Memories Of A Witness

Chapter Eleven

The Willow Spring Park was serene. It was a scrub of ornamental trees, flowers, benches and water fountains. Slight breezes rustled the leaves making them fall one by one and the chirping of birds were like melody. The air was warm but not as hot as yesterday. One the whole, it was a perfect day to picnic and have a walk but under Megan's circumstances the ambience didn't matter to her at all. 

Thereafter Blaise had returned form work yesterday he artlessly told Megan that he needed to fetch some clothes from her home tomorrow, because she stunk. This morning she had  given him her keys and he left, without having much colloquy with Megan.  He apprised her he wanted to go there alone, because he reckoned she felt uncomfortable seeing her house again. Megan concurred and she could go to the park without getting interrogated by him. 

The park was near and after asking multiple passerby she had found the oldest tree. Its thick bough's twisted like a pretzel, the massive roots dived in and out of the ground and the crevices that ran through the bark matched a drought. But there wasn't a gift at first glance. Hopefully, it wasn't a surprise attack or something. 

Megan was perturbed which connected to her propulsive scratching her jeans. Nevertheless, she wasn't as nervous as she had feared she would be. She advanced towards the tree and analyzed her surroundings perpetually. She looked at the few pedestrians ambling peacefully and she strongly wished they wouldn't leave the park. Then a dog turd with a foot-track in the middle of it caught her attention. Could the murderer have possibly stepped on it?

When she adjoined the tree she circled it to see an envelope laying on the ground. Megan picked it up, while beams of sunlight glowed on her skin. She shakily opened it to see several pages inside of it. The first was a newspaper article titled: BURNED BODY FOUND BEYOND RECOGNITION IN ASHBORNE. The second sheet was also an article: MISSING WOMAN'S BODY FOUND BURNED IN SMALL TOWN AGAIN. The last one was yet again a message from the anonymous slayer.  

Dear Megan, 

If you are reading this, you must have complied my request. I am incredibly grateful for that. Please read the newspapers and if you know, you know. I will in no way harm you , because I have no reason to do that. After all, my murders are not motivated by sheer excitement. I am only doing this all for you. You will understand soon.

Come on Monday to the Haunted House in the abandoned Royal Blue Amusement Park at 4:30pm. I shall reveal my identity.

PS: DONT trust Blaise. He's dangerous. Dont tell anyone about this matter.

-With kindest regards, X

The though that the hands of her parents' murderers had touched the paper, disgusted Megan. She wanted to rip it into pieces, just how much she wanted to kill him herself. The killer sounded like he committed murder only for her. Megan chuckled. Did she want her father to be killed? NO. The man was undeniably off his rocker. With kindest regards, he said. Don't trust Blaise, he said. She chuckled even louder. A few passerby looked at her quizzically. 

She trekked to a park bench as her dubious eyes looked over at the pedestrians near her. An old placid couple wandered under the crown of the trees, a schoolgirl fingered a pimple on her chin and a pickney cried to his mother about wanting to eat candy. No one looked at Megan. But she was certain that the murderer lurked somewhere, observing her. Trepidation rose thickly in her throat. 

She perched on the bench and started to read the newspapers, but found nothing out of the ordinary. Just two articles which reported and described the horrifying events. But Megan noticed how both of the victims were red-headed and it reminded her of the woman in her dream. Her mind ran sprightly over the words in the letter, hoping to see a hint she had missed. In deep thought, She chewed at her lower lip, making it a little ragged.