The Killer Next Door: A Murder Mystery

by Nicholas Jordan

  She could do that as long as Greg remained asleep. And if he didn’t, well, then she was screwed either way. At that point, all she could do was get out of the house in a hurry.

  She could only hope that it didn’t come to that.

  Moving on from the master bedroom, Kaylee made her way to the office and went in there to have a look around. She went to the desk and opened each of the drawers, rifling around inside, but finding nothing out of the ordinary. Just receipts, bank statements, house listings, and lots of other papers related to Claudia’s real estate business, which meant that this must have been her office, and it also appeared to be a dead end.

  She was about to turn away and leave the room when something on the desk caught her eye. She looked down to make sure that she saw what she thought she saw.

  Sure enough, there it was.

  Divorce papers. Sitting right atop a pile of other papers.

  This was it. This was what she was looking for. It proved that Greg had a motive. His wife must have either known, or at least suspected, that he was cheating on her, so he killed her before she had a chance to leave him.

  Taking her phone out of her pocket, Kaylee snapped a picture of the papers. Then stuffed the phone back in her pocket and returned to the hall. Feeling like she had everything that she needed, she started towards the stairs. But stopped when her eyes were drawn to the lone closed door upstairs.

  What could be behind that door?

  Only one way to find out.

  She crept over to the door and then reached out to grasp the doorknob. Pushed the door open. There was another bedroom on the other side, but this one was very different.

  The walls were painted pink rather than off-white like every other room in the house, and also unlike the rest of the house, the furnishings didn’t look like they were straight out of a home décor catalog. There was character in this room. Like someone clearly lived in here rather than just set it up to look nice. Kaylee didn’t have to think hard to figure out who that person was.

  This had to be Emma’s room.

  The stuffed animals on the end of the bed, the colorful bedspread, the Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande posters on the walls, and the framed pictures of Emma and her friends on the nightstand.

  Pictures of her friends.

  Kaylee couldn’t take her eyes off those pictures as she moved into the room. She stopped right in front of the nightstand. Picked up one of those pictures and wiped away the layer of dust that coated it with her thumbs.

  The picture was of Emma—maybe twelve or thirteen—sitting on a swing set with another girl around her age. A girl that Kaylee recognized.

  Mia . . . you lied to me.

  Kaylee looked down at the other pictures. They were almost all of Emma and Mia. Arms around each other’s shoulders. Laughing. Smiling. Not just friends. They looked like best friends.

  Why wasn’t Mia honest with her? Why pretend like they barely even knew each other when they were obviously close friends?

  Kaylee planned to have a word with Mia and find out.

  She removed the photo from the frame and then stuffed it in her pocket before setting the frame back down on the nightstand. Then turned and started towards the door.

  But then she heard it. A sound that would normally be nothing than a dull thud sounded like an impossibly loud crash.

  Her feet freezing in place, she looked over her shoulder and saw that the picture frame had fallen off the nightstand and on to the floor.

  Her heart thumping in her chest, so loud that she could hear it as if it were beating right behind her eardrums, Kaylee glanced out the door, hoping—praying—that Greg had not heard it.

  But it took only a few seconds to figure out that her prayers had gone unanswered.

  Someone was coming.

  It had to be Greg.

  No way could Eric get up here so quickly, and he wouldn’t be making so much noise either. With no time to escape the room—Greg was already in the hall—Kaylee had only a matter of seconds to find somewhere to hide.

  Her eyes scanned every inch of the room before settling on the bed. It was her only option. She got down on the floor and then crawled underneath. Just a fraction of a second before the light in the bedroom was turned on.

  Kaylee didn’t move. Placed a hand over her mouth to try and keep her breathing from—hopefully—being heard. In fact, she tried to breathe as little as possible.

  She saw Greg’s feet from underneath the bed. Saw him slowly stalk across the room. Stopped right in front of the picture frame on the floor. He was going to kneel down and pick it up. She was sure of it. And when he did, it would give him a perfect chance to look under the bed and see her.

  It felt inevitable.

  She was about to be discovered at any moment.

  But then . . . a thud. From somewhere downstairs.

  Greg stood up straight again and rushed out of the room.

  Kaylee finally let out the breath that she’d been holding in. She had no idea what that sound was or who made it, and she didn’t care. It was her opportunity to get out of the room and she wasn’t going to let it go to waste.

  She crawled out from under the bed and scrambled to her feet. Going to the doorway, she took a peek in both directions, and since the coast looked clear, she left the room and made her way down the hall to the stairs, making an effort to make as little noise as possible, which was not so easy to do when she was also concerned with getting out of the house as quickly as possible.

  Reaching the foot of the stairs, she came to a halt when she spotted Greg. He was in the kitchen. His back to her. It looked like he was oblivious to her presence.

  But all he had to do was turn around.

  And she would be totally screwed.

  She thought for sure that he would do it too, but fortunately for her, he headed across the kitchen and disappeared out of sight.

  That gave Kaylee a clear path to the backdoor. If she hurried. But what about Eric? Where was he? She couldn’t exactly call out to him. And sticking around to wait for him was an equally terrible idea. It seemed her only option was to get out and hope that he could find his own way out as well, if he hadn’t already.

  Kaylee turned left at the foot of the stairs and started down the hall towards the backdoor. With freedom so close, she had to resist the urge to speed up. As badly as she wanted to escape the house, she couldn’t let Greg hear her. If that happened, she might not get out at all.

  When she was about ten feet from the door, she was really starting to feel hopeful about her chances of making it out of this.

  But that optimism was erased in a heartbeat when an arm wrapped around her waist at the same time as a hand covered her mouth, stifling the scream that wanted to come out before it even had a chance.

  19

  SHE HAD BEEN SO CLOSE. So close to making it out. And now it looked like it had all been for nothing. Greg had her wrapped up in his arms. She was an intruder in his house, and she was sure that he would call the cops.

  But that didn’t mean she had to accept her fate.

  She thrashed around. Greg was stronger than her, but she wasn’t about to make it easy on him. There was still a chance that she could free herself, and since he was behind her, he might not have seen her face.

  But she had only just begun to fight against him when she heard a voice hiss in her ear.

  “Kaylee, stop, it’s me.”

  “Eric,” Kaylee gasped. “I was worried about you. Greg’s awake. He’s down here somewhere.”

  “I know.” He let go of her. “I’m the one who distracted him, but he’s coming this way. Follow me, and don’t make a sound.”

  Taking her hand, Eric led her back towards the stairs. Where exactly was he taking her? She couldn’t ask. She had to keep quiet. Had to trust him.

  They were about to walk around the front of the staircase when Kaylee heard footsteps in the kitchen. Greg was heading this way again.

  Her grip on Eric’s hand ti
ghtening to the point where it wouldn’t shock her if she was hurting him, she stopped in her tracks. She wanted to say something. To warn him. But was too afraid to even utter a peep. Had Eric noticed that Greg was coming?

  She got her answer when he tugged on her arm, dragging her backwards and then pressing her back up against the side of the staircase. He flattened himself against stairs right beside her. Then looked at her and held a finger up to his lips.

  Kaylee nodded. Her heart raced. Her body trembled. They were out of sight. But how long would that last?

  It felt like it was only a matter of time before he saw them. She could hear his bare feet on the tile floor. Step by step. Closing in by the second.

  But then they stopped.

  He stopped.

  Despite knowing how close he had to be, Kaylee did something she knew she shouldn’t. She took a peek.

  And she saw him.

  But he wasn’t looking at her. He was looking out a window, probably looking to see if there was anyone in the front yard. And he was holding a golf club in one hand.

  Only then did it dawn on her that being reported to the cops wasn’t the worst possible outcome. Greg might have killed his wife after all. And if he could do that, then she didn’t doubt for a second that he’d be willing to do the same to them.

  Just then, Greg turned around.

  Kaylee looked away again and pressed her back against the wall. Then waited. Hearing his footsteps again as he drew closer.

  She expected to see him come around the corner, but instead she heard his feet on the stairs. He was going back upstairs. Did that mean it was finally safe?

  Seconds passed.

  Kaylee chewed her lip. But she didn’t move. She waited for Eric to say something.

  “Come on,” he spoke up at last, “let’s get out of here.”

  Kaylee didn’t have to be told twice. Still holding his hand, she allowed him to lead her to the back door again. He let her out first before following and shutting the door behind them quietly.

  But would it be quiet enough?

  It was hard to say now that Greg was awake. It was possible that he heard them leave the house, but Kaylee wasn’t interested in sticking around to find out.

  She and Eric scurried across the yard until they reached the wall. Eric let go of her hand, and then placed his hands on her waist.

  “Go ahead. I’ll give you a boost.”

  Kaylee jumped—with a little help from Eric—and grabbed the top of the wall before hauling herself up and over. As soon as her feet touched down on the other side, she looked up.

  “Eric, come on.”

  A moment later, he vaulted over the wall and dropped down right beside her. But lost his balance when his feet hit the ground and fell over backwards. Kaylee tried to grab him and keep him on his feet, but that only led to her falling over as well.

  And landing right atop of him.

  Their faces only inches apart. They stared into each other’s eyes. His warm breath on her face. Her hand on his chest, she felt his heart beating almost in time with her own, and both were thumping away rapidly.

  “You okay?” he asked, ending the silence between them.

  “Fine. You?”

  “I’m good.” A smile teased the corners of his lips. “That was pretty close back there, huh?”

  “Yeah . . .”

  Kaylee’s eyes drifted from his eyes down to his lips. Lips that she badly wanted to kiss. But this was probably not the best time or place.

  She cleared her throat and got off of him. Sat down with her back against the wall. Tucked her hair behind her ears.

  “Something wrong?” Eric asked as he sat up.

  She shook her head. “No, but I think I should probably go home.”

  “Are you sure?”

  She looked at him and that strong urge to kiss him returned in an instant. But she resisted for a second time. “Yeah. If my mom wakes up and I’m not there, she’ll freak out for sure. Thanks by the way.”

  “Thanks for what?”

  “For helping me. I mean, I don’t think anyone else would have. I didn’t even have to ask. You offered.”

  “Don’t mention it.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I would feel a lot better if we actually found anything useful, though.”

  “Actually, I did find something.”

  “You did?”

  “Yeah.” Kaylee took her phone out of her pocket and brought up the picture she took. Then handed the phone over to him. “Take a look at this.”

  Eric studied the picture for a moment. His eyes grew wide. “Is that what I think it is?”

  ”Yeah. Divorce papers. And if Greg knew his wife wanted to leave him—and I’m sure he did—then we know why he killed her.”

  “Are you going to show this to the cops?”

  “Definitely. It’s not all that I found either.”

  “Really? What else?”

  “Here.” Kaylee took out the photo she found in Emma’s bedroom and held it up. “Take a look.”

  Eric shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t get it. What’s the big deal?”

  “It’s a picture of Emma and Mia together.”

  “I can see that. What about it?”

  “Look at them. It’s like they’re best friends. And this wasn’t the only picture like this either. There were tons more in Emma’s room.”

  “I’m not surprised. Everyone knows they were best friends.”

  Kaylee tilted her head and brought her eyebrows together. “What do you mean?”

  “I mean they were pretty much inseparable since, like, eighth grade.”

  “Really?”

  “Yeah. Didn’t Mia tell you that?”

  “No. She didn’t. In fact, she made it sound like they barely even knew each other.”

  “Seriously? Why the hell would she say that?”

  “I don’t know.” Kaylee stuffed the photo in her pocket again. “But I’m going to find out.”

  ***

  Ringing the doorbell, Kaylee stuffed her hands in her pockets and chewed her bottom lip while waiting on the porch.

  What exactly was she going to say?

  She didn’t have long to figure it out.

  The door was opened after only about ten seconds and a woman appeared in the doorway. She looked like she had spent as much money on her wardrobe as she did on making her body look like it was ten years younger. She held a glass of wine in her hand and the smile she wore vanished the instant she saw Kaylee.

  “Oh, you must be one of Mia’s friends.” The woman sighed. “She’s up in her room, but I have friends ever so I can’t allow you in the house. Stay here and I’ll let Mia know that you’re here.”

  “Um, okay . . .” Kaylee said, not sure how else to respond to that.

  The woman—who had to be Mia’s mother—retreated back inside the house and shut the door, leaving Kaylee to stand there and wonder if she would actually tell Mia or if she simply said it to get rid of her.

  At least it gave her a little more time to think. She had the photograph that she took from Emma’s room in her pocket, and she had every intention of showing it to Mia and asking for the truth, but how exactly was she supposed to broach the subject?

  It bothered her that she even had to do this. She was really starting to think of Mia as a friend, but now she wasn’t sure what to think. The fact that Mia lied to her—and it was not a small lie either—was not something she could just ignore.

  It wasn’t long before the door opened again, and this time it was Mia.

  “Hey.” Her lips curled to form a smile. “What’s up?”

  “I just wanted to talk to you,” Kaylee said. “Is that alright?”

  “Yeah, of course, but you should have called or text me first.” Mia stepped out on to the porch and closed the door behind her. “It’s easier than having to deal with my stupid mom. Anyway, what do you want to talk about?”

  “It’s actually about Emma Henderson.”

  “Em
ma? Why do you want to talk about her?”

  “Well, I just thought you might be able to shed some light on a few questions I have about her.”

  “Why me? Like I told you before, I didn’t really know her that well.”

  “Hmm really? Because that’s not what Eric told me. He seems to remember the two of you being really good friends. Maybe even best friends.”

  Mia’s smile faded. “Well, he’s obviously making that up. I mean, he was freaking obsessed with her, so he’s probably just trying to make himself look better. Or maybe he’s obsessed with you now, and he’s trying to turn you against me.”

  “I’m not so sure about that.” Kaylee was starting to get annoyed. She knew Mia was lying to her, and the fact that she wouldn’t just admit it only pissed her off more. “To be honest with you, I think I believe Eric.”

  “Seriously? Don’t you think I would know whether or not I was friends with Emma?”

  “Yes, you would.” Kaylee reached into her back pocket and extracted the picture before holding it out so Mia could see it. “If you were telling the truth that is.”

  “What is that?”

  “You tell me.”

  Mia snapped the photo away and took a look at it. Her lips parted and her eyes widened. She spoke up without looking up from the photograph.

  “Where did you get this?”

  “That doesn’t matter. What matters is that you lied to me, Mia. Why did you pretend like you and Emma weren’t friends?”

  “It’s not like that. We were friends, but those pictures were taken a long time ago. She’s the one who took them. She’s the one who thought we were besties or whatever. Not me. So let’s just drop this whole thing. Emma is dead now anyway, so why even talk about her?”

  “I can’t do that. I don’t know why you lied, but you did, and now I’m not sure how I’m supposed to believe anything you tell me.”

  “It wasn’t a lie. Sure, we were friends, but it’s not what you think. We weren’t, like, inseparable or anything.”