Treasured (Book Two)

Chapter 13: She's Alive

I kept glancing at the door, hoping that no one would notice. The pain on my hand decreases as Stacy lifted her hand then rested it against her shriveled body.

"Stacy?" Luke murmured. On cue, Stacy opened her eyes then flickered them at mine. They looked as if they were relieved to see me.

"Cole?" Stacy muttered. "What happened?" "You drowned," I answered. "Where's Lewis?" she asked. She meant Dad. "He's being questioned in the police station." I explained.

She pulled herself up against the bed and moaned. "I don't remember taking a bath or a shower," Stacy said. "What do you mean?" Luke asked.

"I was in the house, cleaning up the house, until something or someone knocked me out." Stacy said. "The next thing I knew, I was in the hospital, looking like a zombie."

"Did you get a closer look of the person?" I asked. Stacy shook her head. "Although," Stacy added. "I did have this." She handed me a red checker game piece with two cursive letters, L.P. on it.

"I found it on the floor," she said. "I wonder what the initials mean." I took the piece and put it in my pocket. I have to go to the police station and ask Dad about this.

"You really think Ellen is alive?" Stacy asked. Luke and I looked at each other then nodded. "Where is she?" she questioned. "We aren't very sure," Luke admitted. "Ellen might be still hiding somewhere."

"Why would Ellen fake her death?" Stacy asked in wonder. "Probably to  be with my dad," I grumbled. "By the way," Luke added. "Does Dad ever mention someone named Dennis?"

Stacy looked at him as if it was a stupid question. "Of course not," she replied. "I thought Cole would know." "But he's not really my dad," I answered coldly. "Because-"

"I took him away from you," Stacy interrupted. "I am very sorry about that. When I first met him, I never knew he was married." "You didn't?" I asked. "He didn't wore a wedding ring," Stacy said.

What? I thought. I am almost starting to wonder if Dad was ever in love with Mom. After thanking Stacy with the information, we walked out of the hospital.

After we squeezed into the front seat, Luke started the car. "Where are we going next?" he asked. "The police station," I answered. "I think we need to have a chat with the police officer."

Luke looked at me as if I was crazy. "Are you sure?" he asked. I cut my eyes at him. "Yes," I said annoyed. "I want to talk to my dad." "What if he doesn't tell the truth?" Luke asked.

"I don't know," I shrugged. "Maybe we could find Dennis." "Doesn't he have a last name?" Luke asked. I shrugged again. "Meanwhile we have to find the initials on the checker piece and why."

"Also, we need to find out who the attacker was." Luke asked. He thought about it for a moment. "I think we should split up and try to cover some ground." Luke suggest.

"Okay," I said. "I try the police station while you search for the hospital." "Why the hospital?" I asked. "Didn't we already went there?" Luke rolled his eyes.

"I know we did," Luke sighed. "But there is something that I want to uncover, about Ellen, I mean. "Okay," I said. "But just make sure you get everything you need."

"I know," I  replied. "Make sure your phone is charged," I instructed. "Be careful, and when you have gotten everything you need, get out of there."

I was beginning to sound like my mom. "I got it Mom," Luke sighed. "You too." Before Luke dropped me off of the police station, he gave me a bundle of clothes.

"It's a police uniform," Luke explained. "You can change in the backseat." "Where did you get a police uniform?" I asked. "It was my Halloween costume. Shrugging, I crawled into the backseat and laid the clothes on the seat. "You better not look," I snarled.

"My eyes are already closed." Luke snarled back. I shed off my clothes and put on the uniform. "I am finished," I called. Luke opened his eyes then nodded. 

I later folded my clothes and stuffed them in my bag. After slinging the straps over my shoulder, I opened the door and head out to the police station.

While I walked, I smoothed my black hair and tied it into a ponytail. I took a deep breath then entered the police station. Almost no one was there, except the policeman who was filing papers on his desk.

When he saw me, he breathed in relief. "You're a rookie cop, are you?" he asked. "Um, yes?" I lied. "Good," he said, shoving papers into my arms. "Just put the papers into the files," the cop said, pointing over to a room. "When you are finished, put them in the archives and lock the door behind you."

I nodded eagerly.  As soon as the cop left, I turned on the lights, hurried over to the desk, and skimmed the drawers to find the records of my father.

Lola Jordan.... Manny Kean... My eyes widened as I saw my father's file. I plucked the blue file out of the drawer and opened it.

There was nothing unusual. Birth certificate, junk papers, high school records...wait a minute. As a freshman, he is a honor roll student, like me, but when he became a senior, he started acting different.

He kept ditching school, spends time in the library, and the weirdest part was, my dad hangs out with the bad crowd. I wonder why Mom, Stacy, and Ellen loves him so much.

Suddenly, I heard footsteps. I shoved the file into the drawer and tried to stack the papers in a single file manner. "Are you the cop?" a man asked. He had a very deep voice, dark shades, a large body, and thuggish clothes with tons of bling.

"H-hello," I stammered. "Who are you?" "I am looking for a man about five foot tall, scrawny, and a bit like you." My Dad? I wanted to say, but  bile was already lodging on my throat.

"He's not in here," I lied again. "How come you are looking for him?" "That punk owes me a lot of money," he rasped. "How much?" I asked. "Ten grand," he answered."He betted this much money on a poker game." What?

So this must be the poker piece with Dad's initals. "About how long has this person been betting on poker?" I asked. The blind man scratched his head.

"Probably around your age." I stared at him in disbelief. "I should get going," the man chuckled in embarrassment. Dad can't be addicted to poker. He said he quit after he met Mom. "Wait," I began. "What is your name?"

"Dennis," the man greeted. He gave me a curious stare and left the police station, leaving me dazed and confused. Dad lied about quitting poker.

The big question was, what does Stacy, my mom, and Ellen all have in common? Mom, Stacy, and Ellen loved Dad, they both have money issues, but what else there?