Dark Secrets (Thriller)

Chapter 3

Neil and George pulled up before the old witness cottage. George wasn’t optimistic about pressuring the old man to speak, but Neil couldn’t waste anymore time.

“It has to be done,” he informed George as he came out of the car and shut the door.

“But…but…,” George tried to catch up with his pace. “If you get caught by the CO, you will be in big trouble.”

“Do you also believe a new detective can solve this case better than me?” Neil quizzed.

“No, that is not what I am implying. Your stubbornness could get you in trouble,”

Neil ignored him, knocking on the Old Witness door.

“Neil…”

"O! You keep quiet..."

The door slid open and an old man’s head popped through the open gap.

“Do I know you?” He asked. His curious eyes switched nonchalant when he saw George. “I see, it's you people again,”

Neil instantly pulled out his ID Card.

“My name is Neil Schoenfeld. I am Wenner’s detective and I have a couple of questions for you.”

The old man reluctantly allowed them in and offered them a seat on his couch.

“Can I get you water to drink?” He said politely.

“Yes…” George responded sharply, but was interrupted by Neil.

“No, we do not need that, Mr…”

“Mr Juan,” the old man complied.

“O! A nice golden name, sir. We appreciate the drink, but we are fine.”

George nudged him with unease.

“I am thirsty, Neil…”

“Be patient. I will get you water,” Neil assured him, before turning back to Old Juan, who settled on his rocking chair. He rocked back and forth staring at the two men, and waiting for them to speak. Neil cleared his throat.

“Melanie Hopper’s case remains unsolved to this day, Juan. You could be the one to help us solve it,,” Neil began. The old man said nothing. “Her family is grieving. Her baby is without a mother. She was an innocent lady with dreams like you and I. Do you not think she deserves justice?”

“I only found her body. Do not drag me into this,” Juan frowned.

“I understand that feeling. No one wants to get involved either. But it is justice we seek here.”

The Old man said nothing again. George nudged Neil twice, seeing this as a time waster.

“Let’s freaking go, Neil. He will only stare at us the whole day and say nothing. He is a crazy old man who doesn't want to get involved with the police,”

Neil gestured to George to calm down.

“Juan, what did you see that night?”

There was silence.

Neil wasn't ready to give up easily.

“She was 22 year old,” Neil continued. “You were once 22 year too, I am sure. Wouldn’t it be unfair that this girl never got to grow old? Is it okay for her murderer to walk around free just like this? What if someone else gets murdered?”

Juan coughed and scratched his throat loudly.

“Fine,” he agreed. “I saw a figure bent over her. But I couldn’t see properly. As I got closer, it saw me and fled.”

Neil took out his jotting note and pen.

“You are doing great, Juan,” Neil encouraged. “Juan, the golden name.”

“Stop with that,” The old man snapped. “I do not know where you heard that from.”

Neil chuckled.

“Sorry, I always thought Juan was a fascinating name. Can you describe the figure you saw?”

“That thing was a good runner. It was 5 ft 8 tall and seemed athletic. When the thing strangled her, it tried all it could to prevent her from speaking. It was really brutal to her.”

“Why do you refer to this person as a thing?” Neil looked curious.

“We do not know if it’s a male or female. That’s the best way to describe this anonymous monster.”

Neil understood.

"Was there any other thing you saw?"

The old man was silent for a while before he nodded. Neil had his attention heightened.

"You are safe with us Juan. Tell us what you saw,"

"While I tried to check if the girl was still alive, the figure stood at a distance behind me and pulled out a knife. I think it tried to kill me too,"

Neil was shocked at the news.

"I thought you said it ran into the woods."

"It did, but it came back again and tried to kill me."

Neil couldn't believe someone could be this cruel. He gazed at Juan with empathy.

"I see why you didn't want to speak. You fear for your life. How do you feel now?"

The old man shrug it off, probably thinking his end was near anyway.

"Do not hesitate to call me if you hear a news or if anyone threatens you." He thanked the Old Witness for his help and walked out with George.

“The person was 5ft 8 tall and a good athlete,” he said to George as they got into the car. “We have lots of 5ft 8 individuals in the city, if not hundreds. It won’t be easy to identify the murderer from that information.”

George started the engine.

“I forgot you had your way with words. No wonder girls drool over you,” George smiled.

“Every old dude likes me. I know how to speak to them in a way they want,” Neil smiled. “Just put your leg in their shoes and see the world in an old lens."

George nodded in agreement.

"You were built different,"

"We might need to focus on athletes for now," Neil said, ignoring George's compliment. "I am not sure if the murderer will be a part of them, but it’s a good start, right?”

“That’s if you are dedicated. The murderer won’t do anything to expose her crimes,”

“Or his crimes," Neil corrected. “We shouldn’t underestimate any gender.”

Neither of them spoke throughout the journey. When George stopped before Neil’s home, he turned his engine off and gave Neil one last piece of advice.

“Let this female detective do her job. You could get your license withdrawn if anyone sees you snooping and asking questions you shouldn't.”

***

Neil didn’t fear his license being withdrawn. In fact he cared less about it. He would get the killer to justice, even if that was the last thing he did. Walking into his home, he hurried into his study room and pulled out the jotted note. Juan saw a 5ft 8 figure at the crime scene while a shorter person tried to shoot George at the crime site. The person was dressed in all black and couldn’t be seen clearly. How was there a height difference in two consecutive attack? Could they be different people? Perhaps different murderers lurk around the city, but he was too blinded to be aware of it. Despite the toughness of the case, Neil smiled. He stood from his seat, played a nice song and danced alone. People might think he was crazy, but his happiness knew no bounds. Melanie’s case was the first to give him a hint of what the murderer looked like. Before that, tracing the serial killer was impossible since his description wasn't known by anyone. Now that everyone has an idea of how he might look like, it won’t be difficult anymore.

The next day, he heard a knock on the door as he dusted the sitting room couches with an old napkin. The silence of the house was therapeutic since he was alone but the sound of that knock ruined it. Neil hissed and headed to the door, placing the dirty napkin over his shoulders.

“Neil, my gee!” His best friend Flynn, pulled him for a hug as soon as he opened the door. Neil forgot about his need for silence and gladly let him in.

“I didn’t expect you to be here this afternoon,” Neil confessed; his eyes traveling down to the packet of beer Flynn carried with him.

“I wanted to drink with my old pal! It isn’t bad, is it?”

Neil helped him open the packet and got some glass cups.

“Do you know of the marathon competition happening next week?” Flynn asked as he unlocked the bottle of beer with his teeth. Neil did the same.

“What marathon competition? No one told me about it.” Neil confessed.

“It’s a 900 meter race with the best track runners registered,” Flynn explained. Neil arched his brows with interest.

“Really?”

“The grand prize is a lot though. 500,000 dollars isn’t a joke. I had to join. I am good at running after all and I had no other choice. The money is necessary, my gee,” Flynn burped after taking a gulp of the beer.

“How many racers registered for this race?” Neil quizzed.

“They are a lot. I won’t be able to give you an accurate response unfortunately. You will need to meet the athletic director himself and inquire.”

Neil understood. He took a sip of the alcohol and stared at Flynn. Flynn was almost 5ft 8 tall and had the body fit of an athlete. It was not his intention to doubt his best friend. But at that moment, it was natural for him to be suspicious of everyone. Flynn once had a deep crush on Melanie, just like most men in Wenner. But he remembered Flynn taking it too far, by stalking her. The madness ended when his heart was broken by Melanie who rejected him due to her boyfriend at that time. Flynn couldn’t eat for days, and got depressed. He eventually moved on and fell in love with his present girlfriend, Yina. What if Flynn never moved on and they thought he did?

“Why are you staring at me like that?” Flynn asked, confused by Neil's piercing stare.

“Sorry, I was just thinking,” Neil broke the stare.

“Thinking about what?”

“Thinking about the time you loved Melanie…” Flynn's face turned red and hurt. He ran his hands down his face.

Neil smirked.

“Your face says it all. You freaking did it.”