Parallel Predicaments

9

The police arrived swiftly, their sirens blaring outside the school gates, followed by the ambulance. Sheldon and I watched as the paramedics carried away Professor Stephen's body. He had passed away the moment he fell, succumbing to a precise, fatal gunshot. This mirrored Coco's death, each time the victim dying near me while I stood powerless. The overwhelming sense of helplessness eroded me as the crowd silently observed the police bustling around, echoing my despair.

"Mrs. Stephen?" Sheldon called out, drawing my attention to two officers escorting our mentor, hands cuffed, her head bowed, staggering slightly.

Rushing towards them, I demanded, "Why are you arresting her? What's with the handcuffs? She's our mentor, not a criminal!"

Sheldon attempted to calm me, but as the police tried to restrain me, he too became embroiled in the altercation, insisting they not touch me.

Officer Lee intervened, "Let go, let go. There's no need for this in front of all these people."

He pulled me aside, "It's strange, you're always at the crime scene. What's going on?"

I defended our mentor, "It can't be her. She and Professor Stephen were close, and she's always been kind to us…"

"I know what you're trying to say," he assured me. "But rest assured, we don't arrest without evidence. There's substantial evidence pointing to your mentor's involvement in the crime. Trust us, don't interfere with the investigation, alright?"

"But…"

"That's enough for now. I've got other matters to attend to." With that, he departed.

"Officer Lee, I saw the perpetrator."

He turned back, "What did you say?"

"I saw her from behind. It was a woman with medium-length hair, slim build. It couldn't have been my mentor."

"Why didn't you say so earlier!"

"You didn't give me a chance…"

He exchanged a few words with Sheldon and another officer before driving off in the police car.

Hoping our testimonies might clear our mentor's name, we were disheartened to find her still detained the following day.

Restless at home, I called Sheldon to strategize. With Coco and Professor Stephen's mysterious deaths and our mentor being framed, we had to act. Sheldon, sharing my thoughts, suggested we meet to discuss further.

No sooner had I hung up than another call came in, this time from Mrs. Stephen. "Are you okay? You're not in trouble, right?" I asked, concerned.

"I'm fine, Nami. Sorry to worry you," she reassured me, her voice as calm as ever.

"That's good to hear."

"Actually, I was wondering if you and Sheldon could come over for dinner today. With your teacher gone, we need to discuss what's next. It's just us now, and I'm not sure what to do."

"Of course, we'll be right over."

Ending the call, I couldn't shake off a nagging doubt. Since when did Professor Stephen have children? I didn't recall him ever mentioning a family.