Chapter 2

December 4th, 2020:

Jolene here, I asked everyone in the group about their whereabouts before the time of the murder. When we all questioned each other right after the murder, every one of us said the same thing. We were all in our own separate work rooms getting things done. Clearly, one of us is a liar. I know people suspected me, due to the knife in Tara's hand being from the kitchen. The only thing I can think of is that someone must have taken that carving knife when I went outside to grab the newspaper. But I didn't pass by anyone in the hallways, so no one should have known that I had left the kitchen. Well, in order to get to the hallway I have to pass by Christopher, our mechanic. He was completely focused on his work though, headphones on and everything. It takes a lot to stir him from his work when he's listening to music, especially when he's humming along like he was when I passed. If I had known something like this would've happened, I would've checked the rest of the rooms. I didn't think to check if one of the two carving knives was missing either, not before or after I had grabbed the newspaper.

Unfortunately, that's all I can recall on alibis. Everyone else I asked had said they didn't leave their work rooms. Christopher I can vouch for, as well as myself, but that's about it. But aside from who's lying (since I can't figure that out), there's another important matter to be addressed: The motive. Everybody always asks who, but the real question is why. Just what could possibly be the reason for one of us to kill Tara? She's not rich, she keeps her personal life a secret, and… wait. That could be the motive. Did someone find out something about her personal life? If so, it must have stirred enough madness in them to end her life. I just can't imagine anyone here would kill without a reason they felt was dignified. Well, at least now I know what to actually ask people. Let's just hope no one starts avoiding me, like they're doing to each other right now.

December 5th, 2020:

Why are there cleaning supplies out in the hallway? I could have sworn that Lucinda brought them back to the supply closet in the delivery room. I went to ask her, and she confirmed that she did before dashing back into her cramped workroom. Although I suppose that reaction is normal considering our situation. We've all been avoiding each other, lately. At least Jolene can bring truth to my alibi; she passed by me earlier that morning to grab the newspaper from outside. I didn't even notice she had slipped by until I heard a pan fall from the kitchen. I had taken my headphones off and paused my playlist to find that her door was open. She came back a couple minutes later, with the newspaper in her hand. I'm starting to wish that we all hadn't decided to investigate alone. Lucinda left before I could question her further, obviously frightened and suspicious of everyone here… I don't blame her, either. Despite her not showing a lot of emotions in front of others, reading her was relatively easy. The uncertainty and fear inside her eyes, and the worried suspicion that made her back away was clear. Based on that reaction, I believe that she's innocent. Despite being told that killers can be good actors a few weeks ago. It was Tara who told me.

Come to think of it, I don't know why Tara told me that. The way she said it to… her voice was quiet and monotone. Like a hushed warning. Despite her being the more serious type, that was a little too serious. It almost makes me wonder if Tara was suspicious of someone before she was killed. I'm racking my brain to see if I can remember her avoiding anyone specific back then. I can't think of anyone, though. She was the planner of our group too, so she had to speak to everyone. Was there anyone she spoke to more or less with? I do recall her mentioning something a couple weeks before her murder. Overheard her questioning Lucinda about why she stopped visiting Ashley. Lucinda appeared to be nervous about some unknown thing, and wouldn't meet Tara's eyes when she said that Ashley had been busy lately. Wasn't the best excuse, but she is known for not knowing how to lie well. Tara seemed to let her off the hook though, giving her a strange look, almost like understanding pity, before walking away. The whole thing was sort of odd, really; but man am I glad to have a decent memory. Although I never thought I'd be using it for this… situation. I think that's the most amount of evidence I can give, as of right now.

December 6th, 2020:

I honestly don't know who to trust anymore. Christopher seems the most innocent, so far. He stopped by to ask me about the cleaning supplies in the hallway, and he seemed genuinely confused about it. Everyone is hesitant to speak to each other right now, and I feel like that just makes us more suspicious. So knowing that Christopher actually bothered to ask questions and get clues makes him seem less likely to be guilty. I know that Tara trusted him, too. She was the type to put faith into a lot of people, although I think she secretly trusted him the most. I'm not sure why, perhaps it's just his personality that's naturally warm and welcoming. He's as bright as Harold is with his humor. The only person I can think of that doesn't smile around their presence is William. He's known for being an open book and not liking jokes very much, though. So it makes sense for him to not fake a smile and a laugh with his honest nature.

I'm not entirely sure if anyone has spoken of everyone's relationships, so far. We all get along decently well; it's not like there were ever any mishaps or fights that happened before. At least, none that I know of. If a big argument were to ever occur in the building, it'd be easy enough to notice since there's not that many of us. Nobody sees each other outside of work, and this factory really isn't that big. It's true that the walls are thick and well-insulated, but that's due to it being winter nearly all the time here. The fields of snow and lakes of ice are certainly a pretty sight, though. I've sat next to the window in the painting room with Ashley quite a few times. We would paint little clay figures after boiling water in the kitchen for some hot tea. We kept our visits going for a while, until her and William started hanging out. She grew more distant afterwards, and he never really took any chances to talk with me. It's normal for friends to grow apart though, and it's not like we ever talked outside of work to keep our friendship growing. I've come to accept it and move on; she'll still send me a smile every now and then, and I've gotten better at waving back.

Well then, I suppose that's all for now. Let's hope we'll be able to solve this case when the week is over. Just a few more days.