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She’d often wondered how two siblings could grow up in the same household with the same parents in the same town…and yet turn out so differently. Her unanswered questions were the main reason that she’d chosen psychology as a major. She wasn’t so sure she would find her answers by the end of her senior year, though.
“We have less than five minutes to get to class,” Cara called out from across the room. She was standing by the door with a thick textbook and a red notebook in hand. “You’ve been standing next to that window for the past half hour. Did you hook up with someone over the summer? Are you holding out on me?”
“No,” Brook replied as she let the curtain drop. She managed a smile, not wanting Cara to think anything was wrong. “I just wanted to see what everyone was wearing. Looks like your thot knot is the new trend, by the way.”
It would serve no purpose to anyone if her roommate and classmates knew about Jacob. He’d left their hometown before the police could apprehend him, and Chief Conway had alleged that her brother would never show his face again for fear of being arrested.
Brook wasn’t so sure about his assumption.
Once the truth had come out, she’d shared with her parents and the police her thoughts about Jacob. She’d even told them of the disturbing drawings that she’d discovered one day in her brother’s bedroom of Pamela Murray, the female student whose body had eventually been found about a year after she’d gone missing. Everyone seemed to believe that Jacob was merely a sick individual who would eventually get caught, but she knew differently.
Her brother was a monster.
Jacob was extremely intelligent, and there was no telling where he was or what he might be doing. He’d warned her that he wouldn’t allow her to be the normal one, which she took to mean that he would eventually come after her. She’d relayed the intent to Chief Conway and her parents, but they didn’t seem concerned that her brother would follow through with his promise.
“Sloane, are you coming or not?”
“Yes,” Brook replied as she walked over to her side of the room. She picked up the textbook for her morning class and then randomly chose one of the numerous notebooks that she’d picked up at an office supply store. “Let me grab a few pencils.”
Once she had everything in hand, she picked up the travel mug of coffee that she’d poured around fifteen minutes ago. The caffeinated beverage kept her sharp, and she needed every possible edge imaginable. She should have trusted her instincts when she was younger, and she wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.
Something told her that Jacob was nearby…watching her from afar.
Brook couldn’t give a reasonable explanation as to why she was more restless than usual. Her mother thought it was due to Brook’s inability to get more than three or four hours of sleep on any given night. Her father mentioned that it was because she spent more time studying than socializing with friends. Neither one of them seemed to grasp that she no longer had a normal life.
Was that why Jacob had returned to check on her?
Had he wanted to make sure his last wish had been granted?
There was no denying that Jacob had succeeded in making sure that there was nothing normal about her life. She could only hope that once he’d seen his accomplishment for himself, he would either leave for good or get caught by the police.
“Let’s go,” Brook said as she pasted another smile on her face. She could manage to keep up appearances for their senior year. “Remember, I’ll be in the library most of the evening. I want to get a head start on this semester’s course material.”
As Brook closed the door and made sure that it was locked, a group of girls passed them as they walked down the hallway. They were laughing and debating about which sorority party to hit later this evening, with one of the sororities being a little higher on the list. One of the girls asked Cara if she would be there, and her roommate responded that she’d be too busy hopping some of the frat parties instead.
“This is it, Sloane,” Cara said as she hooked her hand through Brook’s arm. “Our senior year. Life can’t get more perfect than this!”
Brook once again winced upon hearing Cara’s chosen word for the day.
Jacob had killed Pamela, Sally, and who knows how many other young women due to their belief that their lives were perfect. While he wasn’t around to hear Cara say something similar, Brook couldn’t help but be affected by her brother’s twisted logic.
She wanted to warn Cara not to take her youth, beauty, and blessings for granted, because it could all be taken away in the blink of an eye. Unfortunately, she couldn’t do so without revealing the graphic details of her past. Seeing as there was no reason that Cara should walk around her daily life being afraid of every moving shadow, Brook kept to herself what she knew to be the truth—evil touched their lives every single day.
Chapter Two
Brooklyn Sloane
October 2023
Thursday — 4:11pm
Amusty,stalescentof age and neglect hung in the air of the isolated cabin. Dust particles floated inside the beams of sunlight that were streaming through the sole window where there had once been a white curtain. The few remaining fibers clung to the rusted rod by the merest whispers of life. Where they had once adorned the window in its entirety to prevent intruders from seeing its occupants, they were now as grey and lifeless as ghosts.
The front room was cramped and claustrophobic, barely large enough to accommodate a couch and two chairs. A solid stone fireplace filled up most of the wall to the left of the entrance. The bookshelves on either side were devoid of everything but cobwebs that had been abandoned by their makers long ago. Toward the back of the cabin was a small kitchen space with a six-foot-long counter that had been smothered in a thick layer of dust that had hardened like concrete over time.
“…brought in as a consultant. The federal agents in Charlotte are stretched thin with the domestic terrorism case that’s been in the headlines lately, and…”
The one-room cabin had been crafted from Eastern White Pine. The log walls were milky in color, and there were wisps of gossamers that moved in time with the cool breeze that flowed through the open door. Unfortunately, not even the refreshing mountain air could mask the overwhelming stench of death and decay that permeated the room.
