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Kyla took them with shaking hands. She felt anxious. She had never done anything like this before, and the thought of breaking into someone's house made her feel sick. Her mom kept telling her it wasn't breaking in since it was her sister's home, but Kyla didn't buy into that. Besides, it didn't feel like Rachel's home. It had never felt that way.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" she whispered to her mom as they scaled the fence and landed softly on the other side.
"Positive," her mom replied, giving her a reassuring pat on the back. "We need to find some evidence if we want to prove that he's the one responsible for what happened to your sister."
Kyla nodded, taking a deep breath to steady her nerves. They made their way to the back door, and her mom found the spare key where they knew Rachel kept it, then put it in the lock. They slipped inside, and Kyla's eyes widened at the sight of the home. She hadn’t been there in years, and they had done a lot to it. It was spacious and modern, with expensive-looking furniture and artwork lining the walls. Kyla couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy for the life that Rachel had lived. She had everything, even children. John had never let Kyla and her mother see Rachel much and most certainly didn't invite Kyla over. If they saw one another, it was always just Rachel and her meeting at her place or having lunch somewhere. John had never liked Kyla and kept her from her sister. That was his controlling nature. Kyla had always warned her sister about him.
"Focus, Kyla," her mom whispered, snapping her out of her thoughts.
Right, Kyla thought, focusing on the task at hand. They searched the living room and then John's office. Her mom handed her a plastic bag and a pair of tweezers. Kyla stared at them, wondering how it had all come to this.
"Start with the desk," her mom instructed, pulling on a pair of gloves. "Look for any strands of hair or anything that might have his DNA on it. Look in all the drawers and behind books for anything that might have been a murder weapon. We don’t know how she was killed yet, but if you find a knife with blood on it, then grab it."
Kyla nodded, her hands shaking slightly as she began to comb through the papers on the desk. She felt like a criminal, invading someone's personal space like this. But then again, John was no innocent either.
"Let’s split up and search the place," her mom whispered, telling her she would go upstairs while Kyla searched the ground floor.
Kyla crept into the kitchen, her heart beating faster with each step. She felt like she was in a movie, but the stakes were all too real.
She opened every drawer and closet she could find, but there was no sign of anything usable. Her mom came back downstairs and snuck up behind her.
"Check the trash," her mom whispered.
Kyla's stomach twisted in knots as she opened the trash bin, the stench of rotting food hitting her nostrils. She rummaged through the garbage, her hands shaking as she searched for anything that could provide evidence.
Finally, her eyes landed on a pizza box with some crusts still in it.
“Grab it,” her mother said.
“The crust?”
“Yes, it has DNA on it.”
Kyla looked at the crust, not quite understanding what her mom wanted with it. How was that going to prove that he had killed Rachel? Still, she gingerly picked it up with gloved hands and handed it to her mom.
"Good job," her mom whispered, stuffing the crust in a plastic bag. “I forgot to check the bathroom,” she said, then went back upstairs for a few minutes before coming back down. "I didn’t find anything. I almost took his toothbrush, but then he would know we had been here. The crust will do. I really wanted to find hair, but he has cleaned everywhere so neatly that there is none.”
“He’s also almost bald, Mom.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right. And there doesn’t seem to be any murder weapon anywhere. Let's get out of here."
But as they turned to leave, the sight of headlights caught their attention. A car was pulling into the driveway.
Kyla's heart leaped into her throat as she watched John step out of the car. He looked up, his eyes narrowing as hespotted them in the window. Kyla froze, feeling like a deer caught in headlights. Her mom grabbed her arm and pulled her toward the back door.
"Run!" she hissed, and they sprinted toward the fence. Kyla's heart was beating so fast that she thought it might burst out of her chest. She could hear John's footsteps behind them and the sound of his angry voice shouting in the dark.
"Stop right there!" he yelled. "What the hell are you doing on my property?"
Kyla and her mom didn't answer; they just kept running. They scrambled over the fence, their feet slipping on the wet grass. Kyla could feel John's eyes on their backs as they disappeared into the night.
When they were finally a safe distance away, they collapsed onto the ground, panting and gasping for air. Kyla felt like she would be sick, but her mom just patted her on the back.
"Good job," her mom said, smiling at her. "Now, let's go home."
Kyla nodded, still trying to catch her breath. The adrenaline was still pumping through her veins, but she couldn't shake the feeling of guilt and fear. They had just broken into someone's home. Yes, it was her sister’s, but still? What if they had been caught? What if they had been hurt?
It all seemed so surreal.
