Murder In The Old Castle
340. Sweet Black Girl

Mariah felt lazy to do anything today, because her mind was not calm. He chose to be in the room, lying down, pampering himself. After all, for the food business, he had given the task to Maya. He just wants to rest. However, for a long time he was bored also being alone in the room. He is used to doing activities, so when he is silent, he feels uncomfortable.

Tok .. tok .. tok!

Suddenly he heard the door of his room knock. He guessed, it must be Ammar who was about to enter the room. He got up from his bed, went to the door to open it. The door of the room was opened, but it was not Ammar who was there, but Lily. The young lady stood up with a worried look to Mariah.

"I hear you're sick, Mariah. I'm here to make sure that you're okay" Lily said.

Mariah was a little misbehaved. I never thought I would get a visit from Lily. He smiled a little and said, "Oh .. I'm just a little tired, Ly. I'm fine!"

"Hmm, looks like there's something you're thinking. You want to tell me? If you have anything to say, just say it, Mariah!" said Lily.

"Nope-no. Nothing, Lily. I'm doing fine. I think I better take a break. Sorry, Ly!"

Mariah immediately closed the door of her room, without caring anymore about Lily's presence. I don't know why Lily's presence makes her nervous. He suddenly remembered the events that had happened in the past. He felt that this reunion was a mistake. Mariah is worried that there will be more casualties. That's what makes him nervous.

He sat back on his bed staring at the glass window that connects with the garden on the side veranda. His memory wandered at a time when he was still wearing a white-gray uniform. At that time, he was still unstable, still wanting to taste all the pleasures of the world. He and some of his friends formed a fraternity called The Girl Squad. A group of girls who originally intended to be fun and fun. However, as time went on, each member of the group began to show unhealthy competition. Mariah was worried, that old grudge was still carried away until now. Especially at that time, Mariah was appointed as the leader of the group. It could be, there is someone who is not willing and holds the grudge. Mariah sensed that perhaps her position was not safe for now.

"Mariah! You daydreaming?"

Suddenly, Ammar was already nearby without him noticing. Mariah tried to hide her worries with a smile, but Ammar was someone who was good at reading facial expressions. Let alone his wife, whom he had known for many years, even a new person he knew, Ammar can guess the character of the person concerned.  Ammar felt that something was hidden behind Mariah's look of fear.

"I'm .. I'm just tired" muttered Mariah as she held her head.

"Just tired? You sure?" asked Ammar, frowning.

"Yes, don't worry. I'll be fine soon, Ammar!"

Ammar did not believe Mariah's words. There was something strange about his wife's behavior. Sometimes he looks nervous and nervous. Ammar tried to find out about it, but had to be a little chatty.he was worried that the wife would be defensive.

"Mariah, if there's anything, you can tell me. You believe me, right?" ask Ammar.

"Sure .. of course Ammar. I trust you. I just ...." Mariah stopped her words suddenly.

"What's all, Mariah? Don't hide anything from me. If this concerns the safety of the inhabitants of this castle, tell me" urged Ammar.

Mariah shook her head quickly, still speechless. He then lowered his head, not daring to look Ammar in the eyes for long. He hesitated to tell Ammar something. Actually, Mariah was not sure what she was feeling. He chose silence, rather than conveying something that is not yet clear truth.

"Forget it, Ammar. Forgetit. We'll be fine" Mariah said later.

"Well, Mariah, I'm not gonna force you. I hope we can all finish this well. If you remember anything, tell me immediately" said Ammar, staring at his wife's face.

"Ba-good!"

***

Meanwhile, at the police station, Dimas was struggling to find data about information related to the residents of the castle. He again saw an old photo that displays the faces of teenage girls who are in style. He observed it carefully again. He can still recognize each member of the group.

The one standing in the middle, her sweet and tall face was Mariah. She smiled in front of the camera confidently, flanked by other girls that Dimas also knew. There is a photo of Lily who appears with short hair on the shoulders, then there are also Stella, Maya, Nadine, Rosita, each of which appears stylish. They all look beautiful, not a lot of polish, so their beauty looks so natural.

But wait!

Something seems to be missing in the photo. At the end of the photo that Ammar brought, another girl who was black and sweet, appeared to pose with them, but it was located a bit away. Dimas did not recognize the girl, as she did not appear to be included in the invitation to attend the reunion at the old castle. So who is this sweet black girl?

Curiosity led Dimas to prick the photo, then save it. He wanted to find the identity of this girl. There was no way he would have to go to the castle to question this sweet black girl to Mariah or the others. The only way, he had to find his own info. But where?

The detective's brain started spinning. Again, he was forced to observe the old photograph once again. A photo can hold important meaning. In the previous case, the identity of the killer was revealed thanks to photos as well. Now, he wants to repeat his success. At first glance, the photo he held was nothing strange. The picture was of seven girls in style. A seven?  Yes, there should be 6 girls there, but there is one girl who sneaks in there - a sweet black girl who still leaves a mystery.

"Why don't I go to High School where they study? Are they from different high schools? Just a few of the same.? But there's no harm in trying!"

Dimas immediately drove a car, heading for a SMA building located in the city center. The High School building was quite elite, with six towering floors, a spacious school courtyard, with fierce-looking security, and a large, high-rise building, and equipped with beautiful flower gardens.Definitely only the children of the rich who attend this place, murmured Reno.

Dima walked to the administrative room, asking for data on students who had attended school there in the past.He issued his identity as a police officer, so that the administrative officer did not wonder again, and understand that what came this time was a police officer who was looking for data, in order to be served with the maximum.

The administrative officer at the school was a woman in her 45s, with a face full of thick makeup and a fairly fertile body.At first she was reluctant to serve Dimas, but as soon as Dimas issued her identity, the fertile woman immediately panicked. He immediately dismantled the file cabinet, trying to find the data Dimas wanted.

"So what you're asking for is a memory book in 2001?" ask the fertile woman.

"Yes Mom!" said Dimas.

"Mom! Call me Ma'am, sir!" the voice of the fertile woman was like a snarl.

"Oh sorry, I mean Ma'am, I'm sorry Ma'am.

"Mila! I'm Mila. I'm single and unmarried" Mila said with a strange smile.

Dimas took out an old photo that he was holding, then showed it to Mila. The fertile woman clenched her forehead, trying to remember the look of the girl in the photo.

"Mila's sister knows?" ask Dimas again.

"Hmm, I don't know. His face is not foreign. Maybe you can match the girl's face with this memory book" Mila said.

The woman handed me a memory book that was a little worn out because it was time-consuming. Dimas hurriedly matched the photo of the girl being photographed with the memorable album. Of course this is not an easy matter, because it requires thoroughness. The faces of the girls on the album were almost the same, making Dimas feel dizzy.

Dimas hurriedly closed the memory book he had opened. His face shone. He could not wait for information from Mila.

"Yes, I remember, sir. The name of this girl is if not mistaken Holy Andriani, or commonly called Holy. She is not a popular girl and likes to be alone. But I don't know how many pictures of the Saints are in that picture? Isn't there a photo of Mariah Alray?" said Mila.

"Milah's mom knows Mariah Alray?" tanya Dimas was full of enthusiasm.

"certain. Who wouldn't? Mariah Alray is one of the most popular girls in school, much liked by male students. I don't think he's friends with Saints. But I don't know. Perhaps you can ask the Saints yourself. Hold on, I'll get the address."

Mila acted swiftly. He opened a database on his computer, looking for the name of a list of students who attended school in 2001. His eyes were focused on the computer screen in front of him. After a few minutes, he seemed radiant, then wrote down the Holy address of Andriani on a small paper.

"This is his last address. I don't know if he's moved or if he's married and moved to another city or something. Maybe you can check yourself to this address" Mila said.

"Thank you so much for your help Miss Mila .. uh, I mean Miss Mila!"

***

After breakfast, Reno and Jeremy prepare to descend back into the basement. They will again comb through all the rooms in the basement, to find the whereabouts of Stella, Aditya, and even Niken who are suspected to be in the rooms underground. Before going down, Reno prepared everything he needed to carry, including weapons. He didn't know what was waiting down there, so had to stay alert.

"Are you ready, Jeremy?" ask Reno.

Jeremy just nodded. I don't know why he's a little tense. Whereas last night when he was walking through the basement with Aditya, he felt mediocre, but why was he even a little tense now? He went in with an experienced policeman.

The two of them began to enter the basement with vigilance.even though they entered in the morning, it was not necessarily make the atmosphere menajdi not scary. Inside the space of the ground, it was as if it did not know time. The underground room remained emitting a dark, sinister, and terrifying aura. They don't talk much, just down the aisle.

Arriving at the intersection of the hallway, Reno looked towards Jeremy.

"Do you remember where that policewoman named Niken was held?" ask Reno.

"Yes, sure. Of course I remember! I'll show you the way!"

Jeremy walked ahead of Reno, down the aisle he had passed last night. Even though everything looks the same, Jeremy still remembers the location of the room where Niken was held. It was so eager to show the location of the room to Reno. Jeremy then stops at one of the cubicles that he believes holds Niken.

"Not wrong anymore. This is the room where the woman's police are locked!" jeremy said as he pointed at the door of the room.

"Sleeping?" reno.

The policeman tilted his head to the bars on the steel door, to find out the conditions inside the cubicle. However, it seemed that the room was empty for no one. In the room only a dark and stuffy room, there was no one in it.

"You sure?" ask Reno.

"Yes, I'm sure, sir. There's no way I'm wrong. I still remember very well because I calculated the order of this room from the intersection of the hallway there. I can't be wrong!"

Jeremy was still steadfast with what he saw last night. However, Reno was astonished, why was there no one there.

"This room is empty, Jer!" said Reno.

"Huh? Empty? How can? Though I was sure of seeing that woman being held captive here, and I was not hallucinating or fantasizing. I'm chatting with him. Really, Sir!" said Jeremy fiery.

"But the truth is there's no one in this room!" reno said once again.

"In that case, of course he has been moved to another place, sir. Really, I'm not lying. I actually met the policewoman in this room!" said Jeremy.

"Calm Jeremy! I'm not accusing you of lying either. So how? We'll go back to this basement, who knows, we can find another one too!" bring Reno.

"Well Sir!"

Both decided to continue the search to another hallway, who knows they can find the whereabouts of the people who have been sought. They walked back down the narrow, dark hallway. After a while, they again found the intersection of the passageway. They paused for a moment, before deciding which passage to follow.

"So where do you think we're going? Is it to the left or to the right?" ask Reno.

"I .. I really don't know, sir. Whatever, as long as we don't split up. I was so traumatized by what happened to Aditya. She disappeared after deciding to separate. So I think it's better we look together, sir!" said Jeremy.

"Well, we'll look for it together! Let's start from the right first. Everything that starts from the right seems to be good" Reno said.

Jeremy nodded. He did not dispute anything Reno said. His mind went back to Stella. He still hopes that Stella can still be found alive, although he thinks it is also a small possibility. Whatever it is, Jeremy is trying to mengikhkaskatkan if something happens that is not desirable to Stella.

"You daydreaming, Jer?" ask Reno.

"Oh, no. No, sir. I just want to see you soon, Stella!" said Jeremy.

"We'll see you around, Jer. You don't have to worry," Reno tried to calm down.

"Thank you, sir!"

***