Unraveling the Past
The evening had descended over the city, the skyline outlined by the fading light of the setting sun. Samantha stood at the edge of the building's rooftop, her eyes scanning the horizon as she waited for the fresh air to clear her thoughts. The buzz of the city below felt distant, a mere hum in the background of her mind.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket, pulling her from her thoughts. She fished it out and saw Daniel's name flashing on the screen.
"Samantha, I've got something," his voice crackled through the phone when she answered. "I've been running A.T.'s initials through the system. Guess what I found?"
Lydia's pulse quickened. "I'm listening."
"Alex Turner," Daniel continued. "A.T. is a former employee at Hawkins Industries, the company at the center of the murder trial. He left the company about a year ago—said it was for 'personal reasons,' but I don't buy it. We're talking about a man with ties to some very powerful people. I've been digging into his financials. He's been living off the grid, but he's been making money. A lot of it. There's a trail—small payments here and there, mostly from shell companies."
Samantha's mind raced. "So, A.T. isn't just some random person. He's been involved with Hawkins Industries all along. But why would he be talking to Agatha Miller?"
"I don't know," Daniel said. "But whatever it is, it looks like he's been under the radar for a while. I've sent a team to track him down. If we can get to him before he disappears again, we might have a shot at finding Agatha."
Samantha paused, her thoughts going back to the bloodstains in the apartment. "Something tells me he won't go down that easily. But I'll be ready."
"I'll meet you at the station in thirty," Daniel said. "We need to figure out what he's really up to."
---
At the police station, the air was thick with tension as the team sifted through piles of evidence. Samantha and Daniel met in the small, cluttered evidence room, where old case files and boxes were stacked high. A whiteboard hung on the wall, marked with connections between the Hawkins murder, the missing witness, and now Alex Turner.
Samantha stood before the whiteboard, studying the details, her fingers tapping the surface as she pieced together the puzzle. "Turner's been off the radar for a long time. But if he's been tied to the Hawkins case from the beginning, that gives us a new angle. We need to find out how he fits into this. And fast."
Daniel stood behind her, arms crossed. "We're talking about a man who's been lying low, and now Agatha's gone missing. Everything's pointing to him being involved."
Samantha's eyes narrowed. "But why take her? Why risk exposing himself now, when the trial is so close to wrapping up? It doesn't make sense."
Daniel shook his head. "Nothing about this case makes sense. I've been going through her personal records, and there's a connection I missed earlier. Agatha's mother worked for Hawkins Industries as well. She was involved in some sort of accident a few years ago—a workplace injury, they called it. But there's no official report. Just... a cover-up. What if Turner knows about this?"
Samantha turned toward him, her expression serious. "You think Agatha's mother's accident is connected to her disappearance?"
"It's possible," Daniel said. "What if Turner's been watching her all this time, waiting for the right moment to make a move? Maybe he's using Agatha as leverage to keep the trial from exposing something bigger."
Samantha chewed on his words, her mind spinning with the new information. "This is getting more complicated by the minute. We need to get into her mother's accident records. It might lead us to Turner's true intentions."
"I'll have my team start pulling the records," Daniel said. "In the meantime, you think we can track down Agatha's last known location?"
Samantha nodded. "We need to check the security footage from the building. Someone must have seen something—an exit, a car, anything. There has to be a clue."
As they worked late into the night, the mystery began to thicken. Each new detail led to more questions, but Samantha felt an urgency growing in her chest. Whoever was behind this knew how to stay in the shadows, covering their tracks at every turn. But she was determined to uncover the truth, no matter how deep it went.
---
The next day, Samantha found herself back at the scene—the building where Agatha Miller had vanished. The police had cleared out, but the atmosphere was still tense. She moved quickly, her eyes scanning the lobby as she made her way to the security office. There, she was met by Officer Smith, a no-nonsense officer who had been working at the building for years.
"Dr. Pierce," Officer Smith greeted, her expression tight. "I've got the footage you asked for. It's not much, but there's something odd about it."
Samantha raised an eyebrow. "Odd? How?"
Smith hesitated for a moment before handing over the footage. "Take a look for yourself."
Samantha inserted the disk into the nearby player and watched as the screen flickered to life. The camera angle showed the entrance of the building, a narrow hallway leading to the elevators. The timestamp was late at night, just hours after Agatha had been last seen.
At first, the footage seemed normal—no one was in the lobby, and the doors remained closed. But then, something caught Samantha's attention. A shadow flickered at the edge of the frame, barely noticeable, and then quickly vanished.
"Did you see that?" Samantha asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
Officer Smith nodded. "We did a sweep, but there's nothing on the rest of the cameras. Whoever it was, they knew exactly where the blind spots were."
Samantha's heart skipped a beat. "Someone was here. Watching her. They knew exactly when to move."
"We think it's Turner," Smith added. "He must have been following her for days."
Samantha stood still for a moment, the pieces of the puzzle falling into place. "Turner's been playing a long game. He's been watching her every move."
Daniel's voice crackled through her earpiece. "Sam, I think we've got something. We pulled the records on Agatha's mother's accident. It wasn't an accident at all. It was a hit-and-run, staged to look like an industrial accident. Someone wanted her out of the picture. And I think we know who."
Samantha's heart raced. "Turner."
"Exactly," Daniel confirmed. "He's been covering his tracks for years. But now he's made a mistake. He's exposed himself."
Samantha turned to Officer Smith. "Get the word out. We need to find Turner, now."
As she hurried out of the building, the chase was on. But as much as they now knew, Samantha couldn't shake the feeling that the worst was still yet to come. They were getting closer to the truth—but the closer they got, the more dangerous it became.
-end of chapter 3