So I'm adding this Chapter before I loose my nerves. Rest assured, if I do continue, a lovely waiting period will be installed for any cliff hanger moments and for my pleasure.

*smiles wickedly at screen*


Chapter 1

She pretended to still be asleep. The rag dug into her mouth and her eyes watered from the dusty sack over her head. Her arms were tied behind her back, a dead weight beneath her body. Slowly she began filtering through sounds.

"Oh man, this is epic!"

"Do you have any idea how this changes everything?! We'll be legends!"

"Shut up. We're almost there."

Silently, her fear turned into rage.


"Annabelle Edison. Other than her classmates thinking she was a bit weird, she was the model student."

Lark threw the file at Doe, grabbed a coffee and sat next to him in the small kitchen.

"Meaning?", he opened the file.

"How does a straight A student keep a record like this, volunteer at the local library, take care of her elderly father AND maintain the interest of the lead quarterback?" Lark gave him a quizzical look, "Like they said. Weird"

"Is that jealousy I sense, detective?" Doe grinned, "I'm sure you will be willing to let go of that lovely death stare for this particular quarterback. Rich family, athletic, handsome face and a particular hobby for hunting -"

"Ok, I get it. Let's go."


"Gus Stetson? Detective Doe and Lark. Mind if we ask you a few questions?" Doe flashed his badge and took a step towards a couple of students lounging near the campus football field.

"Doe and Lark?", Gus Stetson sniggered and looked at his friends, "What's next? Bambi and Crowface?"

"Very funny Mr. Stetson. Just as funny as the disappearance of -"

"Whoa! Look at the bad cop!" Gus interrupted Lark and looked her over, "I would love to get your - "

"That's it."

She had him in a neck lock before he had time to make a comeback.

"I do believe you're onto something, detective." Doe reached out and reached into Gus's letterman jacket. "Well, well, well. What do we have here? Seems like we'll have that chat after all."

Gus groaned as Doe showed Lark a small packet of white powder.


"Look, it was just a normal frat party prank. Nothing to it." Gus said.

Lark looked at him suspiciously, "I don't buy it. You get your friends to stage a mock kidnap, just so you can swoop in as the knight in shining armour to get Annabelle to like you? What happened after you showed yourself?"

"She left." Gus looked nervously at the table.

"Ah. But she didn't leave on her own, did she Gus?", Doe moved from the corner of the room and sat opposite Gus, "What you're saying is correlating perfectly with your previous statement. But let's be honest. You were a suspect, you were brought in for questioning and your rich daddy had a lovely lawyer. Since we didn't have evidence against you, you were on your way out, and Annabelle remains missing."

Lark raised her eyebrows at Doe, but he continued.

"You see Gus, things changed a bit since the last time you were here. For one thing, your daddy and his lawyer buddies are on a golf trip far, far away, and," Doe pulled out a photo of a bloody beer bottle, "we found evidence.", Gus wiped his forehead, "So, you can sit here and wait until someone bails you out, 'cause I do recall some possession charges we, unfortunately, have to deal with. Or, you can tell us what really happened and we can figure out a deal. Ok?"

Doe gave a cold smile. By the look on Gus's face, he didn't consider Lark as the bad cop anymore.

Gus cleared his throat, "The party already began when the van pulled up. Annabelle was furious when I uh … freed her. We weren't entirely sober. I went mad when she started screaming at me, calling me out in front of my friends. I snapped. I didn't hit her, I swear, but she fell and the bottles... She was still breathing when we dumped her in the woods."

Lark practically jumped on him, "Gus Stetson, you are under arrest for the kidnapping of – "

"Wait! I looked back," Gus turned pale, "I looked back. She wasn't alone. There was something there. Something huge."


Please leave a comment or whatever (please, I need ideas *sobs*).

Qoheleth, as for your concerns, thank you. I've read your biography and agree that having a 'sister site' would benefit this community. This is, however, my first story and in waiting for the new site I will carry on unleashing my imagination, as this website encourages.

Sincerely,

ThisUserOverHere