The Mile 3 Murder Mystery

Chapter Six : Julie Enters

Police Superintendent Mark woke to the faint hum of the air conditioner of his hotel room . He opened his eyes and rushed into the bathroom to shower and brush his teeth. Then he

dialed reception.

"Good morning, this is reception,” a  voice answered.

“ Good morning, can I have a cup of  tea , two  fried eggs, and bread in room 21?"

Minutes later he  heard a knock at his door and opened it to a waitress holding a  tray containing his breakfast. He accepted his breakfast delivery , setting the tray on the table. It was a classic spread: fried eggs, bread and a  cup of tea. He took a bite of the  bread.

After the breakfast he reached into the table top fridge in his hotel room  and grabbed a cold bottle of water. He drank all of it in one go before setting it down and then he tossed the empty bottle in the trash.

Supritendent Jane arrived at Room 21 of the Prudential Hotel, knocking sharply on the door. She was meeting her partner, Mark, to discuss on their joint investigation.

"Come in,” his voice called from inside.

She pushed the door open.

Mark looked up, smiling faintly. “ Officer, You’re punctual. I like that.”

When Jane stepped into the room Mark did not hesitate. 

"Do you have her phone? I heard she was still holding her phone when they found her. I mean Vera Tor ”  

“No. it's with the Commissioner of police,” she replied, shaking her head.Mark’s gut told him the phone was a key.

Mark: let's  go get her phone. After that we will visit the cell service provider with a warrant to pull her call logs and location history.

They stepped out of the hotel room into the  morning air and walked towards Jane's car. Mark's  mind was already racing with thoughts about the  murdered girl .

As they walked to the car parked in the lot, he couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched. Sliding into the passenger seat, he adjusted the rearview mirror and saw him. In the reflection, he saw a shadowed figure standing at the  bar  side , watching them intently. The man watching them brought out his phone and put a call through. 

Julie is used to living in the lap of luxury. She is the daughter of a powerful family of  investors. She had never wanted for anything, except true friendship. Vera, her best friend, was the one person who had always shown her true friendship. Holding her phone, the screen flickered with the message Vera had sent her just hours before her death.

“  Julie, someone is following  me . I'm scared . Please send security to pick me up at Lulu Bright Street. It’s urgent.”

She did not received the message on time for she was  already  asleep when the message came in. She had tried calling back, but Vera's  phone was already switched off. Now Vera is dead and Julie  cannot shake the feeling that she had failed her friend in some way. She knew  the police will  dig into Vera's life. What she does not know is that while the police will be digging, Vera's father’s chief thug will also be digging. 

She had received a text from an unknown number just an hour ago: "Meet me at Boti Hotel  in 30 minutes. It's about your friend." 

She did not go . She will not fall victim. She had no idea who this person was or why he  wanted to meet her , but she knew one thing, carefullness  must be her watched word .

She was in her mansion with two security men outside. She feels secured in her mansion with her security. Her mansion with it's marble pillars glows under the morning . 

Instead of taking the direct route like most would, Nwito approached the mansion from the forest that surrounds the mansion. The trees provided perfect cover as he moved silently toward the rear of the mansion. He scaled the wall with ease, finding a small, unguarded balcony on the second floor. Using his lock-picking tools, he silently disabled the door’s alarm system.

Inside, he moved through the mansion with practiced ease, bypassing security cameras and motion sensors by crawling through ducts and hidden corridors. Moving quietly through the opulent hallway, he found his target’s room and entered.

She jumped when a voice from behind her whispered, " Juliet."

Turning, she found him, a man in a  black polo and a jeans with a canvas, his face partially obscured by a hood.

Julie: who are you? How did you get into my apartment? Where are my security men? 

Nwito: You are asking too many questions. 

Julie: What do you want from me?"

He leaned closer. 

"I asked you to meet me. Since you refused to come, here I am. It's a case of Mohammed refusing to go to the mountain so mountain has come to Mohammed. Your friend,  Vera," Nwito began, his tone even, "was found dead and  I'm  after her killers ?"

Mark and Jane  stood in front of Commissioner Obed's office, Jane's hand hovering over the door.She knocked once, then entered without waiting for a response. 

Commissioner Obed has a routine: every morning, he brews a strong coffee .

He was sitting at at his desk, savoring the first sip of his coffee. The warmth of the  coffee and it's  aroma were his daily solace amidst the chaos of the station. His  eyes immediately shot up when they entered.

“ Officers, good morning ” he said.

The office  was exactly the same, luxurious, with polished wood furniture and a large desk stacked with reports. 

Mark: We have come to get Vera's phone. I feel it will tell us something about the night she was murdered.

Obed, sipping his coffee, smiled . "The technical  team is working on it. You’ll get the report when it’s ready."

Mark:  Waiting is not an option. That phone can lead us to the killers.

Obed picked up his cell phone and dialed a number. " bring the Vera girl's phone to my office"

The police boss  was nursing his third cup of coffee when Officer Dele from the tech team knocked  on his office door.

“Come in,”  Obed said.

Dele entered, holding a plastic bag. Inside was a smartphone.

Sir, I have Vera Tor’s phone,” he announced, placing it on the desk.

Obed : I thought the phone  was wiped clean.

Dele: It was, but we ran recovery software and found a deleted text message, sent to a number just before her death. It says, ‘Julie, someone is following  me . I'm scared . Please send security to pick me up at Lulu Bright Street. It’s urgent.'

Mark: let me have the number  and keep this quiet, no leaks until we know more.