by Raven Snow
Rose frowned. She glanced over her shoulder, looking torn. “Fine,” she relented. It wasn’t like Ben would want her to sit out here and wait indefinitely. He would no doubt prefer it if she went home.
***
“Well, this night was more exciting than I had expected,” Eric said as he drove.
“I think it was more exciting than everyone expected,” said Rowen. She looked up at the rearview mirror and caught a glimpse of Rose staring out the window pensively. “You okay back there?”
“Yeah,” said Rose, with a sigh so mournful it couldn’t possibly be true. She wasn’t okay. “I just hate the idea of getting involved in all this.”
“I thought you didn’t like this woman who got murdered?” asked Eric.
“I didn’t like her, but that doesn’t mean I wanted her dead!”
“Of course. I just meant that… You’ve covered a lot of murders with your paper. You don’t typically handle them like this. No offense.”
Rose opened her mouth to say something but closed it again. She gave another sigh. “I guess you’re right. I just… This case is making me more uncomfortable than usual. I really don’t want to deal with all this… high school nonsense.”
Ah. There it was. It all made sense to Rowen now. “I’m right there with you,” she assured her cousin. “I’ve left grocery store aisles just to avoid old classmates. I can’t imagine what going out of my way to interview them is going to feel like.”
“Is that why you didn’t get me pretzels?” asked Eric. “An old classmate is in the aisle?”
“No, Honey. I just don’t like buying them for you. You never eat more than a handful and the rest go stale.”
Eric might have said something in response to that, but Rose beat him to a reply. “I’m not looking forward to searching out people from high school.”
“Don’t worry,” said Rowen. “If tonight was any indication, I have a feeling they’ll seek us out.”
Chapter Four
Rowen didn’t wake up quite as early as she had meant to. Rose had told Willow to be there at nine. It stood to reason that Rowen would be expected to arrive at about the same time, if not slightly earlier. Unfortunately, Rowen hadn’t made it very far past the couch after arriving home. She had kicked off her heels and shimmied out of her dress. She ate a dinner of leftover spaghetti in her underwear, the throw blanket from the sofa thrown over her shoulders. Together with Eric, she had watched a hokey ghost hunting show. The last thing she remembered before waking up the next morning was putting her empty plate on the coffee table and leaning against Eric while they finished watching an episode.
Rowen woke up with her phone buzzing and light from between the closed blinds hitting her eyes. Eric was still snoring softly, as was their old dog Chester. Chester had curled up happily right beneath them.
Rowen groped for her phone, but it had already finished ringing before she could grab it. With a yawn, she sat up, waking slowly. It took a little while for her to piece together exactly what she was doing sleeping downstairs with her husband, dressed in only her underwear. When it finally hit her, it hit like a slap to the face.
“Oh!” she exclaimed, both waking and simultaneously startling Eric and Chester.
“What?” asked Eric, looking around wildly. Chester was on his feet, spinning in circles. He growled, though he clearly didn’t know where or at what he was supposed to be growling.
Rowen snatched her phone. Sure enough, she had a few missed calls from Rose. It was fifteen past ten already. “We slept in,” she said, miserably. She touched the screen to call Rose back.
“You slept in maybe,” Eric reclined back with a yawn. He groaned. “Wish I hadn’t fallen asleep on the sofa. My back is killing me.”
“Where are you?” asked Rose on the other end of the line.
“Sorry,” Rowen said, meaning it. “I got in last night and apparently fell asleep on the sofa. Just give me a few minutes. I’ll throw on some clothes and head that way.” Rowen started to hang up, but Rose stopped her.
“I actually need you somewhere else,” Rose said, speaking slowly, like she normally did when she was asking someone to do something out of the ordinary.
“What?” Rowen wasn’t sure that she wanted to know. She wouldn’t be able to refuse Rose. She had trouble refusing her family of much, especially Rose. Rose asked for so few favors as it was. Besides, the paper had been Rowen’s idea.
“Jessi has a support group going.”
“A support group?” Rowen repeated, not really able to find the right context for the word before the next part confused her further. “Jessi? As in the Jessi who was hosting last night’s reunion?”
“That’s the one,” Rose confirmed. “She’s started some kind of memorial or support group. I’m honestly not sure which it is. It’s taking place on the football field. The police are still investigating things in the auditorium, but Lainswich High let Jessi use the football field for… whatever it is she’s doing.”
“That seems fast.”
“Yeah, and people are actually showing up from the sound of it. Channel 2 is already there. I sent Benji and Peony, but I’d like you there too. Maybe you can talk to some people and keep Benji and Peony on task.”
“Leave it to me.” Rowen said her goodbyes and hung up. “Time to get to work,” she announced with a sigh.
Eric sat up on the sofa. “Where are you going?” he asked, already reaching for his pants.
“Lainswich High.”
“I thought that was a crime scene.”
“The football field isn’t. Apparently, they’re having some sort of memorial… or support group. I don’t know. Rose wasn’t sure which. It’s probably just a bunch of traumatized people and attention seekers pretending to be traumatized.”
“Oh.” Eric dropped his pants and flopped back down on the sofa.
“Oh?” Rowen put her hands on her hips as she looked down at her husband. “Don’t want to come with me anymore all of a sudden?”
“I’m pretty sure you’ll be perfectly safe on your own on a football field.” He yawned and turned his back to her. “I’m gonna get a little more sleep.”
Rowen gave a little huff but didn’t argue with him. Truth be told, she would probably do the same if she was in his shoes. Geez did she want just a few more hours of sleep right about now.
***
The drive wasn’t long, at least. That was lucky. Rowen didn’t feel like she should be driving. She stopped halfway there and got herself a coffee. That helped a little. She was somewhat more alert by the time she parked outside the school.
There were a lot of cars there already, more than Rowen had expected. She could see Channel 2’s van. Rowen took her phone from her purse as she got out of her car and dialed Peony.
“Hey,” answered Peony, stifling a yawn when she spoke. “Where are you?”
“I’m in the parking lot. I’m headed for the field now. Where are you guys?”
“You’ll see us,” Peony assured her before hanging up.
Sure enough, it was easy to spot where everyone was. It wasn’t as crowded as it had been last night, though there were quite a few people all gathered in the bleachers. A bunch of flowers had been arranged on the field. Rowen had to pass them on her way to where all the people were. She paused to look at what had been arranged. There were tons of flowers— roses, baby’s breath, lilies. There were a few big arrangements that must have cost a small fortune. Rowen suddenly felt guilty that she hadn’t stopped by a supermarket to buy even just a small, cheap bouquet or something. It felt like all the eyes in the bleachers were on her as she stood there in front of their makeshift memorial.
Rowen knelt down with her back to everyone, like she was paying her respects. She moved her purse in front of herself. Maybe they would think she was taking something from it, some token of respect. Rowen riffled around in her purse for show as she took in some of the pictures on display. There were tons of pictures people had printed out or brou
ght from home. Most of them were from high school. There were club photos and candids from the hallways. A few other pictures showed Teaghan as an adult. Trish and Tilda were with her mostly. There were pictures of them in bathing suits at a sandy beach. There were pictures of them in the mountains with skis. There were even a couple of pictures of what looked to be them skydiving. Dave was in some of the pictures but not all.
It looked like Teaghan had lived quite the eventful and exciting life. She clearly had the funds to strike things off her bucket list left and right. Rowen couldn’t help but feel a little resentful even if she was dead. It didn’t seem right that someone so mean back in high school could have been so happy and so mourned by her former classmates when she passed. Rowen kind of hated her for it.
Pushing all those cruel feelings she was having down, Rowen put her purse back on her shoulder. She stood and headed for the bleachers. Jessi was standing out in front of them, on the sidelines. It was where she must have stood back when she was a cheerleader. She looked at home there, and her voice was good at carrying. She turned when Rowen came nearer. There was a smile on her face, but it looked forced. Rowen couldn’t help but note how Jessi’s eyes moved over her outfit. Rowen had thrown on a sky-blue blouse and jeans that had seen better days. Most everyone else had dressed more somberly. Rowen hadn’t gotten the memo that she was supposed to be in mourning. How had all these people coordinated their outfits? Most everyone was wearing muted colors. Even Peony with her purple hair was wearing a gray top and black skirt. It was fashionably ruffled at her knees, but it still looked to be in better taste than Rowen’s outfit.
Benji, at least, looked out of place. Camera on his shoulder, he was wearing ripped blue jeans and a shirt with some kind of band logo on it or something. They were standing a few rows up from the couple of dozen or so folks crowded at the bottom, nearest Jessi. Channel 2 was up in the bleachers as well. Julia Martinez was dressed in a smart, black business suit. She was speaking quietly with Benji. He had worked for both Channel 2 and the Lainswich Inquirer in the past. There was a good chance he was supplying them both with footage today.
“You can take a seat up with the others if you’d like to,” said Jessi, startling Rowen from the temporary daze she’d been in as she paused to study the crowd. It was clear from her clipped tone that she thought Rowen was being a distraction. She wanted her to take a seat.
“Yeah,” Rowen blurted quickly. She was still incredibly sleepy. It was hard to convincingly function as a human being. All these people had, presumably, been up nearly as late as Rowen. How on Earth were they managing it?
Rowen took the loud, aluminum stairs up to the bleachers. All eyes were on her, waiting for her to take a seat. Rowen made a diagonal line for Peony and Benji instead of going up the stairs and to the right. The diagonal path she took meant stepping on the bleachers themselves, which was even louder than walking up the steps had been. She inwardly cringed and did her best to move quickly and make zero eye contact.
“Smooth,” Julia Martinez whispered when Rowen was near enough to hear.
“Shut up,” Rowen whispered back. She moved to Peony. “What did I miss?”
“Not much,” Peony said with another yawn and a shrug. “They’re just kind of having, like, another mini school reunion or something. They’re swapping stories about Teaghan, and Jessi is leading them in it. I dunno. It’s sort of nice, I guess.”
“Does anyone else have any stories about Romeo and Juliet?” Jessi asked, scanning the crowd. A few hands went up.
Teaghan had played Juliet in their senior year. She hadn’t been one of those weird drama kids or anything. The school had campaigned for her and Dave to take the lead when they heard about the show. They thought it would be cute since the two would definitely be prom king and queen. The principal must have figured it would sell a bunch of tickets, because he forced the drama teacher’s hand. Rowen knew he’d forced her hand, because if there was one thing their sad little drama department had been good at, it was being overly dramatic.
Rowen wasn’t sure if a play featuring the people the drama teacher always cast as her leads would have been better, but she knew that Teaghan and Dave hadn’t been good. They’d made her watch a video recording of it in Lit class. Neither Teaghan nor Dave had even bothered to learn their lines. They just carried their scripts around with them, the house lights part way up so they could better determine what came next.
A woman with her hair in a bob was chosen by Jessi to launch into a story. To Rowen’s right, Julia gave a little groan. Rowen looked over to spot her typing away on her phone discreetly. She glanced up, probably feeling Rowen’s eyes on her. “I’ve heard the same story from three different perspectives now. This is all such… wholesome… fluff… garbage.”
“Why are you here then?” Rowen wasn’t surprised by Julia’s rather cruel, candid nature. She wasn’t about to do an exposé on what the woman was really like or anything. Julia might like to throw the Greensmith family under the bus when it helped ratings, but Rowen didn’t feel comfortable doing the same. Honestly, she was mostly surprised by Julia’s presence here altogether.
“I’m hoping to hear something about the crime scene.” Julia motioned in the direction of the nearby auditorium. “I’ve got a couple of sound guys trying to listen in and see if they can pick anything up. That’s where all the news is, in the auditorium. I’m just biding my time here until something happens.” She lowered her phone. “Coffee?”
“Yes, please.” Rowen had brought her cup from the car, but it was mostly empty. Julia picked up a thermos and poured a generous amount of dark, steaming liquid into the cup Rowen held out to her.
“Careful,” Julia warned. “It’s hot.” Rowen took her first slow sip and immediately broke into a fit of coughing. “It’s strong too,” Julia added with a small smirk. People were glaring back at Rowen again. That was when Rowen noticed Tina.
Tina was seated on one of the lower rows but a few feet apart from the others. She was wearing a black skirt and a blouse with a floral print. She had a tissue balled up in her hands. When she looked back at the others, it didn’t seem to be Rowen she was focused on. She was looking at Peony. The space under her nose was red like she had rubbed at it a lot.
“What’s that about?” Rowen asked Peony after Tina had turned back around.
“She has mixed feelings about this,” said Peony. It sounded like she was being purposely vague. “You know she and Teaghan and Trish and Tilda were all good friends growing up. Obviously, those girls weren’t too nice to us, and now she’s friends with me, so…” Peony spread her hands. It sounded like there was more to be said there, but she held her tongue. It was probably for the best with Julia nearby.
***
The daylight vigil Jessi was holding went on for quite some time. Rowen zoned in and out, finding herself more and more sympathetic with Peony and Benji as time went on. Surely people from their graduating class had died before. None of them had been given something like this. Granted, that may have been because none of them had dropped from the ceiling in the middle of a school reunion. This was probably about dealing with some lingering trauma as much as it was remembering Teaghan.
Julia perked up abruptly, startling Rowen from her daydreaming. She grabbed her purse as if ready to leave. “Where are you going?” asked Rowen.
“The police are leaving the scene of the crime,” she said, shouldering her purse. “I’ve got to go.” She headed down the bleachers, paying no mind to how loud it was.
Rowen wasn’t about to let her have the story all to herself. She nudged Benji. “Come on,” she urged, going after Julia.
Benji hesitated but then followed. Everyone sitting in the bleachers quieted and looked in Rowen’s direction. She tried to ignore them as she hurried to stay at Julia’s heels.
Sure enough, the police were filing out of the auditorium. Yellow tape was being taken down. Rowen saw what looked to be a forensics team getting into a van. Police were heading
to their respective patrol cars. Ben stood out front with a man Rowen recognized as a detective. They were speaking to one another in low voices. Ben was leaning heavily against his cane. He looked up when he noticed the cameras.
Julia had another camera man that had been ready to go in the van. Julia was in front of him, a microphone in her hand. She was already rambling off facts about the case like she had a script in front of her. She really was good at her job, even if she could be an insensitive jerk.
Rowen motioned for Benji to get some footage as well, though she wasn’t about to jump in front of the camera. She wasn’t a reporter. The Lainswich Inquirer didn’t handle their news like Channel 2 did.
Julia finished her spiel and began to approach Ben for a comment. “We’ll be releasing a statement later today,” Ben said loudly, before she could get too close. He made eye contact with Rowen after speaking. He wanted a word with her. Rowen could tell.
Rowen timed her approach to Ben. She waited for Julia and her camera man to retreat to their news van before going to him. She left Benji behind. Given the sort of things he had asked of her before, she seriously doubted that he wanted to speak with her in a journalistic capacity. She was right.
“Rowen,” Ben began, nodding at her with a degree of formality that he didn’t generally use. “This is Detective Sutton.” He motioned to the police detective at his side.
“Nice to meet you.” Rowen extended a hand. While she had seen him around, she had never been formally introduced until now.
Sutton regarded Rowen’s hand for a little too long. He didn’t want to shake it, Rowen could tell. She wondered if he didn’t like her family personally or if he was worried that being seen even shaking the hand of a Greensmith might put him in bad standing with his fellow officers. He did shake her hand, however. “Likewise,” he said, giving her hand one firm pump before releasing it.
“Sutton is going to walk you through the crime scene,” said Ben.
That surprised Rowen a little. She looked at Ben. “You’re going to let me do that before you give a press release? Do you need me to sign anything?”
