Wamuzi News Ke
Chapter 1: The Vanishing
The night was cold, the kind that made people retreat into the warmth of their homes, leaving the streets eerily quiet. Detective Daniel Carter leaned against his car, staring down the dimly lit road where Amelia Vaughn was last seen. The 27-year-old investigative journalist had always been fearless, chasing stories no one else dared to touch. Now she’s gone, and all that’s left is that abandoned car she ditched. Carter ran a hand through short hair stubbily, breathing out a fog into the cool, dark night.
The vehicle had been found just a few blocks from her apartment, the engine still running, headlights beaming into the darkness. The passenger door was slightly ajar, and her purse sat on the seat, untouched. No signs of struggle. No witnesses. Just the gnawing void of her absence.
He turned as his partner, Detective Lisa Monroe, approached, her high-heeled boots clicking against the pavement. She was always meticulous, sharp-eyed, and as relentless as he was. “Anything?” she asked, pulling her coat tighter around herself. Carter shook his head. “Nothing. No security cameras in the area, no eyewitnesses. It’s like she vanished into thin air.”
Monroe frowned and peered into the car. Found a bag and the car itself running, that’s not a robbery because it’s not taking someone’s stuff from them. It’s not carjacking as well because carjacking usually involves taking a car and operator against its will. So from how this sounds like, it sounds like a theft in progress.
She was taken.” “Agreed,” Carter said. He took out his notebook and turned to a brand new page. “The question is—by who and why?” Monroe reached over and carefully lifted up Amelia’s phone from the cup holder down there. The screen was inky black when she pushed the power button but instead of light it displayed something that was extremely chilling.
The last thing Amelia had typed before she disappeared: “I know who you are.” Carter felt a shiver crawl up his spine. He had lots of cold case stuff before but this case felt different somehow. This wasn’t a random disappearance. This was deliberate. Calculated. “I’ll get this to forensics, Monroe said, tucking the phone into an evidence bag.
“Maybe we can trace the message, see if she sent it to someone. Carter nodded, but his gut told him they were already racing against time. He had known Amelia for years—her work had put her in dangerous situations before, but she always found her way out. This time, though, something was different. This time she actually uncovered something so dangerous that people tried to just get rid of her completely. He stared down the empty street, a sense of urgency tightening in his chest. Where was Amelia Vaughn? And more importantly—was she still alive?
