Chapter 7 - Pretty little liar

10:30am 

Carmen Liu sat perched on the edge of the metal chair like she wanted to hover above it, too pristine for the cold, sterile room. 

Her eyeliner was smudged—intentionally. Her long lashes fluttered as she looked around, like this was a photo shoot gone grim.

Detective Serena Hale closed the door behind her and sat down, crossing one leg over the other with mechanical calm.

"I'm sure this is hard for you," Serena began, tone clipped. "Melrose was your best friend."

"Ex-best friend," Carmen corrected. Her voice trembled just enough to sound human. "We haven't been close for over a year."

"But you still cried in class."

Carmen looked up sharply. "Of course I cried. I'm not heartless."

"No, just... complicated." Serena flipped open her notebook. "Walk me through your night. Start at the beginning."

Carmen exhaled. "I arrived around 9:30. The party was already full. People were dancing, drinking. Melrose was being... herself."

"Which means?"

"Loud. Flawless. Controlling. It was her night, and we all knew it."

"Did you speak to her?"

Carmen nodded slowly. "Briefly. She made a comment about my dress—said I finally stopped shopping at clearance racks. Then she kissed me on the cheek and walked off."

"Did that bother you?"

Carmen gave a brittle laugh. "Detective, everything Melrose said was designed to bother people."

"So you were used to it."

"I learned how to swallow it."

Serena jotted a note. "And what time did you last see her?"

"Around midnight. Maybe a few minutes before. She said she was going to change into her second outfit."

"Did she seem upset?"

"No. Just dramatic. She wanted to 'make an entrance.'"

"And after that?"

"She didn't come back. We waited. We assumed she was... doing something."

"Something like?"

Carmen hesitated. "A tantrum. A power play. It's not unheard of."

Serena closed her notebook for a beat. "And yet, when her body was found this morning, you told everyone to say she never came back from the changing room."

Carmen froze.

"I—I didn't tell anyone anything," she said carefully. "We all are just hearing about her death."

Silence.

Then Carmen whispered, "I didn't kill her."

Serena raised an eyebrow. "Did I say you did?"

Carmen's lips parted, but no words came out.

"No," she said finally. "But someone did."

Serena stood. "That's all for now."

Carmen didn't move until the door opened. As she stepped out, she paused in the hallway—just long enough to look back at the room, like she was leaving behind a ghost she hadn't meant to summon.

Inside, Serena flipped to the next name.

Isaac Caldwell.

....

10:50am 

Isaac Caldwell walked in with his hands shoved into his hoodie pocket like he'd rather disappear into it. He didn't sit right away—just eyed the metal chair like it might bite.

"Sit," Serena said, not looking up from her notes.

He obeyed, slouching low, one leg jittering beneath the table. His curls were messy, and his glasses kept slipping down his nose.

Serena finally met his eyes. "You look nervous."

"I have anxiety," he shot back. "And you're a cop."

"I'm a detective," she corrected. "And you're in a murder investigation."

"That too," he muttered.

She opened her notebook slowly, letting the silence stretch like a noose.

"You were at the party."

"Yeah. Everyone was."

"What time did you arrive?"

"Ten, maybe? I was late. Raina dragged me."

Serena jotted that down. "When was the last time you saw Melrose alive?"

Isaac shrugged. "Just before midnight. She did this twirl in front of everyone, waved, and said she was going to change. Nobody saw her after that."

"That's the fourth time I've heard that sentence. Almost word for word."

Isaac looked up, blinking. "I mean… that's what happened."

Serena's voice dropped. "Or that's what you were told to say."

He didn't respond right away. His knee bounced faster.

"I'm not trying to cover anything," he said eventually. "I didn't even like Melrose."

"Why not?"

"She was a nightmare. Queen of manipulation. She once told my girlfriend I cheated on her—with Raina. Just to see what would happen."

"Did you?"

"No! That's the point. She made people paranoid. She messed with people for fun."

"So, again, you had a motive."

Isaac let out a bitter laugh. "So did half the damn school."

A pause.

"Do you know who did it?"

"No."

"Do you think someone in your group does?"

Another pause.

Then softly, "Maybe."

"Who?"

Isaac looked up. Eyes wide, desperate.

But his lips didn't move.

Serena stood. "We'll talk again."

He didn't stand until she opened the door. When he walked out, he avoided everyone's eyes especially Olivia's.

Serena checked the list.

Lacey Vaughn.

...

11:11am 

Lacey entered the room with her chin up but her hands shaking.

Her usually flawless eyeliner had smudged at the corners, and the gloss on her lips had worn off. 

She looked like she hadn't slept or had woken up in the middle of a nightmare and hadn't found her way out.

She sat. Crossed her legs. Uncrossed them.

Serena Hale didn't look up from her notes. She let the silence play its game first.

"So," Lacey finally said, voice wobbling. "Do I need a lawyer or something?"

"Do you need one?"

Lacey blinked. "No. I mean—I didn't do anything."

"That's what they all say."

Lacey exhaled through her nose. "Can we not play mind games? I already feel like I'm going to puke."

Serena looked up. "Fine. Then let's keep it simple."

She flipped a page. "You were at the party."

"Yes."

"What time did you arrive?"

"Early. I helped Melrose set up."

"You were friends?"

Lacey hesitated. "We were… Melrose liked to call the shots. She'd say 'jump,' and you either jumped or got erased."

"And you preferred jumping?"

"I preferred surviving."

Serena tilted her head. "Did you like her?"

Another pause.

"I loved her once," Lacey said softly. "Back when she wasn't cruel. Before the lies. Before the parties became performances."

"And after?"

"She scared me," Lacey whispered. "But I stayed close because I knew what she could do to people she pushed away."

"Like Rachel?."

"Like everyone."

Serena nodded slowly. "What happened last night?"

"She was being a diva, as usual. Bossing everyone around. Then she disappeared upstairs to change and never came back."

"That exact sentence again," Serena murmured.

Lacey bit her lip. "That's what happened."

"Or what you're all supposed to say."

"I'm not lying."

"You're rehearsed," Serena said. "Which is different."

Lacey's eyes watered. "I didn't hurt her. I swear."

"Who told you what to say?"

"No one."

Serena leaned forward. "Was it Olivia?"

Lacey didn't answer.

"You were close to her, weren't you? Sat beside her. Whispered to her."

"N….no…"

"Funny how she seems to be the one everyone listens to."

Lacey flinched. "She didn't kill Melrose."

"I didn't say she did."

"But you're thinking she did."

"No," Serena said. "I'm thinking you all know more than you're saying."

Serena stared at her for a long time.

Then, finally: "That's all for now."

Lacey stood, stumbled, then steadied herself. As she reached the door, Serena spoke again, calmly.

"Fear makes people lie, Lacey. But guilt makes them break."

Lacey didn't respond. She just pulled the door open and walked out, her heels clicking shakily.

Serena glanced down at her next name.

Miles Harper.

...

11:42am

Miles Harper stepped into the room with broad shoulders, a clenched jaw, and stormy eyes flickering between confusion and defensiveness.

He sat stiffly across from Detective Serena Hale.

No handshake. No greeting.

Just silence.

They stared at each other, a quiet standoff of scrutiny and restraint.

Then—

"Tell me how the birthday went," Serena said, finally.

Miles shrugged, tone clipped. "Nothing much. I was making out with Olivia most of the night."

Serena's brows lifted slightly. "Most. Not all."

She glanced down at her notes. "Did Melrose see you two?"

"Yeah. She did. Made some nasty comments too."

"Did she exchange words with Olivia?"

"Yeah. They do that a lot... anytime they're near each other, really."

Serena's pen stilled. "And how did she disappear?"

Miles hesitated, then said, "She said she was going to change her clothes. That was around midnight."

"Same answer again" she shrugged then continued "Did you see her again after that?"

He shook his head. "No. None of us did."

Serena didn't respond. Just stared at him long enough for the silence to feel like a second round of questioning.

"Did you ever love her?" she asked, tone flat.

Miles stiffened. "What does that have to do with—"

"Answer the question."

A pause.

"We were kids. Whatever we had... it was over a long time ago." He added, more quietly, "I love Olivia now."

Serena's gaze didn't soften. "And yet Melrose still got to you. Didn't she?"

"What're you implying?"

"That sometimes, the people we've moved on from still know how to pull our strings. And maybe… the wrong string got pulled last night."

Miles's jaw flexed. "You're wrong."

Serena leaned back, scribbling a note. "We'll see."

She closed the file.

"That'll be all for now."

Miles stood, slower than he came in. But as he reached the door, she called out—

He paused, hand on the knob.

"Don't let loyalty turn into blindness. That gets people killed."

He didn't answer.

Just walked out.

Serena returned to her folder.

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