Richard Cooper

1st December

I shivered at the view of the Miler's Mansion in front of me. I had never been there before but something was really odd, no matter how I looked at it. Given the high security, it couldn't have been possible for anyone to trespass the property, enter the room on the second floor and kill a seventeen year old boy. It had to be someone from the family, who was present in the event.

Clear windows, white marble walls, shiny wooden doors, who could've thought someone was murdered in there? One look at the huge mansion and all you think about is the beauty of it and not the blood stains that had been wiped off the floor.

I got off my car, leaving the small package that I'd picked up from the city hospital on my way to the mansion. I flung my coat over myself and ambled towards the huge doors, leading to the hall. I didn't know what expressions I was wearing, but mentally, I was tensed. Since the death of Ethan Miler, it was my first time meeting Mr. Howard Miler, and probably his first time meeting a detective too. I had to be persistent to get all the answers to my questions and that thing that I'd come for.

As I entered the main hall, I was welcomed by a lady servant, who guided me upstairs, to Mr. Miler's study. On our way there, I glanced around the whole hall to spot anything suspicious.

"You'll find Mr. Miler here." The lady informed as we stopped in front of a wide, wooden door. She left immediately after that. I adjusted my coat, knocked and entered the room, meeting the eyes of a man wearing glasses, holding a coffee mug in one hand and flipping the pages of a file kept on his table with the other.

"Welcome, Mr. Cooper." He spoke in his bold voice and gestured me to take a seat opposite to him at the table.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Miler." I spoke and took a seat.

"I'm sorry for delaying this meeting so much. I was busy with work, you see." He said and placed the mug at the table and took his glasses off.

"Yes, earning money is more important." I said with a hint of taunt to which his expressions intensified.

"Officer Judith is an old friend of mine," He paused," I'm guessing he sent you to ask a few questions so go ahead."

I smiled briefly at myself. My plan of coming as a cop's colleague worked.

"Starting off, what exactly happened on the night of 11th November?" I asked.

"Well, there was a family gathering and all our distant relatives were invited. Ethan had locked himself in his room since he wasn't liking the event and when he didn't come out the whole night, I myself went to his room next morning to find him..." He sighed and scratched the tip of his eyebrow.

"I'm sorry." I said before continuing with the questioning," You say, he was depressed and yet none of you noticed?"

"It's just the three of us. Edwin's always lost in his own world and I'm occupied with work. I know we don't sound like a family. It's been like this since their mother passed away." He answered.

"Any reasons for depression?"

"We don't know anything." He shook his head.

"Then why would you transfer his therapist abroad?" I asked as I was done with his lies.

"Excuse me?"

"Don't give me that look now, we both know what I'm talking about." I snapped," He wasn't depressed."

"You've got the wrong information." He sat back in his chair.

"I want to see his room." I demanded.

"I'm afraid that's not possible." He said.

"I'm guessing officer Judith forgot to inform you but he wanted me to bring the knife."

"Why would he ask for it now?" He questioned," We pretty much discussed on that way before."

"Because it wasn't submitted to the authority earlier and it's crucial for the reports."

"What reports are you referring to, Mr. Cooper?" He scrunched his eyebrows and leaned in closer.

"You know, the ones that were messed with earlier." I shrugged. I knew what exactly I was doing. I had known since the very beginning, that he knew his son was murdered.

"I'm curious who supplied you with so much information." He smirked.

"I'm a detective. Isn't that a given?" I chuckled," Now, now, Mr. Howard Miler, hand me the murder weapon for you have no right to keep it."

"You lied about being Judith's colleague. Get out."

"I'm doing my job." I stood up," Give me the keys to his room."

"What will you even do with that knife? It doesn't have fingerprints. You'll never find the killer, not at least with that useless thing." He snapped as he pushed his chair back and stood up.

I smirked, followed by a chuckle. I was laughing at his stupidity," A great businessman with zero common sense."

I didn't need the knife anymore, for that fool had already done my job.

"What did you say?" He asked between gritted teeth.

I sighed," Yes, I said you don't have common sense."

"Seems like you don't need the weapon anymore."

"I don't. Thank you for your time. You should get to work. Money is important." I said sarcastically and walked out of the room but he followed me all the way downstairs and at the door.

"Listen up, Mr. Cooper," He said with his hands shoved in his pockets," No one must know about this or you'll have a lot of things at risk."

"I would consider myself stupid for going to the media anyway." I said confidently," I'll do what I have to and bring him justice."

"Ethan doesn't need justice." He said bitterly," He died easily, without even putting up a fight."

"You're a pathetic father, just know that." I scowled angrily at him and stomped out, holding in the urge of breaking his nose.

Home-

I banged the door close as I entered our house. I gripped the package tightly in my hands as I walked into the kitchen where Elijah was setting the table for dinner.

"You're back." He said as he does usually.

"Yes." The word came out more softly than I wanted. I just gazed at him quietly, setting the plates and bowls. I smiled when he poured more soup in my bowl than his own bowl and hastily washed his hands as he was very hungry. Rubbing his palms together, he sat down before his plate and glanced up at me.

"Why aren't you sitting? Aren't you hungry?" He asked," Hurry and tell me what happened at the Mansion,"

He was so dear to me, my only possession.

"Eli," My voice was shaky.

I couldn't imagine my own son being in a state as Ethan, that young boy who hadn't even seen the world, who died without being at fault or doing something wrong. How could his father only care about his business and hide the fact from the world, that his son was murdered? Who was he to decide whether Ethan needed justice or not?

"I don't like that nickname. It's so girlie." He whined as he started eating.

"Can you do me a favor, son?" I asked him and he slowly looked up, guessing that something was wrong.

"What?" he asked.

"Please don't hide your worries from me." I felt something warm on my cheek.

"Dad." He stood up and walked across the table, pulling me into a hug.

"And tell Ethan," I said," That he can think of me as his father, for the time that he's here."

After dinner, we went to my study and turned on the room heater. Elijah sat together with me to read the reports from the hospital. The documents were scattered on my table as he sat across it, reading intently.

For a moment, I kept looking at the way he was reading and going through with so much interest. I sometimes, or hardly had time to look at him briefly and observe the little things he did. Yet, he proved to be my best son, my best companion during the hardships and happy moments. And I never really appreciated his good looks, but I called him Eli since he was very little because he looked so pretty, so bright and gifted.

"Look at this." He pushed the paper towards me," It says there was a major concussion on his head."

"What in the world?" I was shocked as I grabbed the paper to read it myself. He was right. The report said that Ethan's skull was damaged. He wasn't just stabbed.

"Did you get the knife?" He asked.

"No, but Howard Miler said the knife had no fingerprints." I replied, still not looking up from the document that I was reading.

"The knife should have Ethan's fingerprints if he stabbed himself. How foolish of the killer to clean the knife." He sighed.

"Even foolish of him to leave the door unlocked." I said.

"What do you mean?"

"Howard said Ethan locked himself for the whole night but next morning he himself went to check the room, which was unlocked." I explained, "Which proves no one climbed up the window. Ethan voluntarily opened the door for a family member, not knowing what was going to happen with him."

"The killer did a sloppy job hiding the evidences." He shook his head and yawned.

"He or she didn't want to kill Ethan." I said after thinking hard," It's like, you get angry and accidentally hit someone, but afraid that he'll tell everyone, you finish him off and then hide the evidence."

"You're right. It might be the case." He nodded," But that doesn't make them innocent."

"I'll make sure the killer is sentenced to life imprisonment." I asserted," But now, Eli, go to bed."

"I told you not to call me that." He groaned and yawned again.

"Did you text that girl to come here tomorrow?" I asked as I remembered that I had something important to tell them both together.

"I have to first make sure she's not hurt anywhere. Edwin Miler is one big ass jerk." he said, playing with his phone.

"Language."

"I just said 'ass'" He said in his defense and I somehow suppressed my smile.

"In front of me. Now go to your room and don't forget to call her here at 3." I ordered.

Gwen

2nd December

School-

I had never been so anxious in class while submitting homework as I was today. Tyler was standing at my seat, waiting for me to hand over my Biology assignment which was probably lying unfinished on my study table at home.

"Are you submitting it or not?" He asked in annoyance.

"I told you I'll do it tomorrow." I retorted angrily.

"Do it now or I'll degrade you in the register."

"The submission is due tomorrow, block-head." I scowled," Get a life and stop showing your superiority."

"Are you thinking high of yourself just because you're dating Edwin Miler?!" He yelled and all the heads in the classroom turned at us.

"Shut that hole in your face you prick." I muttered, glaring at him murderously. Rumors spread like wild fire and that dog had just barked out something that I didn't want anyone to find out and now the whole school would know.

"You know what Gwen? I'll degrade your ass in every submission this month and have you stay back while everyone else graduates." He threatened me and walked out of the classroom.

Having no other option, I rushed out after him. I knew that kid had no authority to have me repeat a year and I had a pretty good image in the eyes of every teacher, so no one would believe him. The reason why I walked out was to tell the teacher my side of the story and have him punished for being a tyrant to all the students in the classroom. I didn't really have the Class Representative kind of spirit in me, but I'd had enough of his shit.

I stopped in my tracks and just watched Tyler enter the staff room.

"Yes?" I said after making sure no one was watching me.

"Are you saying that?" I whispered. I thought Ethan Miler would be the one to avoid trouble because telling Edwin meant someone was about to get beaten into pulp and I didn't want that. I wasn't Edwin's friend or girlfriend and I didn't want him to solve my problems for me.

"He does?" I asked as it came to me as a surprise. But it was true that sometimes the people with the strongest personalities outside were actually soft from inside.

"Fine. I'll go to him." I nodded slowly and walked back to the classroom, scratching my head because Ethan had again appeared without giving me a sign. I thought I knew when he was around me and when not, but it seemed to change slowly and it was even more difficult to tell whether he was there or not.