MUMA

by M. K. ROZE

something like that? And two other guests, who happened to

  hear what you said?”

  “I don’t know, Dad. But I didn’t say anything like that

  to them. And the other people were probably their friends.”

  Dad let out a loud sigh. “Are you one-hundred percent

  sure no one from school told you where to find the bodies?

  They’re not in trouble. I just need to know, so I can talk to

  them to rule them out as the killer. Or killers.”

  Adelyn’s eyes widened. “I thought the people were

  mauled by a pack of wolves?”

  “They were, but not until after their deaths. We told the

  reporters it was wolves for now, but Detective Able believes

  their throats were slashed before the wolves got to them. We

  couldn’t find all their blood. Their bodies must have been

  dumped there. Don’t tell anyone I just told you that.”

  “I won’t. Maybe the attorney couple did it and they want

  to blame it on me. And maybe the other people were in on

  it to back their lie up.”

  “I don’t know, Adelyn. This is unbelievable news.”

  “Call that psychic lady and ask her. She solved a murder

  before.”

  Dad glared her way. “You know damn well I don’t

  believe in that crap.” He checked his side mirror and took

  off down the road.

  Adelyn was hoping that would open up a door to tell

  him about what happened. She couldn’t think of anything

  else, but perhaps a ghost using her body to tell the couple

  where the bodies were.

  “Put your seatbelt on,” Dad ordered as he gunned it

  down the road.

  “Where are we going?”

  “To the police station. Detective Able has to talk to you

  about the lawyers’ accusations.”

  “Am I getting arrested?”

  “Not unless he feels you’re lying. This is why I need you

  to tell me the truth. I may have to get you an attorney.”

  “Holy shit. I’m telling you the damn truth. I would never

  lie about something like this.”

  “Okay, I believe you. Just tell Detective Able what you

  told me and you’ll be fine.”

  Adelyn felt horrible having to lie to her dad, but she

  wasn’t about to live the rest of her life in prison, so she had

  no choice. She shook her knee and bit her nails while looking

  out the window, hoping the detective wasn’t going to give

  her a lie detector test. She was certain she’d fail it. She’d never

  been so scared in her life. And when she thought about the

  rumors of how vicious Detective Able was when he

  interrogated someone, didn’t make her nerves any calmer.

  Dad pulled up to the police station. “You ready?”

  Adelyn nodded and got out. She looked at the brick

  courthouse that was a part of the jail, remembering cleaning

  it when she was younger for extra money. Her dream job was

  to be an attorney until she saw a prisoner stab his lawyer in

  the neck with a shank. She decided to become a doctor

  instead, hoping it was a safer job.

  When Dad opened the door to the police station,

  Adelyn stepped inside and smiled at the familiar cops behind

  the desk. She followed Dad to the back of the building,

  where he opened the door to a small room. She stepped

  inside and looked at the metal table and two bolted down

  chairs, hoping she wouldn’t be in there for long.

  “I’m going to tell Detective Able you’re here. Take a

  seat.”

  Adelyn sat and crossed her arms, hating having to be

  there. “Are you going to stay in here with me while he talks

  to me?”

  “No, I can’t. You will be fine. Just tell him what you told

  me.”

  “Does Mom know I’m here?”

  “No, I’m about to call her and tell her.”

  “Great.” Adelyn started biting off another nail, knowing

  her mom was about to freak.

  When Dad walked out, she heard her Dad talking to

  someone, then an older man walked into the room a minute

  later with a pad of paper in his hand. He sat across from her.

  “Hello, Miss Mae. I’m Detective Able.”

  Adelyn looked into the hefty man’s gray eyes—sure

  she’d met him in the past. “Hi,” her voice trembled. “Have

  I met you before?”

  “Yes, a few times when you were younger. I believe it

  was when you came here and cleaned the courthouse.”

  Adelyn smiled, hoping he wouldn’t see how nervous she

  was.

  Detective Able examined Adelyn’s eyes and her body

  movements. “Before we get started, would you prefer me to

  call you Adelyn or Miss Mae?”

  “Adelyn is fine.”

  “Alright, Adelyn it is. Please tell me everything from the

  moment you met Mr. and Mrs. Connor while at work last

  night.”

  As Adelyn told him the same story, she had told her dad,

  the detective wrote every word down that came flying out of

  her mouth. He set the pen down and looked at the white wall

  like he was thinking about something. He sighed and sat back

  in the seat with his arms crossed and looked at Adelyn in

  wonderment. “I don’t understand why the Connors would

  make up a lie about someone they never met. Or the other

  two guests that happen to be locals.”

  Adelyn shrugged. “Maybe they killed them and were

  trying to blame me and the locals were in on it.”

  “That’s not possible. The Connors have an alibi for

  where they were on the day the paranormal hunters were said

  to have been murdered. As for the locals, they don’t know

  who the Connors are, and I trust that they were telling me

  the truth. So, let’s try this again, but tell the truth this time.”

  Adelyn was sure he knew she was lying, but she wasn’t

  confessing to what she said. “Well, maybe they knew who

  the killer was and tried to pin it on me.”

  “I don’t believe the Connors would be involved with

  such a horrific act. But only time will tell.” He paused and

  looked into Adelyn’s worried eyes. “I don’t think you are

  capable of killing them, but I do believe you are protecting

  someone who may have told you where their bodies were. Is

  this so?”

  “No.”

  “Are you sure you weren’t threatened by anyone if you

  told us? Perhaps they said they’d kill you or harm your

  family?”

  Adelyn knew where he was going with all the trick

  questions. “No.”

  Detective Able wrote something down. “Were you

  diagnosed with having any mental health issues?”

  Adelyn giggled. “No, I would think my dad would’ve

  told you that by now.”

  “You’d be surprised what a parent will go through to

  protect their child.”

  Adelyn glared his way. “My dad would never lie about

  something like that. And I don’t have a mental illness. I’m as

  normal as they come.” She tried to keep a straight face,

  knowing that wasn’t true, and looked away.

  Detective Able exhaled and set the pen beside the

  notepad. “Calm down, Adelyn. I ha
ve to ask these questions

  to rule you out.”

  “Rule me out? Do I look like someone who would kill

  four people?”

  Detective Abel’s eyes widened. “The woman that tossed

  her kids off of Broom Mountain a few years back, and

  blamed it on a mythical witch, didn’t look like she’d harm a

  fly. But she did much worse than that. I’m sure you

  remember her. It was all over the news.”

  Adelyn remembered who he was talking about and

  rolled her eyes, not like being compared to a murderer.

  “My point is, Miss Mae, no one can be ruled out until

  the case is solved.”

  “Do you really think I told the Connors that?”

  Detective Able looked down at the table. “Yes, I do.”

  “What?”

  “I’m sorry. I have no choice but to arrest you.”

  Adelyn’s mind went blank, and flashes of the detective

  burying a girl with a blue ripped dress, next to a large rock

  and a familiar oak tree, came into focus. Her face contorted

  with rage. She slammed her fist on the table, then jerked

  forward—inches from his face. “If you dare to arrest me,”

  she said in a Romanian woman’s voice from her head, “I will

  tell everyone about how you raped your younger sister when

  you were a teen, then how you dismembered her body with

  your daddy’s ax.” Adelyn sat back down, grinning his way,

  snapped out of the trance, and cupped her trembling mouth,

  knowing where his sister’s body was buried up on Spell

  Mountain.

  Detective Able quickly stood. “How do you know that

  information?” he said in a hushed tone. “I only told one

  person, and that someone died a few years before you were

  ever born.”

  Adelyn’s tears fell down her face as she stared at him in

  horror. She didn’t know what to say and feared he would kill

  her.

  “Are you going to tell me, or am I going to have to find

  out the way I know best?”

  Adelyn gulped and ignored him—sure he was about to

  shoot her right where she sat.

  Detective Abel grabbed the notepad with his shaky

  hand. “You’re free to go, Miss Mae. Tell no one, or I will kill

  your entire family.” He stormed out the door without

  looking back.

  Adelyn cried hysterically. Her stomach churned,

  imagining the detective killing her family, and she puked

  onto the floor.

  Dad walked back in. “Adelyn, are you okay?” He rushed

  over to her standing over her vomit.

  She glanced up at him, wanting to tell him, but she

  feared he would lock her up. “Yes, I guess my nerves are shot

  from being scared. Do you have something to clean this up?”

  “Don’t worry about it.” Dad rubbed her back and

  walked her out to his truck. He got in and handed her a

  tissue. “Are you sure you’re okay? You looked scared out of

  your mind.”

  Adelyn wanted to tell him what she found out about

  Detective Able killing his sister and where her body was, but

  she didn’t want him asking her how she found out. She knew

  Dad wouldn’t believe her, and she didn’t want the detective

  killing her family. She nodded. “Yeah, I’m good now.”

  Dad took off back toward the school. “I think you

  should take off the rest of the day. You’re under a lot of

  stress.”

  Adelyn didn’t want to be alone. “No, I’m fine now.

  Really.”

  Dad sighed. “I’m sorry for having you go through that.

  But you know it’s my job. If I didn’t get you in time, another

  cop would’ve, and who knows how they would’ve treated

  you. These cops aren’t like they used to be.”

  “I know. Did you speak to Detective Able after he saw

  me?”

  “Yeah, he told me you were free to go.”

  “That’s it?”

  “Yeah, he seemed like he was in a rush.”

  Adelyn looked out the window in silence, wondering

  what the detective was up to until Dad dropped her off just

  in time for lunch.

  Inside, Adelyn walked down the busy hall like a lost

  puppy and went into the cafeteria, where she got her lunch

  tray and found a seat. She did her best to act normal, but she

  was sure it was written all over her worried face.

  Nellie sat next to her. “Hey, why weren’t you in class

  earlier?”

  Adelyn wanted to tell her what happened, but she knew

  Nellie was known for telling everyone’s secrets. “I had to go

  to the dentist for a tooth that’s been hurting me.”

  “Oh, that sucks.” Nellie was about to eat, and she smiled

  at someone from across the cafeteria. “You won’t get mad if

  I go sit with Bradley, will ya?”

  “No,” Adelyn lied, not wanting her to leave. She needed

  her friends more than she’d ever needed them.

  Nellie got up. “See ya later.”

  Adelyn forced a smile. “Bye.”

  As Adelyn watched Nellie walk away, someone grabbed

  her shoulders. “Hey, there,” Marissa said.

  Adelyn turned around to Marissa laughing. “Not

  funny.”

  Marissa sat next to her. “Have you been crying?”

  Adelyn shook her head.

  “I know you have, so tell me what’s going on. Plus, you

  freaked out and you were gone half the day, so confess.”

  Adelyn hesitated, then leaned across the table. “If I tell

  you something, will you promise me you won’t tell a soul?”

  Marissa shot her a smirk. “Did I ever tell anyone about

  when you made out with Brand—”

  “Whoa.” Adelyn placed her finger up to her lips,

  silencing her. “Okay. I believe you.” She lowered her finger.

  “Brandon was hot,” Marissa whispered. “You should’ve

  dated him.”

  “His breath smelled like a dumpster.”

  Marissa shook her head, smiling. “I would’ve bought

  him a pack of mint gum.”

  Adelyn managed to laugh. “You would.”

  “Kidding. So, what’s going on?”

  Adelyn told her about what happened at her job and

  how she had to see the detective, but she wasn’t about to tell

  her about what she knew.

  “Damn, that’s crazy. Weren’t you scared?”

  “Um, yeah, I was freaking out. I thought he was going

  to arrest me.”

  “I can’t believe them fucks said you told them. That’s

  beyond crazy.”

  “I know.”

  “Well, at least the detective believed you, and you’re not

  going to prison.” She paused. “His last name sounds familiar.

  Isn’t that the same detective whose sister went missing when

  he was younger?”

  Adelyn looked down. “I don’t know anything about

  that. Why … what happened?”

  “I read that she got lost in the mountains and died. They

  just haven’t found her bones yet.”

  “What do you think really happened to her?”

  Marissa leaned into the table. “I think it was her dad

  who killed her and that’s why her brother became a detective.

  He wanted to open the case again so he
could figure out what

  really happened to her.”

  Adelyn wanted to tell her the truth, but she knew her

  life would be at risk. “Yeah, you’re probably right.” She

  picked at her sandwich, not hungry, and took a sip of her

  water. “What was her name?”

  Marissa thought about it. “Beth, I think. Yeah, it was

  Beth. She has the same name as my aunt.”

  “Oh.” Adelyn went silent.

  “Why are you so sad?”

  “Everything’s been off with me since I came back from

  vacation.”

  “No, you haven’t been acting right since your accident.”

  Adelyn touched her chin, remembering the minor

  accident they got into after they left a party up on Broom

  Mountain. It was a monthly gathering, Marissa begged her to

  go to because of a boy she liked. Adelyn hated having to sit

  around a blazing firepit with a bunch of kids trying to

  summon Sula, but she did it for Marissa.

  Adelyn stopped thinking about that horrible day and

  glanced at Jake, who was talking to one of his friends. She

  wished she was as happy as he seemed to be. “Do you want

  to come over and hang out for a little bit after school?”

  “I can’t. I have to go to work. Do you want to follow

  me and hang out while I make tons of coffee?”

  “Nah, I’m tired and still freaked out about what

  happened. And I’m backed up on school work. I feel like I

  will never get caught up.”

  Marissa took a bite of her chicken finger. “Ask Keven

  to do it for you. He’s cheap.”

  “No. He got too many people F’s before. I’ll do my own

  homework, but thanks.”

  As Marissa finished her lunch, Adelyn thought about

  what happened to her at the police station. She wanted to

  run and hide, but she didn’t want anyone to notice anything

  wrong with her, so she sucked it up and kept a straight face

  for the rest of the day.

  After school, Adelyn went straight home and spoke to

  her mom about what had happened. Mom wouldn’t stop

  hugging her, glad she wasn’t a suspect.

  Adelyn went to her room and picked the mirror up from

  the end table. She lay in bed under the blankets and stared

  into it. “What is happening to me?”

  She got a sudden itch on the back of her head and