Chapter 6: The Search For Answers
That night Ellie didn't sleep a wink in her hotel bed. She always had difficulty sleeping in unfamiliar places, but tonight was worse. Questions concerning Nicole's death kept her up.
What really killed her? How could it also kill twelve other people? Why claim that it was a bomb? What are they covering up? Who is covering it up? Why doesn't anyone else seem to notice?
These questions even continued to plage Ellie's mind through out the funeral service the next day. Finally during the drive home Ellie blurted out one of the questions that had been troubling her.
"Do you think that it was a bit odd that Nicole didn't have a scratch on her? I mean that has to be very unusual for someone who died in a bomb explosion."
Everyone remained silent. Ellie's parents kept staring at the road ahead of them, and Dennis shot her a rude glare.
"Most of the damage was probably done to her torso and legs which were covered up by the dress she was buried in." Mrs. Richards replied flatly, as if she didn't want the subject brought up ever again.
Ellie wasn't buying it. Even if most of the damage had been done to Nicole's lower body there would still have to be at least one mark made on her head or arms.
"How was the funeral?" Jo asked the next morning on the Pileforth Academy bus.
Ellie began to tell Jo every detail about the funeral, including Nicole's flawless appearance, and her mother's lame attempt at explaining it.
"So what do you think really killed her?" Jo asked in astonishment.
"I don't know." Ellie said in a defeated tone. She hadn't been able to come up with one single theory that could answer all the questions swimming in her head.
"I guess there's only one thing I can do." Ellie said conclusively.
Jo gave her a puzzled look.
"I'll just have to go to the site of Nicole's death, and investigate what killed her myself."
"Ellie, that's what Scotland Yard is for." Jo said.
"Well, apparently they're not doing a very good job."
"I think those mystery novels have been a bad influence on you." Jo cooly commented.
Ellie shot her an unamused glare.
By the time the bus was ready to take Ellie and Jo home, Ellie had come up with a plan to investigate Nicole's death.
"Tonight I'll ask my parents if I can stay at your house this weekend, and you can make sure its alright with your parents. We even have Monday off, so that'll give us an extra day."
"An extra day for what?" Jo asked baffled.
Ellie continued, not paying any attention to Jo.
"Then on Saturday, we'll tell your parents that we're going to the cinema, when in fact we're really going to take the tube to Lancaster Square underground station. Then its just two blocks north to the West Street Restaurant. We'll be home in time for dinner."
"Why are we going to the West Street Restaurant?" Jo asked still puzzled.
"Because that's where Nicole was killed." Ellie casually replied.
"Are you still going on about that?!" Jo exclaimed. "Do you really think that two fifteen year old girls, no matter how intelligent we may be, are going to solve your cousin's death when Scotland Yard can't? You're more daft than I thought. I'd prefer not to get in trouble on my long weekend, thank you very much!"
"Jo, we're not going to get into trouble, because our parents will think that we're at the movies."
"Wait a minute! I can't go out this Saturday. I promised my next door neighbor that I'd babysit their kids while they're out for the day. I can't back out on them now." Jo said.
"Then I guess you're not coming." Ellie said without hesitation.
"You can't go alone!" Jo protested. "Can't you wait till Sunday?"
"Jo, knowing that I've been lied to about my cousin's death is driving me insane. I need to get some answers as soon as possible, and if that means going by myself, then I'm going by myself." Ellie said firmly.
"So how do you plan on getting downtown on your own?" Jo asked, hoping to put a damper on Ellie's plan, but it backfired. Ellie took a moment to think.
"You live closer to downtown, so I can still get my parents to drop me off at your house Saturday morning. Then I can make my way to the tube station from there. You can tell your parents that I won't be arriving till after dinner, and that will give me plenty of time to snoop around. Then on Sunday we can both go downtown, and I can show you everything I discovered."
Jo gave Ellie an uneasy look. She didn't have much faith in her best friend's plan.
"I don't feel comfortable lying to my parents." Jo said warily.
"You're not lying to your parents. You're telling them that I won't be arriving till after dinner, which I won't be." Ellie said convincingly. "I on the other hand will be lying to my parents, but you don't have to worry about that."
Jo still wasn't comfortable with Ellie going downtown on her own.
"What if something happens to you?" Jo asked.
"I've been to London by myself before."
This answer wasn't good enough for Jo.
"Look, if anything happens I'll call you." Ellie said reassuringly.
"Alright, fine." Jo said reluctantly. "I still wish you'd wait till Sunday."
"Everything is going to be fine." Ellie said confidently.
Saturday morning, Karen Richards dropped Ellie off in front of Jo's house. Ellie had only waked half way up the drive way when her mother pulled away, just as Ellie had hoped.
She quickly got back on the side walk and headed to the underground station. After getting off at Lancaster Square, just as she had planned, Ellie started walking north on Charing Cross Road. She then turned left on West Street, and soon she found herself in front of the West Street Restaurant.
The street looked perfectly normal. There was no construction being done, no repairs, no boarded up windows, absolutely nothing that showed there had been a bombing there just ten days ago. The most valid explanation would be that the repairs had already been done, but in all of her life, Ellie had never know construction or maintenance workers to be finished so quickly. An explosion that killed thirteen people must have left a pretty big mess, but there wasn't even a crack in the pavement.
Ellie walked back and forth along the street, hoping that something out of place would catch her eye. After passing the restaurant for the seventh time, something, more like someone, caught Ellie's attention. A man wearing a royal blue cloak had just met up with another man, who was wearing an emerald green cloak. Both men were talking lowly to each other, the one in the green occasionally pointed at a spot on the sidewalk, just ten feet from where they were standing.
Ellie suddenly felt that these two men knew something about the explosion that took place. She continued to keep a close eye on them, but was frustrated that she was too far to be able to hear a word they were saying. After five minutes, the men started to walk away. For some reason Ellie felt the urge to follow them. She glanced down at her watch and saw that she still had plenty of time before she had to be at Jo's. The men walked north on Charing Cross Road, and Ellie walked a safe, non suspicious distance behind them. After only walking a block, the two men stopped, and glanced around cautiously, as if they were making sure they weren't being watched. Ellie quickly ducked into a nearby alley. She carefully peeked around the corner, and was astonished when the two men had vanished. Ellie frantically looked up and down the street, but there wasn't any sign of either one.
Completely perplexed, Ellie waked to the very spot where she last saw the two men standing. She did a full 360 degree turn. There was no alley way or road for the men to go down without her seeing, and they weren't in the book or record store that they had been standing in front of.
Ellie quickly backed herself against the wall, so she would be out of the path of the dozens of people walking by, minding their own business. She kept looking up and down Charing Cross Road, wondering if she had just imagined the men in cloaks, or if something very strange was going on.