Chapter Three:- Murderer

"The killer is the same person that murdered your parents years ago"

Audrey was dumbstruck as she stared at the screen non-stop. She could feel her heart ticking like a bomb while her brain refused to think at that moment.

The killer that murdered my parents years ago? They were closer to her than she expected. Why? Is this a warning for me to stop searching for him? Audrey's heart tightened the more she kept looking at the slitting mark on the neck.

Why did the killer let her live? "This is getting more serious, Audrey. You could have been dead... I mean, the killer is watching us closer than we think. This is dangerous" Claudia ranted out of concern, keeping the rest in deep thought.

"I agree with, Claudia. We need to get our hands off this investigation and leave everything to the police" Jonathan agreed.

Audrey remained silent. She didn't know what to say or how to react to what was going on. Withdrawing from this journey means that she has given up on her parents and that was something Audrey never wanted to do. 

"Listen, Audrey, you can't let your emotions get the better of you. You need to get a grip" Claudia tried convincing Audrey, but it wasn't working. Audrey's expression showed that she wasn't willing to give up even if it meant the death of her. 

"I'm not forcing you to say either. This is the reason for my existence and I'm not giving up. Many people are losing their loved ones because of those murderers and you expect me to give up so that more lives can be taken. No way! I can't!" Audrey stood up in annoyance.

"Audrey has a point, guys. We know how it is to lose someone we love deeply and we can't let others face the same pain. Remember, we vowed to stop those killers six years ago and we can't stop because we are scared " Wesley protested and Claudia sighed. 

Claudia knew what they were trying to say. Losing a dear one is like hanging between heaven and earth, where no one is willing to accept you. Claudia lost her senior sister when she was seven years old in a fire accident. The reason for the fire is still unknown because no one dug further to know the cause. 

Claudia's sister, Alicia was the only family that Claudia had at that very tender age. Her mother abandoned them for another man because she wasn't ready to be a mother. Since then, life has been cruel to Claudia because she had to live and cater for herself. 

"I'm staying" Claudia agreed to join them in the fight instead of being a coward. 

"Yeh!" Wesley exclaimed in excitement that his best friend was back in the hunting game.

"Now we are talking" Chelsea winked at Claudia. "Okay, since everyone's back in the game, I have something to share with you all," Chelsea said, making everyone interested in what she had to say. 

"The CCTV caught this hot guy ten minutes after the incident took place" Chelsea operated her system, and a dark picture of a man wearing sunglasses appeared on the screen.

"The incident took place 1:00 am this morning and this guy showed up here 15 minutes later" Chelsea informed, making everyone go into deep thoughts.

"We don't have any proof that he was at the crime scene. What about the CCTV footage at Audrey's apartment?" Claudia asked and Chelsea shook her head.

"I think the killer tampered with it. I can't retrieve anything from it" Chelsea said and Claudia hummed.

"Why is he wearing shades? Who wears shades under dark clouds" Wesley sarcastically said, making Chelsea laugh.

"Zoom the picture, Chelsea" Audrey stood up from her seat, looking closer into the screen. Chelsea did as she was told. She zoomed into the picture, trying to notice what Audrey was seeing.

"He's holding a flash drive" Audrey observed, pointing to the man's hand. 

"Ha, that's true" Claudia took a deeper look at the picture. "His leg! He is wearing nylons on his shoes" Claudia pointed and everyone looked at each other, supposing they were thinking the same thing.

"Don't jump to conclusions, guys. We can't say he is the killer without sufficient evidence" Prosecutor Jonathan reminded, making Chelsea and Claudia roll their eyes.

" We know, Prosecutor Jonathan! " Chelsea and Claudia said in a sinc.

"He looks young to be the killer. " Audrey said. "It's either he knows something or he is related to the killer. We need to find something or a link that connects him with the killer." Audrey bit her lip, racking her brain on what step to take next.

"Chelsea, is there any way we can find details about him or where he works... anything that can help? " Audrey asked and Chelsea immediately typed on her computer.

"Just a sec!" Immediately, a biography detail appeared on her screen. Wesley smiled in amusement, "That was fast, hacker" He ruffled her hair.

"How did you find that?" Claudia asked and Chelsea had a proud smile on her face. "I scanned his face and the last car that the camera captured appeared to be his" Chelsea informed.

" Does he have any relationship with the deceased? " Wesley asked and Chelsea shook her head. 

" He is the CEO of Walmart Real Estate Company and his parents are both alive. I don't think he has anything to do with what happened yesterday night " Jonathan reported and Audrey shook her head.

" Then, can you explain what he was doing in my neighborhood after the crime took place? What will a rich man be doing at that place that doesn't suit someone like him at that time of the day? " Audrey asked Jonathan but he couldn't reply.

" I am not pining him to be the murderer because he is the same age as me. I just don't want to leave any stone unturned now that I know that the killer is closer to me than I expected " Audrey justified her action and they all nodded in agreement.

"Can you hack into the company's personal computer and check any possible meetings that he will be having outside the company? " Audrey asked and Chelsea nodded. 

They all watched Chelsea as she operated on her system, silently hoping that things would turn out to be in their favor. "Done!" Chelsea alerted. 

"He is having a meeting at Villa's restaurant with the Chairman of Winners Hotel" Chelsea informed and they all smiled in contempt.

"What time are they having the meeting?" Claudia inquired and Chelsea said, "Now" 

"Time for work! Haha!" Wesley jumped in excitement because he used to love it when they were out on missions. 

Wesley was known to be the best when it came and disguising and sneaking things. That was his specialty. 

Claudia was the best in taekwondo. She won eight belts during her classes and also won the black belt in a competition.

Jonathan was a law freak. Everything concerning law was recorded in his brain and he has never lost a trial ever since he became a prosecutor.

Chelsea was known for her computer skills. She was perfect at finding people's identities and hacking into the company's software to retrieve confidential information that wasn't supposed to be leaked. According to her skills, she was the most helpful among all of them because she did the most work when it came to their secret mission. 

Audrey was known as a Dolphin because she was smart. She could detect things and also know when someone was lying. Because of her smartness, she avoided traps and manipulations that the police had tried in using to trick and detain them.

These four individuals made a perfect match in conquering and solving complicated puzzles.