Free Adventures in Funeral Crashing by Milda Harris Page B

an
email from Vanessa sent Saturday at 5:12 pm.
    He clicked on the link and we sat there in
silence as I read the last email Vanessa Martin had probably ever
sent:
    Ethan –
    Yes, I was friends with Liz. We had a
Biology class together. I’m really sorry about her. That email was
only really meant for her. I just wanted to talk to her about the
guy she was dating. Forget about it. It’s not important now.
    -Vanessa
    “It’s not important because Liz is dead
anyway?” I thought out loud.
    “Doesn’t sound like someone who ODed on
heroin an hour or two later, does it?” Ethan was still staring at
the words in front of them.
    “Do you think she’s talking about Troy
Matthews?” I asked.
    “Definitely,” Ethan nodded.
    “Who is she friends with?” I asked looking
more closely at Vanessa’s profile.
    Ethan scrolled through Vanessa’s friends.
Troy was not among them, but neither was Melissa, Olivia, or Liz.
That was interesting. Although, maybe not if Vanessa had dated Troy
and broke up with him or something. Still, you’d think that maybe
she and Liz would have been Facebook friends.
    “Weird,” I said. “She’s not friends with any
of them or even Liz. At least not Facebook officially.”
    “Maybe Vanessa deleted Liz after she died,”
Ethan offered, pushing back his chair and sitting to face me.
    “Maybe,” I said, even as I made a mental
note. Most people used a deceased person’s Facebook page as a way
to talk to them and remember them. If my mom had made a Facebook
page, I would probably still be writing on it.
    Ethan was looking at me contemplatively. From
where I was sitting on the bed, our knees were almost touching. The
dim glow of the computer and the desk lamp cast a light shadow on
Ethan’s face. His chin had some stubble on it. He hadn’t shaved
after his shower.
    Ethan’s blue eyes met mine, “I changed my
mind. If the police don’t want to investigate Liz’s murder, I do. I
think Troy Matthews is our number one lead. All the dead girls knew
him. Maybe they were all dating him. Maybe that’s his motive. Some
sick and twisted love thing – like an I’m the only one who can have
these girls or they die kind of thing.”
    I nodded. Troy Matthews definitely needed to
be investigated.
    Ethan continued and took my hands in his, “I
understand if you don’t want to get involved. You’ve been amazing
so far, actually…”
    I was too busy feeling what it felt like to
have Ethan hold my hand, to completely focus on what he was saying.
His hands felt smooth and warm enveloping mine. The butterflies
were going insane in my stomach. I pulled my hands out of his,
needing to focus on what he was actually saying. I’m sure I’d
regret it later. I should have just enjoyed it while I had the
chance. I don’t know why I kept letting my mind get in the way of
my hormones.
    I interrupted Ethan before he could go on
talking about why I wouldn’t want to get involved. It was best not
to think about the down side of getting involved in a murder
investigation, “I want to help you find out what happened to Liz.
I’m in.”
    “Really?” Ethan’s eyebrows rose.
    “Really,” I said seriously. “And, I know just
where to start.”
    “Where?” Ethan was looking at me
intently.
    A zillion thoughts were going through my
brain, but I knew that one thing was crucial to our investigation
and we had to start there, “Vanessa Martin’s funeral.”
     
     
     
     

Chapter 9: Inquiring
    I had a hard time
sleeping on Sunday night after I left Ethan’s. We stayed up until
almost midnight talking. Yes, I’m serious. Still, it’s not like we
were making out or anything. Not that my dad cared. He was a little
mad that I had gotten home so late.
    “Kait Lenox, where have you been?” My dad
said as soon as I walked in the door at 12:15 am on a school
night.
    I never did that. I think we were both
shocked, so I said, “Out.”
    I went to my room and that was the end of it.
I wasn’t about to tell him