Restless Soul

37

A girl pointed at the back door and she nodded, "Thanks," she said before walking out.

   The moment she opened the door, she was greeted with the hustle and bustle of a police investigation. The usually quiet forest was loud and bright. She walked off the back porch and around the corner a policewoman appeared.

"Miss, I'm going to need you to get back inside," she ordered and Amanda froze.

"Sorry. I was just looking for my dad. He's the mayor," she said.

   The officer's brows raised and she walked up to her. She was short in status with a round face and big blue eyes. Her hair was slicked back into a low bun and the smile she bore was friendly yet her ora remained intimidating.

"I'll take you to him," she said and took the lead.

   Mayor Fullwood was standing right at the edge of the lake talking to Detective Reddick while Matt stood off to the side. As the woman approached, Matt noticed them. Quickly glancing towards his dad, he walked up to his sister, deciding not to bother the man more than he already had.

"Hey," he began by saying and acknowledged the officer with a nod, "Thanks, Cameron," he said and the woman nodded before walking away.

"What's going on?" Amanda asked once they were alone.

   Around them, an investigation was in full effect. Amanda watched as the divers got back on the boat, one of them surely giving his report to his superior. She wondered what more they'd found since one of them stayed in the water, pointing in the same direction as the one on the boat.

"For now, all we know is that it was the body of a woman, probably mid to late thirties, white, and blond. This whole thing is a big deal so we shouldn't bother Dad," Matt said and Amanda nodded absently.

   An eerie feeling had taken over her at the sound of the victim's description. White, blond... she knew someone who fit that description, but as quickly as the thought entered her mind, she cast it aside. It couldn't be her. No way.

   More and more cops had gone to stand near the shore. The mayor and Detective Reddick were walking in the same direction. Amanda and Matt exchanged a look. Something was happening but they already knew nobody would tell them. Not yet.

"Hey, you two!" someone called out behind them.

They both turned around, finding Cameron standing by the front door of the cabin.

"Get back inside," she ordered, her friendly demeanor gone.

They didn't argue. As they neared the house, Cassie held the door open, and from her radio, a staticky voice said, "The truck's en route. Fifteen minutes tops."

"A truck?" Matt wondered out loud as they entered the cabin.

"What the hell did they find this time?" Tristan said as he looked out the window.

From the entryway, the twins watched as the group congregated around the window, questions and speculation flying around.

   Roman, the only one left sitting was biting his knuckles. A few seconds later, he blew out a breath and got up. Something was off about him. From the way he walked with uncertain steps, to the glances he gave the rest of his click as he got closer to Matt.

"Matt, shit's about to get nasty," he said, his voice quivering.

Matt took a step forward, towering over the young man who seemed to shrink under his shadow.

"What do you mean?" Amanda asked, her too, stepping forward to interrogate their classmate.

Roman looked up, his guilt-ridden eyes only able to hold her gaze for a few seconds before dropping them to the floor.