Dear Inspector, It Was The Ghosts

Part one, Chapter 1 -Trapped

Robyn hadn't gotten anywhere. She'd been working with Kathy and Joey for ages, but they hadn't taken the task seriously enough. Partway through the lesson, Grace came up and sat with them. 'Joey, come on,' she whined, pouting. 'Look, I can swap you for Xia. Please. You, KJ and me. We work well together, don't we.'

'Work isn't the word for it.' Joseph reluctantly got up and said a quick hello to Xia as they swapped places. She sat down and looked at both of us. 

'I have a few ideas of how to solve this.' 

'You're joking. It's all a bit of fun,' Kathy didn't sound certain. Yet there was hope in her wavering voice. 'Jamie's death will stay unsolved, right? I mean, it's been 4 years.'

'You know the charity event tonight?' Xia had a hint of wild excitement, her emerald eyes shining mysteriously. 'There was one four years ago. Jamie was there. She died only hours after it ended.' 

Kathy looked intrigued. 'Go on, what happened?'

'I think that she was one of the people who stayed behind to help clear up after the event. When she was walking home that night, the killer struck and she died. I have no idea who the killer is or could be, but the height and spacing of the wounds suggest that the killer was tall and of a masculine build. I'm not ruling anything out here. But it is a good explanation, sort of.'

'What next?'

'I- I don't really know from there.' Xia smiled evasively. Robyn could tell she knew more than she was saying, maybe even hiding the key to solving a 4 year old murder. 'Anyway, remember afternoon school's cancelled so we can set up for the event. It starts at 3. Maybe we can figure some more stuff out then?'

They agreed to talk at the charity event later that night. The bell rang for lunchtime and Kathy walked with Robyn to her best friend's classroom. Lilly March had been Kathy's best friend since forever, but they weren't in any classes because they were in separate top sets. Lilly had always gone by her surname after her mother left, not wanting to use the first name she'd been given. 

March was really pretty, even Grace envied her. The popular group had tried to get her to join them with no success. She always stayed by Kathy's side. Kathy and March was a well-known friendship throughout the school. They'd been close since nursery and yet had perfectly contrasting hobbies. 

Robyn thought about Sam, feeling lonely. They would be back in time for the afternoon, hopefully. The three of them ate lunch together, Kathy and March discussing Jamie and the event excitedly. The chatter of both of them got louder and more excited as KJ walked past. Both girls had liked him for years, yet Robyn noticed that Kathy didn't seem as enthusiastic anymore. 

'Hey, March!' KJ called from across the hall, coming to sit next to them. 'You know the event tonight, yeah. You wanna hang out together afterwards?' 

March grinned. 'Sure.' They talked cheerfully for all of lunchtime. The break started at 12 and was meant to finish at one, but it dragged on for another hour due to teachers having to prep for the event. The mayor of Dultones, John Rodriguez, was attending the event so it was an extremely big deal for the small high school. 

Groups of students in the highest set maths, English and the sciences of the top 3 year groups were put into pairs or threes to work at a separate stall. Kathy and Xia had agreed to go together, KJ and March would be flirting all night. Robyn prayed Sam would be back on time. 

Robyn got up and headed to the bathroom, leaving the trio talking. She headed down the hallways, taking the longest route to avoid seeing the caretaker. She went into the bathroom, then heard raised voices. She opened the door and peered out stealthily.