Murder on a Cruise Ship

"Marilyn, do you realize that lately there's someone following you?" said the girl with black hair with a thin stroke on her forehead.

Marilyn, the girl in question, suddenly looked up while raising her eyebrows. "Ah, no really. Maybe your feelings, Nicole," she replied.

Nicole's eye moves to follow the silhouette of someone she caught just now. But when she blinked, the figure was gone in an instant.

"But ...." Nicole didn't continue, the girl shook her head as if she was forgetting something that was on her mind.

"But what?" said Marilyn still with a confused look.

"No, forget it," she said.

The two of them were chatting under a big tree in the corner of the school garden. The situation at that time was not so crowded, some students had actually returned to class after filling their stomachs.

"Oh, it's cloudy. Just come back, shall we?" asked Nicole, realizing that the weather at that time was suddenly unfriendly. Thick clouds almost covered the entire sky above them.

"Wait a minutem." Marilyn said slowly pointing to the roof of the school, to be precise in the teacher's room, thick black smoke was rising from that direction.

Nicole reflexively covered her mouth. Both of them tensed up, surprised for sure. They stared at each other followed by the school alarm that went off making all students come out of their class. One word can describe the situation at that time. Chaotic.

Marilyn and Nicole ran after the other students into the middle of the field. Their eyes were now focused on the point where the fire occurred. Hoping someone will come out of there, but that seems impossible. In an instant the fire spread, consuming other buildings next to it. And the people who are still in it.

Marilyn witnessed that tragic event right before her eyes. Screams of fear filled the entire school. At the same time she felt Nicole's hand trying to pull her from there. The fire is getting closer. But who knows what Marilyn was thinking at that time.

The corner of her eye caught a figure in a black robe standing on the second floor of the school. So relaxed. She thought then because she realized that soon the fire would consume the entire school building. Unfortunately, Marilyn could not see clearly the effects of the fire which limited her vision.

The next second, she faintly saw an object being floated towards the field, filled with liquid, in a container like a jerry can. Marilyn could only recite a prayer, resigned.

***

Marilyn closed her eyes as she recalled the events of two days ago. Here, she stood staring at her school building which had been scorched by fire. It is reported that twenty teachers, school staff, and the principal were declared dead in the incident.

Marilyn also received a message from her friend Nicole, that several students were victims of it.

"What really happened?" muttered Marilyn in a low voice. She could only look at the building from outside the fence.

Based on the police report, until now there is no definite reason, the suspect and the motive for the incident are still a mystery. The surviving school residents have been questioned by the authorities. Still, there is still no bright spot.

Marilyn reached for her cellphone in her jacket pocket, remembering that Nicole had not contacted her since yesterday. This girl is not normal.

Marilyn immediately called Nicole. First try, no answer. Continuing on to the second attempt, Nicole had time to answer it but not even five seconds later, the girl ended it.

"Nicole is busy maybe, huh?" the parrot guessed.

Just as Marilyn was putting the phone in her pocket, Nicole suddenly called. Without waiting for a long time, Marilyn immediately picked it up.

"Hello? I'm not disturbing, am I?" she asked.

[“No, how are you? Are you feeling better?"]

Marilyn touched her forehead, there was still a bit of pain from the impact hitting the cement on the pitch. Luckily Nicole quickly pulled her away, otherwise Marilyn might have been engulfed in flames.

"That's fine, thank you."

For a moment Marilyn felt silence. Nicole didn't answer, but Marilyn was sure she had just heard the girl whisper something. Unclear.

[“Today I'm moving. My father asked me to go to school outside the city."]