Next chapter! Again, I love reviews.

Chapter 2

"Zach didn't really talk to us anymore," one of Zachary Taylor's roommates said. Shawn and Gus were sitting on beanbags in the apartment Zachary Taylor shared with two friends, both of whom were sitting across from them on a blow-up couch. "I mean, we used to be tight. We made these plans freshman year, but then he kind of stopped talking to us. We didn't even think he was still in until a couple of weeks before graduation. He was all like 'Josh, Andy, did you get our apartment yet?' like he'd been with us all along."

Josh Shoals and Andy Claiborne didn't exactly look like the kind of people that someone like Zachary Taylor would be associated with. They both had long hair and wore beanies and skateboard shoes. Josh wore a Led Zeppelin t-shirt, while Andy had an Aerosmith one.

"I'm seeing a girlfriend," Shawn said. "Was he seeing someone? Anything serious?"

"Amanda," Josh scoffed, looking at Andy.

"Right," Andy replied. She turned back to Shawn and Gus. "Zach was seeing this girl, Amanda Wright. Zach told us she was a musician, so we're like, 'Dude, that's so dope. Go for it,' right? But then we find out she plays the piano and like, composes music and stuff, and she's apparently writing a musical and doing all the music and everything herself."

"But of course, Zach is totally down with that, 'cause you know how he is," Josh continued. "And he's all like, 'Why don't you like my girlfriend?' and we're like, 'Dude, she's a dork.' Who likes those artsy kids anyway?"

"Can I see Zach's room?' Shawn asked.

"Why?" Josh asked.

"Dude, he's a psychic," Andy elbowed him.

"Yeah, come on, dude," Shawn said. "Show a little respect."

"Sorry," Josh replied. "Right this way."

Zach's room was much cleaner than the rest of the apartment. The first thing Shawn noticed, the first thing anyone would notice, were the posters, a dozen of them, for musicals.

"Zach was in all of those," Andy said, as if he'd read Shawn's mind.

"That's not Zach's keyboard," Josh said, surprised, as if he'd just noticed it.

"It must be Amanda's," Andy reasoned. "She doesn't go anywhere without that thing?" he told Shawn and Gus.

"Is this her?" Shawn picked up a picture of a boy with curly black hair wearing a striped polo, presumably Zach, and a girl with long, straight hair, light brown with highlights, and narrow black horn-rimmed glasses, cheek to cheek.

"Uh," Josh said, craning his neck to see the picture. "Yep, that'd be her."

"Man, if it hadn't been for that other girl that went missing too, I would just think he left," Andy commented. "Zach kept talking about how he wanted to get out of here, called us slobs."

"Yeah, who's that other girl that's missing," Josh asked. "She played Zach's wife?"

"Ashley Waters?" Gus answered.

"Yeah, yeah," Josh replied. "I hope you find her. She was what, like sixteen? Josh talked about her, said she was nice, really cute, you know? Young."

"He said she was a great actress," Andy added. "Like she'd go places and stuff."

"I know he thought she was better than he was," Josh said. "I think he was jealous."

"Tell me," Shawn said, holding up the picture again. "Do you know where we can find Amanda?"

"Are you sure she's here?" Gus whispered to Shawn as they approached an auditorium at the College of Letters and Science at the University of California—Santa Barbara.

"They said she would be, Gus," Shawn answered.

"But do you really trust those two, Shawn?" Gus asked.

"Gus, just because they decided to skateboard and play video games instead of get jobs doesn't mean they aren't trust worthy," Shawn replied.

"I bet you know that from experience," Gus muttered.

"Look, there she is," Shawn said, pointing to a girl sitting at the piano on the stage. Gus ran to catch up.

"Are you Amanda Wright?" Shawn called as he approached her. She pushed away from the piano to look at them. "It is," Shawn whispered to Gus. "It's her."

"Amanda," Gus said, taking on a professional tone. "We're just here to ask you some questions about your boyfriend, Zachary Taylor."

"I already talked to the police," Amanda replied.

"We're not the police," Shawn said. "I'm a psychic."

"Then shouldn't you just be able to read my thoughts?" Amanda asked.

"Um, that's not quite how it works," Shawn answered. "Gus, why don't you…"

"So Amanda," Gus tried another tactic. "You're a student here?"

"That's right," Amanda answered shortly.

"What's your major?" Gus asked.

"Two of them," Amanda replied. "Music composition and theater, concentration in playwriting."

"Was Zach a student here too?" Gus asked.

"Yes," Amanda answered. "He was also a theater major, but with emphasis on acting."

"What did Zach tell you about Ashley Waters?" Shawn asked.

"What kind of things are you talking about?" Amanda replied.

"Anything," Gus answered.

"Look, if you're waiting for me to tell you he slept with her, I won't, because he didn't," Amanda said.

"Why would you think we would want to her that?" Gus asked.

"I watch TV," Amanda shrugged. "That's all anyone ever wants to know when someone's gone missing. Who else were they sleeping with? That must be the culprit, or maybe the jealous girlfriend. Sorry, can't help you."

"She's right, you know," Shawn said to Gus. "So, what's your musical about?" he asked.

"How did you know I'm writing a musical?" Amanda asked.

"Hello?" Shawn said. "I'm psychic?"

"It's about a man whose wife get murdered," Amanda began to explain. "And he goes to all his lovers to find out which one had enough motive to do it."

"How appropriate," Shawn commented.

"Meanwhile, his wife's ghost follows him and offers impute," Amanda finished. "Zach was supposed to be the husband when I finished."

"Who was going to be the wife?" Gus asked.

"Good question," Shawn commended him.

"Zach wanted Ashley to do it," Amanda said, a hint of resentment in her voice. She covered it well. "He said she was a really good actress."

"What her his exact words?" Shawn asked.

"She said she was," Amanda sighed. "He said she was like nothing he'd ever seen."

"Do I detect a hint of jealousy?" Shawn asked, raising his eyebrows. "You know, there's a reason they use it as a motive on all those TV shows."