Welcome back, adventurers. We’re getting close to solving our case, but first we need to take a step back and look at our life, look at our choices. Last week, we followed Silas to Mr. Crane’s house, where he is snooping through our skeeziest drama teacher’s files when the man himself appears with a massive sword (not a euphemism). Because we have absolutely no sense of self-preservation, y’all voted to: Rush into Mr. Crane’s house screaming. Since it’s a sword he’s holding, at least you won’t have to worry about getting shot.
Oh good! We don’t have to worry about getting shot! We just have to worry about rushing into a known sex offender’s house while he’s wielding dangerous medieval weaponry. But thank god we don’t have to worry about getting shot, y’all!
Chapter 13: You’ve Got Blackmail
Silas has found your teacher’s laptop, and from the glow of the screen, you can see him looking at something with horror and disgust evident on his face. You’re just about to follow him inside, when Sam, beside you, gasps. That’s when you see the looming form up Mr. Crane, sneaking up behind Silas, with a… is that a sword?!!
Before you have time to connect your brain with your body’s movements, you run screaming into the house. Silas turns to see Mr. Crane, just as he’s swinging the sword towards Silas’ neck and
CRACK.
Mr. Crane and his sword fall to the floor. You look in shock from his unmoving body to the fire extinguisher you hold in your hand, drawing a visual line from the shiny red cylinder to where it just connected with Mr. Crane’s skull.
“Ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod,” you say.
Sam has just appeared beside you. “Is he…”
“No,” Silas replies, as he kneels down to check Mr. Crane’s vitals. “He’s got a pulse, and he’s still breathing. Just unconscious.”
“We should call an ambulance,” Sam says.
“Not yet,” you says. “We’re breaking and entering. I don’t exactly want to get carted off to jail for this. Plus, I want to know what you’ve found on that laptop that’s so interesting,” you says to Silas.
“You girls need to go home before you get into more trouble. This is way over the heads of a couple of teenagers playing Nancy Drew.”
“Can it, Jump Street. Caitlin just saved your life. And if anyone deserves to find out what happened to Kayla, it’s her.”
You realize the fire extinguisher is still in your hand as Silas eyes you carefully.
“Ok,” he concedes finally. “Well, besides enough child pornography to get him locked away for life, Mr. Crane has some very interesting correspondences with Kayla’s parents.”
“WHAT?!” You and Sam say in unison. You did not see that one coming.
“Yes, it would seem that your Drama teacher is blackmailing Mr. and Mrs. Peters with some, er, rather incriminating photos of your friend.”
You look down at your unconscious drama teacher and feel sick to your stomach. You also have a strong urge to give him a swift kick in the nuts, but instead you look up and say, “But blackmail is illegal. Kayla’s a minor, so it’s not like her name would be released. Why wouldn’t they just go to the police?”
Silas gives you an inscrutable look that seems to last for minutes. “In my experience, the people who don’t go to the police are also the ones that have the most to hide.”
“So you think Kayla’s parents killed her?!” Sam asks, with a little too much excitement in her voice.
And that’s when Mr. Crane grabs your ankle and pulls you down to the floor. You scream, and with as much strength as you can muster, swing the fire extinguisher at his head.
And again.
And again.
And again.
Until his lifeless body slumps over for good, and you sit there, sprayed in blood, still feeling the force of the last blow coursing through the metal of the fire exinguisher and into your body. Silas and Sam look down in abject horror, and…
WRITE IN TIME! Instead of giving you a poll, tell us what happens next! Suggest our next course of action in the comments and upvote your favorite. Mandy will take the most popular/best one for next week’s installment.
