We Love a Tortured Artist - Xavier Thorpe

Callahan

I took one look at the caller ID and shot up. I walked out of the Weathervanes front door and picked up quickly bringing the phone up to my ear.

"Hey Kid." I smiled at Callahan's familiar tone.

"Hi."

"How's school?"

"School is school." I told him jokingly. He chuckled softly.

"That's fair, look kid I uh, I guess we should skip the pleasantries. We found something."

My stomach did summersaults and I took a deep breath.

"What did you find?" I whispered. Callahan grunted and I heard him sit down.

"Well a while ago we analyzed the gasoline jug for fingerprints, DNA, anything, we didn't find anything, but inside the tin of matches there was a single hair and I didn't tell you about it because, well we weren't entirely sure if it was human or animal, but we got the DNA tested."

"And? Why did it take this long?" I asked him.

"Well see kid, we didn't find the hair until a few weeks ago when we were reanalyzing."

"How did you miss it the first time?" 

"I have no idea, but that's not the point. The DNA led back to two people and two people only that it could possibly be."

"Who are they?" I prodded.

"Well uh, the principle of your school actually, and another guy names Nigel Weems who is apparently her brother."

I felt my stomach sink and I closed my eyes. My breathing became ragged and I tried to calm myself down.

There was a tapping sound on the glass behind me and I jumped a little. I turned around to see all of them watching me nervously. I waved my hand at them and turned back around.

"Kid?" I heard Callahan ask me over the phone softly.

"Yeah?" I sighed.

"Its gonna be alright, I'm coming down as soon as I can alright? Just don't be suspicious, don't let off that you know anything, just go about your days as normal."

"But what if you're too late."

"I'm never too late."

I smiled softly and hung up the phone. I took a deep breath and turned around to go back into the Weathervane.

I didn't even get to sit down before they all bombarded me with questions.

"Who was that?"

"Why did you look so worried?"

A hand squeezed my shoulder comfortingly and I looked over to Xavier. Tears started to well up in my eyes and he pulled me into his chest. I heard everyone fall silent and I took long deep breaths as Xavier rubbed my back.

"That was Officer Callahan, he said they think that this Weems Imposter killed my parents." 

Xavier pulled back and kept his hands on my shoulder.

"What? Why?" He asked me and I shrugged. I leaned back against the booth and looked around the table. Enid and Ajax were watching me with a matching worried expression on their faces.

Bianca was staring down at her hands and Wednesday was staring at me with her wide black eyes. 

"Everything is going to be okay." Xavier told me wrapping his arm around my shoulders. I nodded and wiped my cheeks.

"We need to figure this all out before its too late."

"We don't even know where to start. We don't even know who this guy is." Bianca said looking up.

"Yes we do." I told them. They all stared at me intently waiting for my answer.

"His name is Nigel Weems." I told them.

"Weems's brother." Wednesday said looking at me with a shocked expression.

I nodded and I could see that we both knew how bad this was.