Page 41 of Back In the Shadows

I wouldn’t have a problem staying quiet. At the moment, I was messed up in the head about Ella. The second I saw that the home was gone, I realized the caller was fucking with me. For a fleeting second, I thought we would be leaving Minnesota with her in my arms. Clearly, I’d allowed my emotions to muddle my judgment, and this was just a game of cat and mouse to him. He was probably laughing his ass off.

A man who appeared to be in his mid-sixties approached us with a German Shepard.

“Afternoon,” he said, slowing so his dog could take a piss on the dirt.

“Afternoon,” Ryan replied. “You have a beautiful dog.”

The man glowed with pride as he introduced Dixie to us. Her tail wagged happily as we pet her.

“You’re not from around here,” the guy said. “By the way, I’m Chester. I’ve lived in the area for more than twenty years. I’m about three streets over, but Dixie and I walk this way twice a day.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Jack and this is my brother, Hugh. We grew up in the neighborhood and thought it would be fun to see how much it’s changed. We weren’t expecting this though.” Ryan motioned to the empty lot.

“I was shocked to see a crew tearing down the structure a few weeks ago. They just finished cleaning everything up yesterday. It was all of a sudden it seemed, but the house had been for sale for years. No one wanted to buy it.”

He had my attention now.

Ryan looked at me before he spoke. “You moved into the area after we left. We were pretty little, grade school actually.”

“Everything has changed around here, that’s for sure.” Dixie sat next to her owner, panting.

“So, they tore down the place because no one would buy it? Why was it difficult to sell? Hugh and I loved the place.”

Even though Ryan had suggested I stay quiet, I had details about the home that he didn’t. “When I was supposed to be in bed, there was a door under the stairs and a small storage space. I used to hide and watch television when my parent’s thought I was sleeping.” I managed a smile and Ryan chuckled. “There were definitely some unique features about the place.”

“There were rumors that the house had a weird vibe, and the creepy basement was filled with toys, stuffed animals, and dolls. Something along those lines, anyway. They were too old to cleanup and donate, but I wonder if any had been yours?” the guy asked.

“We were G.I. Joe kids, not stuffed animals,” Ryan said with a smile.

My jaw ticked as I tried to recall any of the toys, but my memories were few and far between. The only reason I knew about hiding under the stairs was because Dope had mentioned it to me a while ago.

Kip’s words echoed in my mind as I remembered the time he told us all about the initial phone call where Ella had given clues to her location—a cage, underground, surrounded by stuffed animals. If my old basement had toys … something in the back of my brain nudged me. I wasn’t remembering an important piece of the puzzle, but how could I with so few memories?

“What happened there that no one wanted to buy it after we left?” I asked, repeating Ryan’s question.

Chester cleared his throat, then said, “It was before I moved here, but rumor has it the couple that owned the place were brutally murdered. They had a son, and apparently, he witnessed the whole thing. Poor kid was traumatized by that, and child services put him in foster care right after. I bet he was a mess. No child should have to see that and lose everything too.”

“What happened to him?” I asked, shoving my hand into the pocket of my jeans.

“A family took him in and helped him through the hard times. Gave him a safe place to stay. I heard they were really good people. After that, he graduated and moved out of the area. No one knows what happened to him. It would be interesting to find out, though. See how he turned out.”

He didn’t want to know how it all turned out. I was a killer and one of the most wanted in the country by the FBI.

“Yeah, that would be intriguing to see what he made out of his life,” Ryan agreed.

“Well, it’s nice to meet you both. I better get Dixie home and feed her.” Chester offered us a wide smile. “Take care.”

We said our goodbyes and patted Dixie as they walked past us. A few seconds later, Chester turned around.

“Ya know, I almost forgot. I chatted with one of the crew last week. He mentioned that even though this place was gone, there was an exact replica of it. Struck me as really weird.”

My ears perked up. “What do you mean?” I was well aware of what a replica was, but I had to be certain I understood what he’d said.

“Apparently some guy knew the family and was obsessed with the story of the murders.”

Ryan folded his arms, his stance unwavering. “That’s pretty obsessed if he rebuilt the home.”

“I agree. Definitely strange and it stuck in my brain, ya know?” Chester tapped his chin.

---