Guess Who?

Prompt: A group of friends must solve a murder mystery during a weekend getaway at a remote cabin.

Diamond and Jeremy were hanging out, before they gotten a text from Reece about a party that was happening in the cabin in Texas.

“Y’all coming to the party?” Reece text.

Diamond looked at Jeremy a bit before texting Reece back. Diamond and Jeremy been together for two years.

“You wanna go?” Asked Diamond.

Jeremy keeping his hands on the steering wheel, not really wanna be bother with their group of friends, since him and his brother, Jake didn’t get along but they both were part of the friend group.

“Bae?” Asked Diamond again.

“Yeah?” He responded back.

“Do you wanna go?” Asked Diamond.

Jeremy sighed. Knowing full well Diamond wasn’t going to stop asking him.

“I guess. But we not staying long. I rather not see, Jake and one of his side pieces.”

Diamond squealed excitedly although she knew they weren’t going to stay long.

Diamond text Reece back.

“We coming. But we may get a hotel instead of staying in the cabin.”

Reece sighed to himself knowing that Jeremy wasn’t going to stay in the cabin with them, so instead of pressing the issue. He let it go.

Meanwhile, Grayson, Denise, Jake, and his new flavor of the month, Chantelle, and Jace were already at the cabin with Reece.

They had already set up the bonfire and were drinking beer by the lake.

Jace set down and watched Grayson and Denise walked off to the side. It seemed kind of strange to him, but he chose to stay quiet. It wasn't his business. Yet deep down he knew something was off. Grayson and Denise had always been close, but there was something different in their energy lately.

Little did he know it was the calm before the storm. Jace took a long sip of his beer and decided to keep a closer eye on the duo as the night progressed.

Diamond and Jeremy finally made it. Where, Denise just leaped to hug Diamond since they haven’t seen each other since the last time they had a getaway like this.

Jeremy lagged behind, greeting the others with a casual nod.

“Hey bro.” Said Jake.

“It’s been awhile since, grandpa’s birthday party.” He continued.

“Yeah, it has,” Jeremy replied, a faint smile forming on his lips.

Jeremy saw Jace watch Grayson nonchalant attitude towards everyone. He wondered what was really going on with Grayson.

Jeremy walked up to Jace as he drank his own beer that he got from Reece.

“Grayson. Been acting weird.” He talked quietly to Jace.

“I noticed,” Jace murmured, glancing briefly at Grayson who was now standing a bit too close to the edge of the lake.

“What I mean is that, three weeks ago. Denise called Diamond about an incident that happened but never gave any details. Diamond was really worried but Denise brushed it off when asked later.”

Jace sighed. “Maybe it's all connected,” Jace suggested, his eyes scanning the group.

“What do you mean?” Jeremy asked.

“Come on. The fact we all up here. Grayson been off his rockers. Think. Ever since Denise's vague call, he's been distant,” Jace continued, his voice barely above a whisper.

“Also. Remember Crystal?” He continued.

“Yeah, the girl who left right after the last time we had hung out,” Jeremy replied.

“Except the fact that she was in a relationship with Grayson and then she went and vanished. That can’t be a coincidence.”

Jeremy frowned, his mind racing with the implications. “Look. I didn’t want to come out here. But I already have a bad feeling about all this, even before we arrived,” he admitted, peering at Jace. “Something doesn’t add up.”

“Let’s just keep our eyes-.”

Diamond came running towards them, her face pale and eyes wide with alarm.

“Denise went missing.”

❧

Jace eyes widened in shock.

“What do you mean missing?”

Diamond took a deep breath, trying to steady her voice.

“Grayson came over to talk to Denise privately. So I went inside to use the bathroom and when I came back, they were both gone. Then I found her phone on the ground.”

Jace set down and rubbed his temples, tension evident in his every movement.

“Okay. Let’s think this through. We need to find them fast.”

Chantelle screamed, breaking the tense silence around them..

Jake, Reece, Jeremy, Diamond, and Jace ran to see what had happened. They found Chantelle standing over what to seen to be Denise’s body. Chantelle ran to Jake and clung to him, her sobs shaking her slender frame. Jake held on to her tightly.

“We need to stay calm.” Jace said.

“If Denise is here, then where is the heck is Grayson.” Said an angry, Reece.

Jace glanced around the area, his eyes scanning for any sign of Grayson.

“We might need to call the police. Because this is bad.”

“Good idea, but we need to start trying to solve this case before you continue to get the authorities involved.” said Jeremy.

Jace began to pace, still scanning the surroundings.

“Splitting up isn’t an option, we stick together.” Jace said.

❧

Everyone gathered together inside the cabin to look for Grayson and find out what happened to Denise. Jace called his father, who was the chief of police, and the only Korean-American to hold such a position in the county. After Jace talked with his father, he gave him some pointers on how to solve this murder, but he was going send a detective out to assist them. They needed to keep an eye out and document any clues they found before the detective arrived.

Reece took his phone out trying to contact Grayson. Yet it kept going straight to voicemail. They didn’t know where Grayson was at or if he was dangerous or if he was in danger. The thought gnawed at Reece and the others. It wasn’t until they saw his SUV gone. Which could only mean one thing. He left.

“What are we going to do?” Jake asked.

“Well, my dad is sending a detective out to assist us in solving this mystery.”

Jace’s father called Jace and it’s apparent that this was far beyond their control since, Grayson showed up to the station. Everyone made the decision to leave the cabin and go their separate ways.

At the Station

Grayson insanity was unfolding after he killed Denise, because she broke up with him, he knew that his friends would find out or solved the mystery. He set in the interrogation room with Detectives, Rafael Gibson and Gianna Martinez. They set across from him. Grayson, without missing a beat, light a cigarette and sighed.

“I did it.” He said bluntly.

Detective Martinez raised her eyebrow.

“Why?”

Grayson took another puff of his cigarette. Clearly his mind was unraveling.

“She broke up with me. But she’s not my only victim, he said coyly.”

Detective Gibson was pretty much familiar with mental illnesses and serial killers. Grayson didn’t fit the profile of a serial killer. Grayson mind was unraveling, he wasn’t a serial yet, but it was as if he was on the brink of becoming one. The detectives exchanged a glance, understanding the gravity of the situation. With that in mind, Detective Gibson took a different approach.

“And who are your other victims, Grayson?”

Grayson blew a smoke after another one and took a long sigh.

“I’m going to make you famous.” He said.

Grayson leaned forward, a twisted smile tugging at his lips.

“Crystal Alexander.”

Martinez knew she heard that name before and her eyes grew big. It was the Captain’s daughter.

Grayson smirked as Detective Gibson read him his rights.