But somehow, once I heard it, I died.
Seeing Bill say nothing, my mother must have felt her earlier tone had been off.
"I'm sorry. I just can't take it in. I got carried away."
"Only yesterday she was talking to me about it, saying that once her first paycheck came in she'd take the four of us to New York. I truly never imagined something like this would happen to her today."
As she spoke, the tears spilled over again.
My soul drifted in the air.
Watching my mother wipe her eyes, I felt hollow inside.
Why? We'd agreed to go to New York, and yet I chose to end my own life.
After dying, I no longer remembered.
But at my mother's words, Bill suddenly lifted his head, his eyes fixing on one spot.
"Ms. Dickerson, you just said the four of you?"
"Then why are there only two bedrooms in this apartment?"
My mother paused.
"Back when my husband and I were recruited to the city as skilled hires, the apartment was assigned to us. We'd planned on only one child. When the little one came along by surprise, we just had the two girls squeeze in together for a while."
"Later, as they grew up, Ellie was mostly away at school, and she'd work over the summer and winter breaks too, so she rarely stayed home. Her sister gradually got used to having the second bedroom to herself."
Bill narrowed his eyes. "Why doesn't the sister stay at school?"
"Today was the celebration dinner. Where did the sister and the father go?"
My mother dabbed at her eyes again.
"Her sister has a congenital heart condition. She can't be left without someone caring for her. My husband and I are both high school teachers, so teaching her at home is no trouble."
"She'd meant to come to the dinner today too, but she ran a fever a few days ago and had to be taken back to the hospital."
"My husband has been there with her the whole time."
"Officer, please don't go bother them at the hospital, all right?"
"The two girls have been close since they were little. I'm afraid that if she finds out, she won't be able to bear it."
Bill was quiet for a dozen seconds or so. He didn't press further, just turned and walked into the second bedroom.
The other detectives followed, doing a quick search.
The room was cozy.
The closet stood open, full of a girl's dresses.
The desk was covered in schoolbooks.
Photos of the two sisters growing up were pinned across the wall.
Perfectly ordinary.
But years on the job left Bill with an instinctive sense that something was wrong.
Just as he was about to think it through, Martha pulled open a desk drawer and cut him off.
"Captain, there's a diary in here."
Bill pulled on gloves and took it.
"Ms. Dickerson, to investigate your daughter's death, we need to look at what's inside."
My mother gave a small nod.
Bill didn't start at the first page. He flipped straight to the back.
【*May 25, 2026.*】
【*The thesis defense is over.*】
【*My professor said my graduation thesis qualifies for top marks.*】
【*I'm really happy.*】
【*But he… texted me again.*】
Bill turned the pages forward.
【*June 3, 2026.*】
【*Mom says she wants to throw me a celebration dinner.*】
【*There's really no need to go to all that trouble.*】
【*But if it makes her happy, then it's fine.*】
【*With the job, I owe so much to Mom and Dad.*】
【*If only he didn't exist.*】
Bill kept turning until the last page.
【*June 16, 2026.*】
【*Three more days until graduation.*】
【*I hope my sister gets discharged soon.*】
【*Once the celebration dinner is over, the whole family will go to the commencement ceremony together.*】
【*When we do, we absolutely have to take a new family photo.*】
Reading this far, Martha let out a soft breath.
"Captain, she doesn't seem like someone who wanted to kill herself at all."
