CHAPTER 2:
"Okay, so retrace your steps. What exactly do you remember from this morning?" Chloe asked, now that they were back in their dorm alone.
"This morning, after breakfast, I grabbed my coat and headed off to economics class," Aubrey began.
"You don't suppose the money got planted in your coat pocket while we were asleep last night, do you?" Chloe asked.
"That's impossible," Aubrey replied, "we always lock the door before we go to sleep, and our dorm is on the third floor of this building."
"Okay, so what happened when you got to class?" Chloe asked.
"When I got to the lecture hall, I set my coat down at my seat, and then I turned my back for 10 minutes to use the bathroom," she shrugged.
"Well, was there anyone else in the lecture hall when you got there?" Chloe asked.
"Nope. I was the first one to arrive," Aubrey replied.
"Then it's possible that maybe the money got planted in your pocket during that 10-minute time window," Chloe suggested.
"Could be. When I came back, nobody else in the class had arrived yet," Aubrey said.
"It makes sense that the culprit would commit a crime when there were no witnesses present," Chloe reasoned.
"Right," Aubrey agreed, "it had to have been someone else who had a class in the exact same building that my economics class was, though."
"It'll take forever to interview every student who had classes in that building," Chloe said as someone knocked on the door.
"Who is it?" Aubrey asked.
"Campus police," a voice on the other side called out.
Aubrey got up and opened the door without any hesitation.
"The Dean has informed me of suspicious activity regarding the recent burglary?" the officer questioned.
"That's right, sir. We have no idea who did it," Aubrey confirmed.
"There's one way to find out. Every building has security cameras in the hallways. Maybe that'll give us an identity," the officer said.
At the campus police station, Aubrey and Chloe looked at the security footage the officer showed them.
"So, at what time did you arrive at the lecture hall?" the officer asked.
"Around 7:45, about 30 minutes before class started," Aubrey said.
The officer played back the security footage from 7:45 until Aubrey's return 10 minutes later. During that time, a figure appeared on the screen in front of them.
"That's it! Right there," Aubrey said as the officer zoomed in.
"A green hoodie and a black backpack? That doesn't really narrow it down. There could be hundreds of students that wear both of those things," Chloe said.
The officer resumed the security footage until the culprit exited the lecture hall, pausing the clip when a face appeared.
"I don't believe it," Chloe gasped.
"Kori?!" both girls spoke at the same time.
"How do you know this person?" The officer questioned.
"She was, temporarily, a member of our acapella group. She got kicked out for breaking the rules, though," Aubrey answered. "I just don't understand why she would want to frame me like this."
"There's only one way to know. It's a good thing we didn't throw away her information when you kicked her out of the Bellas," Chloe said.
"Yeah. We kept her info in our dorm room," Aubrey said.
"If you can get that to me, we can find her, and get the tape to the police so they can bring her in for questioning," the campus officer said.
"Perfect," the girls said in unison.
"Let's go back to the dorm and get it. The sooner this gets taken care of, the better," Chloe said as she, Aubrey, and the security officer headed for the dorm.
After returning to the dorm, Aubrey and Chloe called the campus police. "She'll be in class in Room 303 at 4:00 tomorrow," Aubrey told the officer.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: There you go. The suspect has been revealed. What happens next? Find out in the next chapter.