Chapter 207

Chapter 207

Robert asked, "So, what's the general vibe about Cecilia in your class?"

"Well, it's kinda tricky. I mean, isn't it kinda disrespectful to talk bad about someone who's passed away?" The guy hesitated before continuing, "I've heard she switches boyfriends a lot, even brings them back to the dorm for sex. Some folks say she's got a sugar daddy, because how else could she afford such a fancy lifestyle when her family's broke?"

Robert added, "Who told you that?"

The guy replied, "If you want a specific name, I can't give you one. It's just what people say."

Robert said, "Give me some names."

The guy replied, "It's just... common knowledge."

Robert sighed, a bit frustrated. "Alright, then tell me about Nicolette. What's she like?"

"Nicolette?" The class president thought for a moment, "Yeah, I know her. She's in the same dorm as Cecilia, right? I've heard she's got a temper, not someone you wanna mess with. There was this guy who tried to date her, and she totally ripped him apart verbally. She's pretty infamous among the guys. Also, I heard she doesn't get along with her dorm mates."

This video was useless. Zoey didn't want to listen any further and skipped to the next one.

Sable's face appeared on the screen.

Sable looked pitiful, pouting and a bit scared, avoiding eye contact with Robert. Robert asked gently, "Sable, don't be nervous. We're just here to ask you some questions."

Sable started crying.

Robert was puzzled.  "What's wrong?" He hadn't even asked anything yet.

Charles, seeing how upset Sable was, handed her a pack of tissues. "Why are you crying so much? What happened? We're all here to help you with whatever you need."

Sable, crying and speaking at the same time, said, "I was so scared. When Cecilia died, I was in the restroom right next to her. Oh my God."

Robert and Charles had asked several people without getting any substantial information. Finally, they had someone who was close to the scene. They quickly tried to calm her down. "Take your time, tell us slowly."

Sable sniffled and tried to speak clearly, "I'm not in the same major as Violette and Cecilia. We just happened to have the same gym class one day and got to know each other, but we weren't close. We just added each other on Facebook and had a meal together."

"During gym class today, I don't know what happened, but I kept needing to go to the restroom. I wanted to wait until the break, but I couldn't hold it and went early. My brother always told me not to use the last stall, so I picked one close to it because it felt safer."

"Why not the last stall?"

"Because my brother said the last stall is haunted."

Robert was puzzled, "Haunted by what?"

Sable cried even harder, "Just some foreign ghost."

Charles suddenly remembered a movie about a foreign ghost. "That ghost is from another country. Why are you scared?"

Sable pouted, "But my brother..."

Zoey rolled her eyes. "Ridiculous."

Vernon and Sable, both of them were just too ridiculous.

With Charles' explanation, Robert got the picture. He looked at the tearful Sable, "Let's get back to the main point."

"Okay. So, when I'm in the restroom, I like to play on my phone, and watch videos to pass the time. The sound helps me not feel so scared. To avoid disturbing others, I wore headphones. After a while, I noticed a strange sweet smell, like perfume, but I couldn't place it. Then I heard someone shout, I thought someone was constipated. It's normal to hear such things in a restroom, so I didn't ask. I just turned up the volume on my phone."

She took a deep breath, "Now that I think about it, it might have been Cecilia."

Sable started crying again.

Robert quickly changed the subject, "How long were you in the restroom?"

Sable replied, "About twenty minutes."

Charles stunned. "That long?"

Sable lowered her head, "Yeah, I don't know why, but my stomach hurt a lot that day. It took a long time to feel better. By the time I got out, class was over. Only the teacher was left taking attendance. After that, I found out Cecilia was dead. Knowing she died in the stall next to mine, my legs went numb, then the teacher came to find me."

"How well do you know Cecilia, Violette, and Theodosia?"

Sable explained, "Not very well, Sir. We just hung out a few times, but I didn't enjoy it, so I stopped hanging out with them. Then this happened..."

"Do you know Nicolette?"

"Nicolette?" Sable nodded, "She's my classmate, of course, I know her, but not very well. I know she didn't attend gym class."

Robert added, "Do you know about Nicolette and Cecilia not getting along?"

"No, I don't."

The group finished watching the exchanged interview videos.

Dennis remarked, "Nicolette is something else! To be targeted like that and still make her bullies fear her. If it were anyone else, they might have considered committing suicide."

Robert was unsure how to feel about Nicolette. "Her retaliation is understandable. You can't just sit quietly when being bullied, but don't you think she went a bit too far?"

Alexander glanced at Zoey and said, "Yeah, Nicolette is also very smart."

He didn't finish his sentence, but everyone understood what he meant.

"After this is over, if Nicolette isn't involved, we need to get her some professional help," Robert said.

Everyone agreed.

Zoey lay in the back, silent.

Her eyes were closed, and it was unclear if she was asleep.

Alexander hadn't told anyone about Zoey and Nicolette knowing each other.

When they returned to the station, it was already past ten.

Zoey and Dennis went to the medical examiner to check on the progress.

As they reached the door, they saw two unfamiliar people, a man and a woman, playing on their phones outside.

They didn't seem to know each other well, as they didn't speak and sat far apart.