COLD

°Chapter Four°

Hunter James crawled out of bed, grogging with sleep as he shuffled out of his room. He saw his mom, Suzanne, seated in the living room, her perfectly manicured fingers typing on her laptop.

"Good morning mom."

"Morning baby," she muttered absent-mindedly.

She was so engrossed in whatever she was doing in that laptop that she didn't give any attention to him.

He slid into the kitchen and made some hot coffee. Both for him and his mom. She liked her coffee with a little less sugar while Hunter liked it with a little more sugar, something she warned was unhealthy. He quickly made toasted bread with butter and strode to the living room, a full breakfast in the tray.

He lay the tray of breakfast on the table, sitting right next to his mom on the couch, but her eyes were still glued to the screen on her laptop.

"Thanks," she said absent-mindedly and didn't bother to take the cup of coffee or taste the sweet toasted bread.

"Rude!" he blurted out, sipping coffee as he munched on the toasted bread.

Suzanne pecked her son on the cheek. "Thanks for the breakfast sweetie but I have to finish up on this first."

He had always had a great relationship with his parents. While other students grumbled about their despicable parents, Hunter had zero complains. He had the perfect parents. The perfect family. The perfect life. The only thing missing was...

A perfect girlfriend...

But it's because he had his eyes on someone else...

He didn't mean to do what he did last night but... She had pushed him. What he did was wrong and cold but he couldn't let her... He had to fix it. Make sure she didn't say anything.

I couldn't let her tell Wesley...

He shoved the thought away immediately. This was a beautiful new day. A new day. A new him.

He took a gulp of the coffee. "I need some cash for my car repair, mom."

"You have a credit card, son."

"I need some more cash."

"I'll talk to your dad about it."

"He's off to work already?"

"Yes. He left early because he had to drop off Harriet to school."

Harriet was Hunter's little baby sister. She was just six years old but he often played and laughed with her like they were agemates. If there was ever a thing like a living thing being an apple of the eye, Harriet was it to Hunter.

"By the way," he remembered something. "Have you seen my phone?"

She shook her head. "You've lost your phone again?"

"I misplaced it last evening and I can't find it."

She shrugged. "Just check it in your room. It must be somewhere."

He was almost finishing his portion when his mom suddenly asked.

"Aren't you gonna tell me?"

"Tell you what, mom?"

"About Wesley's girlfriend, Audrey?"

God! How did she find out? It was supposed to be a secret.

"Mom... I... I didn't mean to..." he stuttered.

"Oh God! Sorry son... Send my condolences to Wesley. He must be going through a hard time right now."

"A hard time?"

"Yes. But how would you know? You've never kept a girlfriend even for a week. But, it's not easy handling a spouse's death..."

"Why are you talking in parables mom!" he snapped.

"You don't know?"

"What?"

"Audrey Yang was found dead last evening by Wesley. The police have ruled it as a homicide. Someone killed the poor sweet girl... The streets are unsafe so keep safe..."

But he wasn't listening. His world was on a standstill and he had frozen, the expression on his face catatonic with terror.

"Hunter? Hunter?," she lightly slapped his cheek.

He suddenly blinked to reality. "Yes?"

"Wes didn't tell you?"

He didn't bother to respond. He shot up from the couch and bolted to the bathroom in his room. He needed a shower.

A hot shower.

He stood in the shower, the hot water baking his skin. He run his hands through his wet hair in distress.

If Audrey was dead then that meant he would be in a lot of trouble with the police... A LOT OF TROUBLE!!!

After everything that happened last night, he was one hundred and ten percent sure that he would be the first suspect. And if she was really dead, he knew the police were coming to get him...

He was dressing up, still in panic and terror, when his mother slung the door open.

The look on her face gave him panic alarms.

"Hunter, What did you do?"

****

Wesley had agreed to go down to The Kingsville Police Department with Detective Darren. He would miss his first class but it was worth it.

It was worth it if it would help the police with this investigation. It was worth it if it could help hunt down this eerie mysterious killer.

It's strange how this just started the previous morning with a frog then it ended up being a real serious murder case with his girlfriend, Audrey, murdered gruesomely.

Detective Darren had asked to go with Wes and identify the person who was in possession of Audrey's phone. He still couldn't believe that it had taken such a short amount of time to track down Audrey's phone.

Bless Technology!

They walked in a dark room with just a table, two seats and a glass wall. Through the glass wall, he could see the room on the other side.

"That's the guy," said Detective Darren, digging his hands in his pockets. "You know him?"

His heart slammed against his chest.

Hunter???

****

Hunter's feet were fidgeting under the table, his fingers drumming on the table as he looked around the dark lifeless room with pale walls and no windows.

All his life, he had never thought he would set foot in this kind of place. Until Audrey happened...

One of the detectives creaked the door open and sat opposite from him on the ugly wooden chairs.

"Detective Darren," he stretched out his hand formally.

Hunter greeted back politely. "Hunter James."

"Nice to meet you, Mr. James."

"And you too, sir. Despite the unfavorable circumstances we met under," Hunter joked.

He was trying so hard to come off as cool and chill, like his mom had advised, but it was so evident to the Detective he was uneasy, nervous and anxious.

He took in a deep breathe. "Can we start already? I have a class in the afternoon."

"This will be quick and easy if you'll be calm and cooperative, Mr. James," said Darren, trying to be amicable.

The Detective cleared his throat, digging into the questions.

"Mr. James, what was your relation with Ms. Audrey Yang?"

"Just friends."

Darren quirked his eyebrow. "Just friends?"

"Yes! Just friends!" he sounded defensive.

"Not friends with benefits?"

"Ew! No! She was my bestfriend's girlfriend. I couldn't f**k with her... It's the bro code."

"Then, can you explain how her phone ended up in your room and your phone in hers?"

"I must have left it in her room when I had gone to do an assignment."

"And, how did hers end up in your room?"

"I don't know," he muttered.

"Listen, kiddo, things would be so much easier for you and me if you just stay honest with me. All the questions I'm asking, I already know the answers to each of them. So, stop trying to act smart with me," Darren said sharply.

They sat in silence, The Detective scribbling on his notepad.

" Can you tell me what really took place last evening when you went to see Ms. Audrey Yang? From her phone contacts and some of her neighbours, you're the last person to have seen Ms. Yang alive."

"I... I..." Hunter stuttered. "Audrey texted me after I left school. She hadn't come to school yesterday so she wanted me to go over to her place and revise the day's notes with her. Since we're friends, I couldn't decline. I went over and helped out a friend. After that, she opened up to me about her relationship with Wes. That he had ended things with her that morning. I consoled her since she was being suicidal and emotional about the whole issue. After I calmed her down, I immediately left. I must have forgotten my phone... "

" Are you done lying? " Detective Darren clasped his chin. "Now, I want to hear the truth... I have all day..."

Hunter gritted his teeth. "What the f**k do you want me to tell you!"

"How her phone and laptop ended up in your room?"

"Her phone, I don't know. I must have carried it unknowingly. But her laptop, she gave it to me herself!"

"Why would she give you her laptop?"

"Mine had spoiled and I needed to finish up on an assignment."

"And, why did the police find the laptop hidden if that was so?"

"My little sister had spoiled my laptop. I was afraid she would spoil Audrey's!"

Hunter's brow was drenched with sweat and he was panting as if he was in a marathon. But to Detective Darren, Hunter was in a marathon of lies.

Detective Darren dipped his hand in the pockets of his pants and handed him a brand new handkerchief.

"Wipe off the sweat!"

Hunter wiped off the sweat as the detective watched him closely, sinking back in the chair.

"You know, you wouldn't be sweating so much if you weren't lying so much..."

"I'm not lying!"

Darren scoffed. "Did you ever engage in s****l i*********e with Ms. Audrey Yang?"

"No!"

"Not even once?"

"I f****d her zero times!"

"So you say you were just friends with Ms. Yang, right?"

"Yes."

"A friend who went over to her bedroom to do assignments with her in the late evenings and at nights."

"You got that right."

"So, did your best friend know you were sneaking around with his girlfriend to do assignments?"

Hunter went silent.

"Should I repeat the question, Mr. James?"

"Promise you won't tell any of this to Wesley."

"If you promise to tell me the truth," Darren said in a light mood.

"I was friends with benefits with Audrey..."

"So the two of you used to engage in s****l intercourse."

He nodded. "Yes."

"I believe from the phone records and text messages, you were the second last person she had contacted."

"Yes."

"And from the messages, the both of you seemed to be in a huge disagreement."

"Yes."

"Can you tell me more about that?"

He took in a deep breathe. "Will you promise to keep this confidential between the both of us?"

He nodded. "Trust me."

"It's not that I liked Audrey. But when she started having s*x with my best friend, I knew I wanted to f**k her too. She's the easy type. She didn't resist me. She didn't mind f*****g me and my best friend at the same time, making it easier for me. But then..."

"But then what?"

"Audrey found out why I was really with her. She discovered my secret."

"What secret?"

****