Vanished (ONC 2023)

Chapter 14 - The Video

Stella wasn't only a wizard with her camera. She'd convinced Jenna to meet to discuss the missing women. We waited for Jenna in Stella's office at work, Josh pacing in front of the street-facing window because he would have had a heart attack leaving me with another possible murderer, and Stella triple-checking the video files we'd promised at her desk.

When we'd rewatched the footage together, the strangest thing occurred. Dustin and Alexandra had stood and walked past us. With Josh and I lost in our conversation, I'd bumped into Dustin's shoulder and apologized without looking at his face. In response, he'd shook his head and looked annoyed. I used to think if only we'd met when he was alive, maybe his fate would have changed, but when we had crossed paths, I hadn't even glanced at him.

Was that why I saw his ghost? Because we crossed paths the night he'd murdered Alexandra? Some kind of payback for ignoring him? That didn't track. He had been shocked I noticed him on the bus, so it wasn't conscious on his part.

After Stella received a text, she left to meet Jenna, leaving me on a chair opposite the desk and Josh staring out the window.

"Are you nervous?" he asked.

"Not as nervous as you."

He scratched the back of his neck. "I can't stop picturing the worst outcomes."

"We're in a public space with my co-workers, and Jenna knows what we want to discuss. We only need information about how dangerous Dustin might be and his crimes. Her actions we'll leave aside, so she isn't threatened."

"But what if she suspects we know or brings a weapon? Once you hurt one person, it's a slippery slope. Look at the serial killer."

I strode toward Josh and took his clammy hands in mine. "It's going to be okay. Let Stella lead, stand beside me, and everything will be fine."

As I wrapped my arms around him, he relaxed, nuzzling his head into my hair. Although I hated seeing his anxiety and pain, it was nice he needed me as much as I did him. The door clicked open, bringing Stella and Jenna's voices inside, but we held on a second longer.

"This is Mia and her good friend Josh. He's from Bear Claw Lake, and she led the project I was telling you about."

We pulled apart and waved at Jenna with forced smiles. Her now raven-hued hair was much shorter than in the podcast photos. The colour change made her face seem even paler.

"We met once or twice when you visited Bear Claw Lake," Josh said, hiding any trace of tension from his voice.

Jenna nodded as she sat down across from Stella. He and I stood a few feet away, and he trapped my hand in his like he was my safety anchor.

Stella took control of the conversation. "Once the news broke about the body discovery, we kept an eye out for anything suspicious. Josh lives in Bear Claw Lake where the police are investigating, and he shared they had an approximate date that the victim died."

"October 3rd." Jenna's voice was flat.

"Sorry?"

"She died on October 3rd."

How did Jenna discover an exact date and gender? Had the police told her that, or had Dustin confessed before his death?

"That's the date of the video of her with a man on the beach. I've shared it with the police too, so they're investigating him now."

Jenna nodded and stared at a photo of Stella and her girlfriend on the desk.

"Would you like to see it?" Stella played with the mouse. "I understand if it's too difficult to watch."