Murder Is Secondary Read Online Free PDF Page B

the rain,” said Mike.
    “They only had one car and if Joey needed it last night, she might have,” said Susan. Her thoughts felt like bolts of lightning striking her head from the inside. She rubbed her temple.
    After a short time, Susan heard a siren. Lynette and her partner Jackson arrived. Lynette was used to seeing crime scenes, but Susan could tell that even she was a little freaked out. The medical examiner was on the scene moments later. While Lynette and Jackson secured the crime scene with tape, the medical examiner carefully turned over the body and stated the obvious: this girl was beyond saving. The crime scene investigators arrived and began taking photos. They systematically traversed the construction site and carefully began bagging potential evidence.
    “I’ll call the principal and have him keep this area clear,” said Lynette. “The students will be starting to arrive soon. The ambulance is on the way. I’d like to get the body out of here before school starts. We don’t want the students to see this. It would be terribly upsetting. Besides, we want to preserve the crime scene. What a sick way to commit murder. The perpetrator had to have had serious hatred toward his victim.”
    “Do you know who the victim is? I hope it’s not Julie,” said Susan.
    “No, it isn’t. We found her purse. Her license says Amber Bernstein, age seventeen. What a shame. She was just a kid.”
    “Oh my God,” said Susan. “Amber Bernstein? What was she doing out on the construction site? How could this have happened? No one accidentally drives a bulldozer around a construction site after dark and happens to hit someone. This was intentional. How did they even get the keys? Her poor parents.” Susan was speaking at a frantic pace.
    “Mom, you should go home now. We have to be careful to stay clear of the crime scene.”
    Lynette’s partner, Jackson, came up behind them.
    “Looks like the trailer over there was broken into. The door was pried open and the key to the bulldozer is missing from its spot on the peg board.”
    “The key is still in the ignition,” said Lynette. “Jackson, can you notify her parents before this gets out on social media?”
    “I’m on it,” said Jackson. Teachers were starting to arrive and Julie came out of the back door of her classroom. She ran toward Susan.
    “What happened?” she asked. The ambulance had arrived and the EMTs carefully put the mangled body on a stretcher and carried it away.
    “Who is that?” asked Julie.
    “It’s Amber Bernstein. This is so horrible. She was run over by a bulldozer last night,” said Susan.
    “I was just with her last night at the School Advisory meeting. She’s the student representative. There were a dozen parents here also. I can’t believe she’s dead.”
    “What time did the meeting break up?” asked Lynette.
    “Around nine,” replied Julie.
    “Where was the meeting held?” asked Lynette.
    “It was in the media center in the main building,” answered Julie.
    “Then why would Amber have gone all the way to the construction site instead of out the front door of the school. It doesn’t make any sense.”
    “Actually, I know why. The science department is big on coffee so several years ago we purchased one of those industrial-sized coffee urns. We used to joke that we’d have to fill it up twice to make it through some days, especially if there was a long-winded faculty meeting. I store it in my classroom. We always use it at the SAC meetings. Coffee and pastries, you know, an incentive to get parents to show up.”
    “That still doesn’t explain why Amber was at the construction site,” said Lynette.
    “After the meeting, Amber offered to bring it back to my classroom for me. She said she had to walk home anyway since her car was in the shop. It was starting to rain so I was happy not to have to go back to my classroom.”
    “So, then you went home?”
    “Yes. I didn’t think any more about it. Oh, no––if