Blood on the Midnight Roses
TWO-The Loved One She Left Behind
Good morning, this is Quinn Hardwood for channel 7 news. The body of a teenage girl was found in the early hours of this morning. The girl, aged between 16 and 17, was discovered in the woods by a walker, battened and naked with three holes in her body. Our field reporter Guy Adams is at the scene. Guy do we know who the victim is?
Yes we do know Quinn, the police have identified the body just moments ago. The victim is Autumn Campbell, daughter of David Campbell who is the owner of the small-chain Crystal-Bell Hotel. Now it is unknown how and why Ms Campbell was killed or how her body got into the woods. But what we do know is that she is the fifth victim in a sting of strange deaths, in the last three months.
CALISTA POV-Three Days Later
“I’m so sorry Cali, I know how much she meant to you” she said, a friendly hand on my shoulder and a sympatric smile before walking to her small group of freshmen friends. I didn’t really know the girl, I didn’t really know most of the kids coming up to me and telling me that they’re sorry. But they all know me, or who they believe I am. They all knew her, or like to think that they did. However it’s not true, they didn’t truly knew her. I shake my head in both humour and disgust at the cards left outside her locker, the notes written in the message book at the school entrance and all the Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and other social media posts about how they knew her. Writing how she was such a nice girl, a great example to the student body, a perfect Christian. Only I knew the truth, the real Autumn Campbell. I was the only one who was allowed to see her true self. Under the wild red hair forced to hind in a messy bun, light make-up and her mother’s hand-me-down church dresses, was a lost and slowly becoming fucked-up girl. Only I knew of her many sins and I always believed that I could take them to the grave with me. If only it was that simple.
“Miss Arlington, the police would like to speak to you now” my headmaster, Mr Clifton voice pulls me out of my thoughts, reminding me of today. The police are here to question everyone, search Autumn’s locker, and find any clues to how and why this happened. I’ve been fearing it all day, knowing I’d have to spill secrets about her that not even her parents knew and most likely wouldn’t believe.
We walk down in silence the dead burn orange hallway, my eyes fixed to the dark olive floor. Mr Clifton never says a word to me, which I am glad for. He leaves me to think and all I can think about is her, and the last day I saw her. My mind goes back to moments of that Thursday; laughing like clowns in her cherry red pick-up truck, gossiping about our English teacher’s new nose job, eating and studying in the corner of the cafeteria. Those good times we shared, however the last wasn’t so joyful. The last thing she ever said to me still rings clear as a bell to me; “Fuck off Cali! I don’t have to listen to this shit! I’m going out and having fun and you can’t fucking stop me! You know what bitch, stay the fuck out of my life!”
Yes we do know Quinn, the police have identified the body just moments ago. The victim is Autumn Campbell, daughter of David Campbell who is the owner of the small-chain Crystal-Bell Hotel. Now it is unknown how and why Ms Campbell was killed or how her body got into the woods. But what we do know is that she is the fifth victim in a sting of strange deaths, in the last three months.
CALISTA POV-Three Days Later
“I’m so sorry Cali, I know how much she meant to you” she said, a friendly hand on my shoulder and a sympatric smile before walking to her small group of freshmen friends. I didn’t really know the girl, I didn’t really know most of the kids coming up to me and telling me that they’re sorry. But they all know me, or who they believe I am. They all knew her, or like to think that they did. However it’s not true, they didn’t truly knew her. I shake my head in both humour and disgust at the cards left outside her locker, the notes written in the message book at the school entrance and all the Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and other social media posts about how they knew her. Writing how she was such a nice girl, a great example to the student body, a perfect Christian. Only I knew the truth, the real Autumn Campbell. I was the only one who was allowed to see her true self. Under the wild red hair forced to hind in a messy bun, light make-up and her mother’s hand-me-down church dresses, was a lost and slowly becoming fucked-up girl. Only I knew of her many sins and I always believed that I could take them to the grave with me. If only it was that simple.
“Miss Arlington, the police would like to speak to you now” my headmaster, Mr Clifton voice pulls me out of my thoughts, reminding me of today. The police are here to question everyone, search Autumn’s locker, and find any clues to how and why this happened. I’ve been fearing it all day, knowing I’d have to spill secrets about her that not even her parents knew and most likely wouldn’t believe.
We walk down in silence the dead burn orange hallway, my eyes fixed to the dark olive floor. Mr Clifton never says a word to me, which I am glad for. He leaves me to think and all I can think about is her, and the last day I saw her. My mind goes back to moments of that Thursday; laughing like clowns in her cherry red pick-up truck, gossiping about our English teacher’s new nose job, eating and studying in the corner of the cafeteria. Those good times we shared, however the last wasn’t so joyful. The last thing she ever said to me still rings clear as a bell to me; “Fuck off Cali! I don’t have to listen to this shit! I’m going out and having fun and you can’t fucking stop me! You know what bitch, stay the fuck out of my life!”