Friend or Foe? Alice Mackenzie Kerning's Debut - Chapter 1

This is a story I have written. It's the first murder mystery I have written in a long while. I hope you will review it, love it, share it with your friends, and most of all enjoy solving it alongside Detective Alice Mackenzie Kerning.


Enjoy:)


Introduction

The masked person snuck back to the Sushi Bar, silent as night and with the speed of a hare. He took the knife off the table, nodded to himself, as if confirming something and stuffed in his pocket. Then he took off again, silent as night and with the speed of a hare. ‘Must not be seen, must not be seen.’ He thought as he ran, feeling the cool night air and yet being unable to enjoy it. The deed must be done tonight, before hesitation took over him again and missed the chance.

Tonight, it was to happen tonight.

He must do it.

He rang the doorbell. The very next day, he picked up the local newspaper like he always did and the very front page read “MARILYN KORR FOUND DEAD.”

Chapter 1, Alice Kerning 

               “Now aren’t you glad we took a vacation?” Marianne teased. Alice rolled her eyes as she stretched, then rolled her shoulder blades and said “We should never leave the hotel again. I’m getting tired of playing around all day.” Her voice came out lethargically as though it was a very long night, and a long night it had been indeed! Marianne insisted on going to one of the local pubs to have a drink or two, and two drinks became three, then three became four and four became five. Alice ended up dragging a very drunk Marianne back to the hotel, attracting too much unnecessary attention from the other guests. And now, the current Marianne who seemed to have forgotten the details of their previous night was thumbing through the guide book again looking for more famous restaurants and bars. ‘Oh my my my, what a big eater.’ Alice thought, sighing. She hoped they brought enough money to last them through the week; otherwise the lady beside her might cause them to go broke again.Alice Mackenzie Kerning ran a detective service. With her wavy hair dyed an extremely light purple with a braid at the side and her brilliant blue eyes, she loved every bit of mystery-solving. However, despite she and Marianne, her secretory and assistant helping the police a lot they did not earn much, mostly because they have not had a case any larger than a simple case of ‘Who’s the Thief?’ Marianne suspected that it was due to their reputation, but Alice reminded her that they were, as a matter of fact, quite famous in the police department. Then, Marianne had to remind her that they were never asked to solve a murder case, and then a dejected Alice had no mood to do anything since. How they ended up on vacation was still a mystery to Alice, for all she knew one day after sitting in her office doing nothing except waiting for a phone call about a case when Marianne came in, put down tickets and smiled at her announcing “We’re going on a vacation!” Without even giving her a chance to ask where, when and how or even just look at ticket on her table when Marianne grabbed the ticket, tossed her a luggage and exclaimed “Let’s go!” before leaving her in the dust. All of a sudden, after a stomach-lurching train ride, they reached their destination and booked into the hotel.And two days of fun later, Marianne had to go and get herself drunk. However, she woke up in the morning without so much so as a sign of a hangover, which both amazed and shocked Alice. And now, they were going to a village to try some more food and explore. ‘The only good thing about this trip,’ thought Alice ‘is that it was kind of fun.’ They walked into the village, expecting a bustling town but only to find a rather quiet village that had a sad atmosphere lingering in the air. Alice wondered what had happened, but Marianne seemed to not have noticed as she entered a restaurant in high spirits for lunch.As she spooned piping hot omelet rice into her mouth, Alice could not help but overhear a conversation of a waitress and two other customers behind her.

“Yes… what a tragedy…”
“She was such a good girl…”
“How sad…” they said, and Alice’s curiosity took over her and she called the waitress over and asked “What happened here? You said something about a tragedy.” The waitress looked at her strangely and laughed, saying “You’re not from around here are you?” She said, with a bitter smile. Alice nodded, and the waitress sighed. “It’s such a terrible thing! A tragedy indeed! Oh, it’s so sad I almost wish I could forget it forever.” She said dramatically, and Marianne asked “What happened then?” The waitress sighed again and said “Such a tragic tale, that it should happen here, in our town! See for yourselves!” she pulled out a copy of ‘The Sandy Times’, and handed it to them. Alice read the headlines, and it grabbed her attention and pulled her in like a small child drawn to a candy store.

“MARILYN KNORR FOUND DEAD!Marilyn Knorr, 20 years old, well-known for her flower shop and great personality was found dead in her bedroom at three o’clock in the morning on the Fourth of September. Investigators say that she was most likely stabbed in the stomach by a blunt object and died. However, not much has been revealed as investigators are baffled by the situation. No blood was found at the scene except on the victim’s body, and tests have shown to only be Marilyn’s blood, and no possible murder weapon was found.Marilyn was very well-liked in Sanditreath for her sweet personality and kind voice, not to mention her beautiful looks. “Marilyn is a very nice person! I don’t understand who and why anyone would want to kill her.” Says her best friend Wendy Strauss, who was in tears after the news was broken to her. The owner of the ‘AkiFuyu’ Sushi bar Hanamura Mukuro also commented that Marilyn frequented at his stand and the last time he saw her was at the bar. “I was talking to Kirin-san when Marilyn-san stood up, bade me farewell in her usual cheerful demeanor and left.”  It was a tragic incident that almost nobody seems to be able to solve, and investigators have marked the case as ‘Unnatural’”

“Well that is tragic.” Marianne said, and the waitress nodded. “Keep the paper is you want.” She said, and left to attend to other customers. Alice looked up from the paper, eyes sparkling and exclaimed “This is it. This is our big case! If we solve it we are sure to become famous!” Marianne’s face lit up. “Yes! Our reputation will get better!” she said, clapping her hands together. “Um… did you say you were willing to solve the case?” A girl in a pink dress with a ribbon around the collar asked slightly shyly, and at the same time, uncertainly. “Yes. We are.” Alice said, still glowing with excitement. The girl looked relieved and said “Oh thank goodness! I really wanted Marilyn’s death to be brought to justice, but nobody seemed to figure out who was the culprit. I’m Wendy, Wendy Strauss.” She said, smiling and shaking Alice’s hand. “Alice, Alice Mackenzie Kerning of the Mackenzie Detective Society. You may call me Detective Mackenzie. Or just Alice I don’t really mind.” Alice stood up and shook her hand vigorously. “You’re still sparkling Alice.” Marianne said, smiling serenely. “So you say that Miss Carroll is also a detective?” Alice asked, walking with the short-haired girl. “Yes,” Said Wendy, leading the way. Marianne decided to go back to the hotel as she wasn't feeling well. “Kirin is also a detective, but she’s quite inexperienced. Her company hasn't been open for more than a week.” As she said this, Alice chuckled and said “Much like me. My dad passed the company down to me a while ago. But our reputation went way down. Perhaps because people think the great Mackenzie’s daughter can’t do as well, so this is our first murder case.” She laughed sheepishly. Wendy merely smiled. Perhaps it was because she was simply glad that someone was willing to help solve Marilyn’s case. No matter what, Wendy was still her best friend. From their earlier conversation, Alice learnt that Marilyn’s parents have passed on a few years ago, and lived alone. So almost every day Wendy visited her to bring food and sometimes presents. It was a rather nice life, and they were very close. What else would one expect from childhood friends? They had known each other head to toe since they were eight-year-olds. So when the murder happened… well she had no idea what to do. She was simply devastated, unable to believe it, not wanting to believe it. She could not believe that her best friend had died, a friend she had known ever since she was a child. Who had been there for her when there were bullies? It was Marilyn. Who was it, when she fell down and skinned her knee did not laugh and instead put a plaster on for her? It was Marilyn. Who helped her settle her rent when her pay got cut? It was Marilyn again. So when Marilyn’s parents died in that car crash, she tried her best to be there, to comfort her, to make her smile. She even attended their funeral, even though she didn't know them well. But before she could repay for all those things Marilyn did for her, she died. So to her, bringing her death to justice was the least she could do to repay her friend. That was her reason. “So this is it?” said Alice, looking at the structure, scrutinizing it. “Yes it is.” Wendy said, smiling. “Looks really different from mine. Darn it I really should have a renovation. Pity Father would never allow it.” Wendy laughed. Then she knocked the door of a new-looking building with a large signboard that said ‘Kirin and Co. Detective service’. A cool voice said “Come in.” And so they did, stepping over the threshold and entering the office. “Hello and welcome to my office, I assume you have a case?” Said Kirin, with a small smile and calm voice. Kirin looked no older than eighteen, and had sleek black hair that fell at her shoulders. Alice shook her head, but continued to smile and say “No, I’m here with a request.” Kirin looked slightly more intrigued, and she leaned over and asked “Oh really? What about?” Alice’s smile melted away and formed a more serious look, and then she leaned over Kirin’s table and said “I want to team up. Let us solve Marilyn’s case together.” Kirin's face changed to become more serious. “Are you joking? You want to work with me?” Alice nodded. “Yes. You are the only other detective that lives in this vicinity. You know this place like the back of your hand. The main thing is that you’re a detective who knows this place. A very good way for me to solve this case.” Kirin did not answer. Instead, she stood up, and walked to the window. Then she turned around and said “Alright, I’ll help. But know this: I have already started working on the case. I planned to ask an experienced detective to help. I hope you fit the bill.” The tone of her voice was what Alice admired. Full of a zest for mystery, confidence and yet, calm. It reminded her of how she used to be. Alice smiled and walked over to shake Kirin’s hand. “Alice Mackenzie Kerning, of the Mackenzie Detective Society.” She said, smiling. Kirin’s face lit up. “I've heard of it! Oh how I admired Detective Mackenzie. Are you related?” She said, completely out of the image she had just painted of herself. “He’s my father. I took over the company a year ago. Call me Detective Mackenzie, or just Alice. Or you may call me Detective Mack, whichever works for you.” Alice replied, and Kirin said “Heard about you too! You solved the case of one of the biggest robberies in your city, didn't you? By the way, I’m Kirin Carroll. I’m inexperienced, but I am willing to learn. I look forward to working with you, Detective Mackenzie.” Alice smiled, and said “Same to you. Now let’s go over all that you know, shall we?” At this moment, Wendy mentioned that she had to get back to work, so she left the two detectives to their investigation.“So what have you found out?” Alice asked, seated very comfortably in the chair across Kirin’s table. “Well, for what we know, based on the news report we know she was stabbed. It is never mentioned how many times, so let’s assume she was stabbed once and died. Secondly we know that the area around her was clean. Apparently, Marilyn put up quite a fight if the perpetrator had to clear out the evidence. Now this is the part that puzzled me. Where is the murder weapon?” Kirin summarized, and then Alice looked at the newspaper article she had kept in her pocket. “Well then, we have a few people to question right now don’t we? You’re one, for example.” She pointed to Kirin’s name. “What, I’m a suspect now?” She sarcastically asked, then sighed. “Fine, go ahead.” Alice smirked a little. “Alright, let’s start with this. What were you and Hanamura-san talking about? I mean this is a curiosity question don’t mind me.” Kirin then rolled her eyes, and said “We were talking about food. Muku-san is a very absent-minded person, so we were talking about a recipe that he came up with and I told him to write it down.”

“And so you did. What is your relationship with Marilyn?”
“We are sworn enemies.”
“And are you aware, Miss Carroll, that by saying this you make yourself a prime suspect?”
“Indeed I am. But even I would feel sad if she died. Now I have no one to compete with. I have no rival and I can never beat her again. Why do you think I am even bothering to investigate her death?”
“True. Now where does Marilyn live? Near your place or far from your house, and please specify how near or how far.”
“Nearby, she’s my neighbor.”
“And so she is. I’m done, got all I need.” Alice pulled a pen out of her pocket and clicked it, and took out a notebook. “Now, repeat all that.” She smiled, and Kirin stood up in utter shock, confusion and indignation. “Why?”
“Protocol. To check for lies, that’s something you should learn.” Alice smirked a little. Kirin rolled her eyes, and then she asked in a challenging tone “And how in the world is that going to help?” Alice sighed, turned to Kirin and said with an exasperated smile “If you were lying, you cannot remember clearly whatever you said. That’s because stories made up on the spot cannot be registered as the truth by the mind just yet. Telling it twice helps it to remember indeed, but it only works on short lies. Now the truth will be like retelling a story one has read many times. And the truth is registered in your mind and you can remember what happened when asked to recall that memory. Now remember that, and do not assume you are the best detective just yet, you have a long way to go.” Kirin seemed to have run out of words, and just nodded. “Now, I want you to repeat what you have just told me.” “How did it go?” Marianne asked, in the inn they checked into in Sanditreath. Alice sighed and plopped back down onto the bed, rolling about a little then she propped herself back up on her elbows and said “No good. Turns out Wendy went out of town today after work and Hanamura went on a business trip a day after the incident, before it was reported. But I think Kirin wrote to Hanamura already and he’s on his way back.” Marianne seemed to consider all this, and then she spoke “Don’t you think it makes both of them quite suspicious?” Alice rolled over on her back. “Nope, Hanamura as some of the locals described him, was very absent-minded and he had to go home straight after he closed the shop or he’ll forget how to. Wendy was already away two days before; I confirmed that when I looked over the exit files at the toll booth.” Marianne then said something that got Alice thinking through the night “But if you’re trying to cover up something, don’t you think it’ll be more logical to get to the exit files at night to input a false entry? Couldn't you have made use of your condition that people know you the best for, which is absent-mindedness?”