Suspect #8.

The Next Door Neighbor.

Rachel is my only real girl friend. Not the romantic type, just a friend. She lives directly next door. Her being a suspect, out of everyone so far, surprises me. We had a good time hanging out on week nights drinking glasses of wine. Her balcony was right next to mine and most times we would just talk with the wine on our own spaces. It was easy.

She grew up with money, not unlike me, but her parents had more. They were both lawyers. Mine had been real estate agents. Our similar backgrounds brought us close, fast. She had a steady boyfriend but he worked nights at the airport and had to sleep all day. Her job was to manage social media accounts for private clients. I was pretty sure her boyfriend paid for most everything. 

"The neighbor huh?"

"Yep. It's always someone close to them and usually who you least expect."

Detective Keele was driving us towards my building. I knew that Rachel would be home. She was always home.

"What does she do again?" Detective Jones asks, leafing through his notes. 

"Social media manager. Whatever that is."

"You are too old boss, it's a person who posts and answers messages for someone else." 

"Don't laugh at me....one day you won't be able to keep up with the nonsense either. Too much disconnect from reality. Computers are going to be our downfall. Mark my words."

"I'm not laughing at you! I agree. Computers probably will. Did you see on the news the story about AI being used in factories now? They looked like real people encased in metal. It was like something out of Hollywood. Didn't we pull her social media and see that she uploaded lots of videos with her and Leilani?"

"Yep. They looked to be really good friends."

Hold it. Did he say she uploaded lots of videos of me and her?? I wasn't aware of that! More videos being taken of me suddenly hit me with nausea. Nausea. I can still fell sick to my stomach. Super weird given I had no body, just a spirit.

"She must make a lot to live in that building. I'll give that to her."

We get closer to my building and I wish suddenly that I am still alive and able to go home. I don't know if I am ready to go back in and see where I can never really go anymore. Detective Keele guides the SUV into an open spot out front. Like it or not, I have to follow them in. 

"What is the motive here then?" 

Detective Keele sighs and puts the vehicle in park.

"If I am right on my hunch, she has an unspoken grudge. An argument perhaps? One that no one else knows about? It certainly isn't her being in love with our victim. I watched the videos. She is in love with her boyfriend. Who by the way, lives with her."

"Oh great. Hopefully the boyfriend isn't home."

"He certainly will be. He works nights at the airport."

They exit the SUV and begin to walk inside, my cue to follow behind. 

"How do you know all of this?"

Detective Keele holds the door open for detective Jones. 

"I didn't just skim the videos, I watched everything. You gotta get used to doing that too, if you plan to stay in this job longer."

🩸

My fears of being back in my building again were founded. I feel sad. More than sad actually. Hollow was more like it. My life was taken from me prematurely. I had no say in the ending. I guess we never really do anyway, but the facts of it hitting me in the face feels no less awful. Whatever happens next, I want to move on once my murder is solved. Staying here among the living is beginning to feel like hell. 

"It still hits me as super sad. Her death. She was so young."

Detective Keele hits the floor buttons as the elevator doors shut. 

"That she was. The same age as my niece."

"Shit. That's right boss. I'm sorry. I didn't make that connection. This case has to open old wounds."

"Yep, it does. But it's good in a way. I'm on my A game with this."

They step out of the elevator and begin to walk towards my door. It has police tape across it still. I hope the personnel that have been in and out haven't wrecked anything. I took great pride in my place. Just to satisfy my curiosity, I float into my condo. What I find brings grief to my mind. 

Dirty boot or shoe prints can be seen on the once pristine floors. Papers on my desk are strewn about everywhere along with my once organized bills. I know they had to examine everything for prints and to search for clues as to who may have killed me, but this was hard to see. Then it hits me. 

Where is my cat?

I can't say anything out loud or I'd definitely call for him. Timothy Earl Jones! I search in every room and even the balcony, but don't find him. Was he taken to a shelter? I hoped not. Maybe a cop took him home with them. That would be the best possible outcome. Hawaii has a surplus of stray cats and they routinely put them down. 

Timothy Earl Jones....

Dejected, I try to get it together. No use in feeling sorry for my former alive self. I have to accept that I am dead now and that I don't own this condo anymore and I don't own a pet anymore. It is the way it is. I hope that when they solve my murder, I can finally move on. 

Speaking of which, I need to get back to the detectives and my neighbor so I float in that direction. Hopefully Rachel will surprise me. 

🩸

"Please sit, but we have to be quiet, my boyfriend would freak if he heard your voices in here."

Detectives Keele and Jones look at each other before sitting, most likely assessing the boyfriend remark. Not that they were afraid, they were police and armed, but they wouldn't want trouble. I take in Rachel's appearance. She is still the same as she was almost a week ago except she looks exhausted. Has she been losing sleep over my death? I am about to find out. 

"I know that she was murdered." She retorts, even before they begin the questioning. 

"How do you know that?"

Detective Jones was obviously going to take the lead on this. I bet detective Keele was preparing him for it, at least it seemed that way from the ride over here. 

"I know because she was being stalked. By a few people."

Interesting. She knew about my stalkers from work? But how?

"I have seen them, down below on the street. And inside the building a few times. Especially the blonde lady."

"Blonde?"

Rachel smiled, "Yes, the one that is so mean to Leilani. I think her name is Lila."

Lila had been downstairs? And inside the building?!

"Please tell us who you saw, where and when, to the best of your memory."

Rachel describes seeing who sounds like Filau, the Dining Director from the street level. He had followed me home numerous times and hid where he thought no one would see, video taping me with his phone. We already knew of this though so it wasn't a surprise to the detectives or to me. 

Then she describes seeing Tio once or twice after work, but he wasn't as intent on video taping me, merely watching then leaving pretty quickly. Again, not a surprise. She also describes Marcus. He would jog by in the early morning hours before I would leave for work. Oddly though, he didn't ever seem to be stalking me. But he didn't live nearby so for him to jog that far, he would have to get up and leave his condo at least an hour before I ever woke. All the time I knew him, he didn't exercise. 

"When you saw the men, did they ever attempt to gain entry into the building?"

Rachel shakes her head no. 

"I never saw them try. But a few times I spotted Marcus in the building. This was after they broke up too. He didn't have a key so I don't know how he got in."

"Did you ask him?"

"No. He didn't know who I was. I never met him in person. Only saw pictures of him on her phone."

This was true. I never introduced them to each other. 

"What about the blonde, Lila?"

"Well she came by a lot. Often actually. And she would record Leilani on her cell phone, as well as mill around in the lobby sometimes. I don't know how she got in either."

They wrapped up the questions as Rachel gave a solid alibi for where she was around the time frame I was killed. She had video proof as well, she had shot a live stream for her social media. I could tell the detectives were satisfied that she wasn't a suspect anymore and had shifted the focus back onto those I worked with. 

"If you need any more information from me please let me know." She said, showing them out. 

"We will be in touch. Thank you." Detective Keele says, shaking her hand. 

Once they left though, I had a feeling I needed to linger for a bit longer. Not sure why. I guess ghosts can still have intuition. 

"Babe...." A male voice called out. "Are they gone?"

Rachel pads to the bedroom and opens the door. 

"Yep. Gone."

"Did they find the hidden videos you posted on the dark web?"

Rachel laughed softly and I felt myself chill. 

"Nope. They sure didn't."

~ This book is Copyrighted by K E Jennings and only available on Wattpad. if you are reading this on another site, it has been stolen without permission or monetary payment to the said author. ~

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Fun Hawaiian Fact: The Hawaiian islands contain no indigenous snakes. Owning personal snakes is prohibited on island and cargo coming into the island is routinely checked for them.