Song of the chapter is
Bells In Santa Fe by Halsey

-20-
-Veronica D'Rosario-
-Present-

____________

Paper Lantern

15 November, 2030
1:30 pm

The silence that reverberated afterwards was a little too familiar, echoing from the deepest corners of all our minds.

"Even if we do that," Zoya was the first to speak. "Where do we even begin?"

We all exchanged tensed glances. None of us had a clue where to even begin looking for clues.

"Well for starters, I think we can begin by checking the cctv footage of the school and the Inn." Moose answered, folding his arms.

Kartik blinked. "Yeah...but are the school authorities gonna let us do that? Considering we're practically number one in the suspect list."

Zoya groaned in frustration.

"Yes, but I'm not. So I'll go." Moose placed, and then moved his gaze to look at Siya. "If you're.... comfortable that is...."

Siya looked up at him for a moment before looking away, shaking her head. "Whatever."

Moose's lips pressed in a thin line as his eyes lowered.

"Yeah, but don't you think it'd be risky to go right now?" I expressed my concern. "I mean....the school's probably on high security too. Don't you think we should atleast wait a few days before going?"

He glanced at me and then held my gaze for a moment before looking away, pondering.

"Yeah, Veronica's right. It's not safe to go just yet." Kartik nodded. "Let's wait a couple of days before taking a step. Because we don't really know how this killer works. He could get you into a problem with the police, if he found out we had started looking for him already."

Moose nodded, breathing a sigh.

"Fine... let's wait for four to five days for the commotion to die down." He said. "Then we'll make our move."

I breathed an internal sigh, that he was convinced.

"I'll go at night. That way there won't be anyone other than the security guard." He continued.

"Yeah...but Himanshu, you shouldn't go alone. What if you need help with something?"  Saina suggested.

"Fine, uh... I'll take..." He trailed off as he glanced at me. I blinked twice. "Zoya."

Zoya moved her head to the side as slowly as one could. "Why am I the chosen one?"

"Because,.... you are the only person I know that knows best how to sneak in and out of school." Moose answered. Zoya narrowed her eyes at him.

"You're saying like it's a hobby of mine."

"You get the point-"

"Fine." She just shook her head.

"Alright, then...the night you two sneak into the school...I and Veronica will check the Inn for any potential clues." Kartik said, glancing at me. I gave him a nod.

A silent agreement passed between us.

"Alright! Looks like the Scooby doo gang is back in action." Zoya chimed. We all looked at her dubiously.

"Let's take down this son of a bitch."

_____________

Delmore Inn
   19 November, 2030
11:34 pm

Zipping the chain of my hoodie, I looked at my reflection in the mirror in front of me.

Tugging on the hair tie on my wrist, I inhaled sharply. This was bringing back a lot of unpleasant memories.

"You look absolutely ravishing, V."

Zoya commented from behind as she bounced on the comfy bed in our room. She was wearing a similar outfit as me, except hers looked more cooler on her.

The past few days had been a blur. Although the police had initially been reluctant to let anyone to stay in the hotel at all, reaching a dead end with the investigation had left them with no choice but to let the guests and staff that were already present from before stay there. Two cop cars were patrolling outside every day, keeping a check for any suspicious activity that could take place.

Unfortunately, that couldn't provide us any comfort.

The third floor had been sealed shut, preventing anyone from entering the floor at all. The guests staying there had been evacuated immediately, while some others had left on their own, too terrified of whatever had happened.

Saina had moved in with Kartik and Siya for the time being, one room away from ours. She still wasn't talking much. It seemed like whatever she had witnessed had traumatized her to the core.

I didn't blame her.

"So do you, Zoya."

She gave me a side smile. "I know."

Even in these fucked situations, she was always able to bring a smile on my face.

"So....are you jealous?"

I paused and turned to look at her. "What? Why would I be jealous?"

"Nothing." She lifted her hands in mock surrender. "Just.... about the fact that the dearest love of your life....picked me as a partner to go sleuthing."

I scoffed softly, shaking my head.

"I mean.... that's gotta hurt." She continued, in her sleezy tone. "You guys were practically the Betty and Jughead of Delmore."

"That's an exaggeration-"

"And then he went ahead and replaced you for a better option." She kept continuing. "Me."

I gave her a sardonic smile.

She burst into chuckles. "No but seriously, tell me. Did it hurt? When he took my name? I saw your face....it didn't look amazing."

I shook my head at her antics. "Zoya, you're impossible."

"I don't hear a 'no', which means you were affected." Zoya said, tilting her head to the side.

"Zoya-"

"Fortunately, Himanshu's not my type, so you have nothing to worry about, V."

"Oh my god-"

The knock at the door interrupted me from saying any further. I moved towards it and opened it, revealing Kartik, cladded in a black hoodie as well.

"What? Are black hoodies the standard uniform for sleuthing?" Zoya commented, standing up.

Kartik looked down at his outfit and then at ours. "Oh..."

"Yeah, oh." Zoya mocked. "Is Himanshu here?"

"Yeah, he is standing by the curb." Kartik answered, nodding. "But...you know that you can't go out the main gate."

"Yeah no shit, Sherlock." Zoya retorted. "I'll sneak through the window."

"Oh,... okay." Kartik's brows rose up and down. "Just be careful. Make sure they don't see you."

"Oh don't worry about that. Those old ducklings won't be able to see me." Zoya said, winking. "Y'all be safe too."

We both nodded. She heaved a sigh and walked towards the window.

"Here goes nothing."

Saying that, she climbed out, grabbing the branch of the tree adjacent to the windowsill and jumped down.

We both rushed to the window and looked down. She stood up slowly, brushing the dust off her jeans. Looking up, she gave us a thumbs up before pulling on her hood, climbing the fence and jumping out.

"Well that's done." Kartik muttered beside me. He looked at me. "Are you ready?"

I glanced at him and nodded.

"As I'll ever be."

_____________

"Come on, the coast is clear."

He said quickly and grabbed me by the arm and ran through the dark first floor hallway. I ducked my head a little and followed his lead. Our footsteps echoed ominously, the sound bouncing off the walls.

As we got to the reception, I noticed there were only two people present. One had already dozed off, and the other was on the process of doing the same, his eyes barely open.

Kartik and I exchanged a glance.

"The keys are behind the counter." Kartik uttered, glancing back at the receptionist. "But how do we get there without the staff person noticing?"

I furrowed my brows and scanned the nearby area for any sort of assistance, when an idea struck me.

"Wait here." I instructed. "I'll distract the receptionist. Once I do, go behind the counter and get the keys. Meet me back in my room once you're done."

"Wait but how-"

Not waiting for his response, I quickly took off hoodie, revealing the mellow lavender tshirt that was underneath. Dishevelling my hair a little, and pulling down my shirt just so one could see the cleavage, I struted towards the reception, leaving a puzzled Kartik behind.

As I got to the receptionist, I softly rang the brass bell. His otherwise sloppy eyes were now wide open.

I smiled the most flirtatious smile I could manage.

"Hi, I don't mean to bother you but the A.C in my room is just not working." I utter, putting my hand over the reception desk. "I was hoping you'd be able to help me."

"Uh...oh...um...yeah sure sure."

All men are dogs.

While his sleezy gaze remained on my chest, I sneakily turned my head towards Kartik, signalling him to be ready.

"Which...uh...room are you in?" As the receptionist asked, I turned my gaze back to him.

"205." I said, smiling. "I'm sorry for bothering you at this hour. Honestly, this whole murder shit has been taking a toll on me and I just... couldn't sleep. And then the A.C stopped working as well, leaving me helpless."

The receptionist nodded like a comic book store nerd. "No problem."

Returning his creepy smile, I pulled my hand back from the desk. "Thanks. You're such a lifesaver."

Saying that, I started leading the way to our room, having no idea what I was going to do when he'd find out that the A.C was working just fine. He walked behind me like a trained puppy.

So far so good.

As I neared the staircase, from the periphery of my vision, I saw Kartik slowly move towards the reception desk.

Breathing a soft sigh, I kept walking upstairs, with him trailing behind me.
As we got to the second floor hallway, my brain still hadn't come up with a single good plan.

Think Veronica, think. You're smarter than this.

As we got to our room, I inserted the key into the lock and bolted it open wide. I slowly moved away, letting the receptionist enter first. He switched on the light, and looked around for the remote to the A.C.

Fortunately for me, Zoya was messy as hell.

Her clothes were strung all over the place, making it more difficult for the receptionist to find the remote, thus buying us more time.

"Uh...miss, do you know where the remote is?"

His question brought me out of my frenzy. "Uh....no."

He then turned towards me. "Then how did switch on the A.C , to find that it was not working?"

I bit the inside of my cheeks. "Uh...good question."

I was wrong. You're not smarter than this, Veronica.

"Oh..um..well I had it with me while I was watching TV, on the bed. I don't remember where I left it when I went downstairs to find you." I tried.

A look of understanding washed over his face. "Oh okay."

Both of us (mostly him) spent the next ten minutes trying to find the remote that Zoya had probably left in a place no one but her could find. She knew I hated the cold more than anything, and thus must've assumed that I wouldn't need it.

Well, thank God for that.

No actually, thank Zoya for that.

A minute later, there was a sharp knock at the door, following a cough. Both of us jumped at the sound, turning towards the door instantly.

I breathed a sigh, realising it was only Kartik.

"Sir, can I... help you?" The receptionist asked in a quivery voice.

"Uh.... I heard my friend here was having some issues. So I just came in...to check." Kartik managed to utter. Beads of perspiration glistened on his forehead.

"Yeah, we can't....find the A.C's remote anywhere." I said, looking between him and the receptionist.

"Oh too bad." Kartik pretended.

"Yeah...." I feigned disappointment, turning towards the receptionist. "But you know what.....on second thoughts,... I think I can manage one night without the cold. I mean it's November, so I'll just....crack open a window or something."

The receptionist looked unconvinced.

"Yeah, I mean....you guys work so hard all day and on top of that, you have to deal with all this murder shit that's happening. It must take a toll on you too." I uttered my genuine sympathy. "I don't want to take up your time. You deserve to rest.... atleast for the night. Right?"

"Absolutely." Kartik nodded along.

A small smile cracked through his lips. "Alright..... I'll get you a new remote...first thing in the morning."

I smiled. "Sure. Thanks."

Saying that, we bid our silent goodbyes and he slowly and gradually walked out of the room. Once Kartik was sure he was out of earshot, he softly closed the door behind me.

"So... did you get the key?" I asked, crossing my arms in front of my chest.

He nodded. "Yes...but before that,...we need to address what just happened."

Putting my hoodie back on, I asked, "What?"

"Hello?! Since when do you flirt that voraciously?" He asked, his eyes widened. "And what was all that about looking like a hooker?"

I raised a brow.

"I mean.... I....mean-" he trailed off, getting my look. "You know what I mean!"

A small laugh ricocheted off my lips.

"What can I say?" I uttered with a smile, looking at his deeply furrowed look. "Being friends with Zoya Afreen teaches you a thing or two."

A smile broke on his lips as well as he rolled his eyes in understanding.

"Anyways, getting back to the actual business," I pointed, "You've got the keys, right?"

He nodded.

"Alright then...."

"......it's time to do some sleuthing."

_____________

aw i love the brother-sister relationship between kartik and veronica :)))

that's also something I intend to achieve through this second book : exploring the underrated relationships.

himanshu and zizi,
kartik and veronica,
siya and saina,
kartik and himanshu,
zoya and saina,
saina and himanshu!

i am the kind of person who loves the side relationships more than the main ones in a tv show or a movie! underrated relationships are one of my favourite things in the world.

so hopefully, I'll be able to do justice with that! fingers crossed :)

anyways, don't forget to vote, comment and share the book as much as possible!

love,
Bosedisha