Lisa stared at the ceiling thinking about her parents. Minutes ago she was listening to her parents fighting but now it was strangely quite. The quietness was bittersweet for Lisa because there was rarely a quiet moment, but the bitter part was that the screaming had stopped so abruptly. Soon she heard screams coming from her mom, but they did not seem directed at her father, they seemed more scared.
After a few seconds she decided to see why her mom was screaming and silently got out of bed and went to the stairs. Lisa couldn't believe what she saw. On the floor was her father dead. There was blood all over the place. Lisa felt very sick. There was a knife in her father's back and the front door was open. Her mother was crying hysterically over his body. "What happened?" asked Lisa. Her mother just looked at her then went up to her and gave her a hug.
When the police finally arrived it was an hour after her father's death. " Miss, did you see anything?" a short, red haired policeman asked Lisa. "No, I was in bed and then I heard my mother screaming." The policeman then turned to her mother. "Miss, what did you see?" Lisa's mother started crying again. After a few second she calmed down and started the story.
"Well, my husband and I was having a fight about our stock and suddenly there was a soft knock on the door. I opened up the door and someone blindfolded me. I then heard the person walk over to my husband and say something. He refused what ever the person was saying and then the person started threatening my husband. I then remember the person took off my blindfold and left the house so quick that I didn't get a chance to see them. When I turned around my husband was on the floor dead."
At this the policeman, who had been writing down her story, gave her a tissue. "Miss, we will do every thing we can to find the person who killed your husband. If you have anymore information please contact us right away." he said. As he turned to leave Lisa said, "I truly hope you find the terrible person soon." "We will as soon as we can." the police officer replied. After the officers had taken the evidence out of her father's back they left. Lisa got up at six the next morning to go to her father's office to look for suspects. She had not told the police or her mother of her plan and left without a word. In her car she though of the knife in her father's back.
When she reached his office she parked in her father's parking space. When she walked in the door the receptionist gave her a warm smile and said politely," Sorry dear, but your father hasn't come in yet, would you like me to tell him you came?" Lisa told the receptionist about her father's death and asked if she knew about any clients that came in. After crying a bit, the receptionist said that she saw all of his clients that walked through the door. She started naming all the clients. Mr. Azner, Mr. Welsh, Mr. Ty, Mr. Kelin, Mr. Lobe, Mrs. Nevel, Mrs. Cantrel, Mr. Gavens and Mr. Nigel had all been his most recent clients. She thanked the receptionist and walked toward his office. When she walked in she got right to work.
Lisa went through four piles of paper before finding a letter from a mysterious writer.
Mr. Gaben,
We are glad with your decision to join our gang. You have not made a mistake, but now you are in and there is no going back. If you expose our gang to anyone we will find and kill you. Your gang gun should be with you shortly. Meet us at the alley on Washington and Lincoln at four am sharp tomorrow. Don't be late! Come alone. You have been warned! Wear black only. Do not bring the police or your family; we are your family now.
Lisa felt numb all over. She read the letter for the tenth time, memorizing it without meaning to. She knew that if her mother saw this letter she would faint so she decided not to show it to her. Lisa tucked the letter in her pocket so that she could look at it later. She was wondering how the gang even got contact with her father. There was a quiet knock at the door. "Come in" Lisa said. The receptionist came in and asked if Lisa wanted something to drink. She said no but thanked her for asking. She had a lot of to do.
She still had to look up all of her dad's clients to make sure it wasn't them. First she looked up Mr. Azner on the computer. He had no criminal records except for stealing a ring from Zales. Next came Mr. Welsh. Mr. Welsh had been in jail for abusing his wife, but still it wasn't what she was looking for. After that came Mr. Ty. Bulls-eye. He had been in jail seven times. Once for abusing his wife, once for shooting a police officer, twice for killing a person and three times for robbing a bank.
When Lisa got home her mother asked her where she had gone. Lisa told her everything except for the part about the letter. Her mother was relieved that she was home. The police had called while she was gone asking to speak with Lisa. This was puzzling because police don't normally want to talk to seventeen year olds. Lisa called the police station. " Lisa, we need you to come down here immediately. There is something we would like you to hear." Lisa was out the door as soon as she hung up.
Lisa listened in awe as she heard her neighbor, Mrs. Roslyn, described what she had seen and heard the night of her father's murder. " I was just going off to bed when I heard a knock on the next door house. I went over to the window and watched as a tall, lean figure stood at the door. I think it was female but I am not sure. Mrs. Gaben answered the door and was pushed aside. The figure walked into the house and through the window I heard screams. Mr. Gaben refused and the figure grew quiet. After a few seconds all went quiet. The figure tiptoed out of the house and into a white van. Then the real screams started. About an hour passed before the police came."
Lisa felt like this was a dream. She sat across the table from the chief of the police and explained the letter she found in her father's office. She then gave it to him. She also gave him the information on Mr. Ty. The officer thanked her for the information. The chief looked Lisa in the eye and said, " I'm sorry for your loss. If there is any additional information you have to share please do." Lisa must have been tearing up because she said thank you and went home.
Lisa shared all the information that she had gotten from the police with her mother. Suddenly her face went pale. " I may know who murdered your father." Her mother explained about a woman who was madly in love with Lisa's father in college but her father wasn't interested in her. She was very upset and promised to seek revenge on him. Lisa suddenly went pale too. She asked where this woman lived. She was going to meet her face to face.
Lisa looked at the directions once again. The directions led to her old dance teacher, Ms. Hancock,'s house. Lisa pulled up and parked right in front. She rang the doorbell and was greeted by the tall, blonde woman. Ms. Hancock greeted Lisa warmly and invited her in.Ms. Hancock led her to a spacious living room where she offered Lisa tea. Lisa kindly refused and asked her where she had been on the night of the murder. " I was in Bel Air at my boyfriend's house. Why do you ask?" There wasa small pause before Lisa answered." I tried to practice the dance you taught me years ago but I couldn't that is all." So Lisa and Ms. Hancock went over the dance, although that was not the purpose of her visit at all. She thanked her and went home.