This was not how Isabella Swan wanted to start her day. She was looking forward to an actual day off from work. She had plans today dammit! But no... justice had to be served. In this case, a young Seattle heiress had to be found. Ugh... she cast her eyes wearily at Detective Michael Newton- Mike as he insisted she call him- sat watching her intently. His brassy gold badge hung loosely around his neck, glinting as he breathed in and out shallowly. If she was being honest, it was the detective's company that irritated her more than the case he presented to her.

Deliver the Halloway family fortune, estate documents and

Sondra Halloway's will to the Golden Anthem Theater

Or you will never see her again.

The note sat mockingly in front of her; daring her, challenging her to solve this puzzle. It was a shame for this criminal, Isabella Swan loved puzzles. It was why she was one of the best private investigators this side of the Mississippi. She had to give the writer credit: the ransom note was direct, specific and the terms were obtainable. In fact, it was nearly classed as amateur at best. It was the who that baffled her. That was the key was finding who wrote the ransom note, even though she had a pretty solid idea already just by reading it.

"What do you think?" Mike asked, leaning further into her space. His blue eyes glanced downward, to look at the note she was sure. She could barely keep her schooled face and not wrinkle her nose against the god awful cologne he chose to bathe in today!

"Why don't you take me through it one more time?" she asked, pushing the ransom note back to his side of the desk.

Mike sat down again and flipped open his notepad. "At nine-thirty this morning-"

"No, from memory. Tell me what you remember; what did you observe?"

Mike flushed slightly, closing the notebook and setting it down beside the note. Isabella folded her hands under her chin and directed her dark brown eyes to his... watching for any tells that he would omit a truth. It was a talent that she inherited from her father.

"At nine-thirty this morning," he began again, "my car was called to the Halloway house. Mrs. Sondra Halloway had called frantically demanding a cruiser and CSI be sent to her estate immediately. Her great-granddaughter daughter, Jessica Halloway had been kidnapped sometime during the night. Mrs. Halloway reported that she was taking breakfast in the Solarium when Ms. Andrews, Jessica's governess had burst in frantically reporting the crime."

"Whom did you speak to first?"

"Mrs. Halloway."

"How did she look?"

"Distraught. Who wouldn't when your great-granddaughter was reported kidnapped?" Isabella uncapped her pen and opened her own notebook, taking notes carefully as she listened.

"I find it interesting you say the word, 'distraught.' She wasn't angry?"

"I think she was more scared than angry. She's ninty-seven, Bella-" she shot him a glare. "Isabella," he quickly corrected. She eased her expression, nodding for him to continue. "She kept going on and on about how her late husband had ensured that they were all comfortable. Her will was carefully written, but she wouldn't elaborate how. She said that she had it that way to ensure that everyone whom had value would be comfortable after she died and passed the Head of House to the next person."

Interesting, Isabella noted this and circled it. "Keep going."

"I interviewed the governess next. She reported that she had arrived at Halloway Estates promptly at eight-thirty this morning." Isabella arched a brow and Mike smirked, "You're thinking what I'm thinking. If she was there at eight-thirty, but the crime was reported at nine-thirty, then there is room for her to snatch Jessica Halloway!"

"You're jumping to conclusions without evidence," Isabella pointed out. However, the thought did trigger in her mind.

"Sorry, you're right. Ms. Andrews stated that she went to find Jessica when she didn't find her in her rooms. She went to the bathroom, thinking she was preparing for the day, but didn't find her. She searched all her usual places of interest, but didn't find her charge. That was when she claimed to become worried and started asking the house staff. No one had seen Jessica leave the house. However, that still leaves the night before as a window of opportunity."

Agreed, thought Isabella.

"By the time she made it to the dining hall, where Jessica's mother was eating, Ms. Andrews became frantic. She ran back to Jessica's room in search of a clue. That's where she found the ransom note." That's odd. Why did she just then find the note? Isabella hmmed softly, making sure to mark the correct indicators to investigate further. "That was when she rushed to the Solarium to alert Sondra Halloway of the kidnapping."

"Did you interview further?"

"No. When CSI turned up nothing, I was requested to schedule interviews with the rest of the household."

Isabella frowned, dropping her pen loudly on her notebook. "Why?"

Mike had the decency to look as puzzled as she was. "Sondra Halloway stated indirectly that this was not the first time Jessica had disappeared. However, this was the first time a ransom note has surfaced. By the time all the leads closed, I called you. I figured you would find something I missed."

"It's still extremely early in the investigation. Mrs. Halloway called Seattle PD, not me. I don't see why you brought me onto this case. There are still hundreds of questions Detective Newton. Questions that were left unanswered and unasked! Just because CSI doesn't find anything out of the ordinary doesn't mean a crime has not been committed."

Mike squirmed slightly, intimidated by the fire in her eyes.

Isablla sighed softly. "How old is Jessica Halloway?"

"S-seventeen, her eighteenth birthday is in three days."

Convenient, her theory just gained strength. However, Isabella couldn't help but get a longer, louder nagging feeling in her gut. Something's wrong here, something doesn't add up. But I need more clues and evidence!

She stirred her coffee slowly,staring into the golden brown, swirling liquid. "What do you think?" asked Mike, breaking the tense silence.

Isabella sucked in a breath and closed her eyes. "Give it twenty-four hours. Let them stew... then we'll go to Halloway Estate tomorrow."

"So you're taking the case?" Mike's blue eyes brightened and he stood up excitedly. "You won't regret it!"

No, I won't. I never regret a case, Isabella thought as she got up from her seat. She handed him her card. She watched him input the number into his phone and quickly call her. She felt it go off in her pocket and she reached around to silence it. She saw his bright smile drop a bit in disappointment. "That's my business phone," the smile dropped further. "Call me if there is any new developments between now and then. I... I look forward to working with Seattle PD."

"It's always a pleasure, Ms. Swan," Mike offered, following her formality. "And thank you."

"Do you mind if I take a copy of the note? I need to study it further."

"Absolutely!" he was quick to leave and fulfill her request.

She allowed a small smile in return as she gathered up her trench coat and headed out of the interview room. Seattle PD bustled all around her as cops and convicts alike moved from one desk to another and back. She watched one particularly burly cop with a silver shield around his neck shove a kid into a seat and order him to stay put. Probably probation, she thought as she observed him. Split lip and the starting of a black eye... I don't see any gang colors or tattoos. His shoes look really worn... a runaway. She turned her eyes away as she fought to keep her expression as neutral as possible. She sipped her coffee as she thought back to the meeting she just left. She stopped as Mike ran up and offered her a crisp photocopy of the note. She didn't truly need it, but it was good to put into her files for this case. "Are you leaving already?"

"Yeah, I promised a friend of mine lunch," Isabella's eyes lifted to the clock above the door. "Which I'm going to be late for if I don't leave now."

"I'll walk you to your car." She started to decline, but Mike was already opening the door for her. She groaned internally and passed through, catching his eyes as they dropped further down to watch her ass. Great... not only is he overeager, he's a perv too. By the time they made it to the entrance, he stopped her. "Isabella... if I can ask, why did you take this case at all?"

She stopped, surprised by the question. "Because crimes that involve children, even almost adult children, are some of the worst a criminal could ever commit."

Without a second thought, she turned just as the door opened, running into a very tall, very warm body. Pain raced up her face as her nose crushed into his badge and yelped as his walkie crackled loudly in her ear. "Fuck! What the hell?!"

"Watch it, lady!" the officer snarled back. She backed away in surprise, rubbing her nose. The officer's eyes blazed as he hauled in his captive. "Move! Are you going to stand in the way of me booking this mother fucker?! Get out of the way!" he roared.

Rage built into her system quickly and she opened to swiftly correct this... this... her eyes shifted as she took in his arestee. James Hunter, she slowly shut her mouth and backed away further. She knew this face. He was recently on her board of escaped prisoners... there was a high price on his had. Was being the keyword. She yanked open the door and disappeared into the Seattle traffic just as the sky opened up and rained down it's glory.

Fucking hell... what a way to start the day!

Okay... so, what did you think? Did you like it? Hate it? Are you intrigued?

It's my first hand at trying a mystery of... anything!

It started as a writing prompt from a book that I've been using to help me get through my writer's block: "642 Things to Write About" By: The San Francisco Writers' Grotto.

The link to it will be in my bio! It's a major help to me and if you're having issues with continuing or finding inspiration for a story, I highly recommend it!

Leave me a comment or a review!

-Kestra