Damian slowly closed the door behind them. Lily hesitated, unwilling to sit near the old couple after what had happened last time. The rest of the gang followed suit, sitting close together, forming a small wall between themselves and the couple.
Mr. Charles sighed. “I do not want to know what you were up to, but at least say ‘Thank you’ for what we’ve done.”
The fear in their eyes melted into realization. They murmured, “Thank you… and sorry.”
Raven was the first to speak beyond pleasantries. “Mr. Charles… do you know me? Or any of us?” She gestured toward the girls.
He looked at her calmly. “Yes. Why do you ask?”
Raven’s voice grew firm, even as chills ran down her spine. “How? Why? I mean.. When? What did I do to you to befall this… and involve all of them?”
“Listen, kid,” he said, straightening his posture, and Mrs. Patricia raised her head beside him. “I know you. But I did not kill you. I did not call you here. I didn’t even know I would see you again. Snap out of your fear… and leave us out of this.”
Sienna leaned forward, eyes sharp. “Then are you saying… if you had made her come here, you would have killed her?”
Charles’s expression darkened. “You! I would not… not after—”
“After what?” Sienna pressed.
“None of your business,” he cut her off.
Raven’s voice softened, almost pleading. “Sir, we don’t know you. If I’ve wronged you in any way, I apologize. There has to be another way besides the mall.”
The sincerity in her tone hung in the room, heavy and undeniable. Mrs. Patricia swallowed hard. “You didn’t do anything wrong. But we knew your sisters because they come to the mall often, and sometimes they visited our hut. The middle, one I believe, the sweeter one… she stayed in the guest room once. We thought she might come again, so we prepared for her but we met you."
Raven froze, sitting back slowly. It makes so much sense but friends of a serial killer? Her mind spun.
“Did you intend to kill her?” Raven’s voice dropped low, deep enough for them to understand her anger. Her hands rested on her face, fingertips pressed together, helping her focus and steady herself as she stared down the couple.
“No!” Mrs. Patricia’s voice cracked, desperate. “Why would we?”
Theodore leaned forward. “then care to explain the newspapers under the couch?”
Mrs. Patricia faltered. Charles spoke up before she could answer. “Those… they are are somewhat linked to us one way or another. We keep newspapers to track people who once we offered our homes to, or at least we met during their trip. I wanted them, but she didn’t. So I hid them under the couch. But… how did you find them?”
Theo’s gaze didn’t waver. “We were suspicious of you. We tried to find any evidence linking you to the murders. But we only found… missing people in the forest.”
Charles did not flinch. “We are not responsible for those events". At least Us, he thought.
Blake spoke up cautiously. “Is that why you have hunting rifles?”
“For safety and hunting animals,” Charles replied.
Sienna’s voice cut through. “Your radios work… why did you lie about not knowing the mall incident or did you not actually know?”
Charles glanced at them, “We did not know. After your questions regarding the scene, I checked the radio and… then I understood.”
The group exchanged uneasy looks. Something still didn’t add up even though they were getting truthful answers.
Lily asked softly, “And the people missing for five years?”
“I cannot answer that.” Charles said quietly.
Theodore’s voice sharpened. “Where is your son?”
Mrs. Patricia’s lips trembled. Charles’s face hardened, realizing they had no option other than to say what needs to be said.
Lies may hide the truth for a moment, but the consequences catch up.
“We killed him.”
Everyone went silent, understanding the depth of those words. Revealing the truth they tend to hide was hard. The words hung in the air.
Charles’s voice cracked but held strength. “He was a very kind… outgoing soul… until he changed. He locked himself away, spoke about using a chainsaw to cut trees… and then…”
Mrs. Patricia’s sobs grew louder.
“His first victim was Henry Lucas. His last… Gary,” Charles said. After few minutes he said simply, “We did not want to expose him. We buried him ourselves.”
The group’s expressions shifted from shock to disbelief. Then noticed, Damian's face was sweat dripping from his brow as he stared, the weight of the revelation pinning him silent. Usually the one to take the lead, did not speak, not even once after they entered the house.
ns216.73.216.134da2
and then Add to home screen.