Chapter 5

It was still raining but unlike the cloudburst of moments ago, it had settled down to a slight drizzle. I did like serene cloudy skies, the light just changes everything somehow, in a cloudy windy day. But this constant rainfall was getting to my nerves now, how does anyone function around this town with this never-ending pitter patter.

With the constant rain came the chilling winds, even the heater running did nothing for my goosebumps through the car-ride. The cold seeped through my bones and chilled my insides. The lush greenery though, made up for all the cons to this small town.

It was beautiful, Fairhoppe was on the hilly side, but the mountains surrounding the valley were stubbed and green. It was quite a stretch from the nearest city to the suburban town, and the roads were flanked by lush green forests with the mountains in sight, it was really a vacationer's paradise. The more I looked, took my fill of the green canopy, the more it soothed something in me.

I loved the greenery, the smell of fresh air, the feel of nature around me. The air here, it was nothing I had ever experienced in New York, it was clean and scented with wet earth and it was calming, it soothed my frayed nerves gradually. This was such a peaceful place, what was the need for a crime psychology unit here I would never know.

Still, I thanked for it, because if there hadn't been one, I would have never gotten a position here and never would I have left the safety net of New York and never would I have start fresh and new. I felt confident about my decision, this town, with green mountains and fresh, soothing air, can be my home. Something that wasn't given to me, something I made all on my own.

"New here?" The driver asked and broke my trance.

"Yes." I gave a nonchalant close ended answer, I was not very sure of how safe it was to divulge much information to him, what with being alone and in a new town. It never hurt to be too safe.

"Are you cold ma'am, I can pump up the heat." The driver looked through the mirror and smiled at me, and maybe it was my current mood, but couldn't see any malice in his eyes.

So, I smiled back at him and nodded, I could use some more warmth, the weather was really chilly here and it was not even fall yet. This was going to be a problem, I mused.

"Figured You were new, this town goes colder with rain and as the months roll into fall then into winter, the cold only increases." The driver continued to speak as he hiked the heat in the car.

"How low does it drop; does it snow in here?" I asked horrified.

"No no, no snow. But it does drop into twenties and sometimes even lower in December."

I winced, wow my flu loving immunity is going to love this! The cabbie noticed my wince and scoffed. How the hell he was driving with looking in the mirror every other second was beyond me.

"We been used to it by now, born and will die here." He notified.

I nodded, too much information. I looked through the window again effectively dousing the conversation. Through the side I noticed him pay his attention back to the road ahead, good for him. The green flanking the road was much dispersed now, buildings and warehouses replaced them, but few and far between.

I could even see a faint giant cross nearby, was it a church, my god it was huge! The town was nearby it seems then.

The structure was old, I couldn't be sure because of the distance but I think there were ornate engravings on the outer walls, this church might just be one of the oldest and most beautiful structures I have ever seen.

"St. Mathew's, beauty, ain't it?" the driver spoke again.

"It's breathtaking, how old is it?"

"Close to a century, give or take, church's been here since the town was formed."

"Oh, then it must be a heritage sight here, right?"

"Eh? Ain't know about that, but weekly mass is held here. If you stay till Sunday here, you can visit too."

I gasped out loud, I couldn't belief it. This hundred or may be even more years old church which should be a heritage sight, conserved and taken care of, was a regular church where town people held weekly mass.

"Tourists do come here for Mathew's church though, it's a catch, that and the hike trails. The lake is another beauty."

I was looking through the back window, the church growing smaller in the distance, more and more cottages, small shops and houses replacing it. There were even a few apartment buildings, but just a few and five-storied tops. No skyrises, no giant malls, quiet, picturesque, peaceful.

"What lake?" I asked curious.

"The fair lady lake, the lake Fairhoppe was founded around and named after." The driver said as he made a swift turn.

All the information the officer had given me about the town, never once a lake was mentioned.

"Where is this lake? How can you go there?"

"It's far east, and you have to follow the hike trails high to reach the lake, but once you do, ehh it's a beauty."

The fair lady lake, my curiosity spiked, now I had to go there. How can I not visit a lake this town was named after. I did a quick google search, there was very little written about the fair lady lake. However whatever information that was there mentioned it to be a beautiful albeit small lake, it was named fair lady lake because of how clear the water is, the sky full of could reflected on the pristine waters making it appear fair as a cloudy sky.

Hence, the name, The fair lady lake.

Hooked on this town's history, I kept researching. This lake used to be a big tourist destination in the past, but the craze eventually died down. But still, a wholesome lot still gathered every spring, for the lush greens and the meadows across the lake.

The property on the far side of the lake was privately owned even though the lake was government property. The meadows were vast and ended into a marshland, and in spring, it housed a multitude of wildflowers. The locals even celebrated the full bloom in a week full of festivity, the bloom festival.

I had never heard of such a thing, a week celebrating blooming spring!

I researched some more, but aside from some pictures, I got nothing more. So I changed gears and researched St. Mathews next. I got hundreds of hits of hundreds of different St. Mathews, so narrowed my research down.

When I typed St Mathews Fairhoppe, I got a small tourist blog with pictures, I was right, the church did have engraved walls, ornate and ancient carvings. It looked nothing like the regular churches, it looked like it was from some other time, some other place altogether.

The blogger delved into much detail about the family that owned the statuesque church, The Wilsons. Apparently, they are nothing short of royalty in this town, they owned half the town. Along with this older than time church, they owned hotels, resorts, apartment buildings, and even the meadows beyond the Fair lady lake.

I looked into the family more, but I couldn't find much. They were the patriarch founding family, their extended family tree was originally from Fairhoppe, but now most have dispersed into the city, naturally. Their family business was of real estate and textiles and went beyond this small town.

The current family tree consisted of three children, brothers, Steven and Mathew Wilson, and one sister Jane Wilson. There was not much information available on the sister, But the big brother Steven, he looked after the business in the city, and the middle son Mathew was in charge of the business in this town.

Steven had no children and no wife, Mathew, had a son and a daughter, Stefan and Veronica. And there was literally no further information on Jane, the sister. This intrigued me, why was there no mention of the sister, was she estranged?!

There were no pictures of the younger generation either, I just found few snaps of the brothers, attending events or parties in the city. Quite a private family.

The driver jerked to a stop, and I shook myself out of the stupor, why was I even getting so tangled into a family I didn't even know. I looked up to see I had arrived at the station, time to get out.

"How much is it?" I asked as I got out of the cab and the driver gestured at the meter running, well. He got out and around to get my luggage as I fished out some dollar bills from my purse.

"You sure I shouldn't just drop you to a nice hotel? I know some nice digs around this town" The driver quipped, eyeing me and then the police station dubiously.

I smiled, "No, thanks, this will be me, keep the change." I said as I handed him the money and started making my way towards the entrance.

I could feel the driver's eyes boring into my back as I walked ahead, what a nosy little town, mind your business dude. I turned and glared at the man, he quickly got inside his cab and drove away, yeah that's more like it.

I found the desk and enquired for officer Gates, the girl on the desk rerouted me to the first room down the lobby, this town was rocking a killer crime unit I mused, most town barely had a police station.

Officer Gates welcomed me with a wide smile, "Ms. Condor right, welcome to Fairhoppe Crime Unit, please have a seat."

"Thank you, and please call me Elsa. Officer Gates, I am very sorry for being late, there was just this rainstorm, and I didn't have network so I couldn't inform you either. I hate to have kept you waiting."

Officer Gates blinked then smiled wider, "We are always expecting that, do you know how much it rains in here Elsa."

"Well, I got a little taste of it on the first day itself, Officer."

"Hey, if, I'm calling you Elsa, you're calling me Grace."

"Okay, Grace." I smiled, already feeling comfortable around the woman, "So am I meeting the sheriff today? Do I start today?"

"About that, no its Friday, you have the weekend off, settle in. You start Monday. As you must already know your position is very important, you'll not just be counselling the families of the victims, but your skills will be needed in aiding our detective unit."

"May I ask.."

And before I could complete my sentence Grace smiled grimly at me, "Yes, we already have a case for you, and a high-profile case nonetheless."

I looked at her expectantly, wanting more details.

"Jane Wilson was found dead in her own house three weeks back, and she was alone in a locked house. We have no leads till now and the family is breathing down our neck. So, we called you in, you have to figure out who killed the heiress of the founding family here and why and how."

I breathed, knew my research into the Wilsons won't go in vain.