Chapter 1
CHAPTER 1
{Jackson’s Favourite Park — Late Night}
A loud and intense investigation was going on at Jackson’s Favourite Park—the same park where Jackson often took beautiful pictures for coverage.
Jackson was a young, good-looking man who had been raised single-handedly by his mother. That night, he stood outside the flat where he lived, watching the investigation from a distance. Even though it was late, many people had gathered outside. Everyone murmured quietly among themselves, while some neighbours spoke openly about the tragic death.
One neighbour spoke with tears in her eyes and said, “Ahh… Mrs. Alisin was such a good woman. Whoever did this must be truly heartless.”
Another neighbour shook her head sadly and said, “Mrs. Alisin once gave my son a lift home from school when she saw him trekking under the hot sun. Ahh… God must punish whoever did this!”
Silence slowly fell over the crowd once again.
The pain was heavy. No one could understand why such a kind woman had been taken away so suddenly.
FLASHBACK
Earlier that afternoon, Jackson was at the park, just as he always was, taking pictures with a camera he had borrowed from his friend, Wilson.
The afternoon was hot, and the park was busy. People were walking around, talking, laughing, and enjoying the peaceful atmosphere.
No one noticed Mrs. Alisin at first.
Then—
BANG!
A gunshot suddenly echoed through the park.
For a moment, everyone froze.
Nobody knew where the sound had come from. Before the gunshot, Jackson had taken a picture of a couple. He had no idea that something important had appeared in the background of the photograph.
Hidden behind the couple was a clear image of a man preparing to pull the trigger.
A second later, the gunshot was heard.
Panic spread through the park. People screamed and ran in different directions. Jackson quickly grabbed his camera and ran home.
His house was less than 100 kilometres away from the park. When he arrived, he suddenly remembered that he had not deleted any of the pictures.
But the camera belonged to Wilson, and Jackson trusted him completely.
There is nothing to worry about, Jackson thought.
Later, as he sat down to go through the photographs, something caught his attention.
He stared at one particular picture.
Then his heart stopped.
The image in the background was clear.
Jackson had unknowingly captured the face of the person who killed Mrs. Alisin.
Fear gripped his heart once again.
MEANWHILE…
Wilson had heard that Jackson was at the park when Mrs. Alisin was killed. Curious—and slightly worried—he picked up the camera to check whether Jackson had deleted the pictures.
As he scrolled through them, his expression suddenly changed.
Then he froze.
One of the photographs showed the face of one of his members.
“Oh my God… Jackson has Smart’s picture!” Wilson said as he stared at the screen in disbelief.
“What do I do now?” Wilson asked himself.
Without wasting another second, Wilson picked up his phone and called Mr. Eliot.
“Uhm… sir?” Wilson said nervously.
“Boy! Thank you so much for the great work,” Mr. Eliot said happily. “I’m so overwhelmed right now. Meanwhile, don’t forget to send your account details so I can complete the payment.”
Wilson swallowed nervously before saying, “Sir… a friend of mine has Smart’s picture from the incident. He might post it on his blog. Sir, what do we do?”
There was a brief silence.
“You’re asking me?” Mr. Eliot said. “Do what you need to do. Warn him and make sure he doesn’t expose anything.”
Wilson’s eyes widened.
“Sir, you don’t understand who I’m talking about,” Wilson said. “He’s very strong-willed. He won’t listen to me.”
“So, what do you want me to do?” Mr. Eliot asked. “Look, you’ve done a very pleasing job. Now, do whatever you think is best.”
Wilson remained silent for a moment.
“Okay, sir,” Wilson said before ending the call.
But the question remained:
What exactly was Wilson planning to do?
ON THE OTHER SIDE…
Jackson was still terrified.
His hands trembled as he stared at the picture. His thoughts were racing, and fear had completely taken over.
“Oh, shit… what do I do? Ahh!” Jackson said as he held his head tightly.
“God… it’s like this woman is haunting me. What exactly am I supposed to do?” Jackson asked himself.
He quickly picked up the remote and switched on the television.
“Okay, hi, everyone,” Angelina Edwin said. “My name is Angelina Edwin, and you’re watching TVC News.
“The investigation into the death of our prestigious Mrs. Alisin is still ongoing. Daniel Alisin, her first son, has offered a reward of 300 trillion dollars to anyone who discovers the identity of the person responsible for her death.
“Thank you.”
“You must be kidding me right now… 300 trillion dollars?” Jackson said as his eyes widened.
He held his head with one hand while gripping the remote with the other.
“Ahh… what do I do? Who do I call—Beauty or Mum?” Jackson asked himself.
After thinking for a moment, he picked up his phone and dialled Beauty’s number.
“Hello?” Jackson said.
“Hey, what’s up?” Beauty said.
“Beauty, did you listen to the news?” Jackson asked.
“Yeah,” Beauty said. “What happened?”
Jackson hesitated before saying, “Beauty… I have a picture of the guy who killed Mrs. Alisin. I’m so confused.”
Suddenly, another call came through.
“Hey, Beauty. Someone is calling me,” Jackson said. “Let me call you back.”
“Oh, okay,” Beauty said. “Please be safe.”
The call ended.
Jackson stared at the incoming number.
His heart began to race.
Who could be calling him at a time like this?
Could it be the killer?
Could it be the agent?
Or could it even be his mother?
Who knows?
AUTHOR’S REVIEW
The pressure Jackson was feeling was unbearable. He had information that could expose a killer, but he had no idea who to trust—or who might already know about the picture.
The fear of the unknown was beginning to consume him.
Was the caller about to help him?
Or was the caller about to warn him?
Perhaps the truth was much closer than Jackson imagined.
One thing was certain:
The mystery had only just begun.
So, let’s dig deeper… because the answers may be more dangerous than the questions.
{THE END}
