1 - Mildred's Madness

Her name was Mildred. She was a miserable old woman with nine miserable cats and married to her first cousin who mysteriously vanished one day during a hunting trip. Apparently she ate him. It surprisingly wasn't that hard to believe if you'd ever seen her. She ran an animal shelter from home and worked part-time as a primary school librarian. An honest career, a decent reputation, and a clean slate - but when her husband/cousin's corpse walked into the nearest hospital, exploding on contact with the ground after choking out the words "Mil... dy... n't... kil-", she lost it all.

"Miserable Mildy 100% did it - it makes perfect sense." Skeet explained, "She has the perfect motive, an unreliable alibi, no neighbours and clearly hated the guy. They went out hunting, and in a fit of madness she shot him, chopped him up and fed half to the pigs and the rest for herself." Skeet Turner was a short, blonde hair and green-eyed bubbly kid. A super active imagination and a massive thriller fan. Specifically of the movies Stab and AXE. To the point it was almost creepy.

"But that doesn't make sense!" Audry argued back. "Why would she eat him?"

"Because she's a fat pig and every serial killer has a signature - a victory bite is hers. Having the last laugh, in a sense." Said Norman. Norman Baker and Audry Wilkes were step-siblings. They were always out to get each other but very co-dependent. Norman's mother was a cop and Audry's father was a mortician - they met during a homicide case when the two were only tots. They both had gaping wounds in their hearts from their last relationships and apparently that made them a perfect match.

"That's too mean, Normad. Plus, she isn't a serial killer, she killed one person best." Audry sighed. "If she even did. Look, I'm not saying she didn't, but her alibi is solid just no one bothered to take her word, and even then, there's a high chance it was an accident and she panicked. I just don't think she did it."

"But who else would have had a grudge against him other than Mildred Marrobrough herself?" The three of them continued to bicker as Patrick returned from scouting the area. They were hiding near Mildred's house. It was a large, run-down farmhouse just past the outskirts of the city. The kids were very familiar with the area as Patrick lived less than a twenty-minute walk away, and their hideout was on his family's property.

"The coast is clear guys, no dogs, pigs, cops or Mildy insight... the girls aren't far, Nancy had to stop by the hideout to get her bag. Did you hear-" Patrick said in a loud whisper, ushering the rest behind the bushes despite their confusion.

"PAT!" A shrill voice called out across the field. Patrick was pale as a ghost and trembling which was very unusual for the consistently cool-headed teen. Patrick White was the oldest of the six, a solid 15 going 16 years under his belt. He was the big brother of the gaggle of adventurers and always kept them out of trouble. Usually. But not this time.

"Guys, we have to move quickly if we're going to at all. I really suggest we get the hell out of here and come back tomorrow. Montgomery Marrobrough just walked into the hospital! On his own two legs!" Patrick looked horrified as if he'd seen it himself.

"He's alive?!" Everyone cried out, scaring some magpies nearby.

"No." Patrick said solemnly. "It walked and it almost talked but that... that was not alive. And Montgomery exploded. The cops were called, people think it was a terrorist act- but they're definitely coming here to talk to Mildred. So we need to move, and fast. Anywhere but here."

"Pat!!" The voice was closer now. "Jesus Christ you're fast!" It was Nancy Lee. Nancy was a very sweet girl, but she got along with Skeet too well to be considered normal. "The cops are literally right around the bend we don't have time."

"Why are we running from the cops?!" Audry asked, panicked. "We haven't done anything wrong!"

"Because we're suspicious. We were near when he went missing, after, and here when he turned up. Even if there's absolutely no reason to suspect us or evidence, they have no leads. I can see the headlines now: Local Group of Teens Charged with Kidnapping and Murder; Claim There Wasn't Enough to Investigate and Wanted to Create Drama."

"Don't be ridiculous - that's way too long of a title. 'Self-Proclaimed Sleuths Arrested for Kidnapping and Murder; 'This Town is too Grey'."

"What's a sleuth?" Skeet whispered to Nancy, who ignored him. The loud crunching of tires on gravel pulled them into an immediate silence, two police cars speeding past them, leaving a trail of dust. The kids slithered from behind the bush into the woods. They knew those woods well; it was their playground after all. Anything abnormal would stick out like a sore thumb, which also meant they knew how to hide. And where. They scaled the trees and watched the policemen barge into Mildred's house and drag her away, sirens blaring as they left. Much to their jargon, one cop car remained, guarding the house. The gaggle of kids lost their chance, and they knew it.

"Where on earth is Cecilia?" Audry whispered loudly.

"I don't know, she was with me at the start. Maybe she went home, it is late…" Nancy whispered back. Then, with almost perfect timing, they saw someone riding a bicycle. The only people who came this far out of town always had a reason, and it became pretty clear pretty quick. It was Cecilia. No one else rode such an obnoxiously red bike. She rode all the way to the officer at the house, much to their shock. The kids watched silently as she was let inside.

"How the-" Norman exclaimed, immediately hushed. "Damn… that's awesome."

Everyone's phones buzzed simultaneously. Dozens of photographs and short video clips were spammed to the group chat from Cecilia. "There's not a lot of interest here," a text said, "There's something stuffed behind the bookshelf but I'm not stupid enough to look".

"You can't leave us hanging like that" Skeet texted back furiously.

"They won't be there this time tomorrow, we can sneak back in while she's still in holding and then get out of there for good" Audry replied.

"Count me out. I'm going home." Cecilia wrote back immediately.

Cecilia walked out of the house and briefly exchanged words with the officer before riding off out of sight again.

"I agree with Cecilia," Patrick said, "Skeet you're a horror fanatic, surely you can't actually want to go into the crazy old woman's house and dig around for a mysterious package hidden behind a bookshelf?"

"But it's not a movie." Skeet said, surprisingly serious. "It's not some ghost or demon or witchcraft. What if it's a murder weapon or some secret? This could be a big deal."

"Get out of it, Skeet. You're sounding like a reporter now. We're just as interested as you are, but we're not the police. If things go wrong, we could get in some serious trouble and mess up the investigation. It isn't some petty theft or missing pet – the best we can do here is find all the information we can and look into things the police might not have considered and go on from there. We hand evidence to the police if it is serious. You know this." Patrick snapped.

Skeet swore quietly and shoved past Nancy, almost knocking her out of the tree, before climbing down and sulking off.

"Even if you're right, that was a bit harsh Pat…" Audry said quietly, awkwardly shuffling down the tree in a dress. "I'll go with him, it's not safe with what's going on. I'll flick you guys a text when we get home. Norman, you come too or I'll get yelled at for leaving you behind."

Norman rolled his eyes. "Her Majesty's orders. See you at school tomorrow. Mufti-day, don't forget."

"Okay, be safe," Patrick smiled weakly. He looked exhausted and they all noticed. "Are you off too?" He turned to Nancy, the only one left.

"I'll stick around a bit, you?"

"Yeah… me too."