Family Murders: A Thriller by Henry Carver Page B

came into the room.
    "There she is. There's Mommy," Ted said, and pointed across the room.
    "Mommy!" Julie bounced down to the ground and ran over for a hug.
    "She got dropped off this morning while you were out," Ted said. "I never even knew she was gone. I think I just fell into bed last night."
    Angela squeezed her daughter tight and fought back tears, resisting the urge to spit everything out. No, if she had her way, Julie would never know that any of this had happened.
    "What's wrong, Mommy?"
    "I'm just happy to see you, baby." Angela pulled her face across her daughters jumper, wiping away the evidence of tears.
    "Go play, sweetie, right here in your room. Mommy and Daddy need to talk."
    They stopped right outside the room. As long as she was here, in front of the door, nothing could happen to Julie. Air poured into her lungs and she tried to find the right words. All that came out was: "He killed Rocky."
    Ted's face screwed up a little bit. "What?"
    "He killed Rocky. He's dead, he broke his neck." It took everything she had to control her voice, to keep it low enough that Julie couldn't hear.
    "Who did? One of these assholes who race down the street? God damn it, I—"
    But she cut him off as the story came pouring out, all of it, haphazard and disconnected.
    "No, no, no, no, no, no, there's a man, he's been following me, following Julie, but really he's obsessed with you, he was at the supermarket and the soccer field and he was outside our house and maybe in our house."
    "Slow down, what are you taking about?"
    "And he's here—he's here, right now! He's out there in the woods, and he killed Rocky and I think he wants to kill all of us. We need to hide. We need to call the police."
    "Jesus, Angela," Ted broke into a crooked smile, "is this some kind of joke?"
    She took another deep breath, and for once hoped that she looked as scared as she felt. "It's no joke."
    "Why would someone kill our dog? Why, for fuck's sake, why would someone be obsessed with me ?" he said with a smile. There he was, the master of self-deprecating charm, unable to comprehend why someone would be so interested in him.
    "Because he thinks, he thinks…it's a long story. But he's crazy. He's always wearing these ridiculous pink sunglasses and he said it was supposed to be some kind of message. And he was very clear on the fact that he wants to kill you."
    Ted's face went pale. People use idioms like 'he went white as a sheet,' but seeing it in real life was shocking. Starting at the top of his head, all the pinks and reds of his face took an elevator trip straight down as blood drained into his neck and torso.
    "Pink sunglasses?"
    "Yes."
    "And he's outside right now?"
    "Yes!"
    Ted thought for a second. "Okay, you go downstairs and call the police. I'm going to go talk to Julie and get her to hide. I'll tell her it's a game of hide-and-seek or something. Then I'm going to come down and check the doors and windows."
    He took her by both shoulders. "If we're careful, no one should be able to get in, and then the police will he here. Okay?"
    "Okay. It's a good plan," she said. Ted looked at her strangely for a second. Angela guessed it was because she used to just take plans like this at face value. Now she found herself unable to stop reviewing and double-checking. He disappeared into Julie's bedroom, and she could hear him starting a game of hide and seek.
    It was terrifying to head back downstairs alone. If Eric was anywhere he would be down there, but Angela steeled herself for the descent. There was a plan now, a plan to save her family, and they were counting on her.
    One foot fell in front of the other, silently in sneakers. She turned down the hall at the bottom of the stairs and walked into the kitchen. Through the sliding glass door she could see the woods and most of the yard.
    Empty.
    She kept her eyes directed out through the glass as she reached out with her arm, picked up the phone, and pressed it to her ear. A finger was already in