Sam, accompanied by Inspector Danial, entered the occult club room currently being used for questioning. The atmosphere was tense, as it was expected that the killer would be identified if everyone told the truth.
Rachel: "Sit, please, and don't get nervous unless you have pushed Sasha or are telling a lie, because it will give the lie detector a false indication."
Sam took a seat while Inspector Danial set up the lie detector and then left to catch up with the others. However, the trio remained silent, unable to express themselves freely in his presence.
Rachel: "So you were at the cafe waiting for Sasha?"
Sam: "Yes, I was."
Sarah: "Um, actually, I need to go to the restroom real quick. Can I and Remi go?"
Lyn: "I wish to go too."
Inspector Danial: "They are all suspects, and I can't leave them alone before the questioning is done. That was my responsibility today."
Remi: "Good job, Sarah. We will come back real quick."
Inspector Danial: "Wait, there were two bodies dumped in these woods, and the killer is still free. I cannot let you go alone. I will come too."
Lyn: "In the girls' bathroom?!"
Danial: "I will just stand at the doorway, and Remi can watch over me."
Sarah: "Actually, never mind. We will go later."
Rachel: "Why?"
Sam: "Because everyone was trying to prank her into coming all the way to the cafe, and I did not want all her effort to be wasted, so I thought at least I could accompany her."
Rachel: "You see, you were caught in the CCTV footage coming out of the cafe and standing behind Sasha."
Sam: "I just said I was waiting in the cafe for her, and when she texted in the group that she had arrived, I went outside to talk to her."
Rachel: "Why outside?"
Sam: "Since it was raining outside, we couldn't go anywhere, so I had gone outside to fetch Sasha inside the cafe so we could have a... little... date."
Rachel: "Could you not have just texted Sasha to come inside, as you were waiting for her?"
Sam: "Well, there was no reason to. She was just outside."
Rachel: "I find it really weird that just as you went to stand behind Sasha, the CCTV camera stopped working for a while, and after the crime was committed, it started working as normal. Why that time frame? And only the three CCTVs on the exterior of the cafe?"
Sam: "It was raining?"
Rachel: "It rained even after Sasha's death, but the cameras worked as normal just after that time frame. Why?"
Sam: "I do not know."
Rachel: "If you wanted to push Sasha, don't you think you would wish to not get caught by the CCTV?"
Sam: "I would wish that if I had actually pushed Sasha. But I think I have an alibi with Remi at the cafe. You can confirm with her-"
Rachel: "Remi has already informed me about what happened at the cafe."
Sam: "Well, yes, we were there and did not see anything relevant to the case. I am sorry. I actually am about what happened to Sasha."
Rachel: "So you and Remi have an alibi, it seems."
Sam: "Yes."
Rachel: "Was the cafe crowded?"
Sam: "No, it was just us and one more person."
Rachel: "Guessed so, since it was raining. I will have Dan question the receptionist of the cafe since there was no CCTV in the interior of the cafe."
Rachel: "What are your feelings towards Sasha?"
Sam: "She was a good friend."
Rachel: "Did you dislike something about her?"
Sam: "No, nothing in particular."
Rachel: "Alright then. Did you see anything regarding Sasha, relevant or irrelevant?"
Sam: "I wish I had."
Rachel: "Okay, but if you remember anything later, you can contact Inspector Danial."
Sam: "Okay, I will."
Rachel: "I will question Sarah next. You can leave."
Sarah came in, and Inspector Danial set up the lie detector. The questioning session started.
Rachel: "So, I went through the texts you had with Sasha, as well as in the group chat."
Sarah: "Straight to the point."
Rachel: "You acted really rough with Sasha. Did you dislike her in some way?"
Sarah: "Kinda, but not really."
Rachel: "Pretending to not hate her so you can get off the list of suspects?"
Sarah: "No."
Rachel: "I think yes. But anyways, do you like wearing earrings?"
Sarah: "Yeah."
Rachel: "The earring you are wearing right now, do you wear that one every day? Or, do you wear different ones every other day?"
Sarah: "I have been wearing this one recently, but the one I wore regularly got lost."
Rachel: "Can you describe the earring?"
Sarah: "It was silver-colored and had many stars."
Rachel took something out of his pocket and placed it on the table for Sarah to see.
Rachel: "Is this yours?"
Sarah: "This looks exactly like mine, but it could be someone else's too."
Rachel: "Your fingerprints were found on it."
Sarah: "I see. Then it must be mine."
Rachel: "It is yours, but are you not going to ask where it was found?"
Sarah: "Where was it?"
Rachel: "Near the cafe where Sasha was found dead. You were also caught on CCTV."
Sarah: "Is- that so?"
Rachel: "Now that you were there, can you answer some of my questions?"
Sarah: "That is the reason I am here?"
Rachel: "By the time you arrived at the scene, Sasha was already dead. But then why were you panicking?"
Sarah: "I was- Um... well, like, I was there, and I turned towards the corner and saw Lyn coming out of the supermarket... I did not want to be seen."
Rachel: "You were the first one to see Sasha dead. Do you know that?"
Sarah: "...."
Rachel: "Anyways, what did you see there other than the dead body of your friend?"
Sarah: "I saw someone running away in the back alley, a shadowy figure. But just as I saw Lyn come out of the supermarket, I got nervous and ran away."
Rachel: "I see. Even if you were not the person who pushed her, you have helped them a lot. I know you blackmailed Sasha on the text with her naked picture to force her to come to the cafe. She initially did not intend to come. There were not many texts between you and her, but I can assume that you blackmailed her a lot outside the phone."
Sarah sat in silence, not understanding what to say.
Rachel: "At least pretend to be shameful. Anyways, what features did you see of the person running away? He was most likely the pusher."
Sarah: "I was not able to see much, only a shadowy figure."
Rachel: "I see. So only one of your friends is left. Leave and send her in. With Dan."
Sarah: "Am I out of suspicion?"
Rachel: "You try to answer that first. What do you think?"
Sarah: "Am I considered an accomplice in this murder?"
Rachel: "Close, but not that close. Anyways, you are gonna know when we arrest someone."
Sarah: "Well then, I will take my leave."
Lyn: "I want to eat ice cream (codeword for the ritual)."
Sarah: "It is your turn for questioning."
Lyn flinched at the touch of Sarah's hand on her shoulders. It was cold, kind of shivering. Was she mad? Sad? Or perhaps guilty?
"Stop giving me that scornful look."
Sarah: "And he called you too."
Danial: "Yeah."
It was only for a moment, but at least they could discuss what they wanted to discuss. Before anyone could open their mouth, he was back. He worked at the speed of light. Truly elegant.
Rachel: "Hmm... did you know that all four of you were at the cafe when Sasha died?"
Lyn: "Really? But I was at a supermarket shopping and left there at forty minutes to eight."
Rachel: "Nope. You have an alibi at twenty minutes to eight, coming out of the supermarket."
Lyn: "An alibi?"
Rachel: "Sarah saw you there, coming out."
Lyn: "But I never saw Sarah there."
Rachel: "She hid before anyone could see her."
Lyn: "I see. But either I or she seems to have misunderstood the timings."
Rachel: "Well, you did. Because first Sarah, and then you, were caught on CCTVs of that area, right at that time."
Lyn: "I see."
Rachel: "Why were you waiting for Sasha in the supermarket?"
Lyn: "I wasn't."
Rachel: "We did go through all the text messages Sasha shared."
Lyn: "I did tell her I was waiting for her with a photo as proof, but we were just pranking her. I was doing my own shopping at the mall and just intended to go back home after leaving the supermarket."
Rachel: "Then why were you lurking near the cafe where Sasha died?"
Lyn: "There was chaos around that area, and when I went there, I discovered that Sasha had died."
Rachel: "That so? And what made you think you left the supermarket at forty minutes to eight?"
Lyn: "I reached home at fifty minutes to eight, so, and the supermarket is ten minutes away from my house, so I assumed I left at forty minutes to eight."
Rachel: "I see. What were you doing in the rest twenty minutes?"
Lyn: "Well I think when I was looking out for the chaos, I might have taken more time than I noticed."
Rachel: "Did you see anything at the crime scene? Relevant or irrelevant?"
Lyn: "Not really. But I have a question."
Rachel: "Yes?"
Lyn: "Who amongst us is more likely to be the alleged killer?"
Rachel: "That's not information I can share with a suspect."
Lyn: "I see."
Rachel: "But for now, you can consider your position equal to that of the alleged killer. I will conclude the questioning session now."
Rachel and Danial left the building and began walking towards their car.
Danial: "So what did you conclude?"
Rachel: "I will tell you afterward. I feel like we are being watched and heard."
Rachel said the last sentence in a low whisper. Danial turned his head a bit to scan the surroundings but saw nobody, and neither did he feel watched. Trusting Rachel's instincts, he stopped himself from making any comments regarding the case, and they continued their way to the station.