"Listen, I have no idea where those came from," she told them as they all
looked at the contents.
Alex walked over to it and took a better look inside of it.
"Yeah, there's several wallets and other personal items in here. We'd better take her down to the police station for further questioning and we'll take these with us," she suggested as she picked up the bag.
"Michelle, how could you?" Jake asked her, anger tinting his voice.
"Shows how much your faith in me had disappeared, even when the 'evidence' proves nothing. How do you know it was my hand that put those things there?" she replied.
"Well, it's your school bag. What else do we need?" wondered Jake. "Besides, it's your specialty."
"Come on now. Let's just go and settle this later," Monica said as she stepped between them.
Alex pulled Michelle out to the car as the others followed her.
***
Down at the police station, Gracer looked at the numerous wallets and objects in the bookbag. Michelle was sitting in a chair, her head in her hand, which was leaning on the chair.
"Michelle, I simply can't believe this. Even after you specifically told me that you didn't," Gracer practically yelled at her.
"Gracer, it's not me! Somone planted them there to make it look like I did it!" Michelle screamed back at him, the tears falling down her face.
"This proves otherwise Michelle. I need you to stay in our custody until this situation is all over. Unless these people, whom you call your friends, can prove it wasn't you, something has to be done," Gracer replied as he sat in his chair.
Monica stepped forward.
"She didn't do this! I'm sure we can prove that it wasn't her!" Monica told him.
Gracer looked carefully over the team before giving a sigh.
"I'll give you a week. That's all I will give you. If you don't find anything within that time that'll prove her innocence, I'll have to do something with her," Gracer told them before he stood up and walked towards the window.
He stared out it, gazing over the scenery, hands behind his back. The team looked at each other, determination written in their eyes.
***
Back at The Nest, the five were gathered around the table, looking at the information in front of them about Michelle.
"It doesn't make sense," Monica absently said.
"What doesn't?" wondered Alex.
"What happened earlier with her bookbag. Michelle was, and is, not the type to leave evidence out in the open like that. Before we met her and Frank taking her in, she had several things belonging to people. She gave those back, of course, but that's not the point. She had them stored in a box that was in her closet. She didn't carry them around with her!" Monica explained to them.
"You're right! She never carried things around that could easily ID her as the 'Silent Stalker' and be dealt with accordingly!" Cody agreed.
"Maybe the person, or persons, causing this have something against either you, her or even both!" Alex suggested to Frank.
"It's possible. Very possible but who would it be?" mused Frank as he walked away from the group. "Michelle could've easily made several enemies over the past two years as have I since I started to work here so it could be almost anybody."
Jake remained quiet through the entire discussion. He was thinking about something else.
'Frank said the man recognized Michelle as the one who stole from him. If she didn't do it, then who did? Does she have a twin sister? If she knew, she would've told us. Maybe it was someone dressed up like her? We have to find out,' he thought to himself.
Alex glanced over at Jake, who appeared to be deep in thought.
"Hey Jake, what's wrong?" she asked him as she walked oer to him.
He was startled out of his daze and he looked at her.
"Nothing's wrong. I was just thinking about something else," he replied with a smile.
"Of course you were," Alex told him before heading back to the others.
"I suggest we take a look around her room. Maybe there's something in there that will show she's not the one doing this," suggested Monica as she gazed over in Frank's direction.
The others soon followed suit as Frank gazed back at them. He nodded.
"Let's go. Maybe we'll find something," he agreed as he turned to do out the door.
But he stopped a few feet away and he turned around.
"Cody, I want you to stay here and work at that computer. Maybe you can find something that'll help us," he told him.
Cody nodded before he sat in front of the computer and started to type as the others walked out of the building.
***
Alex opened the drawer in the nightstand and looked inside. She moved a few things around before sighing and closing it. She looked over at the others searching the room.
"There appears to be nothing here. It looks like the room...of a typical 14- year-old," she told them as she walked to the middle of the room. "I don't think there's anything else we can expect to find."
"I don't think so either. This is the room of a teenager," Jake agreed as he and Frank joined her.
Monica noticed the bag underneath the bed and pulled it out a bit, looking at it. She opened it up slightly.
"What's in it?" asked Jake.
"It's a video camera. We should take this back with us. Maybe it'll show something that happened one of therse nights that she said she was out taking a walk," she replied as she carefully picked it up.
The others nodded as they walked out of the room and headed downstairs.
***
Back at The Nest, they found Cody still at the computer.
"Did you find anything?" asked Monica.
"Well, I've got the names of the several victims that Michelle had plus the names of the victims of the new spree. Even where they were when their belongings gotten stolen," he told them.
"And how is that going to help us exactly? It isn't," Jake replied. "And here I thought you were actually going to get something while we were gone."
Cody looked at Jake with an 'I don't believe you' look as the camera was pulled out of the bag.
"Well, let's see what's on this camera," Monica said with a sigh.
"Where'd she get such a good camera?" wondered Cody.
"I'm not sure. I'll have to ask her about it," Frank said to him as Monica started the camera.
She watched the images move on the viewer before her before closing it and shaking her head.
"No, it's nothing. It looks like a school project she's doing, nothing more," she told them.
She carefully put the camera back into the bag just before bullets rang out. The windows shattered and everyone ducked. It only lasted a few seconds though it seemed like an eternity.
Cody climbed to his feet where he was by the desk. Jake glanced to both sides before standing up.
"What was that all about? Is everybody fine?" he asked as he saw Monica and Alex get to their feet.
"Yeah, we're fine," Alex said.
"Maybe it was someone trying to deter us from the case. This shows it couldn't have been Michelle," suggested Monica as she looked from side to side. "Um, where's Frank?"
That got the attention of the others until they came to Frank's prone body on the floor. They saw the blood all over his clothes and on the floor.
"Frank!" they all cried.
TBC...
Alex walked over to it and took a better look inside of it.
"Yeah, there's several wallets and other personal items in here. We'd better take her down to the police station for further questioning and we'll take these with us," she suggested as she picked up the bag.
"Michelle, how could you?" Jake asked her, anger tinting his voice.
"Shows how much your faith in me had disappeared, even when the 'evidence' proves nothing. How do you know it was my hand that put those things there?" she replied.
"Well, it's your school bag. What else do we need?" wondered Jake. "Besides, it's your specialty."
"Come on now. Let's just go and settle this later," Monica said as she stepped between them.
Alex pulled Michelle out to the car as the others followed her.
***
Down at the police station, Gracer looked at the numerous wallets and objects in the bookbag. Michelle was sitting in a chair, her head in her hand, which was leaning on the chair.
"Michelle, I simply can't believe this. Even after you specifically told me that you didn't," Gracer practically yelled at her.
"Gracer, it's not me! Somone planted them there to make it look like I did it!" Michelle screamed back at him, the tears falling down her face.
"This proves otherwise Michelle. I need you to stay in our custody until this situation is all over. Unless these people, whom you call your friends, can prove it wasn't you, something has to be done," Gracer replied as he sat in his chair.
Monica stepped forward.
"She didn't do this! I'm sure we can prove that it wasn't her!" Monica told him.
Gracer looked carefully over the team before giving a sigh.
"I'll give you a week. That's all I will give you. If you don't find anything within that time that'll prove her innocence, I'll have to do something with her," Gracer told them before he stood up and walked towards the window.
He stared out it, gazing over the scenery, hands behind his back. The team looked at each other, determination written in their eyes.
***
Back at The Nest, the five were gathered around the table, looking at the information in front of them about Michelle.
"It doesn't make sense," Monica absently said.
"What doesn't?" wondered Alex.
"What happened earlier with her bookbag. Michelle was, and is, not the type to leave evidence out in the open like that. Before we met her and Frank taking her in, she had several things belonging to people. She gave those back, of course, but that's not the point. She had them stored in a box that was in her closet. She didn't carry them around with her!" Monica explained to them.
"You're right! She never carried things around that could easily ID her as the 'Silent Stalker' and be dealt with accordingly!" Cody agreed.
"Maybe the person, or persons, causing this have something against either you, her or even both!" Alex suggested to Frank.
"It's possible. Very possible but who would it be?" mused Frank as he walked away from the group. "Michelle could've easily made several enemies over the past two years as have I since I started to work here so it could be almost anybody."
Jake remained quiet through the entire discussion. He was thinking about something else.
'Frank said the man recognized Michelle as the one who stole from him. If she didn't do it, then who did? Does she have a twin sister? If she knew, she would've told us. Maybe it was someone dressed up like her? We have to find out,' he thought to himself.
Alex glanced over at Jake, who appeared to be deep in thought.
"Hey Jake, what's wrong?" she asked him as she walked oer to him.
He was startled out of his daze and he looked at her.
"Nothing's wrong. I was just thinking about something else," he replied with a smile.
"Of course you were," Alex told him before heading back to the others.
"I suggest we take a look around her room. Maybe there's something in there that will show she's not the one doing this," suggested Monica as she gazed over in Frank's direction.
The others soon followed suit as Frank gazed back at them. He nodded.
"Let's go. Maybe we'll find something," he agreed as he turned to do out the door.
But he stopped a few feet away and he turned around.
"Cody, I want you to stay here and work at that computer. Maybe you can find something that'll help us," he told him.
Cody nodded before he sat in front of the computer and started to type as the others walked out of the building.
***
Alex opened the drawer in the nightstand and looked inside. She moved a few things around before sighing and closing it. She looked over at the others searching the room.
"There appears to be nothing here. It looks like the room...of a typical 14- year-old," she told them as she walked to the middle of the room. "I don't think there's anything else we can expect to find."
"I don't think so either. This is the room of a teenager," Jake agreed as he and Frank joined her.
Monica noticed the bag underneath the bed and pulled it out a bit, looking at it. She opened it up slightly.
"What's in it?" asked Jake.
"It's a video camera. We should take this back with us. Maybe it'll show something that happened one of therse nights that she said she was out taking a walk," she replied as she carefully picked it up.
The others nodded as they walked out of the room and headed downstairs.
***
Back at The Nest, they found Cody still at the computer.
"Did you find anything?" asked Monica.
"Well, I've got the names of the several victims that Michelle had plus the names of the victims of the new spree. Even where they were when their belongings gotten stolen," he told them.
"And how is that going to help us exactly? It isn't," Jake replied. "And here I thought you were actually going to get something while we were gone."
Cody looked at Jake with an 'I don't believe you' look as the camera was pulled out of the bag.
"Well, let's see what's on this camera," Monica said with a sigh.
"Where'd she get such a good camera?" wondered Cody.
"I'm not sure. I'll have to ask her about it," Frank said to him as Monica started the camera.
She watched the images move on the viewer before her before closing it and shaking her head.
"No, it's nothing. It looks like a school project she's doing, nothing more," she told them.
She carefully put the camera back into the bag just before bullets rang out. The windows shattered and everyone ducked. It only lasted a few seconds though it seemed like an eternity.
Cody climbed to his feet where he was by the desk. Jake glanced to both sides before standing up.
"What was that all about? Is everybody fine?" he asked as he saw Monica and Alex get to their feet.
"Yeah, we're fine," Alex said.
"Maybe it was someone trying to deter us from the case. This shows it couldn't have been Michelle," suggested Monica as she looked from side to side. "Um, where's Frank?"
That got the attention of the others until they came to Frank's prone body on the floor. They saw the blood all over his clothes and on the floor.
"Frank!" they all cried.
TBC...
