It Started With a Murder

Chapter One

The Dedication is for a marvellous Wattpad member who was kind enough to edit this chapter for me! 

Cathie:

Annabelle Dickson was the most beautiful girl you would ever see; she had startling, green eyes which forever held a sparkle. Her long, dark hair always fell in precisely the right way, her pale skin radiated healthiness and her lips were forever smiling.

Until November the third, 2011. 

Until just over a week ago when someone ripped everything away from her. The papers say she was murdered, they don’t say that she was pulverised. They don’t say that she had acid thrown in her face. Some of them don’t even say her name.

To the media she is just a sixteen year old girl who got good grades and looked pretty. A sixteen year old girl who was unfortunate enough to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. A sixteen year old girl who created a very popular story for them.

I know it’s not the media that I’m angry at, not really. I’m angry at Annabelle’s murderer, I’m so uncontrollably angry but I don’t know what to do about it, which just makes me angrier. 

“Come on Cathie, it’s time to go in.” Pearl says, jolting me out of my mind and into the present situation. 

I look at Pearl, my twin sister, who is still managing to look immaculate. Her hair as straight as paper, down to her waist, her make-up swept on effortlessly to create a natural, glowing look and her clothes pressed to perfection. 

I hold back a small smile, even though we are identical we never look it. I’ve tried my best to look nice but I just couldn’t manage it this morning, my hair’s pulled into a lopsided ponytail, I didn’t even think about putting make up on and my clothes look as if they’ve been living at the bottom of my wardrobe for the past year. 

“Come on!” Pearl hisses, grabbing hold of my wrist. Part of me wants to throw her hand off of me but I lack the energy to do so, instead I put up no fight and just allow her to pull me through the large doors, into the church. 

It’s strangely beautiful inside the church. I’m not particularly religious so it always makes me feel slightly uncomfortable being inside a church. However when standing here, I can understand why so many people are religious, there’s something so peaceful and otherworldly about standing in a large room, decorated with stained-glass windows depicting tales of miracles.

Pearl, who still has a strong grip on my wrist, begins to pull me down to the front row of pews. I focus my eyes on the floor as we walk, not wanting to catch even a glimpse of the wooden cage in which Annabelle rests. 

“What the hell!” Pearl cries, I look up, shocked by Pearl’s words, does she not realise that we’re in a church, at a funeral! “You're sitting in our seats.”

For one shocking second I think that Pearl’s talking to Annabelle’s parents - who both look completely lost - before I realise that she’s talking to Murphy and Josh, who are sitting next to Mr and Mrs Dickson. 

Murphy looks up, her curly, green hair falling at all angles around her face which is decorated with tears, “What?” she asks, sounding about as disgusted as I feel embarrassed.

“You're sitting in our seats,” Pearl repeats, pronouncing every word slowly.

“Pearl we can sit behind them,” I murmur, trying to move to sit in the second row.

“No,” Pearl says, hardening her grip on my wrist. “We deserve to sit in the front row, we were her best friends.” 

“We can move back,” Josh says, standing up and walking towards the second pew.

“No we can’t, we got here first and we were far closer to Annabelle than those two,” Murphy growls, her hands clenching at her dress.

“Look, you and Murphy sit in the front row, I’ll sit behind,” I say to Pearl, unsure whether it’s wise to leave her sitting next to Murphy but just wanting to sit down and pay my respects to Annabelle.

Pearl looks like she’s about to protest, but I manage to shake my arm from her grip and get into the second row before any words leave her mouth.

Josh takes a seat next to me, and Pearl eventually takes a seat next to Murphy. He smiles down at me and I manage a small smile back. I don’t know Josh very well, only as the boyfriend of Murphy. I can never understand why Murphy and Josh are going out; Murphy is loud, stubborn and never thinks before she speaks. Whereas Josh is quiet, friendly and when he does speak, he always says the right thing. 

“Murphy doesn’t mean to be rude,” Josh says suddenly. I smile, knowing how he feels, apologising for someone you love. I do it all the time for Pearl.

“Nor does Pearl. She’s just upset,” I say.

Josh nods. “We all are, Annabelle really was… something else.”

I nod, unable to speak, knowing that if I try to, I’ll just end up crying. I distract myself by looking around at all the people who are here to say goodbye. The people in the front rows are mostly family (along with Pearl, Murphy, Josh and I) but then the rest of the church is packed with students from our school.

It’s strange, I didn’t even know that Annabelle knew half of these people, I knew she was popular but I didn’t realise how well-liked she was. There are people in the back pews crying, people I know only as ‘The person who sits behind me in History’ are staring ahead with shocked, lost faces. 

I always thought that Annabelle and I were friends with the same type of people but I’m beginning to wonder if I really knew Annabelle’s taste in friends at all.