Yellow police tape encircled the lake shore, establishing a perimeter for the detectives to do their job. From the main bedroom window, Peyton, Amanda, Wren, and Matt watched as the bodybag was carried away on a stretcher into the awaiting ambulance. In the darkness of night, the red and blue lights blared their warning. Something had gone wrong at that party and having been there when the body was discovered, all attendees had to wait inside for questioning.
"Why are they keeping us here? We're not the ones who found it?" Wren groaned before sitting down on the bed.
The group turned to her, each of them on edge but trying to hide it.
"We were all there when it happened. As Detective Reddick said, we all need to give a statement," Matt said before glancing at Amanda.
She had her arms wrapped around herself, seemingly in a daze as she stared out the window.
"The whole thing is so strange," Wren said unable to wrap her head around today's discovery.
On the lake, a boat unit, now, examined the lake. Thanks to the blaring projectors, Amanda could see the man in scuba diving gear getting ready to make a decent.
What other secret did the lake keep submerged in its depths?
"What are they doing now?" Payton asked when she turned back to the window.
"They're going to search the lake," Amanda said simply and they both watched as the men fell backward into the murky water, diving in.
A new set of headlights appeared before the mayor's car came into view.
Amanda turned to Matt, "Dad's here," she said.
"Alright, I'll go see what I can find out," he said and was about to leave the room when Amanda said, "I'm coming with you."
Wanting to protest, Matt stared into his sister's determined eyes and knew he wouldn't persuade her.
"Fine," he said and walked away.
Amanda turned to Peyton, finding a slight frown on her face. Only now did she realize how terrible this situation must be for her. It was her birthday party after all. Another event was ruined again. When she reached for her hand, Amanda felt a slight tremor run through her body. Peyton looked down at their held hands before gazing up at her, her eyes void.
"I'll go find out what's going on?" Amanda said in a reassuring tone.
When Peyton didn't respond, lost in a daze, Amanda squeezed her hand.
She blinked a few times, the action pulling her out of her head.
"What?" Peyton asked.
Amanda sighed, "My dad is here. I'll go find out what I can. Are you going to be alright?" she asked, not at all reassured by her overall demeanor.
A few seconds went by before Peyton nodded, "Sure, okay. I should probably call my dad anyway," she said while absently pulling out her phone.
Amanda nodded and watched as she walked away. Standing by the window she brought the phone to her ear. As she waited, Amanda didn't miss the moment tears welled up in her eyes. Her heart broke at the sight. She wished she could make all this better, however, she knew the only way to better this situation was by getting more information about whatever the hell was going on.
So she headed downstairs. Her schoolmates were conglomerated in the living room area, all of them looking grim.
"Did you see where Matt went?" she asked to anyone who'd answer.
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.
"Chuck found out," he practically mumbled.
"What are you talking about? He found out about what?" Matt asked, his impatience clear.
Roman nearly flinched from the tone of his voice. He dug his hands into his pockets and pulled out his phone. After scrolling for a few seconds, he held it up towards them.
Amanda's blood ran cold as a video played. She felt as though she'd been submerged, engulfed in the lake's green, murky depths. It was the fate the young woman had known, and on the screen, she stared back at her, her eyes forever wide and grey, her face fully than it was when she was alive.
Amanda brought a hand to her mouth as bile rose in her throat. With a loud gag, she stepped aside and hunched over as she emptied the contents of her stomach on the floor. While her body shook from the intensity of regurgitation, the muscles in her chest contracted as she struggled to grapple with the facts she couldn't deny. Lorna was gone. For two days she'd tried to reach her, only to find out she had probably been dead the entire time.
"What the hell? Why would you take a video of that?" Matt said his anger and impatience with Roman reaching the limit.
"It wasn't me. Tristan took it after we called the cops and sent it on the Discord server. Somehow it got back to Chuck and..." Roman rambled before getting cut off by Matt.
"What does Chuck have to do with the dead girl?" Matt asked.
Before Roman could respond, a commotion outside caught their attention.
Amanda, still crouching in front of her vomit, turned in time to see the front door fly open.
"Where the hell is he!" Chuck shouted as he entered the house.
His friends stood behind him and in the living room everyone had stepped away from the window to see what the fuss was about. That included Tristan. The moment he stepped into Chuck's line of vision, it only took an instant for him to attack. Lunging at him, Tristan fell back after receiving a fist straight to the nose. When Tristan's friends tried to interfere, all hell broke loose.
It was a full-on brawl, worse than at the last party.
"What the hell is going on in here?" Cameron said as she stood at the front door.
Dodging bodies, Amanda stayed close to the wall, feeling unsteady on her feet but desperately needing to get away.
"I need backup! A fight broke out in the cabinet!" she heard Cameron yell into her radio before going in.
Amanda stumbled outside and sat down on the stoop. Holding on to the railing, she took in deep shaky breaths. Vapor came out of her mouth with every breath, but she couldn't care less about the cold. The only thing on her mind was Lorna, yet another person her curiosity stole from this world. It was quite unambiguous of her to assume she was the cause of her death. Then again, the facts were all there.
A group of cops ran into the cabin and their loud footsteps managed to grant her some situational awareness. Looking towards the lake, there was now a tow truck on the other side pulling something out of the water. Feeling weak, but curious, Amanda got up and began to walk towards the water. The dock had been tapped off, she she stopped there, watching as the car emerged from the deep.
As it came into view, her heartbeat picked up. The vehicle was covered in mold and vegetation probably from years of saturation. Yet, something about it looked familiar. No, it felt familiar, but she couldn't tell how or where she knew that car from.
Taking a few steps closer, she froze when one of the officers opened the right back door. Water gushed out of it in waves and as it emptied. Amanda's breath itched as she gazed at the three ghostly figures, each in a different stay of decay, each of their fate holding secrets she'd have to uncover. Glowing white eyes lowered at her, their menacing stare accusing her of a crime she didn't commit.
That was when she remembered where she knew that car from. It'd starred in memories that weren't hers, featuring tender moments stolen by a cruel faith.
For all these years, Austin's car had been here all along.
~Thank you for reading this chapter.~
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