White Storm

Chapter 9: Slight of Hand

More and more people kept coming into the house until cars nearly filled the driveway.

After the last man came inside to warm up, I finally closed the door and let out a sigh of relief.

That's when someone rapped his or her knuckles against the wood.

Unable to contain my annoyance, I allowed a few guests inside.

"Hey Sherlock!" a familiar voice exclaimed.

It was Cole and her parents standing in front of the door.

While her parents wore red evening wear, Cole had her hair straighten down and wears a white dress.

Her white shoes were almost buried in the snow.

"Hi," I greeted embarrassed.

I let them come inside the house and shut the door behind them.

While the adults were drinking, eating appetizers, and laughing, I asked Cole if she would like to see my bedroom, to which she was obliged to do so.

She followed me upstairs, where I opened the door and showed her my room.

Cole marveled at the blue walls and smiled at me.

"I like your walls," she said.

"I keep asking my parents if I can have my walls periwinkle, but they said no."

Just then, she looked at the cardboard stuck onto my wall.

"Is this a murder board?" Cole asked in excitement.

"Are you close to cracking the case?"

I shook my head no.

"I heard that there was a body on the news," she added, mesmerizing the newspaper clippings.

"But the police wouldn't give any specific details regarding the name and the time of the shooting."

I raised my eyebrow at her in amazement.

I admit she is pretty smart, should I ask her for some help?

A couple of weeks ago, she was in the airport.

What if she saw something I could use to figure out what really happen?

"Cole," I began slowly.

"You heard about Aaron's death, right?"

She looked at me in an odd way, but nodded.

"Have you heard about the drug bust happening in New York?"

"Yes," Cole began nonchalantly.

"I was also there when it happened."

What? I thought.

"What did you see?" I asked, shaking her shoulders.

"What have you heard?"

Annoyed, she removed my hands and cleared her throat.

"While I was walking back from the grocery store, I saw Aaron walking out of the alley, looking weird."

"He then got a call on his walkie-talkie about some drug ring going on, so I followed him until I found myself hiding behind a garbage can.

His pal was already out of his car, standing near the abandoned pizza parlor, until he saw Aaron running over to him, asking him what the heck is going on."

"But instead of answering his question, his pal demanded to know what Aaron was doing helping a juvenile delinquent."

My eyes widened in reaction: Helton was talking about me.

"Aaron told him a couple of times not to worry about him, and he thinks the delinquent is an intelligent kid whose parents were killed."

"He also says that the kid deserves his help and believed that he could change the world."

He really said those things? I thought.

Aaron is dedicated police officer, but he always helps me and my brother get out through difficult situations, just like the Flint incident.

"Meanwhile, Helton still didn't understand why Aaron would do that. So, he told Aaron to put him back to jail or else he will tell the commissioner."

"However, Aaron kept asking him about the drug ring, but Helton told him that he lied to him only to put some sense into Aaron's brain."

Cole let out a sigh then wiped her eyes.

"He tried to convince your friend to turn the boy in, but after Aaron said no, Helton yanked his gun from his holster and shot him twice."

I stared at her blankly, hoping for her to go on.

"After that, Mr. Clint came out of the pizza parlor, with a cellphone in his hand. He told Helton to go to California to do some sort of work for him. If he didn't, he will post the video on the Internet."

"As soon as I saw the chaos, I gathered my groceries and bolted."

After she finished her story, I bit my lip very hard and stared at the ground.

Cole tried to give me a hug, but I pushed her away and headed downstairs.

But while I was almost down the stairs, I saw Robert surrounded with his friends, announcing a toast.

"Of all the Christmas parties of the year," Robert began.

"This evening is my favorite. Not because of the fondue or the gifts, but because-"

The moment that he saw me glaring at him with hateful eyes, he stopped his speech and asked me what was wrong.

He then gave me a fake smile as he lowered his glass and walked up to me.

"Is there something the matter?" he asked.

I nodded my head.

"What is it?" he said in a worried tone.

I leaned over and whispered something that made his face drained with color.

"I know what you did." I said coldly.

"I know you blackmailed Helton with a video of him killing Aaron under your orders, I know you made him go to California, and you covered the whole scheme so you wouldn't end up in jail."

Everyone stopped eating and drinking then stared at us in silence.

"What are you saying?" Robert smirked. "You're saying that I hired a cop to kill Aaron?"

"He never worked as a cop, didn't he?" I snarled. "Was it all just some ruse?"

Much to my surprise, Robert nodded.

"He was too predictable to be a cop." he insisted.

"You and I both know that."

That's when Eden came into the scene.

"You and I both know what, dear?" she demanded.

Without a word, I pulled the phone out of his pocket and with a few scrolls, I found the video of Helton shooting Aaron.

"Here," I said, giving it to her.

"This, along with the recording, is the evidence of your husband's crime."

Robert's once triumphant smile turned into a bitter grimace.

"What do you mean, recording?" he demanded.