Page 60 of They Will Fall

I approach the closed closet and, with a jerk, I pull it open. Reaching up, I grab the pull string to turn on the light, immediately spotting the same tote from that day. Surrounding it are scattered clothes, shoes, and basically a mess of random shit cluttering the area.

I crouch down and sweep away some of the mess before lifting the lid on the tote. At first glance, it’s nothing of use, just more clothes. But when I pull out the worn sweatshirt, I see a stack of papers, some old pictures, and a manila folder labeledConfidential.Naturally, I go for that first.

Undoing the clasp on the folder, I flip the lip and pull out all the papers inside. It looks like some sort of report for The Society with The Blue Bloods emblem on top. My eyes scan the first page quickly, but I stop when I see the names Rebecca and Donald Pemberley.That’s my parents.

This isn’t just a report, it’s a witness statement from Stanley Crane on the day my family was murdered.

My heart is hammering in my chest as I quickly shuffle through a couple more pages and see a signature at the bottom, and there it is. Maddox’s dad’s signature—Stanley Crane.

“What the actual fuck,” I mumble.

I go back to the first page and begin reading.

Detective: State your name for the record.

Witness #3: Stanley Crane

Detective: Mr. Crane, please tell me in detail what you saw that night.

Witness #3: Well, I was walking my dog down Briar Lane when I noticed the front door was cracked open. It was unusual for Donald and Becca to leave their door open, especially at that time of the night. So I whistled for Sammy to follow me up just so I could holler inside and make sure everything was okay. That’s when I saw their son standing frozen in the entryway with blood on his hands.

What? No.I don’t remember that. Then again, I don’t remember much of anything from that day. I keep reading, hoping something jogs my memory.

Detective: Do you know their son’s name?

Witness #3: Of course. It’s Lev Pemberley. I’ve known the boy his whole life.

Detective: And what happened next?

Witness #3: I approached Lev, but he was too shocked to speak. He just stood there, staring straight through me with his bloody hands held out in front of him.

Detective: Was he holding any weapons?

Witness #3: Not that I could see.

Detective: It’s my understanding that the blood of one of the victims was found on your shoes, is this true?

Witness #3: Yes, sir.

Detective: And how did it get there?

Witness #3: It must have dripped off Lev’s hands.

Detective: And a footprint of that same shoe was found in the bedroom of Alana Pemberley?

I gasp at the sight of her name.God, I miss you, Alana.

Witness #3: Is that a question?

Detective: It is. Please answer it. Was your footprint of that same shoe found in the bedroom of Alana Pemberley?

Witness #3: That’s what I hear.

Detective: And how do you explain that?

Witness #3: I suppose it’s possible that I went in there at some point during the chaos. I can’t really say. I, too, was in shock by what happened.

Detective: Thank you for your time, Mr. Crane. We ask that you stick around town in case we have any further questions.

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