The Killings (An Olivia Miller Mystery Book 1) by J A Whiting Page A

Luke.”
    “Kayla,” she told him, as she took a seat at their table.
    Olivia said, “Kayla, Luke was in the apartment the night Christian and Gary got killed. He was in another room and heard the fight.”
    Kayla’s eyes widened. Olivia couldn’t tell if her expression was one of surprise or fear.
    “I was there, too,” Kayla said.
    “They told me,” Luke said.
    “I didn’t see the killer. Just his feet. I was on the floor hiding behind the bed,” Kayla told him.
    Luke didn’t want to share what he saw that night. “I was a friend of Christian’s.”
    “I know. I recognize you,” Kayla told him. “I’ve seen you with Christian.”
    “We thought maybe we could talk,” Melissa said. “See if we can come up with anything new since the four of us are connected to that night.”
    “Like what?” Kayla asked. She fidgeted with a napkin on the table.
    “Maybe someone will remember something that seemed unimportant earlier,” Olivia said. “Maybe we could go over what happened to each of us, tell about getting to the apartment, what happened when we arrived, when we left. Try to remember what we saw. I don’t know, like maybe the killer ran by Mel and me when we were arriving.”
    Melissa said, “That’s a good idea. Let me think back on the night. I’ll start. I’ll tell what I remember.”
    Melissa gave her impressions and then Olivia told what she recalled. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Nothing stood out as suspicious. Luke went next. He told about walking to the apartment, what he saw on the way, what happened when he arrived.
    “I’m full of guilt,” he said. “I’m struggling with why my friends are dead and I’m still alive. I wish I could go back in time and make it right.”
    The cheerful, blonde barista approached the table with a platter holding pieces of banana bread and pumpkin bread samples. “Hey, guys. Free treats.” He lowered the tray and offered the bread selections to the group. Nobody was hungry, so they declined the samples.
    Kayla introduced him. “This is my friend, Eric.”
    Melissa, Olivia, and Luke greeted him.
    “You’re at MIT,” Luke said. “Same department as me, right?”
    “Yeah, I had a double major though. Spent more time in electrical engineering. I graduated last May.” Eric moved away with the platter to the next table.
    Melissa asked, “You want to tell what happened, Kayla? Tell us what you saw that night?”
    “I already told you,” she snapped. She looked at the tabletop and rubbed her forehead.
    Olivia and Melissa glanced at each other wondering why Kayla was being short with them.
    “I know but something new might come up if you think back on it again,” Olivia said. “I know it’s hard.”
    Kayla’s head jerked up. “You don’t know how hard it is.” The rims of her eyelids were red. “I can’t keep thinking about it and thinking about it. Let the police figure it out.”
    “You and Luke were the only one’s who were there when it happened. Remembering something could shed important information on who did it,” Melissa said. “It could help.”
    “Help what?” Kayla asked. “They’re dead. They’re not coming back. Why keep going over it? It’s too late to help them.” She pushed her chair back and stormed into the back room of the coffee shop. Her friend, Eric, followed after her.
    Luke leaned forward. “Why can’t she talk about it? I’m the one who should have the hardest time talking about it.” He shook his head. “She didn’t see it like I did. She didn’t let them down like I did. She didn’t find the bodies like you two did.”
    Melissa kept her voice low. “When she came to see us the other night, she said she didn’t want people to think she was the killer. She didn’t tell the police she was there. Why won’t she tell the police? What does she have to hide?”
    “I’d like to ask her how she happened to be outside Jack’s building right after he was killed,” Olivia said. “How did she