(Juliana’s POV)

After breakfast with Willa and the guys, I headed over to the public park, sketchpad in hand. Since autumn was in its midst, colorful leaves were sprawled along the ground, especially around the trees. Children often came here to play after school, so it wasn’t as loud as it would be in the afternoon.

I made my way over to an empty bench, placing my sketchpad and purse beside me. I always seem to enjoy observing the environment around me. The rundown and newly built buildings, the busy construction sites, the lively clubs and quiet library, and everything nature had to offer us. It all fascinated me; who knows what stories they held and how much they meant to people. I have a hard time grasping the fact that many people don’t see the beauty in flawed things, rather they are blinded by the need for everything to be perfect. True beauty is when one embraces their flaws, instead of shunning them.

I was awoken from my trance by a loud thump. Startled, I slightly jumped before turning towards whatever it was that made the sound. I was met by a weary looking brunette man who sat on the empty side of the bench.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Was this seat taken?” he politely asked, his voice ever so sweet. I shook my head, telling him it was alright.

“I’m Juliana by the way.” I extended my hand which he firmly shook. His hand was warm despite the cool weather we were having today.

“Niall. Niall Horan.” he smiled as he tapped his fingers on his suitcase.
“So tell me Niall, you’re new here, aren’t you?” I inquired, pointing towards the dark suitcase.

“Well, kind of. I mean I’ve been here a couple of times to see my best mate, but I spend most of my days back home in Ireland.” he stated.

“Ireland, that’s pretty cool. Oh God, don’t tell me you just landed and decided to rest at a lonely park on a really cold bench!” I exclaimed as the words left my mouth.

“Uh, well, that’s kind of what I did, but um, I’ll head over to my hotel later.” Niall shrugged sheepishly.

“You should really consider checking in at your hotel, the day’s not going to get any warmer. Plus, you look like hell, kind of…” I trailed off as Niall just chuckled.

“Alright, I’ll go. It was nice meeting you, Juliana.”

“The pleasure’s all mine, Niall Horan.”

>>>>>>

I was busy sketching when suddenly, my phone began ringing. Annoyed, I set my things down and grabbed my phone, taking a look at the caller I.D. It was Lillian Robinson, one of the leading journalists for The Blazing Times. I quickly answered it, not wanting to keep her waiting.

“Hi, Lillian. Is everything alright?” I asked.

“Hello, Juliana. You don’t have to worry, everything is absolutely fine. I called to ask if you could come over to The Blazing Times, only if you’re free, that is.” she replied casually.

“I’ll be over as soon as I can.” I said, putting my pencil in my purse with my free hand.

“Thank you. I’ll see you soon.” Lillian said before ending the call.

I let out a sigh as I gathered my things and got up from the ground. Lillian must want to brief me about whatever it is she’s writing about. I remember how vague she was when she came to hire me.

After a few minutes, I finally arrived at The Blazing Times. I took a deep breath before I pushed open the transparent door. I entered the main office on the second floor and began searching for Lillian. Instead, my eyes landed on Quinn, one of the residents at my apartment building. As if she felt my eyes on her, the blonde turned around and her lips curved into a grin. She waved me over to where she was sitting, a laptop set in front of her.

“Fancy running into you, Quinn” I offered her a smile as I got closer.

“Yeah, hi! What are you doing here?” she asked, looking up at me.

“I could ask you the same question, you know.” I replied.

“Touché. One of the journalists, Lillian, she’s a good friend of mine, so I visit her sometimes.” Quinn answered as she played with her lightly curled hair.

“Is that even allowed?” I inquired, raising an eyebrow.

“Probably not, but Rebecca Ross, the editor loves me. Okay, she doesn’t know I exist. Anyway, on a serious note, I help Lillian out sometimes.” she replied.

“Maybe you’ll finally decide to join after this article,” a voice found its way into our conversation. Lillian smiled once we made eye contact and I returned the gesture. “Alright, girls. I need you to follow me,” she added as she clapped her hands together.

Quinn and I shared a quick glance before following Lillian. She led us out of the office and into another room in the far corner of the silent hall. Her skinny hand reached for the knob before she turned towards us, a strange twinkle in her eyes. Lillian then opened the door and an inaudible squeak flooded my ears.

There wasn’t much inside of the somewhat large room, or as Lillian had put it, office. A light bulb along with a minimal sunlight, lit up the room. Files and loose sheets of paper were sprawled all over a wooden desk near the window. A charcoal grey cabinet sat in a corner beside an almost empty bookshelf. The sight of the lonely bookshelf reminded me of how Willa would miraculously squeeze novel after novel on her bookshelf back at our apartment. A huge bulletin board lied in the middle of the room, a few pictures and sticky notes posted here and there.

“What is this?” Quinn inquired, her voice etched with confusion. It was clearly evident by the look on her face that it was her first time in here as well.

“It’s information for the article I’m planning to write. I don’t want to publish some gossip trash like The Emporium Tribune do nowadays. There isn’t much to work on, but still, I’ve got my hopes up for this story.” Lillian explained, determination apparent in her voice.

I quietly examined the basic details that were displayed on the bulletin board. What caught my attention was an ‘ancient’ newspaper article, courtesy of The Emporium Tribune, with a picture of a middle-aged woman heavily covered in bruises and dry carmine coloured blood. According to the article, her name was Kelly Anderson, a single mother of two children, both of whom were girls. She was found dead on the ominous morning of May the 16th by her eldest daughter in her bedroom. The girls had been staying at their grandmother’s over the weekend and returned home to the ungodly sight. She was killed by a series of blows to the head, though she received some fatal wounds by her mysterious killer as well.

“Oh God. Lillian this dates back to 2010. What does this have to do with anything?” Quinn questioned, looking her friend straight in the eye.

“You guys haven’t heard about this yet, but there was a crime scene near the edge of town a few days ago. The police didn’t want to alarm any citizens so they kept it on the down low, but the news will be out tomorrow.” Lillian paused for a brief moment, her eyes now fixed on the article. “They think it might be the same person who killed Kelly, but that’s just a wild guess since they attacked in a similar manner.”

A shiver went down my spine as the thought of a murderer roaming around town raced through my mind.

“The victim’s still alive, right?” I asked expectantly. Lillian nodded as she put a reassuring hand on my shoulder.

“This is crazy. I remember when we all found out about Kelly. It was hell for her daughters.” Quinn added as she folded her arms.

“Where are her daughters now?” I asked curiously. It was the first time I heard of this unexpected murder. Willa and I moved here after university almost a year ago, due to which we don’t know much about the town’s history.

“Well, they were sent to live with their father in Australia or something.” Lillian replied. “Anyway, I want you to go over to Kelly’s place and take some photos.”

“What? Me? You want me to go there?” my mouth hung open in disbelief.

“Not alone, my dear. Make a Scooby gang and take them. You do know Louis, right? Take him. You know, he even tried cracking the old Kelly case, but no one knows if he ever found anything.” she nonchalantly spoke before giving me an evil smile.

>>>>>>

“She said that? God, is that woman insane?” Willa practically shouted after I filled her in on my eventful afternoon.

“I know right? I mean, I’m just a freelance photographer, not Nancy Drew!” I groaned as I ran a hand through my hair.

“Nancy Drew or not, we’ve got to get Tomlinson on our team. And if he joins us, Liam’s bound to come too. Now we just need a Scooby.” she said, a smile slowly creeping onto her face.

“Very funny. But seriously, we’ve got to be careful though. If the police find out we’re running a private investigation, they’ll probably put us behind bars or something.” I added. Just the thought of going to prison gave me goose bumps; I don’t know what I’d do if I really had to go.

“Then we’ll make sure they don’t find out.” Willa said. Her voice was so persuasive, I felt like we actually had a chance.

After our little chat and a bit more confident, we went over to Linda’s diner which stood opposite of the public library. An icy cold breeze brushed against my cheeks as we walked along the sidewalk. I pushed my hands into the pockets of my coat, hoping to give them some warmth. As we inched closer, Willa reached out and pushed the door to the diner open. Warm air and the amazing smell of food welcomed us as we entered.

“Oi, over here!” I turned my head to the side to be greeted by a giddy Louis and a tired Liam. Willa and I made our way over to the table and took the empty seats.

“Twice in one day, girls. Is everything alright?” Louis asked, humour evident in his tone.

“Don’t get any ideas, Louis. We need your help.” Willa replied straight to the point. I raised an eyebrow at her words, quite amused. She usually left the talking to me, but it made me proud that she was getting used to talking when she needed to get a point across. Louis eyed her for a moment before a sly smirk made its way onto his face.

“Well, before you tell us, shall we order something to eat? I’m starving!” Liam piped up. He worked part time at the movie theatre a few blocks from the diner and also played football for the local team along with Louis. Poor fellow must’ve had a rough day; he looked as if there was no energy left in him.

After taking our orders, Willa and Liam went to stand in the short line at the counter. They were understaffed today so people had to line up and take their orders from the counter.

“Willa seems cool.” Louis suddenly remarked. I eyed him suspiciously before glancing back at Willa. She was having a conversation with Liam, her eyes filled with happiness and her smile ever so wide. She turned into a literal puppy every time she talked about her favourite books and I assumed that’s what she was telling him about.

“She sure is. Wait, are you just realising that now?” I said.

“Well, we don’t really talk much. Yeah, I see her at the library almost every day and back at the building, but we’re like level one acquaintances. Liam seems to like her. He’s complimenting her every now and then.” Louis shrugged, his eyes trained on the menu in his hands.

“That is-” I was cut off by Liam and Willa who put our food trays on the table.

Over dinner, we began discussing about the task I had been given by Lillian. Liam informed us that Kelly’s place had been bought by a newly-wed couple back in 2013 that have been living there ever since. The biggest issue was to get their permission to search their house; we’d certainly need a search warrant. Our final conclusion: break in.

Notes

Hello, once again! Thanks for coming back to read this story again. I hope the chapter's not lame and that you enjoy it. And thanks to the awesome person who subscribed; it means a lot! :)