cliffs of Bradley Heights.  Turning of the engine, he took Mary Kate’s hand and held it tightly in his.  She smiled and looked out over lights of Halliston.  Directly below them lay Sibley, a brightly lit, bustling neighborhood full of shops and apartments.  The night was clear and they could see all the way past Harkent and Glendon to the Halliston River that ran down between Walmer and Glendon Beach, past Kells and Humphry Island and out into ocean.  Todd sighed happily and put his arm around Mary Kate and scooted a little closer to her.  She made a muffled sound that could be construed as either contentment or displeasure and continued her quiet vigil over the city. 

            Todd shifted nervously and thought again of the gift still sitting in his jacket.  He wondered if this was the right time, but decided that, if this wasn’t the right time, could there really be a better one?  He took a deep breath and reached into his jacket pocket.

            “I got you something,” he said, his hands shaking a little with anticipation.  He sat there silently for a moment as Mary Kate kept staring out as though she hadn’t heard him.  He squeezed her shoulder a little, but she kept staring.

            “Sweetheart?  Did you hear me?” he asked.  No response.

            “Hey, Mary!” he said, a little louder than he had intended.  Mary Kate jumped a little and looked over at him a little bewildered.  She shook it off and smiled.

            “I’m sorry, Todd.  Were you saying something?”  Todd smiled patiently and pulled the box out of his jacket pocket.

            “I said I got you a present.”  He handed her the box and she looked back at him, surprised.  She accepted the box and opened it to reveal a beautiful gold necklace, adorned with her birthstone and tiny emeralds.  Mary Kate looked up at him a little shocked.

            “Oh, Todd, you didn’t have to get me anything.”  She looked back at the necklace.  It really was very pretty, but Mary Kate knew Todd couldn’t really afford something like this.  Between his school work and football, he only had time to work a few hours at Snarky’s a week and his family wasn’t particularly well off.  He must have saved up everything he made for this.  She put it on and looked at herself in the mirror. 

            “You look great,” Todd said and she smiled.  All the other girls will be jealous, she thought.  She thought of her friends looking so impressed with her new necklace and she couldn’t wait to show Hannah and Lex and Elliot and…

            Mary Kate’s look grew distant again.  She thought of Meredith and knew they would never be friends again.  It didn’t bother her a lot, but she wasn’t usually the type to hold grudges.  She wouldn’t have a choice this time though.  What Meredith had done was unforgiveable.

            “Something wrong?” Todd said with a quizzical look.  For a moment, he was terrified that she didn’t like it, but she turned to him and smiled.  She kissed him on the cheek, but when he leaned in to kiss back, she withdrew and put her head on his shoulder, unaware of his intention.  Poor Todd, she thought.  He and Jacob are best friends, but Meredith has been his neighbor all his life.  She knew it would be tough for him to pick a side, but given the circumstances, she knew he would stand by his friend Jacob.  She would tell him about it soon, just not yet.  His shoulder was warm and comfortable.  Mary Kate smiled and looked out over the shimmering city of Halliston.  A little to her left, Todd was wondering exactly what it would take to get to make out.  He sighed and reclined in his chair.  Part of him was very disappointed in the outcome, but it didn’t matter, because he was in love.

****

            Hannah Abrams awoke on Saturday morning feeling refreshed.  She put on her favorite top and skirt combination and went down to breakfast.  There she found her meal already waiting for her and a recording of her favorite show already cued up for her viewing pleasure.  After breakfast she checked to see if her nails needed a touch up, then curled her hair for the day.  She then went into the living room where she found a bowl of her favorite fruit and a copy of Seventeen magazine lying on the coffee table.  Hannah was an avid reader.  She looked over a few articles then dropped the magazine on the floor and began to think about what she would do for the rest of the day.  In less than a minute, the magazine was gone from the floor and stacked neatly in a pile of old issues in the closet.  Hannah smiled and twirled her hair.  She loved having servants.

            A mile away at the crest of Bradley Heights, Alexandra Hadley was having a nervous breakfast with her brother, Jacob.  Every ounce of her being wanted to break down and tell him what she knew, but she must not do it.  Jacob had noticed that his sister looked uncomfortable, but he did not care to press her.  He was a freshman at Wallace University and his father’s car would be at the house in a few minutes to take him to class and he was running behind.  Lex heaved a sigh of relief when he jumped up from the table and left.  She cared a lot about her brother and tonight she was going to take care of him the best way she could. 

            In their respective homes, Elliot and Mary Kate sat nervously passing the hours.  Mary Kate could think of nothing but the plan.  She had already told Todd that she was busy that day, but he still insisted on calling her.  She had already ignored his calls twice and was beginning to feel bad about it, but she couldn’t focus on anything else.  Elliot, on the other hand, was doing anything she could to avoid thinking about the night’s activities.  Her father, the District Attorney, was working from his home office all day and she was very uncomfortable being near him, given what she was about to do.  She had run into him twice already by ten thirty and could only force out a few garbled murmurs in passing.  Mr. Baker hadn’t noticed any change in her demeanor whatsoever.  He loved his daughter, but he was a very busy man.

****

            About an hour after night fall, Elliot sat in her car behind a grove of large fir trees with her trunk popped open.  She had driven Hannah and Lex and dropped them off on the side of the road about fifty yards from the Barr family home.  Gripping the steering wheel nervously, she chewed on her lip a little and stared out into the dark woods that stretched along Route 39.  This is bad, she thought.  I really shouldn’t be here.  This has so many opportunities to go wrong.  What was I thinking agreeing to this?  She thought for a moment about throwing the car in reverse and getting the hell out of there.  Did it really matter if Hannah was pissed?  She had other-

            Thunk!

            Something heavy dropped into the trunk of Elliot’s car.  Hannah knocked on the window and Elliot unlocked the door.  Lex and Hanna jumped in the back.

            “Ok ok, let’s go, Ellie!” Hannah shouted as she closed the door.  Lex began drumming on the seat nervously as Elliot turned the engine over.

            “Did it go ok?  Is something wrong?” she asked as she put the car in reverse.

            “She’s un-” Lex started, but Hannah cut her off.

            “It’s fine,” Hannah said.  “We put a bag on her head and put her in the back.  No problems.”  Elliot pulled out into the street and turned west down Route 39 towards the intersection with 40.  She checked the rearview mirror every few seconds out of compulsion and listened intently for any sounds that might give them away.  Strangely, Meredith didn’t seem to be struggling.

            “Is she ok back there?” Elliot asked with growing concern. 

            “She’s fine,” Hannah relied quickly.

            “Y-yeah,” Lex said nervously.  “We just had to do something to keep her calm.  W-we had to.”  She looked over at Hannah for some reassurance and Hannah gave her a comforting nod, but Elliot was aghast.

            “Did you knock her out?” she shouted.  “Is she unconscious in my trunk right now?”  Elliot was in a panic, checking the rearview ever other second, her hands shaking on the wheel.

            “Just drive the car,” Hannah said with a cruel intensity.  Elliot put her foot on the break.

            “What the hell, you…”

            “Drive the damn car, Elliot!” Hannah shouted with such a cold rage that it shook Elliot to the core.  She took her foot off the break and accelerated.  Tears began to stream down her face as icy fear grabbed hold of her heart.  She was going to be in a hell of a lot of trouble…

            Ten minutes later, Elliot pulled her car off of Route 40 onto a side road that led out to the marshes.  She sat transfixed in the driver’s seat, her eyes staring straight ahead and never straying to either side.  Hannah and Lex opened their doors and walked around behind the car.  Hannah banged on the trunk and Elliot pulled the release with a labored sigh.  It was far too late for her to do anything about what was happening.  Lex and Hannah had said that they were just going to leave her by the marshes to scare her, but the rage in Hannah’s voice told her that it wasn’t going to end there.  Hot tears dripped off her face onto her blouse and she prayed things would not get out of hand.

            Behind the car, Hannah and Lex were pulling Meredith’s body out of the trunk.  She moaned a bit and Lex jumped and let go of her arms. 

            “Pick her up,” Hannah hissed.  “We can’t have her waking up before we get her to the marsh.”  Lex nodded and, trembling, slid her hands under Meredith’s arms and lifted her.  Hannah grunted angrily with exertion.  She had originally intended to have Mary Kate or Elliot do the carrying with Lex, but now Mary Kate was gone and Elliot looked as though she might vomit if she tried to move.  Useless little whores, Hannah thought to herself.  I have to take care of everything for them.  Though she was angry, the thought of her how much her friends needed her to take charge made her smile.  She swung her arms a little and ran Meredith’s side into a tree.  The half conscious girl coughed and twisted a bit in the air.

            “Oops,” Hannah said with a smile.  Lex laughed nervously.  They walked a hundred more yards and the ground started to get muddier.  Hannah turned up her nose.  She hadn’t anticipated the mud.  Her shoes would be ruined.  Damn Meredith, she thought. 

            When they reached the murky waters of the marshes, they dropped Meredith in the mud.  Hannah felt for the sharpened knitting needle tucked into the waist of her jeans.  Lex looked down at Meredith as she squirmed a bit.  She turned to Hannah as though asking her what to do next.  Hannah smiled deviously and Lex got the message.  She walked up to Meredith and kicked her hard in the side.  Meredith gasped and cried out.  Hannah suppressed a giggle and leaned down close to Meredith’s shrouded face.  Pulling out the knitting needle, she pressed it up against the skin of her neck and began making little tiny cuts along Meredith’s collar bone.  Her victim squirmed and cried but she kept calm, making twelve little slits along the base of her neck.

            “What are you doing?” Lex asked, bewildered.

            “Just making sure this little bitch gets the message,” Hanna replied, coldly.  She cut once more into Meredith’s skin.  “You hear that?  You can’t just do whatever you like, you whore.  You…”

            “You slut!” Lex shouted, unable to contain herself.  Hannah saw the tormented chaos in Lex’s face and knew the window of opportunity was opening.  She planted the needle point up in the ground and rose to her feet.  She kicked Meredith in the side and screamed.  Lex followed her lead, kicking her in the legs and arms.  Together, they pummeled the young defenseless woman until she shrieked in pain.

            “Shut the hell up,” Hannah shouted and with all her might, she kicked Meredith in the side of the head, flinging her neck sideways into the sharpened end of the needle.  Blood spurted everywhere and Lex jumped back with a start.

            “Oh my God,” she shouted.  “What just happened?”  Meredith trashed around on the ground for a few moments as Hannah jumped aside and hopped towards Lex, deftly avoiding the sprays of blood.  She grabbed Lex and held her tightly so she wouldn’t scream as Meredith went into her final throes. 

            A minute later, everything was quiet.  Meredith’s body lay still on the ground, a puddle of blood seeping into the mud.  Hannah took a step towards her and examined the body.  Lex was shaking violently behind her.

            “Is she dead?” she asked?  Without turning around, Hannah nodded.  “W-what happened?”  Hannah walked around to Meredith’s head and squatted down.  She retrieved the knitting needle and turned back to Lex.

            “I accidentally left this needle by her head.  She must have rolled onto it when we were kicking her.”  Lex gasped.  She was horrified.

            “We killed her?” she asked, her body trembling.

            “It was an accident,” Hannah replied, her words void of regret.

            “Why did you…”

            “Lex,” Hannah’s voice cut like a knife.  “It was an accident and that’s all we can say.  Do you understand me?”  In that crucial moment, Alexandra Hadley had a choice to make.  She could either acknowledge the truth of what had just happened or she could allow herself to suspend reason and deny any culpability for herself or Hannah.  She took a deep breath, ignored all sense of right or wrong she had learned up to that point, and believed.

            “Ok,” she said.  “What do we do?”  Hannah nodded and smiled, lending strength to Lex’s budding self delusion.  She walked over to the crumpled body lying in the mud.

            “We’d better dump her in the marsh.  No one comes down here so she’ll never be found.”  Lex nodded and moved over to the body.  Careful to avoid getting blood on their sweaters, the two young girls lifted Meredith’s body and swung it over the bank of the marsh.  It landed in the murky water with a sickening thud and slowly sunk into the muck.  Hannah let out a pleasured sigh Lex walked over to the small knitting needle lying in the mud.  Bending down, she picked it up and moved to throw it into the marsh.  When Hannah realexed what she was doing, she jumped forward and grabbed her arm.

            “Don’t!” she shouted, her voice uncharacteristically panicked. 

            “What?” Lex replied, confused by her outburst.  “We need to get rid of it.  This needle could be traced back to us.”  Hannah, didn’t listen.  She grabbed Lex’s hand and pried the needle loose.

            “No we can’t,” she said, holding the needle in her hand and admiring the simple instrument of death she had created.  She wanted to keep it and remember that night forever, but she realexed that Lex was right.  While she had no intention of getting rid of the weapon, she at least had to make Lex believe she was going to.  She didn’t need Lexi losing her head or something like that.  She composed herself and thought up an excuse.

            “Well we can’t leave it here,” she said, slyly.  “If they find her and it in the same place, they’ll have proof.”

            “I thought you said they’d never find here?” Lex said, her faith slipping just a little.  Hannah sensed this and tried to patch the leak.

            “They won’t, but I think it would be best if I held on to this for now.  You know, to clean it.”  Lex was unsure, but Hannah looked at her very intently and she had no interest in arguing.  She simply nodded and waited for Hannah to tell her what to do next.  Hannah smiled victoriously and set off back towards the car.

            “Come on,” she said, and Lex followed obediently. 

            They returned to the car to find Elliot sitting just as she had been when they left.  Her eyes remained locked straight ahead as Hannah and Lex got into the car.  She turned the key calmly and shifted the far into drive.  Without breaking her statuesque pose in the driver’s seat, Elliot pulled the car around and drove off as quickly as she could towards Route 41.  She could tell by the silence in the back seat that something hadn’t gone as intended, but she was afraid to ask.  Glancing at the rearview, she saw Hannah’s ice cold eyes staring back at her.  She looked away quickly and focused on the road.  When they arrived at Route 41, Elliot slammed on the gas and sped off towards Bradley Heights.  She dropped off Hannah first, and then took it easy for the half mile to the Hadley Home in the hopes that Lex might tell her what had happened, but Lex had no interest in talking.  She sat in the passenger seat in silence, shaking a little the entire drive.  She didn’t even say goodbye as she got out of the car and walked slowly to her house.

            “Damnit,” she said aloud.  “This is really gonna suck.”  She pulled away from Lex’s house and drove home.  When she arrived at the house, all the lights were out except for her father’s study.  The little dashboard clock read 12:30 am.  Of course he’s still awake, she thought.  Whatever, he never hears anything when he’s working.  She crept into the house and up the stairs past her father’s study and into her room.  Lying down on the bed, she let out a heavy sigh.  She didn’t know what was going to happen or even what exactly had already happened, but she knew the next few days were going to be rough.  You didn’t do anything, she told herself.  You just drove the car for a silly prank.  She rolled on her side and pulled her covers over her head, but she didn’t sleep.  It would be a long time before she slept soundly again.

****

            Detective Henry Fox was not a morning person and he didn’t think much of starting an investigation a mere ten hours after the alleged disappearance, but Roger Barr was a retired police officer and that meant he had connections.  The chief had called him at five in the morning and told him to take his partner to the Quentin house and see what the daughter knew.  He and Det. Pierce had just finished the late shift, but Roger requested them specifically and they couldn’t refuse.  Det. Pierce leaned against the door frame as Fox rang the bell.

            “You ever stay out past dawn back when you were a teenager, Henry?” Pierce asked, fighting down a yawn

            “Sure,” Fox replied.  “Most Saturdays, actually, but those were different times, Rick.  You just can’t take these things too lightly.  What if she had gone down to the city and ran into some trouble there?”  Pierce shrugged and shook his head as Fox rang the bell again.

            “I don’t know, Henry.  I grew up in Sibley just a few blocks from the South End of Harkent and I made it out just fine.” 

            “Times change, Rick” Fox said.  “The city’s a dangerous place.  Just be glad we’re only trying to track down a lost girl from Bradley Heights and not headed into Riverside or down by Delmont.  What’s the worst it could be up here, eh?”  Rick nodded and smirked.

            “Just some snotty rich kids and an overly worried parent?  No problem, we’ll have the case closed by lunchtime.”  As he finished, the door opened to reveal a young girl with light brown hair, still in her pajamas.  She looked up at them through tired eyes, her face twisted in confusion.

            “Ms. Quentin?”  Pierce asked, producing a shiny badge from his coat pocket.  A wave of shock shook Mary Kate’s body and the sleep evaporated from her eyes.

            “D-detec…tive?” she stuttered, utterly shocked.  Henry mentally attributed her shock to the time of day and thought little of it.

            “I’m Det. Henry Fox and this is my partner Det. Pierce.  Are you Mary Kate Quentin?”  Speechless, she nodded her head dumbly.

            “Good,” Fox continued.  “We were wondering if you could help us determine the whereabouts of Meredith Barr.”  Mary Kate’s heart began to pound in her chest.  She tried to cover her panic but it was difficult to master.  Pierce put his badge back in his pocket and pulled out a tiny notebook.  He flipped a few pages and then examined one.

            “We understand that you may have been the last to see her.  Is that correct?” Detective Pierce asked, licking the tip of his pencil. 

            “No I…no I don’t think so,” Mary Kate replied.  “I haven’t seen her since Friday.”  She tried to slow down her breathing without the detectives noticing, but her fear continued to grow.  Det. Fox donned a perplexed look and checked his own notebook.

            “But you did arrange to meet her last night around ten at Snarky’s?  Her father said you called her yesterday morning.  Is that not correct?”  Det. Fox leaned in a little closer to Mary Kate.  He was a broad shouldered man and he found that cutting an imposing figure often helped during questioning.  Mary Kate looked away for a moment before answering.

            “Yes,” she said, but caught herself.  “I mean no, that’s right.  But she never showed up.  I waited for an hour, even called her twice.  You can check my phone,” she said, turning around to run up to her room and fetch the phone.

            “Whoa, slow down,” Det. Pierce called after her.  “That won’t be necessary.  We were just hoping you could help us fill in our time line.  So you’re saying she was missing before ten then?” he asked, wetting his pencil tip once more.  Mary Kate walked back to the door slowly and avoided the gaze of the detectives. 

            “Um, yeah.  I mean…I guess so.”  She kicked at the floor a little and looked up at them.  “I didn’t see her last night and I’m not sure where she went.  I just assumed she blew me off.”  Pierce nodded and scribbled something in his book. 

            “And does that happen often?” he asked, looking at her the young girl intently.

            “I don’t really know,” she replied.  “We don’t usually hang out too much.”  Fox looked up from his notepad as she said this.

            “Oh?  So why last night?” he asked.  Mary Kates eyes grew wide as she struggled to find an answer.

            “Well,” she said, pausing for a deep breath.  “Well, our boyfriends are good friends so I thought it would be nice.  Why?” she asked, attempting to diffuse her own fear by going on the offensive.  It seemed to work.  Pierce looked at Fox, then back at her.

            “Just being thorough, Ms. Quentin.  You’ll let us know if you hear from her, won’t you?” he asked with a smile.  Mary Kate turned away shyly and nodded.

            “Of course, Detective.”  Fox reached out and handed her his card and she took it bashfully.  Pierce tipped his hat and the two detectives turned and walked back to their cruiser.  Mary Kate closed the door a little harder than she had intended and watched them climb into their car and drive off.  Once they were out of sight, she fell down to her knees and broke into tears.  Her body shook with fear as she crumpled to the floor.  She was sure they knew what had happened and were just toying with her.  She would go to jail for what she had done and probably die there.  Letting out a pained sob, she scrambled for the stairs and climbed them on hands and knees up to her room.  When she got there, she shut the door behind her and grabbed her phone.  She scrolled down to Hannah’s name and hit ‘talk’.  It rang five times before Hannah answered.

            “Mary, what the hell,” Hannah’s irritated voice shot like a bullet out of the receiver.  “It’s like six in the friggin’ morning.  What do you want?”  Mary Kate almost dropped her phone in surprise.  Hannah’s shout took her so off guard that, for a moment, she forgot why she had

            “Well?!” Hannah said impatiently.

            “I…um…” Mary Kate stuttered for a seconds before she remembered.  “Oh God, Hannah.  The police came to my door this morning!”  She paused for a few moments, waiting for Hannah to respond.

            “Yeah?  And…” Hannah said, yawning. 

            “They were asking about Meredith.  She never made it home last night.  What happened?”  A few seconds of nerve racking silence passed as Mary Kate awaited an answer.  Hannah grumbled a bit and her voice became stern.

            “What did you tell them?” Hannah asked with growing irritation.

            “Just that we were going to hang out, but she never showed.  What happened?”  Mary Kate heard Hannah roll over and pull her pillows back to her head.

            “Don’t worry about it,” she said, her tone not the least bit comforting.  “Just don’t tell the cops anything else and it’ll be fine.”

            “But-” Mary Kate was cut off by the sound of Hannah hanging up.  She sat in bed utterly dumbfounded.  Tears came to her eyes as she thought about what might have happened and what might happen to her.  She curled turned out the lights, drew the shades and curled up in a ball under her sheets.  She had always kind of liked Meredith…

****

            Elliot Baker awoke at 11:15 am on Sunday morning without much concern for what went on the previous night.  She had decided sometime around 2 am that it couldn’t be as bad as she had imagined.  Maybe they had bruised Meredith up a bit or dropped her, but if it was anything serious could Hannah have been so calm?  Lex was jumpy, sure, but that didn’t mean much.  She was jumpy on the way out too and that was just nerves.  If it had been anything serious, she probably would have been balling.  Elliot was sure everything would turn out just fine.

            At 11:27 am, Elliot poured herself a bowl of cereal and a glass of orange juice and turned on the television.  While she wasn’t crazy about the orange juice, he father insisted that it was the healthiest breakfast drink around and she wasn’t above suffering a little for her own well being.  She ate her cereal without milk and did this for two reasons.  Firstly, as stated before, orange juice was considered the preferred breakfast drink of the Baker household and it did not mix well with milk.  Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, soggy cereal is just plain gross.  At times, her friends would childe her, thinking her mad for eating dry crunchy cereal, but she felt that they, in fact were the crazy ones.  Why ruin the crisp freshness of a good bowl of cereal with soggy disgusting…

            Elliot dropped her spoon and in landed on the floor with a clatter.  Her mouth hung wide open as she stared blankly at the television screen.  She grabbed the remote control from the table and turned up the volume.

            “…missing as of six am this morning.  Police say she left her home at ten o’clock last night to meet a friend, but never arrived.  Chief Paulani had this to say:

‘As of now, we are not ready to declare this a murder investigation, only a disappearance.  If you have any information as to the whereabouts of Ms. Barr, please contact the Halliston City Police at…”

            Elliot shut off the TV and threw the remote across the room.  She cursed Hannah and hurried off towards the stairs to her room, angry tears springing from her eyes.  As she crossed through the foyer, the front door sprang open and in walked Sam Baker.  Elliot froze and looked at her father.  Sam took one look at his daughter’s damp cheeks and knew she had already heard.

            “You saw the news then,” he said, walking over to her.  He embraced her tightly and she laid her head on his shoulder.  Sam was not normally an affectionate father and this gesture felt odd to Elliot, but she was glad to avoid looking him in the eye.  He released her and she turned away to sit on the stair, all the while avoiding his gaze. 

            “Is there anything you know that could help us find her?  You were at her party on Friday, weren’t you?” Sam asked, hoping his daughter could reveal some key piece of information.

            “No,” she lied.  “That is, yes I was at her party, but no I don’t know anything about where she is.”  Sam nodded and put his hand on her shoulder.  He was adept at seeing though hardened criminals, but when it came to his own daughter he was often found lacking.  He loved is daughter deeply and she knew this to be true, but one does not become District Attorney by spending an inordinate amount of time with one’s children.  Satisfied that she knew nothing, he patted her back compassionately.

            “They’re still out looking for her so don’t worry.  Uncle Henry is on the case.  The Chief of Police is doing everything he can to find her.”  Elliot sniffed a little, trying to hold on to the charade, but she was troubled by this news.  Det. Henry Fox, while being her Uncle and Godfather, was also the best detective in the HCPD.  If something really had happened to Meredith last night, there would be no hiding it from him.  I’m going to have to call Hannah, she thought.  Damn.

            Elliot turned to face her father and hugged him tightly.  When she withdrew, she looked at him with tired, tearful eyes and he nodded understandingly.  She turned away and walked up the steps to the room.  Behind her, Sam Baker retired to his study to review a few cases already on his plate.  He was worried about the search for Ms. Barr, but he thought it best to leave that to the detectives.  For the time being, he would clear his mind by pouring his energy into work as he often did when he was distressed, upset, encouraged or pretty much any other emotion. 

            Elliot closed her door behind her and listened for the sound of her father locking the study.  She took a few deep breaths, then pulled out her phone and found Hannah’s phone number.  There was a tense moment while she reconsidered her decision to call.  Maybe it would be best if she just left this alone.  She didn’t know what had happened, so she couldn’t be liable for whatever Hannah and Lex had done.  Right? she thought.  I wasn’t even there.  Elliot let out a long sigh.  She knew better than to think she could get away from this.  She pressed talk and held her breath, waiting for the hell storm she was about to weather.

            “What?” came Hannah’s voice over the ear piece.

            “What exactly happened last night?” Elliot asked.  She heard Hannah grunt in annoyance.

            “You should know, you drove.”  Elliot muttered an expletive under her breath and rubbed her hand across her face.

            “No, I mean what did you and Lex do when you were down in the marsh?”  Elliot grew more concerned as she was answered with only silence.  A cold sweat broke out across her brow.

            “What the hell happened, Hannah?” she shouted in desperation.  Hannah’s cold response came like a hiss across the line.

            “If hadn’t stayed in the car like a little bitch you might know,” she said, her voice dripping with distain.  “You weren’t interested then, why do you care now?”  Elliot was shocked at this retort, but sadly not surprised.  A foreboding feeling began to overtake her.  There was now no question in her mind that something had gone horribly wrong the night before.

            “Christ Hannah, you have to tell them where you left her.  If she’s hurt she might not be able to get to the road.  You have to tell the police what happened.  If it was an accident they’ll go easy on us.”  She added the last part in full knowledge that an accident was unlikely.  Whatever Hannah had done, she had done intentionally. 

            “Just shut your mouth, Ellie,” Hannah spat venomously.  “If you say anything to the cops you’ll end up just like her.”  She hung up the phone and threw it under her pillow.  Hannah reached across to the glass on her nightstand and took a drink of water.  Placing it back down, she turned to Lex who was sitting on her beanbag chair in the corner.

            “Don’t worry, Lexi.  She won’t say anything.  And if she does, we know how to take care of it,” she said wickedly.  Lex nodded vacantly and turned her gaze to the window.  Her glassy eyes stared off into nothing as she collapsed further inside herself.  Hannah looked at her for a few moments, then shrugged and turned her attention elsewhere.  This reaction was unexpected, but it didn’t really matter much to her.  Lex wasn’t going anywhere and she certainly wasn’t going to talk.  Mary Kate most likely wouldn’t either.  The only thing she really had to worry about was Elliot.  She didn’t want to have to get rid of her, not because she was particularly attached to Elliot, but she had already ruined one pair of shoes in the marshes and to lose another would be a tragedy. 

****

            On the other side of Bradley Heights, Mary Kate Quentin wasn’t taking any calls.  Todd had tried to get a hold of her four times already with no success.  Now he stood at her door knocking as loud as he could and calling her name.  After a few minutes of calling without success, Todd grabbed the handle of the door.  It turned and he stepped inside.  The house was silent.  He was fairly certain that Mary Kate would be home, but he knew her parents were out of the country.  He quietly made his way upstairs to her room and knocked gently on the door.  There was no answer, so he pushed the door open.  It was dark inside.  Mary Kate had turned out the lights and drawn the curtains so that only a think ray of light was able to push its way in through the window. 

             Todd walked inside and sat down on the edge of Mary Kate’s bed.

            “Mary Kate?” he whispered.  “Are you there, hun?”  There was a whimpering sounds as she shifted a bit under the covers.  Todd reached out his hand to feel for her leg.

            “Sweetheart?” he said as he brought his hand down and found her foot.  She whimpered again and pulled her leg up, curling into a ball.  Todd panicked, thinking she was mad about something he had done Friday night.  Maybe the necklace was too much?

            “What’s wrong, Mary?” he asked.  He waited in silence for a few moments, but she did not respond.  “Are you mad?  Did I call too much?  I’m sorry, I was just a little worried when you didn’t answer.  I didn’t mean to smother you.”  Mary Kate shifted a little more, but did not answer.  That must not be it, he thought.  She usually tells me if I’m right.  Todd was certain she would talk to him if he could just figure out what had happened.

            “Was it the necklace?  Did you not like it?” he asked, thinking of how much it had cost him and hoping that wasn’t the problem. 

            “I’m fine, Todd,” she whispered, barely audible through the sheets.  Todd was relieved that she had responded, but he did not believe her.

            “You don’t seem fine.  Did something happen last night with Meredith?”  Todd hoped this was not the case either.  If Meredith and Mary Kate were fighting it would be an issue for him and Jacob.

            “No!” she said, practically screaming.  “Nothing happened!  Nothing happened!”  Mary Kate pulled herself as far away from Todd as she could without leaving the bed and started to ball.  She let forth an anguished moan and sunk her teeth into her pillow.  Todd’s mind raced.  What the hell is happening, he thought.

            “Mary, what’s going on?  What happened?”  Mary Kate kicked out at him and he fell off the end of the bed. 

            “Nothing!  Go away! GET OUT!”  Todd stumbled over himself as he stood up and backed towards the door. 

            “But Mary,” he pleaded.  She responded with a shrill cry that sent him dashing backwards out of her room.  He slammed the door behind him and walked to the stairs, collapsing helplessly on the banister.  What the hell just happened?

****

            Elliot was beside herself with anxiety.  She knew something terrible had happened, but she couldn’t be sure of what exactly.  She knew what she should do, but she was afraid.  If there was a chance that Meredith might still be alive, she had to tell the police where she was.  I don’t necessarily have to tell them what we did, she thought.  It could be an anonymous tip.  I could just call from a payphone and not say anything about her or Hannah or anyone else.  But where the hell was she going to find a payphone these days? 

            Elliot flopped down on her bed and racked her brain.  She knew she had seen an old payphone somewhere near town; she just could not seem to remember where.  The library? she thought, but shook her head.  Those have been disconnected for years.  It took her a few more minutes of thinking before she finally remembered.  Snarky’s!  Elliot was fairly certain that there was an old phone booth outside the restaurant that still worked.  Getting off the bed, she walked to her mirror and looked herself in the eye.  She breathed deeply and nodded to herself.  You can do it, she thought.  You have to do it…

            Ten minutes later, Elliot was in the car half way to Snarky’s.  Her hands were shaking nervously, just as they had the night before.

            “You have to do this,” she said aloud to herself and repeated the mantra for the duration of the drive.  When she arrived at the restaurant, she parked in the space nearest to the booth and waited.  Once no one was left hanging around the parking lot, she got out and walked quickly to the phone.  She pulled her hat down low over her face and picked up the phone.  As she reached out to dial, she realexed she hadn’t gotten the number for the station and kicked herself.  She’d have to dial the operator.

            “Do those still exist?” she thought out loud.  Shrugging, she it 0 and waited while it rang.

            “Operator,” came a tired, bored sounding voice.

            “Uh, y-yes,” Elliot stuttered.  “I’d like to call the Halliston City Police, please.”

            “Alright, what precinct?” the voice asked.  Elliot wasn’t sure.  She knew Harkent was the 5^th and East Sibley was the 8^th because they were always in the news, but she had no idea of her own.

            “Oh, um.  Bradley Heights?” she said.  The operator coughed and she heard some papers being moved around.

            “Right, 13^th then.  Please hold.”

            “Ok,” Elliot replied, but the operator was already gone.  She waited patiently as the phone rang.  After a few rings, an old, grizzly sounding officer answered.

            “HCPD, how can I help you?” he said, his voice worn from years of smoking thick cigars. 

            “Um, I have a, uh.  I have tip,” Elliot said, her voice shaking nervously.

            “Ok,” the officer replied.  “And what’s your name?”  The blood drained out of Elliot’s face and she felt her heart freeze.

            “No, uh, I mean.  I just have the tip.”  The officer coughed and Elliot began to breathe heavily.

            “Very well,” he said.  “Anonymous.  And what do you have to tell us, then?”  Elliot took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

            “It’s Meredith Barr,” she said, placing her hand against the side of the booth for support. 

            “Yes?” the officer answered, clearly interested.  “What can you tell us about Ms. Barr?”  Elliot’s head was spinning, but she tried to pull herself together.  She stamped her foot, trying to shake herself back to sense, but she was quickly losing composure. 

            “Down route 39 about two miles north of the intersection with route 40 there’s a little dirt road that head into the marshes.  She’s down there,” Elliot said, all in one breath.  She inhaled violently and fell back against the phone booth glass.  The officer was scribbling furiously as she finished.

            “About how far down the dirt road would you say?” he asked.  Elliot felt sick but she pushed herself harder.

            “I don’t know, maybe a mile and a half or so.  She was in the marsh, I think they…I think she’s in the marsh.  That’s it.”  Elliot was certain that she was going to vomit.

            “And what did you say your name was, Miss?”  Elliot slammed down the receiver and fell out of the booth.  She stumbled a few steps to her car and leaned against the door.  You did the right thing, she thought, but her heart was still throbbing.  What if they found Meredith dead?  Would they be able to track her down?  Would she be arrested for helping or would she gain leniency for tipping off the cops?  Maybe…

            Elliot nearly jumped over her car as her phone began to ring in her pocket.  Patting her chest, she reached down and pulled out the phone.  The name on the display read: Todd Becker.  Christ, she thought.  She had no interest in talking to Todd right now, but it was hard to ignore such an unusually kind man.  Pressing the talk button, she brought the phone up to her ear.

            “What’s up, Todd?” she asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

            “Something’s wrong with Mary Kate,” he said, breathlessly.  “She’s acting strangely and she won’t leave her room.”  Elliot sighed.

            “It’s nothing, Todd,” she said, looking around to see if anyone was watching.  On the other end, Todd was grinding his teeth so loudly she could hear it through the ear piece.

            “Don’t lie to me, Elliot,” he said, his voice growing desperately.  “There’s something really wrong and I need to know what’s going on!”  Elliot was taken aback.  She had never heard the usually soft spoken Todd so forceful.

            “I…I’m sorry, Todd.  I can’t tell you.  We just made a mistake is all; she’ll be ok again soon.”  Todd grunted into the phone.

            “Who’s we?  This has something to do with Hannah, doesn’t it?  What did she do to Mary Kate?” he said, his anger growing.  Elliot knew she couldn’t tell him, though she desperately wanted to.  She wasn’t about to incriminate herself after she had just tipped off the police.

            “Look, Todd, I’m sorry.  I promise you everything will be ok soon though.  Just stay with her for now, ok?  Are you with her?”  She heard Todd sigh and sit down hard.

            “Yeah, I’m at her house now, but she won’t see me.  I’ll talk to you later.”  Todd dropped his phone on the floor at the top of the stairs.  Leaning his back against the wall he closed his eyes and sighed.  He would be there for her, as long as it took…

****

            A half an hour later, Det. Henry Fox was racing towards the marshes along a little dirt road off routh 39.  An ambulance was tailing close behind him with a train of crime scene investigators trying desperately to keep pace.  Fox slammed on the breaks as the road fizzled into muddy grassland.  He hopped out of the car and hurried off towards the murky marsh water with Pierce close behind him.  When they got to the edge of the waters they stopped and began to search the area.  It took only a few seconds to spot the blood that still stained the plants.

            “Looks like it leads to the water,” Pierce said, pointing at the murky depths.  Fox walked over to the bank of the marsh and looked into the mud.  Pulling out a plastic glove, he reached down into the water.  He dug around for a moment, then pulled out an 8 inch long piece of metal. 

            “What do you make of that?” he asked Pierce, a dour look creeping across his face.

            “Looks like a knitting needle,” Rick replied.  “My wife’s just getting into it.”  Fox shook his head and held it out for Rick to take a closer look.  A few drops of blood still clung to the end, despite being left in the marsh.

            “Looks more like a murder weapon to me,” he said.  Pulling out an evidence bag, he deposited the needle inside.  As he walked away, the ambulance and CSI teams arrived.  He looked up at them and gestured toward the marsh. 

            “Check the water,” he said grimly.  “She’s in there somewhere.”

****

            The story broke about an hour later.  Hannah sat in her living room sipping a virgin cosmopolitan with the news muted on the TV in the corner.  Beside her in an armchair, Lex sat gazing blankly at the wall.  She might have been dead herself but for the slow rise and fall of her chest as she breathed.  Any other friend would be concerned about her unresponsive state, but Hannah did not seem to mind.  In fact, to call Hannah anyone’s friend stretched the definition of the word far beyond its generally accepted meaning.  Hannah was an enemy of the very concept of friendship and generally treated those around her accordingly.  A silent companion, for the time being, was perfectly acceptable.  Hannah welcomed the peace.

            The TV news, however, soon shattered that peace.  Hannah noticed, casually at first, that the picture on the news had changed to a wooded scene.  The reporter was walking down a dirt path surrounded by trees.  It took a moment for Hannah to realexe what she was seeing, but when she did, she sat up with a jolt, spilling her drink.  Scrounging around for the remote control, she turned up the sound on the television in time to hear:

            “…the search began at six am this morning and ended just an hour ago when an anonymous caller tipped off the police.  Thirty minutes later, the police recovered the body of Meredith Barr, daughter of former HCPD Officer Roger Barr.  I repeat, the body of Meredith Barr, missing since six am this morning, has been found in the Marshes off Route 39.”

            Hannah belted an anguished shriek and hurled the remote across the room.  Any further information given by the reporter was drowned out by Hannah’s outburst.  Throwing furniture left and right, she charged out of the room in a rage, past Lex who remained unfazed, but for the slightest widening of her eyes.  Hannah stormed into the kitchen and grabbed her phone.  Nearly blinded by rage, she found Elliot’s number and called, but there was no answer.  The call went directly to voicemail.  At the beep, Hannah nearly began to violently berate the girl she was certain had called the police, but quickly realexed the incriminating nature of such a message.  Instead, she took a deep breath and proceeded with restraint.

            “Hello Elliot, this is Hannah.  I just saw something that might interest you and thought I’d call.  Not an emergency or anything, just give me a call when you can.  Thanks, love ya!” she finished with a sufficiently sweet turn.  Hanging up the phone, she let out another shrill scream and hurled her phone through the kitchen window.

            “I’ll kill that ugly rat bitch, you hear me?” she shouted to no one in particular.  Then, as though just realexing that Lex was in the room, she walked over to her and locked on to her eyes with a wild gaze.

            “That bitch Elliot just blabbed to the police.  It had to be either her or Mary.  Come to think of it,” she paused.  Then, running out into the yard, she retrieved her phone from the yard and started typing furiously.  After a few seconds, she hit send on her message and hurled the phone back into the kitchen through a different window.  Marching back into the living room, she sat down on the side of the couch closest to Lex.  She took a deep breath and rubbed her hands along the outsides of her thighs.  Looking over Lex for a moment, she plotted her next move.  She was fairly certain that, at this point, she could convince Lex to go along with anything she said, but she wasn’t ready to take that for granted.  In her most comforting tone, she addressed Lex in feigned friendship

            “Listen, Lexi,” she said soothingly.  “This could be trouble for us and I don’t want anything to happen to you.”  She paused for a moment to add an extra dramatic flair to her discourse.  The break had the desired effect, causing Lex to turn to her and lock eyes.  Once she was certain she had obtained what little attention Lex could offer, she continued.

            “I’m not saying anything definite right now, but we might have to consider the fact that Elliot isn’t on our side.  We did what we did for your brother and you, of course, but she doesn’t seem to understand that.  I just want to look out for you now and you are closest to this.  You understand?”  After a few moments and some pressing looks from Hannah, Lex nodded vacantly.  Hannah paused for a second, not sure how to handle this easy a concession.  It did not take long, however, to realign her thought process to her new asset.  Lex would accept whatever she said, she realexed.  This was certainly a welcome development.

            “You realexe that, being your friend, I can’t let Elliot do this to you.  I have to stop her from hurting you.  You understand?”  Lex nodded once more and looked back at her with a perverse longing for direction.  Hannah smiled comfortingly and put her hand on Lex’s knee. 

            “It seems like Elliot might need to be kept quiet.  Of course, you’ll help me with that right?”  Lex stared back at her, unmoving, which Hannah took as acceptance.  “Good.  We’ll take care of this, don’t you worry.”  And Lex did not worry, nor did she concern herself with any other thoughts.  Her mind was blank but for the occasional consideration of a passing bird or a fleeting notice of the chill in her own heart. 

****

            Todd Becker was still waiting patiently outside Mary Kate’s room when he heard her turn on her TV.  The volume was low and he could not make out what she was watching, but he felt that this was a good sign.  The TV continued to hum for a few minutes.  He thought he heard Mary Kate gasp a few times, but he could not be sure.  Turning his phone over in his hands a few times, he thought about when Mary Kate would finally tell him what was wrong and they could make up.  His parents were always more affectionate after a fight and Todd assumed that this was generally how relationships worked.  Soon she would be feeling better and willing to talk it over with him, after which, it was only a matter of time before they would make out.  Who knows, they might even-

            The TV shut off and Todd thought he could hear Mary Kate moving around a bit.  He was certain that, any moment now, she would open the door and ask him to come in to talk.  After a few minutes however, Todd became unsure.  She was still thumping around inside the room, but she showed no sign of asking him to enter.  Finally, the doorknob clicked, but the door did not open.  Todd was taken aback.  She had locked him out and now was making even more noise than ever.  He heard wood creaking and a grunt of exertion, followed by silence.  Approaching the door, he placed his ear next to the crack and listened.  He could hear Mary Kate breathing heavily on the other side, but he couldn’t tell what she was doing.  What could she possibly-

            There was a loud thud and a sickening crunch and Todd jumped back.  He thought he could hear the sound of a cord twanging as he lunged for the knob and threw his body against the door.  Todd rammed the door with his shoulder, but it didn’t budge.  Backing up, he charged the door again and slammed his body against it, but nothing happened.  Once more, he assaulted the door and this time he heard the wood begin to splinter under the force of his onslaught.  Twice more he crashed into the door.  On the second attack, the door frame finally shattered and Todd stumbled into the room.  Ignoring his own pain, he looked up frantically and saw Mary Kate hanging from the ceiling by the cord of her hair drier.  He howled in aguish and ran to her, grabbing her feet in hopes of supporting her.  Todd shook violently as he clutched her legs, but it was too late to save her.  The cord slipped off the ceiling fan and her limp body slumped down over his shoulder and onto the floor.

            Todd sobbed like he had never sobbed before.  His misery burned so intensely that it seared his chest, knocking him to his knees.  The world around him grew dark as he flung his body over Mary Kate and pulled her close to him.  He had never known pain like this or such wild confusion.  Why had this happened?  What could have driven her to this? 

            His mind in a whirl, Todd rushed out of the room and stumbled down the stairs, leaving so fast that he never saw the text message still open on the display of Mary Kate’s phone.  He could hardly hold any thought, but that of her crumpled body lying on the floor.  Releasing a primal bellow, he crashed into his car and threw open the door.  Nearly blinded by madness, he threw the car into gear and sped away.  He had no idea where he was going until he got there.  Slamming on the breaks, he pulled his car into Hannah’s driveway and jumped out of the car.  He rushed up to the door and rang the bell, waiting only a moment before pounding on the wood.  After what seemed like an eternity, Hannah opened the front door and looked at him inquisitively. 

            “Todd,” she said, feigning a pleasant demeanor.  “I’m surprised to see you.  What’s going on?”  Todd’s head raced as he tried to think of what he could say.  He knew what he needed to tell her, but he could not seem to form the words.

            “Mary Kate…she…terrible…” he shook his head, still dumbfounded.  Hannah was fairly certain where he was going with his sputtering, but she tried not to let on as the anger boiled inside her.

            “Oh, well,” she said with a brackish smile.  “Why don’t you come inside and have a seat in the Living Room.  Lexi is in there, you can talk while I get you something to drink.”  Todd opened his mouth as if to protest, but then closed it, confused by Hannah’s warm welcome.  He followed her into the living room and sat down on the couch across from Lex as she left the room.  Todd and Alexandra stared at each other for a few moments, both utterly bewildered by the current situation.  After it became apparent to Todd that Lex would not initiate the conversation, he searched himself for something to say.  Just when he had decided to give up, he noticed that Lexi’s lips seemed to be moving, but he could not hear what she was saying.

            “W-what’s that?” he said, nervously.  Lexi’s lips moved again, but he still could not hear her.  He leaned in closer to listen once more.

            “H-hel…wha-what can I do…?” she whispered, desperately.  Todd looked up at her, horrified.  Lex knew what was going on, he was sure of it, but she was afraid of something.

            “Tell me what ha-” Todd froze as Hannah walked into the room, still smiling kindly.

                                                                                                                                   “Oh, don’t let me interrupt.  What were you to talking about?” she asked, a certain madness igniting in her eyes.  Todd looked at Lexi, who turned away from him and shut her eyes.  He hopped out of his seat and pointed and accusatory finger at Hannah. 

            “What the hell is going on?” he shouted.  “What did you guys do late night?  What did you do to Mary Kate?”  Hannah craned her neck, looking confused.

            “I’m sure I don’t know what you mean, Todd.  Mary was supposed to meet Meredith last night.  Did something happen to her?  Is she ok?” she said, the intense look in her eyes strengthening.  Todd felt furry flaming up along the sides of his face.

            “Mary Kate is dead, you witch.  And I know you know what happened!” he shouted, clenching his fists.  Hannah’s face grew harder, but her smile did not fade.  Instead, it seemed to broaden into a maddened grin.

            “What is it you’re trying to say, Todd?” she asked, coldly.  Todd answered through clenched teeth.

            “What the hell happened last night?”  Hannah’s eyes narrowed and she advanced on him slowly, raising a fist menacingly.

            “Look, you miserable little flit, whatever happened or didn’t happen last night is none of your business.  If Mary lost it, then that’s her friggin’ problem and I don’t need a pussy like you hurling accusations at me.  Now, get the hell out of my house before I rip your ugly head off!” she finished screaming at the top of her lungs.  Todd made as if to reply, but instead stood stock still, a dumbstruck look upon his face.  He looked at Lexi, who turned away quickly, tears in her eyes. 

            “OUT!” Hannah screamed and Todd backed away.  Slowly at first, then gaining speed, he hurried to the door and ran towards his car.  Hannah followed him to the doorstep and watched as he pulled away.  She watched unsympathetically as he sped off down the street.  After a few minutes, Lexi appeared behind her and looked off in the direction Todd had driven.

            “Is he going to tell on us?” she said in a barely perceptible whisper.

            “Unlikely,” she said coolly.  “I punctured his break line while I was getting the water.  He won’t make it more than a mile a mile.”  Hannah shut the door calmly and returned to the living room with Lexi in tow.  Two down, she thought.  Gotta take care of Ellie before she loses it too…

****

            Elliot arrived home with her mind racing.  She knew she should go see Mary Kate, but she wasn’t ready to deal with that just yet.  She still needed to get her own head straight; how was she supposed to calm someone else down?  As she closed the front door, her phone rang, causing her to jump.  She pulled the phone out and saw Todd’s name on the screen.

            “Damn it,” she whispered to herself.  “Yes Todd, what is it?”  Todd was breathing heavily on the other end and Elliot could tell he was severely distressed.  When he spoke, his voice was hoarse and strained and his words came in torrents.

            “Mary-Kate-is-dead-and-I-know-you-know-what-happened!” he said, panting to catch his breath.  Elliot could hardly understand what Todd was saying.

            “Slow down,” Elliot replied, panic growing inside her.  “What did you say about Mary Kate?”  Elliot was fairly certain what she had heard, but she didn’t want to believe it.  How could it be true?

            “She’s-dead-I-saw-Hannah-she-knows!” he sputtered.  Elliot heard wheels screeching in her ear and she knew Todd was driving haphazardly. 

            “Calm down, Todd,” she said, trying to process what she had just heard.  “Mary Kate is dead?  What happened?”

            “That’s what I want you to tell me,” he said, desperately.  “She hung herself in her room while I was sitting outside the door.  I could hear her!”  His voice cracked as he finished.  The shock of it still hadn’t gotten through to Elliot, but her better instincts fought through her confusion.

            “Ok, ok,” she said, trying to get her thoughts straight.”  Look, Todd.  Be careful, I’m going to fix this.  For now, just stay away from Bradley Heights and stay away from Hannah.  I don’t know what she might do if she knows you’re onto what happened.”  She heard Todd breathing deeply, trying to calm himself down.

            “Well, it’s a little late for that,” he said.  “I just went and saw h…what…what the hell?”  Elliot heard the phone hit the floor, followed by Todd’s harsh screams and a sickening crunch.  The line went dead and Elliot’s jaw fell open.  Oh God, she thought.  What the hell just happened?  She took a step towards the stairs, but couldn’t think of what she had intended to do.  Stopping dead in her tracks, she felt helpless to do anything.  After a few moments, she heard a murmur coming from her father’s office.  She looked out the front window and saw that she had somehow failed to notice Detective Fox’s car sitting in the driveway right next to hers.  Right, she thought.  I guess there’s nothing else I can do.

            She walked over to her father’s door and raised her fist to knock, but thought better of it.  Instead, she leaned in close to listen to what her father and godfather where saying.  They both sounded somber, but there was an air of strange anticipation in their voices.

            “Well, is there any way we can pin his associate’s deaths on him or Hennessy?” Sam Baker asked.

            “I don’t see how,” Fox replied.  “Sure you and I both know Hennessy had a hand in it, but there isn’t any way to prove it.  As for Lehan, how is he going to kill someone from jail?  He doesn’t have that big a following and if he did, those boys would be the ones to take care of things for him.  No,” he said with a sigh.  “I think this case will be staying open for a while.  Lehan’s up for parole, by the way.”

            “Yeah, I know,” Sam replied.  “I can keep him in for another few months, that won’t be a problem.”  Fox cleared his through hesitantly.

            “Are you sure you ought to do that, Sam?  We both know it’s a trumped up charge.  The boy is lucky to be alive as it is.  Why leave him in there with Hennessy’s boys any longer?” Fox asked, his voice a little nervous.  Mr. Baker’s reply was immediate.

            “You think I don’t know that, Henry?” he said forcefully.  “That boy knows more about this than he’s letting on though.  He knows Hennessy was behind the attack and he knows why.  I know he’s a scared kid, but he needs to talk to us.”

            “And you think leaving him in a cell for another year is going to make him more willing to talk?” Fox replied.

            “I don’t know, Henry,” he said, exasperated.  “I just don’t want to lose him to that world.”  The room was silent for a few moments.  Elliot pressed her ear to the door to listen more closely.

            “And what about the Barr girl,” he continued.  “Anything new there?”  Elliot heard some papers flapping as Det. Fox searched through his notes.

            “Well,” he said, clearing his throat.  “It doesn’t look too good so far.”  His voice had grown weak and devoid of hope.  He flipped through his notebook some more before continuing.

            “The best lead we’ve got is the Quentin girl.  They were supposed to meet last night, but Meredith never showed up.  The girl didn’t think much of it though, called her and left a message.  We checked the phone records and her story checks out.  Goes kinda cold after that.  There’s tire tracks by the marsh from about eight different cars.  It seems the kids like to go down there to get friendly sometimes.  No one heard or saw anything.”  He sight and Elliot heard him close the notebook.  Her father’s chair creaked as he sat down.

            “Well,” he said.  “Maybe you ought to check out the Quentin girl again.  Mary Kate, is it?  I suppose this is probably just a kidnapping gone wrong, but she might know something.  Can you head back to her house after this?”

            “Sure,” Fox replied.  “I’ll call up Pierce.  I’m sure he won’t mind coming back up to Bradley Heights.  Should I bring Miss Quentin in for questioning or…”  Elliot could take no more.  Standing up she pushed the door open and burst inside.

            “It wasn’t Mary Kate, it was Hannah and Lexi helped.  Mary Kate and I didn’t know!” she shouted.  Sam jumped out of his chair and Det. Fox turned to her, startled. 

            “Elliot, honey, Henry and I were talk-” Sam started, but Elliot interrupted.

            “I know, I know.  Listen to me!” she said desperately.  “Hannah told Mary Kate to lure Meredith out of the house, then Hannah and Lexi took her to the marsh and killed her!”  Tears burst from Elliot’s eyes and her body shook violently.  Sam shook his head, but said nothing.  Detective Fox looked at her through narrowed eyes.

            “How do you know this?” Fox asked poignantly, years of police work hardening him from the shock.  Elliot looked into his eyes for a moment, then looked to her father, who still stood dumfounded by his desk.  A look of distress crept across his face as the silence lengthened.

            “I…” Elliot started, but couldn’t continue.  Her father just kept shaking his head, terrified of what everyone in the room knew was about to be revealed.  Out of habit, Fox reached into his coat to retrieve his notebook, but his hand froze half way.  The movement seemed to kick Elliot back to reality and she quickly spat out her answer.

            “I drove the car…” she said.  Her father threw a hand too his chest and fell back into his chair.  “But I didn’t know what was happening.  I didn’t know what Hannah was going to do!”  This addition garnered little comfort for her father, whose mind raced for a solution to the newly presented problem.

            “Well, it’s good that you told us…” he said, thinking his way through the legal ramifications.  His face was suddenly gaunt and vacant as he seemed to leave the room for another plane of being.  When he spoke, he did not seem to speak to anyone.  Rather, he conversed nothing over what way he could possibly solve the situation.  The full horror, it seemed, had yet to dawn on him.

            “She’d definitely get leniency for the tip.  Criminal facilitation or criminal negligence.  Maybe…”  His protective instincts were in full swing.  He whispered madly to himself.

            “We can get her off…we can get her off.”  His eyes darted about, catching on bits of nothing as they swung around the room.  Fox pulled out his notebook and scribbled down some notes

            “I’d better go talk to the Quentin girl again then, don’t you think?  Sam?”  Sam Baker turned back to Detective Fox with a start and then nodded. 

            “Oh, yes, of course.  I’ll call up Judge Bailey and try to get a warrant for Abrams and Had-”

            “No!”  Elliot shouted.  “I mean, you can’t go see Mary Kate.”

            “Listen, Elliot,” Fox replied.  “I know she’s your friend, but I have a job to do and she’s a material witness in a murder investigation.”

            “No,” Elliot repeated.  “Mary Kate is dead.  She killed herself in her bedroom.”  Fox dropped his hands to his side, dejectedly. 

            “When?” he said, his voice weakened only slightly by the impact of the news.

            “I’m not sure,” Elliot said solemnly.  “I got a call from her boyfriend, Todd and…” her face froze.  “Oh my God, Todd!” 

            “What?  What happened?” Fox asked, uncertain that he was ready for another bloody revelation. 

            “He was driving while he was on the phone with me, but he got distracted and cut out.  I think he was in an accident, but I’m not sure where.  He drives a green Chevy.  You’ve got to find him,” she said, stepping forward as she did.  She reached out a pleading hand to Detective Fox and he nodded.

            “Ok,” he said, turning to Sam.  “I need you to get a warrant for the other two girls.  I’m going to have Rick send a bus over to the Quentin house and I’ll see if I can find this Todd fellow.”  Sam nodded his head again and Fox hurried out the door.  Elliot breathed a heavy sigh and sat down across from her father.

            “I’m sorry, dad,” she said.  “I never thought it would be like this.”  Sam didn’t answer.  He sat quietly for a long time, staring out the window.  After a few minutes, he abruptly turned back to face his daughter and stood up.

            “Right,” he said, very businesslike.  “Get in the car.  It would be best if you turn yourself in now.  I need to talk to Judge Bailey, so I’ll take you in myself.”  He began to shuffle through some papers and put various things in his briefcase. 

            “Wait, what?”  Elliot said, confused.  “No, I just want to stay here.  I’m not ready for all this.”  She looked at her father pleadingly, but he did not relent.

            “I don’t think so,” he said, sternly.  “I have to take you in so you can turn yourself over.  You can get leniency if you confess to your part and testify.”

            “But I already confessed you and Uncle Henry!” she said, but Sam’s face only grew harder.

            “I’m your father and he’s your godfather.  How would it look if we harbored you here while we arrested everyone else involved?  No, you’d better come with me.”  Elliot opened her mouth again to protest more, but relented.  There was no arguing, now.  She only hoped the judge would go easy on her.  Sam finished packing his suitcase and walked out of the office with Elliot close behind. 

****

            The air was oppressive as Elliot and her father walked through the police station towards the unit captain’s office.  Officers and detectives bustled about on their various tasks, but everyone seemed somehow subdued, their movements restrained by unseen impediments.  As she past, Elliot was certain she could feel their accusatory looks boring into her soul, though she knew they had no way of knowing what she had done.  Some friends of her father’s even smile at her, but she saw only the twisted scowls of a thousand hell bound demons jeering at her from the abyss.  She drew in closely behind her father until his back filled her vision.  When they arrived at the captain’s door, he turned to her.

            “Stay out here for a few minutes while I talk to the captain,” he said.  Before she could open her mouth to disagree, he turned back to the door and went inside.  Elliot was left alone, staring at the moving mass of bodies that circulated throughout the desks and kiosks.  In the corner, a junkie shuddered next to a woman she assumed was a prostitute, but couldn’t be sure.  The woman looked as though she couldn’t be much older than Elliot herself.  She wondered for a moment how the woman had gotten to that point in her life, but the thought did not stick in her mind.  Quickly realizing she did not actually care what had happened to this woman, she turned her gaze to the floor in front of herself. 

            She brooded for a few minutes over her fate.  Hadn’t she done the right thing in telling her father and Fox?  Was she really about to be punished after solving the case for the stupid police, who had no leads anyway?  She had heard her uncle say that just before she pushed her way into the room.  So this was the thanks she got for being a good citizen?

            Slowly, but surely, Elliot allowed the perceived injustice of her situation become a growing comfort.  In the minutes while her father spoke to the captain, Elliot began to manufacture, in her own mind, the facts of her victimhood.  After all, she thought.  They never told me what was going to happen.  If I had ever really thought Meredith was in danger, I would never have allowed it to happen, she reasoned.  I was used by Hannah and Lexi, just like Mary Kate was.  I’m not a bad person.

            “I’m not a bad person,” she repeated aloud.  “I’m a victim too…”  The door to the captain’s office opened and her father exited. 

            “Dad, I-” she started, but her father cut her off.

            “I’m sorry, Elliot.  We don’t have a choice.”  He stepped past her to make way for the captain.  His face was grim as he stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder.

            “Elliot Baker; you have the right to remain silent,” he said, his voice dead and flat.

            “What?  No listen…”

            “If you give up that right, anything-”

            “Dad, don’t do this!  I didn’t know what we were doing.  I’m a victim too!”

            “You have the right to an attorney…”

            “Dad!” Elliot shouted.  The captain led her away to the station lockup and locked her in a cell.  Her body twitched as the cell door rolled shut.  The click of the lock was like a stab in the chest.  She sat down on the hard bench in the back of the cell and fumed over what had just happened.  She cursed her father for not helping her out of this.  Hadn’t she done everything she should have done?  Hadn’t she broken the case for him?

            Elliot brooded like this for a few more minutes before the jailor returned with a young man in tow.  The young man was placed in the cell beside Elliot.  As the door locked behind him, they looked at each other.  Elliot felt nothing but disdain for all living things, but the look he gave her was intriguing.  He walked to the back of his cell and sat down near the bars on her side.  Smiling at her, he lay back on the bench and closed his eyes.  Lousy degenerate, she thought, and went back to brooding over her fate.

****

            Sam Baker turned away as the captain led his daughter towards the station lockup.  A rare tear broke from his eye and he quickly wiped it away.  Clearing his throat, he straightened up his tie and cleared his face of any remaining sentiment.  This wasn’t the time for gross displays of emotion.  Turning back to the room, he saw Detective Fox coming into the room.  When their eyes met, Fox shook his head and sighed.

            “It’s not pretty, Sam,” he said, his voice gruff from the last cigarette.  “She was right about the Quentin girl.  Rick said they founder her in a heap on the floor, hung herself from a light fixture.  Didn’t look like the body had fallen, so we figure the boyfriend must have taken her down.”  Sam nodded, trying to swallow the lump that was rising in his throat.

            “Any word on the boy?” he asked, choking a little as he spoke. 

            “Well, that’s a thing,” Fox said, shaking his head again.  “Patrol found the car, turns out Elliot was right.  It was bent around a tree on the passenger side, only, the boy wasn’t there.  It looked like he had gotten out of the car and left into the woods somewhere.  The car that found the wreck didn’t have a canine, so we didn’t go out searching for him just yet.  We’ll find him though, Sam.  We’ll need his testimony.” 

            “What about…” Sam started, still struggling through his speech.  “What about the other two?”  Fox coughed and let slip a wry laugh, his face turned slightly in a displeased scowl.

            “Well that’s somethin’ else, Sam,” he said, pulling out his notebook.  “We found them both at the Abrams house.  The Hadley girl was in another world, like she didn’t even know what had happened.  Erie, but the other girl, Hannah, you wouldn’t have believed it, Sam.  She laughed when they took her away.  Said she didn’t know what the big fuss was about, no one liked the little…well.  You get the picture, I guess.  I’ve seen bad ones in my day, but I swear they keep getting younger.”  He shook his head and put his notebook away.  Sam sighed and sat down by Detective Fox’s desk.

            “What terrible things that girl has seen that led her to this,” he said, looking up at the ceiling.  “Her father was a friend of mine, but he certainly wasn’t much of a father.  I didn’t know her mother well, but I never thought much of her.  Maybe if she had a been brought up better, none of this would have happened.  If only she had had a better family.  Poor thing hardly knows right from wrong, I’d guess.”

            “Oh, I don’t know about that, Sam,” Fox said, taking a seat next to the D.A.  “I’m sure she knew damn well it was wrong, she just didn’t care.”  Sam nodded.

            “Strange how a girl so young, growing up right under our noses can turn out like that.  I can only wonder what her parents did to her to make her that way.  Just, why, you know?”

            “Maybe something they did,” Fox said, shrugging.  “Or maybe nothing.  Maybe she’s just another girl who decided she was going to kill.  Sure, you want to know there was a reason why she turned out this way, it’s human nature.  You want to know she was abused, treated badly; that she was part of some sort of cycle of violence that drove her to this, but the cycle has to start somewhere.  We’ve been told since we were little that kids become bullies because of low self esteem or some kind of abuse.  We want to blame someone other than the kid, but it’s not out of compassion.  It’s out of fear: fear of admitting that some people are just cruel and sometimes there just isn’t a reason.  You want to know why two girls are dead?  You ought to know humanity is capable of anything.” 

ENDIntroduction

            If you follow route 44 south east from the cross towards Kingsfield and take it out past the marshes on the right, you may notice on the left, about a half mile out, there’s a little road that runs straight up to a large iron gate.  If you can afford to procure passage through the gate, you will enter the village of Bradley Heights on the outskirts of Halliston City.  If you follow the windy road up the hill, you will begin to see the enormous houses of Halliston’s elite.  A cynical person might say that the richest men in Halliston are the ones who make the laws and the ones who break them.  An even more cynical man might say there isn’t much difference either way.

            The first house on the left, with the big green hedge and the helipad on top, belongs to Jack Merger, when he’s not in occupying his seat in the U.S. Senate.  A few minutes down the road is the home of Sam Baker, his wife Wendy, their son Greg and their daughter Elliot.  Sam is the District Attorney of Halliston City.  The next house over(about a half mile away), belongs to a Tommy Hennessy.  For the past five years, Tommy’s neighbor, Sam, has been trying to build a case against Tommy for charges ranging from human trafficking to racketeering to the drug trade.  More important than any of these charges, in Sam’s eyes, was the murder of Sam’s neighbor on the other side and the father of his daughter’s best friend: Edward Abrams.

            Farther down the road, you might find the homes of other important Halliston families.  The Sibley’s and the Delmonts both have mansions in the Heights, on opposite sides of the Village, naturally.  The Hadley’s, who owned majorities shares of both the Harris Building and the King’s Tower, lived next to the Quentin’s who, though once were suspected to be connected to the Hennessy Organization, had carved out an impressive fortune in Real Estate in the upscale beach neighborhood of Whiteshore.  Their families were the closest of friends from the moment they bought houses next door to one another. 

            As you drive back down the hill to the other side of the Village, you might notice two smaller houses standing by themselves on either side of the road out to Heberton.  The house on south side of the road belongs to Jeffrey and Morgan Becker and their son Todd.  The house across the street belonged to Roger Barr and his only daughter Meredith, whose disappearance tore her father’s world apart and turned the quite, rich little neighborhood of Bradley Heights on its head.

Murdering Meredith Bar

            It was, without question, a crime of passion; but one carried out with such cold precision, you might have thought it planned for months.  Hannah Abrams learned at a young age how to focus her rage so efficiently that it could burn a hole through steel.  Though raised by a family generally agreed to be upstanding and of high regard, extenuating circumstances allowed Hannah’s development into a sociopath to go unchecked until it was far too late.

At the tender age of eleven, Hannah learned that her father Edward, who she barely knew, had been killed by a mugger on the streets Halliston as he walked to his car from a rather seedy motel.  What he was doing at this location was a mystery, though, if you asked his wife she would tell you that he was visiting one of his many mistresses.  If you asked Sam Baker, Edward was killed by a soldier of the Hennessy Crime Syndicate. 

Edward, you see, worked for an import/export company with stockyards up and down the coast.  As a middle manager of the business, he would go from city to city and run audits on the merchandise being shipped into each port.  One day at the Halliston Docks Edward quite accidentally stumbled upon a meeting between James Hennessey (Tommy’s brother) and the purveyor of high quality Colombian narcotics.  Edward, being the fine upstanding citizen that he was, went straight to his friend Sam Baker and asked for witness protection.  Sam told him he would do his best.  Two days later, Edward was found dead in the street.

The news of her father’s death arrived at their door in the form of one Detective Henry Fox, a veteran of the HCPD and a friend of the family.  Even as her Mother broke down into tears, no part of this event struck her as terrible news.  Edward Abrams, Hannah’s father, saw his daughter an average of eight weeks out of the year and rarely for more than two days at a time.  Her parents were not separated; however, Edward was always on the move for work.  Michelle, Hannah’s mother, could not tolerate so much moving around and insisted on staying near Halliston.  Each time Edward came home, he promised Michelle and Hannah that the day would soon come when he could find a position in Halliston and live there with them permanently.  Soon after his death, the family found this to be a lie.  In actuality, Edward had been offered stationary positions in the Halliston area on several occasions and each time he had turned them down.  When news of this reached the family, again, the gravity of the situation never occurred to Hannah.

            No, not a single part of this family ordeal struck Hannah Abrams as remotely noteworthy.  Nothing about the death of her father meant a thing to her.  What Hannah did realexe, however, was that her destructive tendencies once deemed punishable offenses, now became excusable cries for attention from a deeply afflicted young girl.  This did not stop as the years passed and before long, her behavior just seemed normal. 

            She was a sweet girl, at times.  She was kind to her boyfriend Jacob, even when he told her they should see other people.  This may have been because Jacob’s sister was Hannah’s good friend Lex Hadley, but it was more likely due to Hannah’s inability to force emotional attachments to other human beings.  At other times, however, she was generally agreed to be a terror.  In one instance, Bradley Heights Academy rejected application to the Homecoming Court because she was a sophomore and the court was always made up of juniors and seniors.  Hannah felt that, given her extensive extra-curriculars and outstanding academic performance, an exception should be made in her case.  The Administration did not feel the same way.  The day of the homecoming parade, the exhaust pipe to the homecoming float exploded, injuring four of the court members.  A police investigation found that the pipe had been clogged with a mixture of kerosene and sawdust.  They were not able to trace the material and the case remains open to this day.  Hannah was intelligent, cunning, and when she was angry she could scare the horns off the devil himself.

            There was one person who was not afraid of Hannah.  In the fall of Hannah’s junior year, Meredith Barr, a classmate, decided to throw a party at her home.  Meredith invited all the most popular boys and girls, including Hannah’s three closest friends: Mary Kate Quentin, Lex Hadley, and Elliot Baker.  (Hannah called them Mary, Lexi and Ellie.  This was not out of affection, however.  Rather, Hannah ended each of their names with a ‘y’ sound in order to separate, and in her mind elevate, herself from the three of them.)  Meredith did not, however, invite Hanna Abrams.  She did not do this out of spite, as Hannah perceived it.  Meredith chose not to invite Hannah because she had just begun dating Hannah’s ex-boyfriend Jacob and wanted to avoid any awkward moments.  Had she realexed that the break up had been amicable, she may have saved herself and the four other girls a lot of trouble.

            Hannah was livid when Lex came by her house after leaving the party early.

            “Well, how was it?” she said scornfully.  Lex, who had actually had a very good time, grimaced and stuck out her tongue. 

            “Lame,” she replied.  “Just a bunch of boring losers dancing to crappy music.  You know, the usual Meredith stuff.”  Hannah nodded.  She knew Lex was exaggerating, but she liked the fact that her friend was afraid to defy her. 

            “Who was there?” she asked, feigning interest as though she didn’t already know everyone who attended.  Lex shifted a little in the big fluffy bean bag chair that sat in the corner of Hannah’s room.

            “Oh, you know,” she said, twirling her hair idly.  “Elliot was there for a bit but she left to go pick up her brother or something.  Mary Kate was there with Todd.  You know he and Jake are always together.”  She paused awkwardly and looked around the room a bit.  “No one else good,” she said and dropped her hands into her lap.  Hannah nodded and laid back on her bed.

            “I don’t know what your brother sees in Meredith.  She thinks she’s all hot but she’s got a little dog face.  Just gross.”  Lex, who did not in any way dislike Meredith, just smiled and tried to look like she agreed.  Hannah knew she didn’t, but a plan was beginning to form in her mind.  This bitch Meredith thought she was good enough to leave her out of her party and that was definitely not ok.  She was going to teach her a lesson, but she was going to need a little help.  Donning a concerned face, she sat up and looked Lex right in the eye.

            “Hey, Lexi?” she said, he voice softening like a caring parent.  “I think I should tell you something.”  Lex was taken aback by the swift change in Hannah’s mood.

            “Oh, what is it, Hannah?”  Hannah sighed with a tragic look.

            “Ok, Lex, I’ll tell you, but only because I care about you and your brother.”  Lex nodded, already captivated by her friends supposed concern.

            “Well,” Hannah continued.  “I was talking to Ben Morris the other day and he told me that he overheard Rick Messner telling his friends that he had hooked up with Meredith the last week.  Ben said he figured he Rick was making it up at first, but then he saw the two of them at Snarky’s and he had his hand on her knee.  Apparently he paid for both their burgers.”

            “Oh my God,” Lex gasped. 

            “I know,” said Hannah, shaking her head.  “I guess she thinks she’s so great she can do whatever she wants.”  Lex was still in shock.  Her and Meredith had known each other for four years and she never got the impression that she would do something like that.  She was even a little happy when her and Jacob started dating.  Oh my God, Jacob, she thought.  He’ll be devastated. 

            “I have to tell Jacob!” Lex said, grabbing her phone.  Before she could look up his number, Hannah snatched it away from her. 

            “Whoa, slow down Lexi.  You can’t just tell him, there’s no way to prove it.  Plus, if he does believe it he’ll feel terrible.  Can you imagine being cheated on with a loser like Rick?”  Lex dropped her hands to her side with a sigh.

            “You’re right,” she said.  “But what can we do?  We can’t just let this happen.”  Hanna nodded comfortingly and moved over to sit beside her friend.

            “I don’t know, but we’ll think of something.”  She put her arm around Lex and could feel her begin to tremble with rage.

            “She can’t just do that to my brother,” Lex said, anger bubbling in her voice.  “We have to do something to her to scare her off.  Make her afraid of us so she’ll leave my brother alone.”  Hanna smiled inwardly.  This was exactly what she wanted.

            “I don’t know, Lexi,” she said, remaining coy.  “I mean, she certainly deserves it, but have to be careful about this.  We can’t just go around attacking people.”

            “Right,” Lex said, her voice still quivering.  “Well, we’ll just rough her up a little.  You know, just to scare her.  We could put her in the trunk or something and leave her by the marshes.  Not like, in the marshes, just close enough that she gets really scared and doesn’t want to mess with my brother anymore.”  Lex finished, still shaking a little; her eyes growing mad.  Hannah smiled.  The plan was excellent and she didn’t even have to think of it all herself. 

            “Ok,” she said.  “Let’s do it.  We should tell Mary and Ellie though, they’ll want to help.  Any good friend would.”  Lex nodded.  Never the strongest minded individual, Lex accepted Hannah’s story and conformed to her wicked design without even being cognizant of it.  She jumped to her feet with a determined look on her face.

            “Alright, I’ll go tell Mary Kate and Elliot.  We’ll do it tonight!”  Lex was halfway out the door before Hannah stopped her.

            “Whoa, wait a minute, Lexi,” she said in a calming voice.  “Let’s not get hasty.  We want this to work.  Go tell Mary and Ellie to meet at your house in an hour.  We’ll do it tomorrow night, once we’ve made the perfect plan.”  Lex nodded and headed back out the door.  She paused for a moment and turned back.

            “Hey, Hannah?” she said with a smile.

            “Yeah?” Hannah replied.

            “Thanks,” said Lex, and she hurried out the door.  Hannah smiled wickedly as Lex left and flopped down on her bed.  She looked over at her dresser with a pleasured sigh.  In the top left drawer underneath an old hairbrush and her curling iron lay a thin metal knitting needle with a razor sharp edge.  Hannah reminisced for a moment about a little black cat that she had wanted.  At the time, the kitten belonged to her cousin and Hannah had demanded that she give it to her.  Her cousin refused.  After Hannah left to go home, the kitten was never seen again, unless you count the worms.  She thought fondly of the look on her cousin’s face the next time she saw her.  Her Aunt and Uncle, of course, refused to believe that Hannah had anything to do with the kitten’s disappearance and even grounded her cousin when she would not rescind her claim.  This was an added bonus that Hannah had not expected.  She spent the day at her cousin’s house playing with her cousin’s toys in full view of her cousin’s window. 

            Hannah remembered the incident with a twisted eroticism.  Nothing gave her greater pleasure than the thought of her past victories.  She was certain this time would be no different.  Her friends would lure Meredith out and she would exact her revenge.  The knitting needle would be the perfect tool.  If I do it right, she reasoned, I might not even get any blood on my clothes.  She smiled at this thought, because she never went anywhere looking anything but chic, but it would be a tragedy if she should damage one of her outfits over a little piece of trash like Meredith.  Her victory would be complete and she would look hot the whole time.  Maybe once I’m done, I’ll go sleep with Jacob.  Hannah rolled over on her side and squeezed a fluffy pink pillow.  This is going to be so much fun…

****

            Mary Kate Quentin was trying very hard not to hurt Todd’s feelings as she explained to him why she had to leave the party and break their date.  Todd had made big plans for that night.  They were going to the party and then he was going to take Mary Kate to see a movie.  After the movie, he was going to take her to the north crest of Bradley Heights to the little cliffs overlooking Sibley and give her the necklace he had been saving his money for three months to buy.  He was, of course, going to make sure that she did not get the wrong idea.  Todd Becker, after all, was a gentleman and the gift was not intended to solicit any sort of physical return.  That being said, Todd Becker was also a teenage boy and he was kind of hoping they might make out.  This new development threatened to derail his entire plan.

            “Because Lex said she needed me, Todd.  I’m sorry, but I have to go,” Mary Kate said, beginning to feel antsy. 

            “I just don’t understand what is so pressing.  I know she’s your friend and all, but I feel like this kind of thing always happens when we have a night planned,” Todd replied.  Mary Kate knew he was right, but she also knew that Hannah was really behind the meeting and one doesn’t just say no to Hannah Abrams, but how could she explain that to Todd?

            “Look, I’m sorry.  We’ll do it another night, Todd.  I have to go because Lex really needs us.  Hannah and Elliot are going to see her too.”  Elliot Baker, who was standing nearby, overheard this last part with a bit of surprise.

            “I’m…sorry, what is this?”  Elliot said, walking over to them.

            “Didn’t you get Lexi’s text?” Mary Kate asked.  Elliot shook her head blankly.  Mary Kate tried to look confused for a moment before continuing.

            “Well, she texted me and said both of us should come.  I’m surprised she forgot to send it to you.”  In fact, Mary Kate was not terribly surprised.  For whatever reason, Elliot was often an afterthought to Hannah and Lex.  Mary Kate didn’t think it was because they didn’t really like her.  She assumed it was just because she and Elliot were together so often.  The real reason was that Elliot was a little more individually minded than Lex and Mary Kate and Hannah preferred to make her get her information second hand.  This kept Elliot at arm’s length and prevented her from gaining too much influence over the group’s activities. 

            “Anyway, we have to go,” Mary Kate grabbed Elliot by the arm and pulled her towards the door.  “I’ll call you later, honey,” she said as she walked away and left Todd standing alone at the party, utterly dumbfounded and most definitely not making out.

****

            “Yeah, I’m not really sure I wanted to leave just yet,” Elliot said as Mary Kate dragged her to her car. 

            “Ellie,” she said in a serious tone.  “Lex needs us.  We can’t be out partying all night when our friend needs us!”  Elliot shook her head.  She was still a little confused as to what was happening.

            “Yeah about that.  What exactly happened?  Why did she leave the party anyway?”  Mary Kate was not interested in questions.

            “I don’t know, Ellie.  She had to go see Hannah or something.  Does it really matter?”  Elliot pulled her arm free from Mary Kate’s grasp and stop stubbornly.

            “Well yeah, Mary, I’d say it does matter a little.  You’re just going to run right over there because they told you too?” she said incredulously.  Mary Kate resented the implication that she could not think for herself, but at the moment she was unable to come up with a good reason why she was right.  Rather, she settled for the low road.

            “I’m your ride home,” Mary Kate replied stubbornly.  “You’ll have to come with me or walk home.”  Elliot sighed and resigned herself to the meeting.  She got in the passenger side of Mary Kate’s car and they pulled away from the Barr family home.  The drive passed mostly in silence with Mary Kate occasionally attempting to start up a conversation and Elliot shooting her down with an impatient grunt.  When they arrived at the Hadley house, Hannah was waiting by the window.  She opened the door for them with a solemn look on her face and they walked into the living room.  Lex was sitting on the couch with tears in her eyes and Mary Kate rushed over to her side immediately.

            “What happened!” she said, putting her arm around Lex.  “We came as fast as we could.”  Hannah sat down in an arm chair across the room and shook her head.

            “Meredith is cheating on Jacob with Rick Messner.  That’s why we wanted you to leave so quickly,” she said, a dash of anger spicing her speech.  Mary Kate’s eyes grew wide and her jaw fell open.  Lex sobbed a little and Mary Kate began to rub her back.

            “What?” said Elliot, skeptically.  “No way, that doesn’t make any sense at all.  Meredith has never been like that before and Rick’s so…guh.”  Hannah knew Elliot would be an issue, but she wanted her involved just in case things got messy.  She tried to run with Elliot’s disbelief and slowly turn it into agreement.

            “Right?” she said.  “It just seems so bizarre.”  She donned a bewildered look.  Elliot still couldn’t fathom how this could be true.  She’d known Meredith for years and this just didn’t seem right.

            “Are you sure?” she said.  “Where did you hear all this?”  Lex looked up with tears streaming down her face.

            “Ben Morris saw them!  He’s the one who originally told Hannah all about it.”  Lex went back to sobbing and Mary Kate looked up at Elliot, her face a portrait of concern.

            “We have to do something,” she said.  “We have to tell him right away.  She’s still at the party with him, probably laughing at him on the inside!”

            “We can’t tell him,” Hanna cut in.  “That would destroy him.  Being replaced by Rick?  That would be completely emasculating.”  Elliot was forced to agree, but what exactly could they do otherwise?  Lex sobbed loudly and cried out.

            “I wanna kill her,” she said, her body shaking with anger.  No one caught the excited look on Hannah’s face as she jumped out of her chair and she quickly covered it with concern.  She walked over to Lex and put her hand on her shoulder.

            “Calm down now, Lexi,” she said in a soothing tone.  “Remember what I said about keeping it together?  We’re not going to hurt her, ok?  We just want to scare her a little.”  Lex nodded and dried her eyes a little on her shirt.  Mary Kate nodded in agreement and continued rubbing her back, but Elliot was still uncertain. 

            “What does that mean?” she said apprehensively.  Hannah looked at her, fighting back her scorn.  She cursed her internally but forced down any outward signs of her disdain.

            “Well,” she said.  “Lexzie was thinking maybe we could pretend like we were kidnapping her than leave her down off Route 44 by the marshes.  She’ll just stumble around in the dark for awhile until she gets to the road and someone will pick her up.  It’s mean, sure, but she’s got it coming.  She shouldn’t have done that to Jacob.”  Hannah finished with a compassionate look and sat down next to Lex.  Only Elliot still stood and she could tell the rest had made up their minds and if she held out much longer, they would turn against her.  She liked Meredith, but she didn’t seem worth fighting Hannah, Mary Kate and Lex over. 

            “Ok,” she said.  “As long as we’re absolutely careful not to hurt her then I’ll help.”  Hannah looked up at her and smiled a cold victory smile that was blocked out by Lex jumping out of her seat and running over to hug Elliot.  She accepted the hug awkwardly and soon felt Lex’s tears soaking through her shirt.  She sighed and patted her on the back.  With the amount of mascara Lex normally wore, her shirt would now almost certainly be stained.

            “Oh, thank you Elliot.  This means a lot to me,” Lex said between sobs.  When at last she withdrew from the embrace, Elliot took a seat in the armchair Hannah had vacated and Lex returned to her spot on the couch. 

            “So how are we going to avoid her knowing who we are and telling the police?” Elliot asked in her usual pragmatic manner.  Hannah cursed under her breath and kept her eyes averted.  She hadn’t thought about the fact that the others would want some sort of anonymity.  She had figured since Meredith would most likely not survive the ordeal, it didn’t matter who she saw.  She had to think quickly.

            “Well,” she said, pausing briefly as quickly processed an idea.  “One of us will have to lure her out of the house.  The rest of us will have to jump her before she gets where she’s going and put her in the trunk so it just seems like a kidnapping.  Then we just take her down to the marshes and leave her there.”

            “Right,” Elliot replied skeptically.  “But then, how does this result in her leaving Jacob alone?”  Mary Kate looked up at Elliot with a hint of confusion in her eyes.  Hannah could tell that if she didn’t act quickly, Mary Kate might start to think about the illogical nature of the plan. 

            “Well, Elliot,” Hannah said, trying to fight down her rage.  “We’ll just keep telling her she’s been a ‘bad little bitch’ and stuff like that until she wonders what she could have done.  Then, like, subconsciously she’ll realexe that this happened to her because she was running around with boys like a little slut and she’ll just tuck herself away in shame.  That’s the best case scenario anyway.”  Hannah finished with a smile and a confident nod.  She looked over at Mary Kate and could see in her eyes that she had successfully negated Elliot’s argument.  Elliot, on the other hand, still looked unsure, but she certainly wasn’t interested in fighting Hannah any more. 

            “Ok,” she said.  “So who’s going to do the luring?”  Hanna opened her mouth to speak but Mary Kate, without hesitation, blurted out:

            “I’ll do it!  Meredith and I have seen each other a lot because Todd and Jacob are so close.  I’ll just pretend like I wanted to hang out with her or something.”  Hannah nodded.  She was going to suggest something similar, but, it was better to hear Mary Kate think of it on her own.  Hannah Abrams valued loyalty.

            “Right,” said Hannah.  “That’s a good plan.  Her father always works, so we should be able to jump her outside her house without anyone knowing.”  Mary Kate and Lex nodded, but the fact that Hannah kept using the word ‘jump’ made Elliot nervous.

            “Ok, so we grab her,” Elliot said, trying to change the tone of the plan in any way she could.  “Then I guess we take her to the marshes, but make sure you call her while she’s gone, Mary Kate.”  The three others were shocked by this suggestion.

            “Why the hell would she do that?” Hannah said, almost shouting at Elliot.  Elliot couldn’t believe that someone as smart as Hannah hadn’t thought so far ahead.

            “Well think about it,” she said.  “We’re about to ask Mary Kate to lure Meredith out of the house so we can kidnap her.  Of course she’s going to report this to the police.  If the police know she was going to see Mary Kate, but then Mary Kate never calls wondering where Meredith is, that kind of suggests Mary Kate already knew where she was.”  Mary Kate gasped.  Lex turned to her with a panicked look.

            “Oh no, we couldn’t ask you to take that risk, Mary,” she said, embracing her friend.  Elliot sat back in her chair with a sigh and Hannah rolled her eyes, growing irate.

            “No, look,” Hannah said.  “Like Elliot said, we just need to make sure you call her while she’s out.  We’ll toss her phone in the grass when we take her so she can’t answer.  So…” Elliot cut her off as she continued.

            “And, of course, you’ll be somewhere else.  Go wherever you say you’ll meet her so everyone sees you there.”  Hannah nodded, ignoring the interruption for the moment.  She had wanted everyone to be involved, but Elliot had a point.  If Mary Kate could be linked to the crime than she could too.  As much as it enraged her to admit to herself, having Elliot’s level head involved in the planning was definitely a help. 

            “Right,” she said.  “So that’s the plan then.  Mary Kate, can you call her first thing tomorrow morning about going out?”  Mary Kate nodded eagerly. 

            “I’ll make sure she’s coming,” she said.  Lex hugged her and Hanna smiled.  They sat for a while in silence and Elliot turned the plan over in her head.  A foreboding feeling was hanging over her and she knew in her heart that she should walk away right now, but she’d seen Hannah when she was angry.  Not only did she not want to get on Hannah’s bad side, but she was a little concerned that she might take things too far.  Elliot pushed all her uncertainties aside and focused on the day ahead.  She would have to go a long to make sure things didn’t get out of hand.  She would have to protect everyone as best she could.

****

            Todd Becker was ecstatic when Mary Kate called him just an hour after she had left the party and told him to pick her up at her house for the movie.  He hummed happily the entire drive over and gave her a huge bear hug when she came out of her house.  She giggled nervously and got in the car.  He asked her about Lex, but she just shrugged and looked out the window.  Though he was a caring boyfriend, Todd tended to leave these things be.  He was awkward with the dramatic side of the fairer sex and if she didn’t want to talk about it, that meant he didn’t have to try to understand.  Todd sighed happily and put his hand on Mary Kate’s knee.  She looked over at him with an absent minded smile and then turned back to the window.  Todd could tell she was distracted, but the spirit of the smile didn’t matter to him.  Every time he saw her lips turn upwards and her glistening white teeth peek out from behind them a little chill pulsed through his body.  However she felt about him, he was in love.

            They held hands through the movie and Todd even put his arm around her towards the end.  After the movie, he asked if she would like to go to the cliffs that over looked Sibley and see the lights of Halliston City in the late night dark.  She said yes, and Todd’s heart leapt up into his throat.  It was a thirty minute drive from the movie theater in Heberton to the cliffs on the north side of Bradley Heights.  It didn’t mean much to Mary Kate, but Todd loved to drive past the huge mansions and manors of Bradley Heights and dream of owning one himself someday.         Mary Kate grew up in Bradley Heights and was accustom to its grandeur.   Todd knew that, while he didn’t necessarily need to be rich to earn her affections (she was a kind hearted girl, albeit a little short of sense), he knew she would prefer to maintain her life style.  Todd grew up outside of Bradley Heights about two miles down Route 39 towards Heberton.  He came from a modest, middle class family, but hoped that, if he worked hard, he would someday find his fortune.  And he did work hard; he was one of the best students at Bradley Heights Academy and was the number one wide receiver for the football team.  Though only a junior, he had already heard from several colleges interested in recruiting him and even a scout from the Halliston Hornets stopped by for one of his games.  Yes, things looked very good for Todd Becker and the only thing he was missing was the love and devotion of his perfect woman.  He felt the hard case of the jewelry box that contained the necklace he had bought her and he knew she would see his full worth soon.

            Todd parked his car next to a small wooden fence that marked the farthest safe place to stand by the cliffs of Bradley Heights.  Turning of the engine, he took Mary Kate’s hand and held it tightly in his.  She smiled and looked out over lights of Halliston.  Directly below them lay Sibley, a brightly lit, bustling neighborhood full of shops and apartments.  The night was clear and they could see all the way past Harkent and Glendon to the Halliston River that ran down between Walmer and Glendon Beach, past Kells and Humphry Island and out into ocean.  Todd sighed happily and put his arm around Mary Kate and scooted a little closer to her.  She made a muffled sound that could be construed as either contentment or displeasure and continued her quiet vigil over the city. 

            Todd shifted nervously and thought again of the gift still sitting in his jacket.  He wondered if this was the right time, but decided that, if this wasn’t the right time, could there really be a better one?  He took a deep breath and reached into his jacket pocket.

            “I got you something,” he said, his hands shaking a little with anticipation.  He sat there silently for a moment as Mary Kate kept staring out as though she hadn’t heard him.  He squeezed her shoulder a little, but she kept staring.

            “Sweetheart?  Did you hear me?” he asked.  No response.

            “Hey, Mary!” he said, a little louder than he had intended.  Mary Kate jumped a little and looked over at him a little bewildered.  She shook it off and smiled.

            “I’m sorry, Todd.  Were you saying something?”  Todd smiled patiently and pulled the box out of his jacket pocket.

            “I said I got you a present.”  He handed her the box and she looked back at him, surprised.  She accepted the box and opened it to reveal a beautiful gold necklace, adorned with her birthstone and tiny emeralds.  Mary Kate looked up at him a little shocked.

            “Oh, Todd, you didn’t have to get me anything.”  She looked back at the necklace.  It really was very pretty, but Mary Kate knew Todd couldn’t really afford something like this.  Between his school work and football, he only had time to work a few hours at Snarky’s a week and his family wasn’t particularly well off.  He must have saved up everything he made for this.  She put it on and looked at herself in the mirror. 

            “You look great,” Todd said and she smiled.  All the other girls will be jealous, she thought.  She thought of her friends looking so impressed with her new necklace and she couldn’t wait to show Hannah and Lex and Elliot and…

            Mary Kate’s look grew distant again.  She thought of Meredith and knew they would never be friends again.  It didn’t bother her a lot, but she wasn’t usually the type to hold grudges.  She wouldn’t have a choice this time though.  What Meredith had done was unforgiveable.

            “Something wrong?” Todd said with a quizzical look.  For a moment, he was terrified that she didn’t like it, but she turned to him and smiled.  She kissed him on the cheek, but when he leaned in to kiss back, she withdrew and put her head on his shoulder, unaware of his intention.  Poor Todd, she thought.  He and Jacob are best friends, but Meredith has been his neighbor all his life.  She knew it would be tough for him to pick a side, but given the circumstances, she knew he would stand by his friend Jacob.  She would tell him about it soon, just not yet.  His shoulder was warm and comfortable.  Mary Kate smiled and looked out over the shimmering city of Halliston.  A little to her left, Todd was wondering exactly what it would take to get to make out.  He sighed and reclined in his chair.  Part of him was very disappointed in the outcome, but it didn’t matter, because he was in love.

****

            Hannah Abrams awoke on Saturday morning feeling refreshed.  She put on her favorite top and skirt combination and went down to breakfast.  There she found her meal already waiting for her and a recording of her favorite show already cued up for her viewing pleasure.  After breakfast she checked to see if her nails needed a touch up, then curled her hair for the day.  She then went into the living room where she found a bowl of her favorite fruit and a copy of Seventeen magazine lying on the coffee table.  Hannah was an avid reader.  She looked over a few articles then dropped the magazine on the floor and began to think about what she would do for the rest of the day.  In less than a minute, the magazine was gone from the floor and stacked neatly in a pile of old issues in the closet.  Hannah smiled and twirled her hair.  She loved having servants.

            A mile away at the crest of Bradley Heights, Alexandra Hadley was having a nervous breakfast with her brother, Jacob.  Every ounce of her being wanted to break down and tell him what she knew, but she must not do it.  Jacob had noticed that his sister looked uncomfortable, but he did not care to press her.  He was a freshman at Wallace University and his father’s car would be at the house in a few minutes to take him to class and he was running behind.  Lex heaved a sigh of relief when he jumped up from the table and left.  She cared a lot about her brother and tonight she was going to take care of him the best way she could. 

            In their respective homes, Elliot and Mary Kate sat nervously passing the hours.  Mary Kate could think of nothing but the plan.  She had already told Todd that she was busy that day, but he still insisted on calling her.  She had already ignored his calls twice and was beginning to feel bad about it, but she couldn’t focus on anything else.  Elliot, on the other hand, was doing anything she could to avoid thinking about the night’s activities.  Her father, the District Attorney, was working from his home office all day and she was very uncomfortable being near him, given what she was about to do.  She had run into him twice already by ten thirty and could only force out a few garbled murmurs in passing.  Mr. Baker hadn’t noticed any change in her demeanor whatsoever.  He loved his daughter, but he was a very busy man.

****

            About an hour after night fall, Elliot sat in her car behind a grove of large fir trees with her trunk popped open.  She had driven Hannah and Lex and dropped them off on the side of the road about fifty yards from the Barr family home.  Gripping the steering wheel nervously, she chewed on her lip a little and stared out into the dark woods that stretched along Route 39.  This is bad, she thought.  I really shouldn’t be here.  This has so many opportunities to go wrong.  What was I thinking agreeing to this?  She thought for a moment about throwing the car in reverse and getting the hell out of there.  Did it really matter if Hannah was pissed?  She had other-

            Thunk!

            Something heavy dropped into the trunk of Elliot’s car.  Hannah knocked on the window and Elliot unlocked the door.  Lex and Hanna jumped in the back.

            “Ok ok, let’s go, Ellie!” Hannah shouted as she closed the door.  Lex began drumming on the seat nervously as Elliot turned the engine over.

            “Did it go ok?  Is something wrong?” she asked as she put the car in reverse.

            “She’s un-” Lex started, but Hannah cut her off.

            “It’s fine,” Hannah said.  “We put a bag on her head and put her in the back.  No problems.”  Elliot pulled out into the street and turned west down Route 39 towards the intersection with 40.  She checked the rearview mirror every few seconds out of compulsion and listened intently for any sounds that might give them away.  Strangely, Meredith didn’t seem to be struggling.

            “Is she ok back there?” Elliot asked with growing concern. 

            “She’s fine,” Hannah relied quickly.

            “Y-yeah,” Lex said nervously.  “We just had to do something to keep her calm.  W-we had to.”  She looked over at Hannah for some reassurance and Hannah gave her a comforting nod, but Elliot was aghast.

            “Did you knock her out?” she shouted.  “Is she unconscious in my trunk right now?”  Elliot was in a panic, checking the rearview ever other second, her hands shaking on the wheel.

            “Just drive the car,” Hannah said with a cruel intensity.  Elliot put her foot on the break.

            “What the hell, you…”

            “Drive the damn car, Elliot!” Hannah shouted with such a cold rage that it shook Elliot to the core.  She took her foot off the break and accelerated.  Tears began to stream down her face as icy fear grabbed hold of her heart.  She was going to be in a hell of a lot of trouble…

            Ten minutes later, Elliot pulled her car off of Route 40 onto a side road that led out to the marshes.  She sat transfixed in the driver’s seat, her eyes staring straight ahead and never straying to either side.  Hannah and Lex opened their doors and walked around behind the car.  Hannah banged on the trunk and Elliot pulled the release with a labored sigh.  It was far too late for her to do anything about what was happening.  Lex and Hannah had said that they were just going to leave her by the marshes to scare her, but the rage in Hannah’s voice told her that it wasn’t going to end there.  Hot tears dripped off her face onto her blouse and she prayed things would not get out of hand.

            Behind the car, Hannah and Lex were pulling Meredith’s body out of the trunk.  She moaned a bit and Lex jumped and let go of her arms. 

            “Pick her up,” Hannah hissed.  “We can’t have her waking up before we get her to the marsh.”  Lex nodded and, trembling, slid her hands under Meredith’s arms and lifted her.  Hannah grunted angrily with exertion.  She had originally intended to have Mary Kate or Elliot do the carrying with Lex, but now Mary Kate was gone and Elliot looked as though she might vomit if she tried to move.  Useless little whores, Hannah thought to herself.  I have to take care of everything for them.  Though she was angry, the thought of her how much her friends needed her to take charge made her smile.  She swung her arms a little and ran Meredith’s side into a tree.  The half conscious girl coughed and twisted a bit in the air.

            “Oops,” Hannah said with a smile.  Lex laughed nervously.  They walked a hundred more yards and the ground started to get muddier.  Hannah turned up her nose.  She hadn’t anticipated the mud.  Her shoes would be ruined.  Damn Meredith, she thought. 

            When they reached the murky waters of the marshes, they dropped Meredith in the mud.  Hannah felt for the sharpened knitting needle tucked into the waist of her jeans.  Lex looked down at Meredith as she squirmed a bit.  She turned to Hannah as though asking her what to do next.  Hannah smiled deviously and Lex got the message.  She walked up to Meredith and kicked her hard in the side.  Meredith gasped and cried out.  Hannah suppressed a giggle and leaned down close to Meredith’s shrouded face.  Pulling out the knitting needle, she pressed it up against the skin of her neck and began making little tiny cuts along Meredith’s collar bone.  Her victim squirmed and cried but she kept calm, making twelve little slits along the base of her neck.

            “What are you doing?” Lex asked, bewildered.

            “Just making sure this little bitch gets the message,” Hanna replied, coldly.  She cut once more into Meredith’s skin.  “You hear that?  You can’t just do whatever you like, you whore.  You…”

            “You slut!” Lex shouted, unable to contain herself.  Hannah saw the tormented chaos in Lex’s face and knew the window of opportunity was opening.  She planted the needle point up in the ground and rose to her feet.  She kicked Meredith in the side and screamed.  Lex followed her lead, kicking her in the legs and arms.  Together, they pummeled the young defenseless woman until she shrieked in pain.

            “Shut the hell up,” Hannah shouted and with all her might, she kicked Meredith in the side of the head, flinging her neck sideways into the sharpened end of the needle.  Blood spurted everywhere and Lex jumped back with a start.

            “Oh my God,” she shouted.  “What just happened?”  Meredith trashed around on the ground for a few moments as Hannah jumped aside and hopped towards Lex, deftly avoiding the sprays of blood.  She grabbed Lex and held her tightly so she wouldn’t scream as Meredith went into her final throes. 

            A minute later, everything was quiet.  Meredith’s body lay still on the ground, a puddle of blood seeping into the mud.  Hannah took a step towards her and examined the body.  Lex was shaking violently behind her.

            “Is she dead?” she asked?  Without turning around, Hannah nodded.  “W-what happened?”  Hannah walked around to Meredith’s head and squatted down.  She retrieved the knitting needle and turned back to Lex.

            “I accidentally left this needle by her head.  She must have rolled onto it when we were kicking her.”  Lex gasped.  She was horrified.

            “We killed her?” she asked, her body trembling.

            “It was an accident,” Hannah replied, her words void of regret.

            “Why did you…”

            “Lex,” Hannah’s voice cut like a knife.  “It was an accident and that’s all we can say.  Do you understand me?”  In that crucial moment, Alexandra Hadley had a choice to make.  She could either acknowledge the truth of what had just happened or she could allow herself to suspend reason and deny any culpability for herself or Hannah.  She took a deep breath, ignored all sense of right or wrong she had learned up to that point, and believed.

            “Ok,” she said.  “What do we do?”  Hannah nodded and smiled, lending strength to Lex’s budding self delusion.  She walked over to the crumpled body lying in the mud.

            “We’d better dump her in the marsh.  No one comes down here so she’ll never be found.”  Lex nodded and moved over to the body.  Careful to avoid getting blood on their sweaters, the two young girls lifted Meredith’s body and swung it over the bank of the marsh.  It landed in the murky water with a sickening thud and slowly sunk into the muck.  Hannah let out a pleasured sigh Lex walked over to the small knitting needle lying in the mud.  Bending down, she picked it up and moved to throw it into the marsh.  When Hannah realexed what she was doing, she jumped forward and grabbed her arm.

            “Don’t!” she shouted, her voice uncharacteristically panicked. 

            “What?” Lex replied, confused by her outburst.  “We need to get rid of it.  This needle could be traced back to us.”  Hannah, didn’t listen.  She grabbed Lex’s hand and pried the needle loose.

            “No we can’t,” she said, holding the needle in her hand and admiring the simple instrument of death she had created.  She wanted to keep it and remember that night forever, but she realexed that Lex was right.  While she had no intention of getting rid of the weapon, she at least had to make Lex believe she was going to.  She didn’t need Lexi losing her head or something like that.  She composed herself and thought up an excuse.

            “Well we can’t leave it here,” she said, slyly.  “If they find her and it in the same place, they’ll have proof.”

            “I thought you said they’d never find here?” Lex said, her faith slipping just a little.  Hannah sensed this and tried to patch the leak.

            “They won’t, but I think it would be best if I held on to this for now.  You know, to clean it.”  Lex was unsure, but Hannah looked at her very intently and she had no interest in arguing.  She simply nodded and waited for Hannah to tell her what to do next.  Hannah smiled victoriously and set off back towards the car.

            “Come on,” she said, and Lex followed obediently. 

            They returned to the car to find Elliot sitting just as she had been when they left.  Her eyes remained locked straight ahead as Hannah and Lex got into the car.  She turned the key calmly and shifted the far into drive.  Without breaking her statuesque pose in the driver’s seat, Elliot pulled the car around and drove off as quickly as she could towards Route 41.  She could tell by the silence in the back seat that something hadn’t gone as intended, but she was afraid to ask.  Glancing at the rearview, she saw Hannah’s ice cold eyes staring back at her.  She looked away quickly and focused on the road.  When they arrived at Route 41, Elliot slammed on the gas and sped off towards Bradley Heights.  She dropped off Hannah first, and then took it easy for the half mile to the Hadley Home in the hopes that Lex might tell her what had happened, but Lex had no interest in talking.  She sat in the passenger seat in silence, shaking a little the entire drive.  She didn’t even say goodbye as she got out of the car and walked slowly to her house.

            “Damnit,” she said aloud.  “This is really gonna suck.”  She pulled away from Lex’s house and drove home.  When she arrived at the house, all the lights were out except for her father’s study.  The little dashboard clock read 12:30 am.  Of course he’s still awake, she thought.  Whatever, he never hears anything when he’s working.  She crept into the house and up the stairs past her father’s study and into her room.  Lying down on the bed, she let out a heavy sigh.  She didn’t know what was going to happen or even what exactly had already happened, but she knew the next few days were going to be rough.  You didn’t do anything, she told herself.  You just drove the car for a silly prank.  She rolled on her side and pulled her covers over her head, but she didn’t sleep.  It would be a long time before she slept soundly again.

****

            Detective Henry Fox was not a morning person and he didn’t think much of starting an investigation a mere ten hours after the alleged disappearance, but Roger Barr was a retired police officer and that meant he had connections.  The chief had called him at five in the morning and told him to take his partner to the Quentin house and see what the daughter knew.  He and Det. Pierce had just finished the late shift, but Roger requested them specifically and they couldn’t refuse.  Det. Pierce leaned against the door frame as Fox rang the bell.

            “You ever stay out past dawn back when you were a teenager, Henry?” Pierce asked, fighting down a yawn

            “Sure,” Fox replied.  “Most Saturdays, actually, but those were different times, Rick.  You just can’t take these things too lightly.  What if she had gone down to the city and ran into some trouble there?”  Pierce shrugged and shook his head as Fox rang the bell again.

            “I don’t know, Henry.  I grew up in Sibley just a few blocks from the South End of Harkent and I made it out just fine.” 

            “Times change, Rick” Fox said.  “The city’s a dangerous place.  Just be glad we’re only trying to track down a lost girl from Bradley Heights and not headed into Riverside or down by Delmont.  What’s the worst it could be up here, eh?”  Rick nodded and smirked.

            “Just some snotty rich kids and an overly worried parent?  No problem, we’ll have the case closed by lunchtime.”  As he finished, the door opened to reveal a young girl with light brown hair, still in her pajamas.  She looked up at them through tired eyes, her face twisted in confusion.

            “Ms. Quentin?”  Pierce asked, producing a shiny badge from his coat pocket.  A wave of shock shook Mary Kate’s body and the sleep evaporated from her eyes.

            “D-detec…tive?” she stuttered, utterly shocked.  Henry mentally attributed her shock to the time of day and thought little of it.

            “I’m Det. Henry Fox and this is my partner Det. Pierce.  Are you Mary Kate Quentin?”  Speechless, she nodded her head dumbly.

            “Good,” Fox continued.  “We were wondering if you could help us determine the whereabouts of Meredith Barr.”  Mary Kate’s heart began to pound in her chest.  She tried to cover her panic but it was difficult to master.  Pierce put his badge back in his pocket and pulled out a tiny notebook.  He flipped a few pages and then examined one.

            “We understand that you may have been the last to see her.  Is that correct?” Detective Pierce asked, licking the tip of his pencil. 

            “No I…no I don’t think so,” Mary Kate replied.  “I haven’t seen her since Friday.”  She tried to slow down her breathing without the detectives noticing, but her fear continued to grow.  Det. Fox donned a perplexed look and checked his own notebook.

            “But you did arrange to meet her last night around ten at Snarky’s?  Her father said you called her yesterday morning.  Is that not correct?”  Det. Fox leaned in a little closer to Mary Kate.  He was a broad shouldered man and he found that cutting an imposing figure often helped during questioning.  Mary Kate looked away for a moment before answering.

            “Yes,” she said, but caught herself.  “I mean no, that’s right.  But she never showed up.  I waited for an hour, even called her twice.  You can check my phone,” she said, turning around to run up to her room and fetch the phone.

            “Whoa, slow down,” Det. Pierce called after her.  “That won’t be necessary.  We were just hoping you could help us fill in our time line.  So you’re saying she was missing before ten then?” he asked, wetting his pencil tip once more.  Mary Kate walked back to the door slowly and avoided the gaze of the detectives. 

            “Um, yeah.  I mean…I guess so.”  She kicked at the floor a little and looked up at them.  “I didn’t see her last night and I’m not sure where she went.  I just assumed she blew me off.”  Pierce nodded and scribbled something in his book. 

            “And does that happen often?” he asked, looking at her the young girl intently.

            “I don’t really know,” she replied.  “We don’t usually hang out too much.”  Fox looked up from his notepad as she said this.

            “Oh?  So why last night?” he asked.  Mary Kates eyes grew wide as she struggled to find an answer.

            “Well,” she said, pausing for a deep breath.  “Well, our boyfriends are good friends so I thought it would be nice.  Why?” she asked, attempting to diffuse her own fear by going on the offensive.  It seemed to work.  Pierce looked at Fox, then back at her.

            “Just being thorough, Ms. Quentin.  You’ll let us know if you hear from her, won’t you?” he asked with a smile.  Mary Kate turned away shyly and nodded.

            “Of course, Detective.”  Fox reached out and handed her his card and she took it bashfully.  Pierce tipped his hat and the two detectives turned and walked back to their cruiser.  Mary Kate closed the door a little harder than she had intended and watched them climb into their car and drive off.  Once they were out of sight, she fell down to her knees and broke into tears.  Her body shook with fear as she crumpled to the floor.  She was sure they knew what had happened and were just toying with her.  She would go to jail for what she had done and probably die there.  Letting out a pained sob, she scrambled for the stairs and climbed them on hands and knees up to her room.  When she got there, she shut the door behind her and grabbed her phone.  She scrolled down to Hannah’s name and hit ‘talk’.  It rang five times before Hannah answered.

            “Mary, what the hell,” Hannah’s irritated voice shot like a bullet out of the receiver.  “It’s like six in the friggin’ morning.  What do you want?”  Mary Kate almost dropped her phone in surprise.  Hannah’s shout took her so off guard that, for a moment, she forgot why she had

            “Well?!” Hannah said impatiently.

            “I…um…” Mary Kate stuttered for a seconds before she remembered.  “Oh God, Hannah.  The police came to my door this morning!”  She paused for a few moments, waiting for Hannah to respond.

            “Yeah?  And…” Hannah said, yawning. 

            “They were asking about Meredith.  She never made it home last night.  What happened?”  A few seconds of nerve racking silence passed as Mary Kate awaited an answer.  Hannah grumbled a bit and her voice became stern.

            “What did you tell them?” Hannah asked with growing irritation.

            “Just that we were going to hang out, but she never showed.  What happened?”  Mary Kate heard Hannah roll over and pull her pillows back to her head.

            “Don’t worry about it,” she said, her tone not the least bit comforting.  “Just don’t tell the cops anything else and it’ll be fine.”

            “But-” Mary Kate was cut off by the sound of Hannah hanging up.  She sat in bed utterly dumbfounded.  Tears came to her eyes as she thought about what might have happened and what might happen to her.  She curled turned out the lights, drew the shades and curled up in a ball under her sheets.  She had always kind of liked Meredith…

****

            Elliot Baker awoke at 11:15 am on Sunday morning without much concern for what went on the previous night.  She had decided sometime around 2 am that it couldn’t be as bad as she had imagined.  Maybe they had bruised Meredith up a bit or dropped her, but if it was anything serious could Hannah have been so calm?  Lex was jumpy, sure, but that didn’t mean much.  She was jumpy on the way out too and that was just nerves.  If it had been anything serious, she probably would have been balling.  Elliot was sure everything would turn out just fine.

            At 11:27 am, Elliot poured herself a bowl of cereal and a glass of orange juice and turned on the television.  While she wasn’t crazy about the orange juice, he father insisted that it was the healthiest breakfast drink around and she wasn’t above suffering a little for her own well being.  She ate her cereal without milk and did this for two reasons.  Firstly, as stated before, orange juice was considered the preferred breakfast drink of the Baker household and it did not mix well with milk.  Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, soggy cereal is just plain gross.  At times, her friends would childe her, thinking her mad for eating dry crunchy cereal, but she felt that they, in fact were the crazy ones.  Why ruin the crisp freshness of a good bowl of cereal with soggy disgusting…

            Elliot dropped her spoon and in landed on the floor with a clatter.  Her mouth hung wide open as she stared blankly at the television screen.  She grabbed the remote control from the table and turned up the volume.

            “…missing as of six am this morning.  Police say she left her home at ten o’clock last night to meet a friend, but never arrived.  Chief Paulani had this to say:

‘As of now, we are not ready to declare this a murder investigation, only a disappearance.  If you have any information as to the whereabouts of Ms. Barr, please contact the Halliston City Police at…”

            Elliot shut off the TV and threw the remote across the room.  She cursed Hannah and hurried off towards the stairs to her room, angry tears springing from her eyes.  As she crossed through the foyer, the front door sprang open and in walked Sam Baker.  Elliot froze and looked at her father.  Sam took one look at his daughter’s damp cheeks and knew she had already heard.

            “You saw the news then,” he said, walking over to her.  He embraced her tightly and she laid her head on his shoulder.  Sam was not normally an affectionate father and this gesture felt odd to Elliot, but she was glad to avoid looking him in the eye.  He released her and she turned away to sit on the stair, all the while avoiding his gaze. 

            “Is there anything you know that could help us find her?  You were at her party on Friday, weren’t you?” Sam asked, hoping his daughter could reveal some key piece of information.

            “No,” she lied.  “That is, yes I was at her party, but no I don’t know anything about where she is.”  Sam nodded and put his hand on her shoulder.  He was adept at seeing though hardened criminals, but when it came to his own daughter he was often found lacking.  He loved is daughter deeply and she knew this to be true, but one does not become District Attorney by spending an inordinate amount of time with one’s children.  Satisfied that she knew nothing, he patted her back compassionately.

            “They’re still out looking for her so don’t worry.  Uncle Henry is on the case.  The Chief of Police is doing everything he can to find her.”  Elliot sniffed a little, trying to hold on to the charade, but she was troubled by this news.  Det. Henry Fox, while being her Uncle and Godfather, was also the best detective in the HCPD.  If something really had happened to Meredith last night, there would be no hiding it from him.  I’m going to have to call Hannah, she thought.  Damn.

            Elliot turned to face her father and hugged him tightly.  When she withdrew, she looked at him with tired, tearful eyes and he nodded understandingly.  She turned away and walked up the steps to the room.  Behind her, Sam Baker retired to his study to review a few cases already on his plate.  He was worried about the search for Ms. Barr, but he thought it best to leave that to the detectives.  For the time being, he would clear his mind by pouring his energy into work as he often did when he was distressed, upset, encouraged or pretty much any other emotion. 

            Elliot closed her door behind her and listened for the sound of her father locking the study.  She took a few deep breaths, then pulled out her phone and found Hannah’s phone number.  There was a tense moment while she reconsidered her decision to call.  Maybe it would be best if she just left this alone.  She didn’t know what had happened, so she couldn’t be liable for whatever Hannah and Lex had done.  Right? she thought.  I wasn’t even there.  Elliot let out a long sigh.  She knew better than to think she could get away from this.  She pressed talk and held her breath, waiting for the hell storm she was about to weather.

            “What?” came Hannah’s voice over the ear piece.

            “What exactly happened last night?” Elliot asked.  She heard Hannah grunt in annoyance.

            “You should know, you drove.”  Elliot muttered an expletive under her breath and rubbed her hand across her face.

            “No, I mean what did you and Lex do when you were down in the marsh?”  Elliot grew more concerned as she was answered with only silence.  A cold sweat broke out across her brow.

            “What the hell happened, Hannah?” she shouted in desperation.  Hannah’s cold response came like a hiss across the line.

            “If hadn’t stayed in the car like a little bitch you might know,” she said, her voice dripping with distain.  “You weren’t interested then, why do you care now?”  Elliot was shocked at this retort, but sadly not surprised.  A foreboding feeling began to overtake her.  There was now no question in her mind that something had gone horribly wrong the night before.

            “Christ Hannah, you have to tell them where you left her.  If she’s hurt she might not be able to get to the road.  You have to tell the police what happened.  If it was an accident they’ll go easy on us.”  She added the last part in full knowledge that an accident was unlikely.  Whatever Hannah had done, she had done intentionally. 

            “Just shut your mouth, Ellie,” Hannah spat venomously.  “If you say anything to the cops you’ll end up just like her.”  She hung up the phone and threw it under her pillow.  Hannah reached across to the glass on her nightstand and took a drink of water.  Placing it back down, she turned to Lex who was sitting on her beanbag chair in the corner.

            “Don’t worry, Lexi.  She won’t say anything.  And if she does, we know how to take care of it,” she said wickedly.  Lex nodded vacantly and turned her gaze to the window.  Her glassy eyes stared off into nothing as she collapsed further inside herself.  Hannah looked at her for a few moments, then shrugged and turned her attention elsewhere.  This reaction was unexpected, but it didn’t really matter much to her.  Lex wasn’t going anywhere and she certainly wasn’t going to talk.  Mary Kate most likely wouldn’t either.  The only thing she really had to worry about was Elliot.  She didn’t want to have to get rid of her, not because she was particularly attached to Elliot, but she had already ruined one pair of shoes in the marshes and to lose another would be a tragedy. 

****

            On the other side of Bradley Heights, Mary Kate Quentin wasn’t taking any calls.  Todd had tried to get a hold of her four times already with no success.  Now he stood at her door knocking as loud as he could and calling her name.  After a few minutes of calling without success, Todd grabbed the handle of the door.  It turned and he stepped inside.  The house was silent.  He was fairly certain that Mary Kate would be home, but he knew her parents were out of the country.  He quietly made his way upstairs to her room and knocked gently on the door.  There was no answer, so he pushed the door open.  It was dark inside.  Mary Kate had turned out the lights and drawn the curtains so that only a think ray of light was able to push its way in through the window. 

             Todd walked inside and sat down on the edge of Mary Kate’s bed.

            “Mary Kate?” he whispered.  “Are you there, hun?”  There was a whimpering sounds as she shifted a bit under the covers.  Todd reached out his hand to feel for her leg.

            “Sweetheart?” he said as he brought his hand down and found her foot.  She whimpered again and pulled her leg up, curling into a ball.  Todd panicked, thinking she was mad about something he had done Friday night.  Maybe the necklace was too much?

            “What’s wrong, Mary?” he asked.  He waited in silence for a few moments, but she did not respond.  “Are you mad?  Did I call too much?  I’m sorry, I was just a little worried when you didn’t answer.  I didn’t mean to smother you.”  Mary Kate shifted a little more, but did not answer.  That must not be it, he thought.  She usually tells me if I’m right.  Todd was certain she would talk to him if he could just figure out what had happened.

            “Was it the necklace?  Did you not like it?” he asked, thinking of how much it had cost him and hoping that wasn’t the problem. 

            “I’m fine, Todd,” she whispered, barely audible through the sheets.  Todd was relieved that she had responded, but he did not believe her.

            “You don’t seem fine.  Did something happen last night with Meredith?”  Todd hoped this was not the case either.  If Meredith and Mary Kate were fighting it would be an issue for him and Jacob.

            “No!” she said, practically screaming.  “Nothing happened!  Nothing happened!”  Mary Kate pulled herself as far away from Todd as she could without leaving the bed and started to ball.  She let forth an anguished moan and sunk her teeth into her pillow.  Todd’s mind raced.  What the hell is happening, he thought.

            “Mary, what’s going on?  What happened?”  Mary Kate kicked out at him and he fell off the end of the bed. 

            “Nothing!  Go away! GET OUT!”  Todd stumbled over himself as he stood up and backed towards the door. 

            “But Mary,” he pleaded.  She responded with a shrill cry that sent him dashing backwards out of her room.  He slammed the door behind him and walked to the stairs, collapsing helplessly on the banister.  What the hell just happened?

****

            Elliot was beside herself with anxiety.  She knew something terrible had happened, but she couldn’t be sure of what exactly.  She knew what she should do, but she was afraid.  If there was a chance that Meredith might still be alive, she had to tell the police where she was.  I don’t necessarily have to tell them what we did, she thought.  It could be an anonymous tip.  I could just call from a payphone and not say anything about her or Hannah or anyone else.  But where the hell was she going to find a payphone these days? 

            Elliot flopped down on her bed and racked her brain.  She knew she had seen an old payphone somewhere near town; she just could not seem to remember where.  The library? she thought, but shook her head.  Those have been disconnected for years.  It took her a few more minutes of thinking before she finally remembered.  Snarky’s!  Elliot was fairly certain that there was an old phone booth outside the restaurant that still worked.  Getting off the bed, she walked to her mirror and looked herself in the eye.  She breathed deeply and nodded to herself.  You can do it, she thought.  You have to do it…

            Ten minutes later, Elliot was in the car half way to Snarky’s.  Her hands were shaking nervously, just as they had the night before.

            “You have to do this,” she said aloud to herself and repeated the mantra for the duration of the drive.  When she arrived at the restaurant, she parked in the space nearest to the booth and waited.  Once no one was left hanging around the parking lot, she got out and walked quickly to the phone.  She pulled her hat down low over her face and picked up the phone.  As she reached out to dial, she realexed she hadn’t gotten the number for the station and kicked herself.  She’d have to dial the operator.

            “Do those still exist?” she thought out loud.  Shrugging, she it 0 and waited while it rang.

            “Operator,” came a tired, bored sounding voice.

            “Uh, y-yes,” Elliot stuttered.  “I’d like to call the Halliston City Police, please.”

            “Alright, what precinct?” the voice asked.  Elliot wasn’t sure.  She knew Harkent was the 5^th and East Sibley was the 8^th because they were always in the news, but she had no idea of her own.

            “Oh, um.  Bradley Heights?” she said.  The operator coughed and she heard some papers being moved around.

            “Right, 13^th then.  Please hold.”

            “Ok,” Elliot replied, but the operator was already gone.  She waited patiently as the phone rang.  After a few rings, an old, grizzly sounding officer answered.

            “HCPD, how can I help you?” he said, his voice worn from years of smoking thick cigars. 

            “Um, I have a, uh.  I have tip,” Elliot said, her voice shaking nervously.

            “Ok,” the officer replied.  “And what’s your name?”  The blood drained out of Elliot’s face and she felt her heart freeze.

            “No, uh, I mean.  I just have the tip.”  The officer coughed and Elliot began to breathe heavily.

            “Very well,” he said.  “Anonymous.  And what do you have to tell us, then?”  Elliot took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

            “It’s Meredith Barr,” she said, placing her hand against the side of the booth for support. 

            “Yes?” the officer answered, clearly interested.  “What can you tell us about Ms. Barr?”  Elliot’s head was spinning, but she tried to pull herself together.  She stamped her foot, trying to shake herself back to sense, but she was quickly losing composure. 

            “Down route 39 about two miles north of the intersection with route 40 there’s a little dirt road that head into the marshes.  She’s down there,” Elliot said, all in one breath.  She inhaled violently and fell back against the phone booth glass.  The officer was scribbling furiously as she finished.

            “About how far down the dirt road would you say?” he asked.  Elliot felt sick but she pushed herself harder.

            “I don’t know, maybe a mile and a half or so.  She was in the marsh, I think they…I think she’s in the marsh.  That’s it.”  Elliot was certain that she was going to vomit.

            “And what did you say your name was, Miss?”  Elliot slammed down the receiver and fell out of the booth.  She stumbled a few steps to her car and leaned against the door.  You did the right thing, she thought, but her heart was still throbbing.  What if they found Meredith dead?  Would they be able to track her down?  Would she be arrested for helping or would she gain leniency for tipping off the cops?  Maybe…

            Elliot nearly jumped over her car as her phone began to ring in her pocket.  Patting her chest, she reached down and pulled out the phone.  The name on the display read: Todd Becker.  Christ, she thought.  She had no interest in talking to Todd right now, but it was hard to ignore such an unusually kind man.  Pressing the talk button, she brought the phone up to her ear.

            “What’s up, Todd?” she asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

            “Something’s wrong with Mary Kate,” he said, breathlessly.  “She’s acting strangely and she won’t leave her room.”  Elliot sighed.

            “It’s nothing, Todd,” she said, looking around to see if anyone was watching.  On the other end, Todd was grinding his teeth so loudly she could hear it through the ear piece.

            “Don’t lie to me, Elliot,” he said, his voice growing desperately.  “There’s something really wrong and I need to know what’s going on!”  Elliot was taken aback.  She had never heard the usually soft spoken Todd so forceful.

            “I…I’m sorry, Todd.  I can’t tell you.  We just made a mistake is all; she’ll be ok again soon.”  Todd grunted into the phone.

            “Who’s we?  This has something to do with Hannah, doesn’t it?  What did she do to Mary Kate?” he said, his anger growing.  Elliot knew she couldn’t tell him, though she desperately wanted to.  She wasn’t about to incriminate herself after she had just tipped off the police.

            “Look, Todd, I’m sorry.  I promise you everything will be ok soon though.  Just stay with her for now, ok?  Are you with her?”  She heard Todd sigh and sit down hard.

            “Yeah, I’m at her house now, but she won’t see me.  I’ll talk to you later.”  Todd dropped his phone on the floor at the top of the stairs.  Leaning his back against the wall he closed his eyes and sighed.  He would be there for her, as long as it took…

****

            A half an hour later, Det. Henry Fox was racing towards the marshes along a little dirt road off routh 39.  An ambulance was tailing close behind him with a train of crime scene investigators trying desperately to keep pace.  Fox slammed on the breaks as the road fizzled into muddy grassland.  He hopped out of the car and hurried off towards the murky marsh water with Pierce close behind him.  When they got to the edge of the waters they stopped and began to search the area.  It took only a few seconds to spot the blood that still stained the plants.

            “Looks like it leads to the water,” Pierce said, pointing at the murky depths.  Fox walked over to the bank of the marsh and looked into the mud.  Pulling out a plastic glove, he reached down into the water.  He dug around for a moment, then pulled out an 8 inch long piece of metal. 

            “What do you make of that?” he asked Pierce, a dour look creeping across his face.

            “Looks like a knitting needle,” Rick replied.  “My wife’s just getting into it.”  Fox shook his head and held it out for Rick to take a closer look.  A few drops of blood still clung to the end, despite being left in the marsh.

            “Looks more like a murder weapon to me,” he said.  Pulling out an evidence bag, he deposited the needle inside.  As he walked away, the ambulance and CSI teams arrived.  He looked up at them and gestured toward the marsh. 

            “Check the water,” he said grimly.  “She’s in there somewhere.”

****

            The story broke about an hour later.  Hannah sat in her living room sipping a virgin cosmopolitan with the news muted on the TV in the corner.  Beside her in an armchair, Lex sat gazing blankly at the wall.  She might have been dead herself but for the slow rise and fall of her chest as she breathed.  Any other friend would be concerned about her unresponsive state, but Hannah did not seem to mind.  In fact, to call Hannah anyone’s friend stretched the definition of the word far beyond its generally accepted meaning.  Hannah was an enemy of the very concept of friendship and generally treated those around her accordingly.  A silent companion, for the time being, was perfectly acceptable.  Hannah welcomed the peace.

            The TV news, however, soon shattered that peace.  Hannah noticed, casually at first, that the picture on the news had changed to a wooded scene.  The reporter was walking down a dirt path surrounded by trees.  It took a moment for Hannah to realexe what she was seeing, but when she did, she sat up with a jolt, spilling her drink.  Scrounging around for the remote control, she turned up the sound on the television in time to hear:

            “…the search began at six am this morning and ended just an hour ago when an anonymous caller tipped off the police.  Thirty minutes later, the police recovered the body of Meredith Barr, daughter of former HCPD Officer Roger Barr.  I repeat, the body of Meredith Barr, missing since six am this morning, has been found in the Marshes off Route 39.”

            Hannah belted an anguished shriek and hurled the remote across the room.  Any further information given by the reporter was drowned out by Hannah’s outburst.  Throwing furniture left and right, she charged out of the room in a rage, past Lex who remained unfazed, but for the slightest widening of her eyes.  Hannah stormed into the kitchen and grabbed her phone.  Nearly blinded by rage, she found Elliot’s number and called, but there was no answer.  The call went directly to voicemail.  At the beep, Hannah nearly began to violently berate the girl she was certain had called the police, but quickly realexed the incriminating nature of such a message.  Instead, she took a deep breath and proceeded with restraint.

            “Hello Elliot, this is Hannah.  I just saw something that might interest you and thought I’d call.  Not an emergency or anything, just give me a call when you can.  Thanks, love ya!” she finished with a sufficiently sweet turn.  Hanging up the phone, she let out another shrill scream and hurled her phone through the kitchen window.

            “I’ll kill that ugly rat bitch, you hear me?” she shouted to no one in particular.  Then, as though just realexing that Lex was in the room, she walked over to her and locked on to her eyes with a wild gaze.

            “That bitch Elliot just blabbed to the police.  It had to be either her or Mary.  Come to think of it,” she paused.  Then, running out into the yard, she retrieved her phone from the yard and started typing furiously.  After a few seconds, she hit send on her message and hurled the phone back into the kitchen through a different window.  Marching back into the living room, she sat down on the side of the couch closest to Lex.  She took a deep breath and rubbed her hands along the outsides of her thighs.  Looking over Lex for a moment, she plotted her next move.  She was fairly certain that, at this point, she could convince Lex to go along with anything she said, but she wasn’t ready to take that for granted.  In her most comforting tone, she addressed Lex in feigned friendship

            “Listen, Lexi,” she said soothingly.  “This could be trouble for us and I don’t want anything to happen to you.”  She paused for a moment to add an extra dramatic flair to her discourse.  The break had the desired effect, causing Lex to turn to her and lock eyes.  Once she was certain she had obtained what little attention Lex could offer, she continued.

            “I’m not saying anything definite right now, but we might have to consider the fact that Elliot isn’t on our side.  We did what we did for your brother and you, of course, but she doesn’t seem to understand that.  I just want to look out for you now and you are closest to this.  You understand?”  After a few moments and some pressing looks from Hannah, Lex nodded vacantly.  Hannah paused for a second, not sure how to handle this easy a concession.  It did not take long, however, to realign her thought process to her new asset.  Lex would accept whatever she said, she realexed.  This was certainly a welcome development.

            “You realexe that, being your friend, I can’t let Elliot do this to you.  I have to stop her from hurting you.  You understand?”  Lex nodded once more and looked back at her with a perverse longing for direction.  Hannah smiled comfortingly and put her hand on Lex’s knee. 

            “It seems like Elliot might need to be kept quiet.  Of course, you’ll help me with that right?”  Lex stared back at her, unmoving, which Hannah took as acceptance.  “Good.  We’ll take care of this, don’t you worry.”  And Lex did not worry, nor did she concern herself with any other thoughts.  Her mind was blank but for the occasional consideration of a passing bird or a fleeting notice of the chill in her own heart. 

****

            Todd Becker was still waiting patiently outside Mary Kate’s room when he heard her turn on her TV.  The volume was low and he could not make out what she was watching, but he felt that this was a good sign.  The TV continued to hum for a few minutes.  He thought he heard Mary Kate gasp a few times, but he could not be sure.  Turning his phone over in his hands a few times, he thought about when Mary Kate would finally tell him what was wrong and they could make up.  His parents were always more affectionate after a fight and Todd assumed that this was generally how relationships worked.  Soon she would be feeling better and willing to talk it over with him, after which, it was only a matter of time before they would make out.  Who knows, they might even-

            The TV shut off and Todd thought he could hear Mary Kate moving around a bit.  He was certain that, any moment now, she would open the door and ask him to come in to talk.  After a few minutes however, Todd became unsure.  She was still thumping around inside the room, but she showed no sign of asking him to enter.  Finally, the doorknob clicked, but the door did not open.  Todd was taken aback.  She had locked him out and now was making even more noise than ever.  He heard wood creaking and a grunt of exertion, followed by silence.  Approaching the door, he placed his ear next to the crack and listened.  He could hear Mary Kate breathing heavily on the other side, but he couldn’t tell what she was doing.  What could she possibly-

            There was a loud thud and a sickening crunch and Todd jumped back.  He thought he could hear the sound of a cord twanging as he lunged for the knob and threw his body against the door.  Todd rammed the door with his shoulder, but it didn’t budge.  Backing up, he charged the door again and slammed his body against it, but nothing happened.  Once more, he assaulted the door and this time he heard the wood begin to splinter under the force of his onslaught.  Twice more he crashed into the door.  On the second attack, the door frame finally shattered and Todd stumbled into the room.  Ignoring his own pain, he looked up frantically and saw Mary Kate hanging from the ceiling by the cord of her hair drier.  He howled in aguish and ran to her, grabbing her feet in hopes of supporting her.  Todd shook violently as he clutched her legs, but it was too late to save her.  The cord slipped off the ceiling fan and her limp body slumped down over his shoulder and onto the floor.

            Todd sobbed like he had never sobbed before.  His misery burned so intensely that it seared his chest, knocking him to his knees.  The world around him grew dark as he flung his body over Mary Kate and pulled her close to him.  He had never known pain like this or such wild confusion.  Why had this happened?  What could have driven her to this? 

            His mind in a whirl, Todd rushed out of the room and stumbled down the stairs, leaving so fast that he never saw the text message still open on the display of Mary Kate’s phone.  He could hardly hold any thought, but that of her crumpled body lying on the floor.  Releasing a primal bellow, he crashed into his car and threw open the door.  Nearly blinded by madness, he threw the car into gear and sped away.  He had no idea where he was going until he got there.  Slamming on the breaks, he pulled his car into Hannah’s driveway and jumped out of the car.  He rushed up to the door and rang the bell, waiting only a moment before pounding on the wood.  After what seemed like an eternity, Hannah opened the front door and looked at him inquisitively. 

            “Todd,” she said, feigning a pleasant demeanor.  “I’m surprised to see you.  What’s going on?”  Todd’s head raced as he tried to think of what he could say.  He knew what he needed to tell her, but he could not seem to form the words.

            “Mary Kate…she…terrible…” he shook his head, still dumbfounded.  Hannah was fairly certain where he was going with his sputtering, but she tried not to let on as the anger boiled inside her.

            “Oh, well,” she said with a brackish smile.  “Why don’t you come inside and have a seat in the Living Room.  Lexi is in there, you can talk while I get you something to drink.”  Todd opened his mouth as if to protest, but then closed it, confused by Hannah’s warm welcome.  He followed her into the living room and sat down on the couch across from Lex as she left the room.  Todd and Alexandra stared at each other for a few moments, both utterly bewildered by the current situation.  After it became apparent to Todd that Lex would not initiate the conversation, he searched himself for something to say.  Just when he had decided to give up, he noticed that Lexi’s lips seemed to be moving, but he could not hear what she was saying.

            “W-what’s that?” he said, nervously.  Lexi’s lips moved again, but he still could not hear her.  He leaned in closer to listen once more.

            “H-hel…wha-what can I do…?” she whispered, desperately.  Todd looked up at her, horrified.  Lex knew what was going on, he was sure of it, but she was afraid of something.

            “Tell me what ha-” Todd froze as Hannah walked into the room, still smiling kindly.

                                                                                                                                   “Oh, don’t let me interrupt.  What were you to talking about?” she asked, a certain madness igniting in her eyes.  Todd looked at Lexi, who turned away from him and shut her eyes.  He hopped out of his seat and pointed and accusatory finger at Hannah. 

            “What the hell is going on?” he shouted.  “What did you guys do late night?  What did you do to Mary Kate?”  Hannah craned her neck, looking confused.

            “I’m sure I don’t know what you mean, Todd.  Mary was supposed to meet Meredith last night.  Did something happen to her?  Is she ok?” she said, the intense look in her eyes strengthening.  Todd felt furry flaming up along the sides of his face.

            “Mary Kate is dead, you witch.  And I know you know what happened!” he shouted, clenching his fists.  Hannah’s face grew harder, but her smile did not fade.  Instead, it seemed to broaden into a maddened grin.

            “What is it you’re trying to say, Todd?” she asked, coldly.  Todd answered through clenched teeth.

            “What the hell happened last night?”  Hannah’s eyes narrowed and she advanced on him slowly, raising a fist menacingly.

            “Look, you miserable little flit, whatever happened or didn’t happen last night is none of your business.  If Mary lost it, then that’s her friggin’ problem and I don’t need a pussy like you hurling accusations at me.  Now, get the hell out of my house before I rip your ugly head off!” she finished screaming at the top of her lungs.  Todd made as if to reply, but instead stood stock still, a dumbstruck look upon his face.  He looked at Lexi, who turned away quickly, tears in her eyes. 

            “OUT!” Hannah screamed and Todd backed away.  Slowly at first, then gaining speed, he hurried to the door and ran towards his car.  Hannah followed him to the doorstep and watched as he pulled away.  She watched unsympathetically as he sped off down the street.  After a few minutes, Lexi appeared behind her and looked off in the direction Todd had driven.

            “Is he going to tell on us?” she said in a barely perceptible whisper.

            “Unlikely,” she said coolly.  “I punctured his break line while I was getting the water.  He won’t make it more than a mile a mile.”  Hannah shut the door calmly and returned to the living room with Lexi in tow.  Two down, she thought.  Gotta take care of Ellie before she loses it too…

****

            Elliot arrived home with her mind racing.  She knew she should go see Mary Kate, but she wasn’t ready to deal with that just yet.  She still needed to get her own head straight; how was she supposed to calm someone else down?  As she closed the front door, her phone rang, causing her to jump.  She pulled the phone out and saw Todd’s name on the screen.

            “Damn it,” she whispered to herself.  “Yes Todd, what is it?”  Todd was breathing heavily on the other end and Elliot could tell he was severely distressed.  When he spoke, his voice was hoarse and strained and his words came in torrents.

            “Mary-Kate-is-dead-and-I-know-you-know-what-happened!” he said, panting to catch his breath.  Elliot could hardly understand what Todd was saying.

            “Slow down,” Elliot replied, panic growing inside her.  “What did you say about Mary Kate?”  Elliot was fairly certain what she had heard, but she didn’t want to believe it.  How could it be true?

            “She’s-dead-I-saw-Hannah-she-knows!” he sputtered.  Elliot heard wheels screeching in her ear and she knew Todd was driving haphazardly. 

            “Calm down, Todd,” she said, trying to process what she had just heard.  “Mary Kate is dead?  What happened?”

            “That’s what I want you to tell me,” he said, desperately.  “She hung herself in her room while I was sitting outside the door.  I could hear her!”  His voice cracked as he finished.  The shock of it still hadn’t gotten through to Elliot, but her better instincts fought through her confusion.

            “Ok, ok,” she said, trying to get her thoughts straight.”  Look, Todd.  Be careful, I’m going to fix this.  For now, just stay away from Bradley Heights and stay away from Hannah.  I don’t know what she might do if she knows you’re onto what happened.”  She heard Todd breathing deeply, trying to calm himself down.

            “Well, it’s a little late for that,” he said.  “I just went and saw h…what…what the hell?”  Elliot heard the phone hit the floor, followed by Todd’s harsh screams and a sickening crunch.  The line went dead and Elliot’s jaw fell open.  Oh God, she thought.  What the hell just happened?  She took a step towards the stairs, but couldn’t think of what she had intended to do.  Stopping dead in her tracks, she felt helpless to do anything.  After a few moments, she heard a murmur coming from her father’s office.  She looked out the front window and saw that she had somehow failed to notice Detective Fox’s car sitting in the driveway right next to hers.  Right, she thought.  I guess there’s nothing else I can do.

            She walked over to her father’s door and raised her fist to knock, but thought better of it.  Instead, she leaned in close to listen to what her father and godfather where saying.  They both sounded somber, but there was an air of strange anticipation in their voices.

            “Well, is there any way we can pin his associate’s deaths on him or Hennessy?” Sam Baker asked.

            “I don’t see how,” Fox replied.  “Sure you and I both know Hennessy had a hand in it, but there isn’t any way to prove it.  As for Lehan, how is he going to kill someone from jail?  He doesn’t have that big a following and if he did, those boys would be the ones to take care of things for him.  No,” he said with a sigh.  “I think this case will be staying open for a while.  Lehan’s up for parole, by the way.”

            “Yeah, I know,” Sam replied.  “I can keep him in for another few months, that won’t be a problem.”  Fox cleared his through hesitantly.

            “Are you sure you ought to do that, Sam?  We both know it’s a trumped up charge.  The boy is lucky to be alive as it is.  Why leave him in there with Hennessy’s boys any longer?” Fox asked, his voice a little nervous.  Mr. Baker’s reply was immediate.

            “You think I don’t know that, Henry?” he said forcefully.  “That boy knows more about this than he’s letting on though.  He knows Hennessy was behind the attack and he knows why.  I know he’s a scared kid, but he needs to talk to us.”

            “And you think leaving him in a cell for another year is going to make him more willing to talk?” Fox replied.

            “I don’t know, Henry,” he said, exasperated.  “I just don’t want to lose him to that world.”  The room was silent for a few moments.  Elliot pressed her ear to the door to listen more closely.

            “And what about the Barr girl,” he continued.  “Anything new there?”  Elliot heard some papers flapping as Det. Fox searched through his notes.

            “Well,” he said, clearing his throat.  “It doesn’t look too good so far.”  His voice had grown weak and devoid of hope.  He flipped through his notebook some more before continuing.

            “The best lead we’ve got is the Quentin girl.  They were supposed to meet last night, but Meredith never showed up.  The girl didn’t think much of it though, called her and left a message.  We checked the phone records and her story checks out.  Goes kinda cold after that.  There’s tire tracks by the marsh from about eight different cars.  It seems the kids like to go down there to get friendly sometimes.  No one heard or saw anything.”  He sight and Elliot heard him close the notebook.  Her father’s chair creaked as he sat down.

            “Well,” he said.  “Maybe you ought to check out the Quentin girl again.  Mary Kate, is it?  I suppose this is probably just a kidnapping gone wrong, but she might know something.  Can you head back to her house after this?”

            “Sure,” Fox replied.  “I’ll call up Pierce.  I’m sure he won’t mind coming back up to Bradley Heights.  Should I bring Miss Quentin in for questioning or…”  Elliot could take no more.  Standing up she pushed the door open and burst inside.

            “It wasn’t Mary Kate, it was Hannah and Lexi helped.  Mary Kate and I didn’t know!” she shouted.  Sam jumped out of his chair and Det. Fox turned to her, startled. 

            “Elliot, honey, Henry and I were talk-” Sam started, but Elliot interrupted.

            “I know, I know.  Listen to me!” she said desperately.  “Hannah told Mary Kate to lure Meredith out of the house, then Hannah and Lexi took her to the marsh and killed her!”  Tears burst from Elliot’s eyes and her body shook violently.  Sam shook his head, but said nothing.  Detective Fox looked at her through narrowed eyes.

            “How do you know this?” Fox asked poignantly, years of police work hardening him from the shock.  Elliot looked into his eyes for a moment, then looked to her father, who still stood dumfounded by his desk.  A look of distress crept across his face as the silence lengthened.

            “I…” Elliot started, but couldn’t continue.  Her father just kept shaking his head, terrified of what everyone in the room knew was about to be revealed.  Out of habit, Fox reached into his coat to retrieve his notebook, but his hand froze half way.  The movement seemed to kick Elliot back to reality and she quickly spat out her answer.

            “I drove the car…” she said.  Her father threw a hand too his chest and fell back into his chair.  “But I didn’t know what was happening.  I didn’t know what Hannah was going to do!”  This addition garnered little comfort for her father, whose mind raced for a solution to the newly presented problem.

            “Well, it’s good that you told us…” he said, thinking his way through the legal ramifications.  His face was suddenly gaunt and vacant as he seemed to leave the room for another plane of being.  When he spoke, he did not seem to speak to anyone.  Rather, he conversed nothing over what way he could possibly solve the situation.  The full horror, it seemed, had yet to dawn on him.

            “She’d definitely get leniency for the tip.  Criminal facilitation or criminal negligence.  Maybe…”  His protective instincts were in full swing.  He whispered madly to himself.

            “We can get her off…we can get her off.”  His eyes darted about, catching on bits of nothing as they swung around the room.  Fox pulled out his notebook and scribbled down some notes

            “I’d better go talk to the Quentin girl again then, don’t you think?  Sam?”  Sam Baker turned back to Detective Fox with a start and then nodded. 

            “Oh, yes, of course.  I’ll call up Judge Bailey and try to get a warrant for Abrams and Had-”

            “No!”  Elliot shouted.  “I mean, you can’t go see Mary Kate.”

            “Listen, Elliot,” Fox replied.  “I know she’s your friend, but I have a job to do and she’s a material witness in a murder investigation.”

            “No,” Elliot repeated.  “Mary Kate is dead.  She killed herself in her bedroom.”  Fox dropped his hands to his side, dejectedly. 

            “When?” he said, his voice weakened only slightly by the impact of the news.

            “I’m not sure,” Elliot said solemnly.  “I got a call from her boyfriend, Todd and…” her face froze.  “Oh my God, Todd!” 

            “What?  What happened?” Fox asked, uncertain that he was ready for another bloody revelation. 

            “He was driving while he was on the phone with me, but he got distracted and cut out.  I think he was in an accident, but I’m not sure where.  He drives a green Chevy.  You’ve got to find him,” she said, stepping forward as she did.  She reached out a pleading hand to Detective Fox and he nodded.

            “Ok,” he said, turning to Sam.  “I need you to get a warrant for the other two girls.  I’m going to have Rick send a bus over to the Quentin house and I’ll see if I can find this Todd fellow.”  Sam nodded his head again and Fox hurried out the door.  Elliot breathed a heavy sigh and sat down across from her father.

            “I’m sorry, dad,” she said.  “I never thought it would be like this.”  Sam didn’t answer.  He sat quietly for a long time, staring out the window.  After a few minutes, he abruptly turned back to face his daughter and stood up.

            “Right,” he said, very businesslike.  “Get in the car.  It would be best if you turn yourself in now.  I need to talk to Judge Bailey, so I’ll take you in myself.”  He began to shuffle through some papers and put various things in his briefcase. 

            “Wait, what?”  Elliot said, confused.  “No, I just want to stay here.  I’m not ready for all this.”  She looked at her father pleadingly, but he did not relent.

            “I don’t think so,” he said, sternly.  “I have to take you in so you can turn yourself over.  You can get leniency if you confess to your part and testify.”

            “But I already confessed you and Uncle Henry!” she said, but Sam’s face only grew harder.

            “I’m your father and he’s your godfather.  How would it look if we harbored you here while we arrested everyone else involved?  No, you’d better come with me.”  Elliot opened her mouth again to protest more, but relented.  There was no arguing, now.  She only hoped the judge would go easy on her.  Sam finished packing his suitcase and walked out of the office with Elliot close behind. 

****

            The air was oppressive as Elliot and her father walked through the police station towards the unit captain’s office.  Officers and detectives bustled about on their various tasks, but everyone seemed somehow subdued, their movements restrained by unseen impediments.  As she past, Elliot was certain she could feel their accusatory looks boring into her soul, though she knew they had no way of knowing what she had done.  Some friends of her father’s even smile at her, but she saw only the twisted scowls of a thousand hell bound demons jeering at her from the abyss.  She drew in closely behind her father until his back filled her vision.  When they arrived at the captain’s door, he turned to her.

            “Stay out here for a few minutes while I talk to the captain,” he said.  Before she could open her mouth to disagree, he turned back to the door and went inside.  Elliot was left alone, staring at the moving mass of bodies that circulated throughout the desks and kiosks.  In the corner, a junkie shuddered next to a woman she assumed was a prostitute, but couldn’t be sure.  The woman looked as though she couldn’t be much older than Elliot herself.  She wondered for a moment how the woman had gotten to that point in her life, but the thought did not stick in her mind.  Quickly realizing she did not actually care what had happened to this woman, she turned her gaze to the floor in front of herself. 

            She brooded for a few minutes over her fate.  Hadn’t she done the right thing in telling her father and Fox?  Was she really about to be punished after solving the case for the stupid police, who had no leads anyway?  She had heard her uncle say that just before she pushed her way into the room.  So this was the thanks she got for being a good citizen?

            Slowly, but surely, Elliot allowed the perceived injustice of her situation become a growing comfort.  In the minutes while her father spoke to the captain, Elliot began to manufacture, in her own mind, the facts of her victimhood.  After all, she thought.  They never told me what was going to happen.  If I had ever really thought Meredith was in danger, I would never have allowed it to happen, she reasoned.  I was used by Hannah and Lexi, just like Mary Kate was.  I’m not a bad person.

            “I’m not a bad person,” she repeated aloud.  “I’m a victim too…”  The door to the captain’s office opened and her father exited. 

            “Dad, I-” she started, but her father cut her off.

            “I’m sorry, Elliot.  We don’t have a choice.”  He stepped past her to make way for the captain.  His face was grim as he stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder.

            “Elliot Baker; you have the right to remain silent,” he said, his voice dead and flat.

            “What?  No listen…”

            “If you give up that right, anything-”

            “Dad, don’t do this!  I didn’t know what we were doing.  I’m a victim too!”

            “You have the right to an attorney…”

            “Dad!” Elliot shouted.  The captain led her away to the station lockup and locked her in a cell.  Her body twitched as the cell door rolled shut.  The click of the lock was like a stab in the chest.  She sat down on the hard bench in the back of the cell and fumed over what had just happened.  She cursed her father for not helping her out of this.  Hadn’t she done everything she should have done?  Hadn’t she broken the case for him?

            Elliot brooded like this for a few more minutes before the jailor returned with a young man in tow.  The young man was placed in the cell beside Elliot.  As the door locked behind him, they looked at each other.  Elliot felt nothing but disdain for all living things, but the look he gave her was intriguing.  He walked to the back of his cell and sat down near the bars on her side.  Smiling at her, he lay back on the bench and closed his eyes.  Lousy degenerate, she thought, and went back to brooding over her fate.

****

            Sam Baker turned away as the captain led his daughter towards the station lockup.  A rare tear broke from his eye and he quickly wiped it away.  Clearing his throat, he straightened up his tie and cleared his face of any remaining sentiment.  This wasn’t the time for gross displays of emotion.  Turning back to the room, he saw Detective Fox coming into the room.  When their eyes met, Fox shook his head and sighed.

            “It’s not pretty, Sam,” he said, his voice gruff from the last cigarette.  “She was right about the Quentin girl.  Rick said they founder her in a heap on the floor, hung herself from a light fixture.  Didn’t look like the body had fallen, so we figure the boyfriend must have taken her down.”  Sam nodded, trying to swallow the lump that was rising in his throat.

            “Any word on the boy?” he asked, choking a little as he spoke. 

            “Well, that’s a thing,” Fox said, shaking his head again.  “Patrol found the car, turns out Elliot was right.  It was bent around a tree on the passenger side, only, the boy wasn’t there.  It looked like he had gotten out of the car and left into the woods somewhere.  The car that found the wreck didn’t have a canine, so we didn’t go out searching for him just yet.  We’ll find him though, Sam.  We’ll need his testimony.” 

            “What about…” Sam started, still struggling through his speech.  “What about the other two?”  Fox coughed and let slip a wry laugh, his face turned slightly in a displeased scowl.

            “Well that’s somethin’ else, Sam,” he said, pulling out his notebook.  “We found them both at the Abrams house.  The Hadley girl was in another world, like she didn’t even know what had happened.  Erie, but the other girl, Hannah, you wouldn’t have believed it, Sam.  She laughed when they took her away.  Said she didn’t know what the big fuss was about, no one liked the little…well.  You get the picture, I guess.  I’ve seen bad ones in my day, but I swear they keep getting younger.”  He shook his head and put his notebook away.  Sam sighed and sat down by Detective Fox’s desk.

            “What terrible things that girl has seen that led her to this,” he said, looking up at the ceiling.  “Her father was a friend of mine, but he certainly wasn’t much of a father.  I didn’t know her mother well, but I never thought much of her.  Maybe if she had a been brought up better, none of this would have happened.  If only she had had a better family.  Poor thing hardly knows right from wrong, I’d guess.”

            “Oh, I don’t know about that, Sam,” Fox said, taking a seat next to the D.A.  “I’m sure she knew damn well it was wrong, she just didn’t care.”  Sam nodded.

            “Strange how a girl so young, growing up right under our noses can turn out like that.  I can only wonder what her parents did to her to make her that way.  Just, why, you know?”

            “Maybe something they did,” Fox said, shrugging.  “Or maybe nothing.  Maybe she’s just another girl who decided she was going to kill.  Sure, you want to know there was a reason why she turned out this way, it’s human nature.  You want to know she was abused, treated badly; that she was part of some sort of cycle of violence that drove her to this, but the cycle has to start somewhere.  We’ve been told since we were little that kids become bullies because of low self esteem or some kind of abuse.  We want to blame someone other than the kid, but it’s not out of compassion.  It’s out of fear: fear of admitting that some people are just cruel and sometimes there just isn’t a reason.  You want to know why two girls are dead?  You ought to know humanity is capable of anything.” 

END