The woods became thicker and thicker as she continued running through it. Her feet burned against the cold soil and dead leaves. Fear pumped her heart making her run faster than ever. She was almost out of breath, but she couldn’t stop. The sky became darker and darker as each second passed by as if it would engulf her any minute. Coughs escaped from , but she didn’t stop running. Tears began streaking down her face and she couldn’t breathe anymore…

Selina shot up in bed coughing hoarsely. Her room felt too hot, it was as hot as if she were being surrounded by fire…Selina quickly looked up and around her room to see flames shooting up from the ground as they ate her clothes, her drawers, and clawed at her bed. Quickly covering Selina threw off her covers and jumped off the bed onto the ground. The smoke was become thicker as she opened her door to head out only to see that her kitchen and den were already smoked with fire. Running back into her room she quickly shut her door beginning to panic. Not once in her life had she ever been careless enough to start a fire.

Hearing something banging against her window Selina turned around to see a man in a pale yellow suit with a huge hat on. She tried hard to see through her teary eyes and immediately ran to the window. Someone was coming to her rescue! Selina covered as she rushed across the room ignoring the burning of her feet and unlocked the window pushing it up so it would stay open.

“Give me your hand quickly!” he urged.

Selina reached her hand out, but pulled back. She was about to lose something that was most important to her. Selina hurried back to the table beside her bed and grabbed the hot picture frame that consisted of her and someone very dear to her. Selina hurried back to the fireman and he carried her down the long ladder he’d used to get to her. Her coughs didn’t die the entire way as she traveled to the hospital for treatment.

“What do you mean I caused the fire?!” Selina screamed at the police man enraged with his suggestion that she’d left her stove on.

“I swear I checked 5 times that it was off before I went to bed! Why don’t you ask God for yourself!” Selina screamed. “In my 25 years of life I never would have ever in my life leave my stove on to burn the entire house down!”

“Alright, alright calm down miss,” the officer coaxed.

Selina turned away angrily tugging the blanket around her. Who did they think she was? A careless person who would leave her door unlocked for strangers?

“Miss, your check up shows that you’re fine. There are only minor burns on your feet you can leave the hospital now,” a nurse who had come out of the office said.

“Thank goodness!” Selina pouted and got up from the chair and made her way down the hall with her feet wrapped in sport gauze.

“Wait miss,” someone she had passed in the hall called.

Selina turned around to stare at the man. His hair looked as if he combed it every hour. His thick eyebrows looked as if they were mocking her which made Selina want to start laughing. However, he looked serious like he was supposed to be an important person, but Selina couldn’t make any sense out of the way he was dressed in his PJs.

“Was someone in your home before you went to sleep? Like your boyfriend or a friend?” he asked.

“Do I look like a damn e?!” Selina screamed at him.

Selina was about to turn away, but he grabbed her arm stopping her. Selina turned to glare at him and shoved his hand off.

“Who do you think you are to be touching me?” Selina asked aggressively.

“I saw someone coming out of your apartment an hour before the fire started,” he told. “Are you sure you didn’t invite anyone over?”

“Do I look like an idiot to you?” Selina asked. “Get out of my way.”

Selina pushed passed him and made her way to the public telephones. She set her picture down and inserted her card in into the phone machine then started dialing.

===

Hebe lay sprawled on her bed with her blanket half on the ground and half on the bed. Her pillow had been pushed up against the wall. She moaned in her sleep as her phone started ringing loudly non stop. Half awake and half asleep she sat up grabbing her phone.

“What?” she moaned.

“Hebe is that you?” Selina asked.

She could hear the sound of Hebe’s heavy breathing on the other side of the line.

“Hebe wake up! I’m at the hospital! I need you to pick me up!” Selina shouted. “Hebe!”

Hebe’s head immediately shot up.

“Where are you?” she asked.

“I’m at the damn hospital! Hurry up and come get me!”

===

The officer watched as Selina walked around the hallway then walked over to his subordinates.

“What did she say?” he asked.

“Oh, Jiro you’re finally here.”

Jiro rubbed the back of his head. If it hadn’t been for that loud car in the middle of the night he wouldn’t have gotten up and noticed the fire.

“The fire was not started by her and in her 25 years of life she’s never started a fire,” the officer repeated what Selina had told him.

Jiro chuckled and cracked his neck.

“It’s no sleep for me then,” Jiro told. “Back to the office after I get changed.”

===

Selina was sitting on a chair by the front doors when the doors suddenly opened and her picture flew off her lap.

“I told you I didn’t do anything!” someone shouted.

“Lets just get this done before dad comes back and yells at you,” a cold toned voice told.

“Why don’t you believe me? You’re my older brother! I was just cooking in the middle of the night when I burned my hand! It’s nothing,” he tried persuading. “Aaron!”

Selina bent down to pick up her picture and stared at the two men’s backs. Something about one of them seemed familiar. Selina glanced down to look at the picture of her and her sister. They had the same face, same eyes, same nose, and same smile. Their arms were locked over one another. The picture had been taken on their birthday when they both turned 15. They shared everything and it felt as if they could read each other’s minds. Exactly because they were twins…before her sister suddenly died. Because she was murdered and Selina was never able to let that day go when she had come home to see police cars and police men inside her home. It was her fault…all her fault.

===
   
“Did someone rob your home?” asked Hebe. “Or did you piss someone off?”

“I did not do such a thing,” Selina replied staring out the window.

Hebe braked her car as they came across a stop light.

“Maybe you were careless again and didn’t know,” Hebe suggested.

“I’m not an idiot,” Selina replied, “I know what I did before I went to sleep. Should I tell you? I ate a long dinner and watched a drama then took a shower and went to bed then had a weird dream and woke up to see that my home was caught on fire!”

“I’m certain you pissed someone off,” Hebe told, “I told you before you might as well become a hostess instead of an investigative journalist.”

“Investigative reporter,” Selina corrected. “I’m not a journalist, but a reporter.”

“Who travels around solving crimes and yaddy yadda,” Hebe finished. “Yea, I know but it could be your fault too. Now how are you supposed to find new clothes and renew your license and everything?”

“I can borrow yours,” Selina told, “it’s fine isn’t it? And isn’t your wardrobe big enough for five people? Just let me share with you before I can get everything back.”

“That is if…” Hebe pointed out. “Are you sure you’ll be fine living alone again? I mean after your parents…”

“Don’t talk about it,” Selina told turning to give Hebe a slight glare.

“Sorry,” Hebe apologized.

Selina turned to look out the window. There were things she couldn’t let go and things she never wanted to think about. There was only one specific reason for becoming an investigative reporter. She wanted to finish solving other people’s sad lives and bring their killers to justice…she especially wanted to find her sister’s killer and make that person feel the pain she had lived through.

===

“Don’t forget these too!” a round man shouted as mover carried boxes of supplies out from the large building

He sighed as he glanced toward a now empty desk. Now that the business had been bought and he had yet to move again to another company again. He rubbed his head glancing at the empty walls and the marks the pictures that had been there earlier left behind. The other employees had been there since dawn to pack up their belongings, but only one of them hadn’t shown up. He knew exactly what’d she do when she walked in. That loud screaming of hers and her aggressive attitude got annoying sometimes. She was the type of girls that took no bull from anyone. If she was ever blamed for something she’d immediately stand up for herself and prove herself right. She was the type of girl that took action right away and he liked that. It was one of the reasons why he had kept her with him and the company for so long. Rubbing his large tummy he looked around once more as if he wouldn’t be able to part from the building. The floor was almost empty by now.

“Is she coming or what?” he asked himself. “If the movers have finished loading the truck I’m going to need to leave a note behind.”

“Where’s my stuff?!” Selina shouted running in through the open doors. “How can you touch my stuff without asking me?! You know I hate it when you touch my stuff without my permission! Where’s my box?”

“I told you not to be late,” he told. “I’ve packed it up, but don’t worry. I took extra care of everything. It’s not like I don’t know you.”

Selina sighed and rubbed her forehead.

“What’s with the bags?” he asked squinting to look at her eyes better.

Selina moved back and rubbed her eyes.

“I’ll let you in on it later. Where’s the new company? Is it a lot bigger?” asked Selina.

“I don’t know. We have to see for ourselves. Lets hurry,” he said following her out the door.

The company sure was huge. At least two times the size of the building Selina used to sit in. There were desks set in two rows down the large room. Each one had a nice expensive computer with two personal cabinets next to each desk. Selina felt excited just looking at the room. She could already imagine how great the new environment would be.

“Selina they’ve set your box out in the lobby,” someone called.

Selina turned around immediately and rushed out. She stared at the box filled with her office supplies and after lifting it up from the ground she turned around accidentally running into someone. He gave a loud shout.

“I’m sorry!” Selina apologized.

“Watch where you’re going next time,” he told.

As he walked away Selina thought she’d heard his voice somewhere before. She turned around to stare at his back. He was indeed familiar, but where was he from? The memory seemed weak and she couldn’t pull it out from her head like a butterfly that didn’t remember how to fly. Selina turned around hurrying back into the room and set the box on her desk.

“There was a call this morning. There’s been a homicide case not too far from here,” he told handing Selina some papers. “You think you want to take it on?”

“Homicide?” Selina repeated taking the folder from him.

“I know you especially like these cases and you’ve busted people before,” he said, “why don’t you take it? But if you do you’re going to need an officer to go with you.”

“Why?” Selina asked.

“They’ve closed the highway down. You won’t be able to get passed security to look at the site where she was killed,” her boss explained, “if you go find that cop to go with you now you can make it there before nightfall.”

Selina stared at the report about the death. She had been reported missing since last month and the last person she was seen with was her boyfriend. Selina bit her lip and quickly pushed away the thoughts that were bothering her.

Selina got out from a taxi and glanced at the large police station. She’d seen it before, but she’d never imagined herself going in there. Going up the steps Selina pushed open the large glass doors and stopped in the middle of the lobby. It was certainly as large inside as it looked outside. People walked back and forth all dressed formally in skirts and suits dragging large documents with them. Selina walked up to the circular reception desk to her right and glanced down at the young lady.

“Excuse me do you know where I can find Mr. Wang Dong Cheng?” Selina asked.

“And who are you?”

“I’m an investigative reporter, Selina Ren.”

“Just wait a moment please.”

Selina watched as the young woman picked up the phone and dialed a call then hung up.

“He’s caught up in the middle of something right now, but you can go wait for him in his office if you go down this hallway. His office is the second last door,” she instructed.

Selina nodded and turned around going down the hallway the young woman had instructed her. Selina glanced down at the large photos that hung memorably along the walls she passed. She came to a stop when she recognized a face. A flashback shot into her mind causing Selina to glance down at the ground. She frowned then looked up at the smiling face again. It had to be him, the man that had investigated her twin’s death.

“Excuse me miss are you lost?”

Selina turned around, “No.”

Turning away from the woman she hurried down the hallway.

“Second last door…second last door,” she mumbled to herself pointing to the doors she passed then stopped. “Alright, this should be it.”

Selina knocked on the door, but no one answered. She was sure she could hear talking inside. Was he talking to someone else? Should she wait outside? But she wanted to get there before nightfall. Without thinking Selina grabbed the doorknob and twisted it open. She glanced inside to see a man sitting behind a desk talking on the phone. He turned to look over at her and a surprised expression climbed onto his face. He waved for her to come in. Selina looked around and took a seat on the couch not too far from the desk setting her tote-bag-ish purse aside.

“Alright well I don’t think this can be talked out any further. Try to get back to the mother and try to find out if she’s hiding anything suspicious. I’ll get back to you later,” he told then hung up.

He turned to Selina who found him a bit familiar. Why was it that she was finding everyone familiar?