05

#####05

Somebody screamed. Aidan felt his blood chill at the shrill ominous sound and his heart leapt in fear in his throat. Without thinking, his heart said only one word. Kate ! Something had happened to her. Rushing upstairs to the west wing, he followed the repeated sounds being closely followed by Alex and Ryce.

As he barged into the room from where the sound had come from, he nearly slumped in shock at the sight in front of him. It was Jade who had screamed. And her face was grey as she stared at something on the floor in front of her. Following the direction of her gaze, he felt his breath catch in his throat and Aidan felt sure that his face was mirroring her expression.

They were both staring at a the back of a dead body which laid on the floor of the attic. The face was indiscernible as it was facing the floor with a knife stabbed in the ribs. And it was hard to make out anything as there were so much blood everywhere.

Before Aidan could anticipate it, Jade fell to the ground her body going limp. Aidan gulped unable to react as he continued to stare at the dead body in front of him. Alex who arrived at that particular moment let out a harsh expletive and Ryce also sagged in shock.

Aidan felt his body ready to give way and he had to grip the door handle so that he could still stand upright. Bile of nausea mounted in his throat and had it not been for the arrival of the other females, he would have puked the contents of his stomach right then. Taking in a deep breath, he steadied himself and tried to look strong for the sake of the ladies.

There was a foul smell in the attic and he blocked the women from entering the room. It was going to be a sight which would haunt them for the rest of their lives and he wanted to spare them that ordeal. When Alex brought Jade lifeless body out of the room, he asked Judith to tend to her daughter.

“Go. We will take care of the situation here,” Aidan rasped and was thankfully backed up by Bryan Stafford, the husband of Caitlin.

“Here, give me Jade,” he gracefully offered.

“Oh my God ! Is she alright ?” asked Judith in a small voice as he watched her son in law pick up her youngest daughter’s lifeless body.

“Come, mother,” Bryan said leading the ladies away from the horrible scene and thankfully they followed having missed what was going on. As soon as they were out of earshot, Aidan looked at Alex with mortification.

“Who could it be ?” he asked in a trembling voice no longer caring if anybody could see him as a weak person. A great deal had happened and it would take a lesser man not to show his emotions now.

“I don’t know. I don’t think we should move the body or try anything. I’m calling Greg over,” he said determinedly.

Aidan feeling numb could not respond and whenever he tried to look at the body to determine the owner, he felt bile rise and he had to look away. What the hell had happened ? Was it the reason why Kate had fled ? Had she witnessed the murder ? Or had it been a suicide ?

There were so many unanswered questions in his mind and time stood still as they replayed one by one in his head. He barely looked up when he heard Alex answer his phone. Who could have committed such a crime ? Fear gripped his heart at the mere thought of what had happened to Kate. So his instincts had been damned right ; she was in some serious danger.

Swallowing, he watched as the police arrived and blocked the area. Gregory Kyle was a well-built man who took charge of the situation immediately. It suddenly became an important case and the place was surrounded by cops. Everybody was busy looking for hints and evidence ; everything was happening in a flash almost like in a movie. When they had done with the inspection, they whirled round the body and Aidan froze as he discovered the identity of the victim.

Edward Bigfoot. It was Edward Bigfoot who was lying dead in a pool of blood and everybody was raw with shock at the discovery. Edward Bigfoot was dead !!! The statement rung in his head until his mind drew a blank repeating that sentence over and over like a mantra.

Who could have killed him ? And for what purpose ? Edward had become quite friendly with them after the break up and Aidan had admired him for having taken everything sportively. Of course he had still acted snobbish sometimes but they had never bothered since they knew that ultimately he was a kind soul. And now that he was dead, the mystery was getting more complicated.

“How come nobody saw the body before ?” Gregory was asking Alex and the latter shrugged in response.

“We have all been worried. And everyone was gathered in the fitting room trying to understand what had actually happened. We had no idea that there was a dead body in the attic. That is not until Jade found it.”

“Where is she ?” queried the inspector. “I need to ask her a few questions.”

“She has passed out at the sight of the dead body. Bryan has called a doctor to look after her and I think she is feeling better now. But we have not moved anything from the room and I would appreciate if you don’t trouble her for the time being.”

Gregory Kyle nodded and Aidan could not quite figure out whether it was in agreement or understanding. Then he frowned in concentration. “Why were you worried ? There was a wedding in the house, right ?”

“Yes but my eldest daughter has gone missing only one hour before the wedding ceremony,” informed Alex with a voice which spoke volume about his state of mind.

“Kate has disappeared ? But why didn’t you call the police to signal the disappearance of your daughter ?” the superintendent asked sounding surprised and Alex told him how the cops had reacted when they had come over for investigations.

And the superintendent was really angry with his subordinates’ behavior and promised to take severe actions against them. They should have at least searched the house, he informed them. And they would have found the dead body.

Aidan felt glad that at least they would be reprimanded and would not behave so coldly with another family in distress. However, the next sentence of the policeman drove him almost mad with worry.

“This is unfortunately a murder case ; not suicide as the victim has been stabbed thrice in the ribs and if he had attempted to kill himself, he would have stopped after one attempt. How were you related to him ?”

And Alex told him the truth ; that he was the son of his wife’s friend Abigail Bigfoot and had been engaged to his eldest daughter Kate one year ago. But Kate had never been in love with him and had broken the wedding some weeks before.

Gregory frowned. “Well it’s not looking very good for you Alex. Your daughter has gone missing and she is the only one who knows what really happened. For the time being, we are going to seize the castle for further investigations.”

“What ?!!” asked Alex frowning at his friend. “What for ?”

“In guise of evidence. We will have to search the house for any evidence and the castle is quite big so it will take some time. You can contact your lawyer if you want ; we don’t have much choice,” replied Gregory looking apologetic.

Aidan knew he was only doing his job and it was after all a case of murder. His blood froze at the mere word and he cringed to imagine what could have happened to Kate. With his future wife missing, it made everything even more complicated. Damn !

“Okay,” agreed Alex grumpily. “We will shift to our penthouse for as long as necessary.”

“Alex ?” called Gregory when all three men of the house was going to find their wives to inform them of the unexpected relocation. “There’s more,” he simply said and Aidan instantly knew it was going to be very very bad news.

Hell ! As if things were not bad enough. Bracing himself for the incoming blow, he immediately felt a hand on his left shoulder as if offering support. Before turning, he knew it was Ryce who had also anticipated the bad news and was providing his help.

“As Kate is missing, she is the prime suspect for the murder,’ Gregpry delivered in a dead tone and each one stared at him incredulously.

What the hell did he meant ? That Kate had killed Bigfoot ? Why the hell would she do that ? It made no sense ; Kate was not a murderer ! Hell, she would think twice before even killing a damned mosquito.

06

“Greg…” started Alex and stopped his sentence midway when his friend lifted a hand in his direction.

“You don’t need to justify yourself. I’m not saying that she is the culprit but until another clue has been found, we…,” he faltered as Bryan joined them and Alex turned behind to see who had just arrived.

“It’s okay,” Alex gruffly said. “He’s part of the family.”

Gregory must have remembered that Bryan was the son-in-law because he nodded immediately and went on. “Like I was saying, until we find a concrete proof, Kate is the prime suspect. And the fact that Mr. Bigfoot was the ex-fiancé is not helping at all.”

“What is that supposed to mean ?” asked Bryan angrily.

Aidan could hardly utter a word as shock had taken control over his mind. The insinuations of the police officer were deep and he knew that Gregory Kyle would not be lying to them. So, he reigned in whatever protests his heart was making in order to better assimilate what was happening. What was the point anyway ? Kate was missing and even if she was suspected as the murderer, the police could not arrest her.

“Well, the main scenario is that Bigfoot had tried something rash with your daughter to avenge himself and she had tried to defend herself. And has unpremeditatedly stabbed him to protect herself.”

“But Edward was very friendly with us even if the marriage was cancelled. He never held a grudge and Kate had reimbursed him every penny he had spent for the ceremony,” Aidan was quick to offer as information.

Gregory shrugged. “I could also be completely wrong. Or maybe Bigfoot had been acting all that time and waiting for the appropriate moment to avenge his humiliation,” observed the police officer shrewdly and Aidan was baffled.

Was that possible ? Was it possible for someone to behave normally when he had so much hatred in his heart ? Aidan was no longer sure about what had happened anymore. It was like an intrigue and the more they tried to think about it, the more possibilities were coming up. But he was not ready to accept that Kate was a killer. Not even in self-defense.

“But what is not making sense in that theory is where did she get a knife during the heated argument ?” he speculated ready to defend his love until he had no concrete proof.

“Exactly !” defended Alex who seemed unwilling to believe that his daughter was the culprit. “And Kate would not hurt anyone. She cannot be a murderer no matter how petty I sound,” he protested and his friend patted his back.

“I know how it feels. I will try my best to find out what happened. Don’t worry. For the time being, I’ve sent my squad looking for her at every hospitals or the nearby terminals. I will give you a report before the end of the day,” he consoled the suddenly tired looking father.

Hospitals ? Damn how could they have overseen that fact ? Of course she might be wounded and had landed in some hospital for treatment. Aidan mentally slapped himself for not thinking about that possibility.

“And let’s hope that Kate gets back home soon,” Gregory added and Aidan read his double meaning. It meant that if Kate had only run because she was afraid of what had happened, she would be back soon. But if she stayed away for too long, it meant that their theory was well-founded. That she was the killer.

Hell ! What a mess ! Was he right ? Had Edward tried anything before the ceremony and Kate had defended herself. But why would Kate kill him ? It did not make any sense. She could have cried out for help. But maybe she had and no one had heard her because they had been busy with the wedding preparations. And she had been left with no other choice.

But to kill ? That was presumptuous. Why would she kill him if he had made advances towards her ? Had he tried to rape her ? Rage surged through him instantly at the mere thought but he kept his temper in check as there were other more important things to deal with.

“Please let us know as soon as you find out anything,” intervened Bryan seeing that his father-in-law was getting depressed. “Here, take my card,” he offered the officer his business card and the latter dutifully took it.

“Couldn’t someone else have barged into the house for robbery or something ?” asked Ryce speaking for the first time since the dead body has been discovered.

Gregory nodded in answer to his question. “We have not eliminated that possibility. It could also be that Kate had nothing to do with the murder and has been kidnapped. But we have to get a ransom call before being able to move forward with this case. For the time being, Kate is considered as the prime suspect since her ex fiancé was killed.”

“I’m sorry. It’s hard to accept that Kate could have killed somebody. And Aidan had said, where would she find a knife if ever Bigfoot had been trying to rape her or something ?” Ryce mused and even the officer seemed to agree.

“You’re right. But if she is not the culprit, she will try to contact someone soon,” he said looking in Aidan’s directions. “She might ask for help and explain what had actually happened. Please inform us if you find anything,” he implied and Aidan nodded his head in acquiescence.

Gregory was not the enemy here ; he was trying to help. And if Kate was terrified of someone, she would contact him for sure. For he knew Kate trusted him more than she trusted herself. Then he pondered over the fact that the police officer had emphasized on the words “if she is not the culprit”.

Which meant that otherwise, she would stay away from home because she might be incriminated. And Aidan found himself wishing that he would have some news of her soon. It was not that he was doubting Kate ; he was damned sure that she had not committed the murder. But if it meant absolving her from any crime, it would be better if she came back. As soon as possible.

Things happened in a trance after that. The police blocked the west wing and nobody was allowed in. They were asked to leave the premises the next day and Alex cooperated without any further ado. Gregory was a good man, he would help them as much as he could.

Caitlin was very affected by the turn of the events and they had to call in the doctor to look after her. Judith was trying to take the news with a courageous affront and whatever doubt Aidan had in her regard had disappeared. Judith Thornton was a pain in the ass but not someone vile. He could vouch for that fact with his life.

Jen and Jude were shell shocked and were trying to be strong for everyone else since they could not afford to break down. As for Jade, Aidan discovered that she had regained consciousness and had her color back in her face. But she was still trembling and nervous whenever approached. The doctor had prescribed her some pills to calm down her nerves . His mother was hysterical and beyond consolation.

“Oh Aidan !” she cried while everybody was trying to talk at the same time with the latest news being fed to them by Alex. “How could this happen ?” she moaned and Aidan consoled her.

“Don’t worry, mom. We’ll find her, I promise. Wherever she is, I promise I will find her out and take care of her.”

“I hope so. I can’t imagine in what state she must be,” whispered Judith in a stricken voice and Alex hugged her immediately. And Aidan felt a void in his heart at the couple in front of him. How he missed feeling his beloved Kate’s arms around him. How he missed her lovely face. How he missed her smile and sultry looks.

Sighing, he closed his eyes to block the vision and hugged his mother instead who wiped her tears and promptly hugged him back.

“I cannot believe that the police is suspecting Kate,” added Caitlin in a small voice. “I mean everybody knows how kind-hearted she was,” she said lifting her eyes to her husband for some support.

The latter nodded to her and explained that it was only an assumption due to lack of evidence. The police had not confirmed anything yet and would eventually get back to them. And they did. Faster than he had imagined.

Late in the afternoon when everybody was busy packing, Gregory phoned to announce that they had found a wounded girl in a hospital and wanted them to come over to identify her. Apparently, the victim was badly hurt and her face could hardly be recognized.

Everybody tensed at the news and Alex asked the women to stay back and they would go to the police station to identify the body. But Caitlin was adamant ; she wanted to come along and Alex finally gave in. Fear gripped Aidan as he imagined Kate looking swollen and hurt but he was also relieved that she was still alive and prayed that it was her.