1 00:00:02,080 --> 00:00:07,480 My home town of Cedar Creek, Colorado, had a woman who every one 2 00:00:07,599 --> 00:00:12,800 loved to hate. Her name was Miss Gatlin, and she was both my 3 00:00:12,880 --> 00:00:19,600 elementary school's janitor and the scapegoat for all unfortunate events around our town. The 4 00:00:19,640 --> 00:00:24,199 Cedar Creek elderly despised her for having a son out of wedlock, and the 5 00:00:24,280 --> 00:00:29,239 town parents scorned her for giving set son too much freedom, a parenting style 6 00:00:29,480 --> 00:00:33,920 which had supposedly led to his death at the hands of our town's eponymous river. 7 00:00:35,240 --> 00:00:39,320 As for the children of Cedar Creek, we didn't care at all about 8 00:00:39,359 --> 00:00:46,439 social conventions or parental negligence, but we all agreed that Miss Gatlin was an 9 00:00:46,600 --> 00:00:53,479 ugly lady, and that was enough to warrant her cruelty. My best friend 10 00:00:53,520 --> 00:00:59,079 at the time was a curly headed Menaceter society named Isaac, who by fifth 11 00:00:59,119 --> 00:01:04,359 grade had established himself as a ringleader amongst the neighborhood boys. He did his 12 00:01:04,439 --> 00:01:10,920 best to inconvenience Miss Gatlin, though his pranks did little to rattle her. 13 00:01:11,280 --> 00:01:17,959 If we spread rumors about a poor hygiene just within earshot, Miss Gatlin didn't 14 00:01:18,000 --> 00:01:23,040 bat an eye if we released bugs inside a janitorial closet, she'd calmly sweep 15 00:01:23,120 --> 00:01:29,280 them outside. If we stuffed rotten food inside a locker, she'd clean it 16 00:01:29,319 --> 00:01:34,519 out quietly and without complaint. Our usual tricks never worked on Miss Gatlin, 17 00:01:36,359 --> 00:01:41,640 and all of us unimaginative kids were stunt by how to best the woman whose 18 00:01:41,719 --> 00:01:47,640 job it was to clean up messes of all kinds. In my last year 19 00:01:47,719 --> 00:01:52,359 of primary school, Hannaka fell a week and a half before we were dismissed 20 00:01:52,359 --> 00:01:57,879 for winter break. All of the Jewish children thoroughly enjoyed showing off their gifts 21 00:01:57,920 --> 00:02:00,879 to the rest of us, who had to wait an eternity for our presence. 22 00:02:02,120 --> 00:02:07,319 Thanks to impossible spy kids and totally spies, every kid in Cedar Creek 23 00:02:07,800 --> 00:02:14,000 was obsessed with espionage, so Isaac's gift of a spy tech kit for kids 24 00:02:14,599 --> 00:02:20,039 made him even more popular than usual. Most of the kit was cheap plastic 25 00:02:20,120 --> 00:02:24,800 junk, but there was a small spy radio that seemed very well manufactured. 26 00:02:25,919 --> 00:02:31,960 It consisted of an earpiece and a button sized microphone that was supposedly capable of 27 00:02:32,039 --> 00:02:38,560 transmitting audio up to a radius of five miles. Isaac, myself, and 28 00:02:38,599 --> 00:02:43,840 the rest of our crew spent most of the week before winter break, running 29 00:02:43,879 --> 00:02:50,039 around town and testing the capabilities of the device. The audio quality was surprisingly 30 00:02:50,080 --> 00:02:54,759 good, although the earpiece of microphone could only be separated for about three miles 31 00:02:55,080 --> 00:03:01,000 before the sound became too distorted to understand. It was a novel concept for 32 00:03:01,039 --> 00:03:07,080 a few days, but after a while we grew bored of playing walkie talkie. 33 00:03:07,120 --> 00:03:14,000 Isaac wanted to use it for its intended purpose, surveillance, and he 34 00:03:14,080 --> 00:03:20,560 had the perfect target in mind. On the last day before winter break, 35 00:03:21,400 --> 00:03:24,280 Isaac and I glued the button sized device to the back of an old brooch 36 00:03:24,719 --> 00:03:29,879 we had found in his sister's jewelry box. We covered it up with a 37 00:03:29,919 --> 00:03:34,439 strip of velvet and then glued on the pin and catch, and by the 38 00:03:34,479 --> 00:03:39,439 time we were done, you couldn't tell anything was amiss. We put it 39 00:03:39,520 --> 00:03:44,199 in a small white box, which we put in my backpack for later. 40 00:03:45,680 --> 00:03:50,919 We determined that I would be the one to deliver it, given Isaac's reputation 41 00:03:51,120 --> 00:03:55,520 as a prankster. After school, I found Miss Gatlin in the staff break 42 00:03:55,639 --> 00:04:00,560 room. She barely looked at me. As I walked into the room. 43 00:04:00,960 --> 00:04:05,960 I noticed along the far wall of the break room a wall of cubbies each 44 00:04:05,960 --> 00:04:11,240 one marked with the name of a staff member. All of them were filled 45 00:04:11,240 --> 00:04:15,319 with gifts and letters, presumably from parents or other employees at the school. 46 00:04:16,360 --> 00:04:23,920 All of them, that is, except one. You can't be in here, 47 00:04:24,000 --> 00:04:28,560 kid, miss Catlin said to me in a gruff voice. I know. 48 00:04:30,120 --> 00:04:32,759 I sung my backpack onto my stomach and fished around for the box. 49 00:04:33,920 --> 00:04:38,560 It had gotten a little banged up in my bag, but I figured she 50 00:04:38,639 --> 00:04:44,519 wouldn't really care. I procured it and held it out to her. But 51 00:04:45,040 --> 00:04:50,040 I wanted to give you this before the break. She stopped packing up, 52 00:04:50,600 --> 00:04:57,399 turning fully towards me. For a long time, she just stood there, 53 00:04:58,000 --> 00:05:02,639 staring suspiciously at the box. Setting her bag down, she took a few 54 00:05:02,639 --> 00:05:08,480 steps forward and grabbed the box out of my hand. She gave it a 55 00:05:08,519 --> 00:05:15,360 slight rattle and then opened it slowly. When she saw the brooch, she 56 00:05:15,519 --> 00:05:18,959 gingerly took it out of the box and turned it around in her hand. 57 00:05:19,439 --> 00:05:27,800 Then she paused again, looking between the glittering fake emerald and me. It's 58 00:05:27,920 --> 00:05:31,879 not new, sorry, it used to be my mom's, I told her. 59 00:05:32,319 --> 00:05:36,759 Going off the script, Isaac and I had conceived to add more authenticity 60 00:05:36,879 --> 00:05:42,079 to the handoff. She doesn't wear it anymore, but I thought you might 61 00:05:42,240 --> 00:05:51,040 like it. Miss Catlin kept staring at me, her expression unreadable. I 62 00:05:51,079 --> 00:05:55,680 half expected her to chuck it into the garbage bin in the corner of the 63 00:05:55,759 --> 00:06:01,519 room, but to my relief, she gave me a single nod. Thank 64 00:06:01,600 --> 00:06:06,240 you, she said, and pinned the brooch on to a cardigan carefully, 65 00:06:06,839 --> 00:06:13,240 like it was a precious gem and not some cheap hunk of plastic. I 66 00:06:13,319 --> 00:06:17,360 gave her a smile that she did not return, and then she shewed me 67 00:06:17,399 --> 00:06:26,560 away. Isaac was waiting for me in the woods outside school. I flashed 68 00:06:26,600 --> 00:06:30,879 him her thumbs up, and he slapped to my back twice in congratulations. 69 00:06:30,519 --> 00:06:34,959 He pulled the earpiece out of his backpack and held it between us. I 70 00:06:35,000 --> 00:06:40,279 put my ear next to the speaker and was delighted when I could hear movement. 71 00:06:41,480 --> 00:06:45,279 The sound was slightly more muffled now by the velvet backing, but the 72 00:06:45,319 --> 00:06:50,000 audio quality was still really good. We heard the sound of snow crunching under 73 00:06:50,040 --> 00:06:56,199 Miss Gatland's feet as she walked herself through the woods. Home. We listened 74 00:06:56,160 --> 00:07:00,639 giddily for a few minutes, then raced back to my house to celebrate success 75 00:07:00,720 --> 00:07:04,560 with hot chocolate. Since we had the attention span of two ten year old 76 00:07:04,560 --> 00:07:11,120 boys, we forgot about our triumph until just a few minutes before Isaac's mom 77 00:07:11,240 --> 00:07:15,920 came to pick him up. When I remembered, I pulled out the earpiece, 78 00:07:15,279 --> 00:07:19,160 which we had decided would live at my house since it was closer to 79 00:07:19,199 --> 00:07:26,720 Miss Gatland's and listened more than last year, but not as much as the 80 00:07:26,839 --> 00:07:30,560 year before last. What do you think about that? Do you like it? 81 00:07:31,240 --> 00:07:38,360 Can you feel it? I see me personally, I've loved it since 82 00:07:38,399 --> 00:07:44,959 I was a little girl, and falls so prettily. What the heck is 83 00:07:45,000 --> 00:07:49,439 she saying? Isaac asked me, as if I had any clue. The 84 00:07:49,480 --> 00:07:54,199 better question, in my mind, at least, was who the hell was 85 00:07:54,240 --> 00:08:00,199 she talking to? She had no kids or husband and didn't have any friend 86 00:08:00,279 --> 00:08:05,720 as far as I knew, I don't know. I said, she's talking 87 00:08:05,759 --> 00:08:11,240 about snow, I think, though, the question can you feel it? 88 00:08:11,319 --> 00:08:16,920 Seemed an odd thing to ask anyone. We sat there listening to a talk 89 00:08:16,000 --> 00:08:20,399 for five minutes straight. I'd never heard Miss Catlin talk that much in my 90 00:08:20,480 --> 00:08:24,920 life, even though I'd seen her most days since I was only five years 91 00:08:24,959 --> 00:08:31,000 old. Looking back, I'm not entirely sure what we had expected, but 92 00:08:31,120 --> 00:08:37,600 it certainly wasn't a monolog of that length. We strained our ears listening for 93 00:08:37,720 --> 00:08:46,159 another voice, but heard nothing. Maybe she's s Guido forensic. Isaac volunteered. 94 00:08:48,519 --> 00:08:52,519 I had no idea what that was, but I trusted his authority. 95 00:08:54,080 --> 00:08:56,679 His mom showed up to take him home, and I turned the speaker off 96 00:08:56,679 --> 00:09:01,720 to walk him outside. After that, every once in a while, I 97 00:09:01,759 --> 00:09:07,200 would turn the speaker on and listen. It seemed that, no matter the 98 00:09:07,279 --> 00:09:13,279 time, be it early in the morning or late at night, Miss Catlin 99 00:09:13,799 --> 00:09:20,519 was always talking. She talked about all kinds of things, everything from clothing 100 00:09:20,639 --> 00:09:26,000 to stocks, to the weather to politics. Sometimes she prayed, talking so 101 00:09:26,279 --> 00:09:30,759 quickly and quietly that I could only make out one out of every five or 102 00:09:30,799 --> 00:09:39,159 so words. She apologized often and spoke constantly of a promise. Sometimes when 103 00:09:39,159 --> 00:09:43,440 I turned on the speaker, all I heard was sobs, And sometimes the 104 00:09:43,559 --> 00:09:50,159 conversations were so strange that I couldn't make heads or tails of them. A 105 00:09:50,279 --> 00:09:54,600 young woman smiled at me today at the grocery store. Isn't that just the 106 00:09:54,679 --> 00:10:00,519 sweetest thing? I felt like it's been so long since someone's mild at me 107 00:10:00,639 --> 00:10:05,320 like that. Yes, I know she was just doing a job. Probably 108 00:10:05,360 --> 00:10:09,279 it doesn't even know my name. Oh how hard this has been, how 109 00:10:09,320 --> 00:10:15,919 lonesome. But I am so very close to the finish line. I won't 110 00:10:15,960 --> 00:10:22,840 break my promise now. A few days before we returned to school, Isaac 111 00:10:22,879 --> 00:10:26,799 and I made the trek over to a house in an attempt to figure out 112 00:10:26,919 --> 00:10:31,600 who she was speaking to. I'd seen a house a few times before, 113 00:10:31,440 --> 00:10:37,360 and each time I was taken aback by how small it was, isolated and 114 00:10:37,440 --> 00:10:41,720 weathered. Her home stood at the edge of the Southern Woodlands, on a 115 00:10:41,799 --> 00:10:48,159 large plot of land off of a street with very little through traffic. I 116 00:10:48,159 --> 00:10:52,399 remember standing on the side of the road with Isaac, staring at the little 117 00:10:52,440 --> 00:10:56,840 shack like house, which must have only had room for a bedroom, a 118 00:10:56,879 --> 00:11:03,399 bathroom, and maybe a tiny kitchen. There's no way anyone else lives there, 119 00:11:05,399 --> 00:11:09,399 Isaac said, after a while of standing and staring. We were too 120 00:11:09,440 --> 00:11:13,559 far away to peering through the windows, but we were also too afraid to 121 00:11:13,679 --> 00:11:20,879 venture any closer. She's either a witch or she's just some sad, ugly 122 00:11:20,919 --> 00:11:30,279 old lady who went crazy from having no friends. Isaac got bored quickly, 123 00:11:31,240 --> 00:11:35,360 so we left not too long after that. After we had made our way 124 00:11:35,519 --> 00:11:41,879 part way down the street, something compelled me to turn around and give the 125 00:11:41,960 --> 00:11:48,720 house a final look. When I did, I saw the unmistakable shape of 126 00:11:48,759 --> 00:11:54,480 Miss Gatlin standing on the porch, staring in our direction. I turned away 127 00:11:54,879 --> 00:12:01,200 and grabbed a hold of Isaac's arm. She's watching us, I whispered to 128 00:12:01,279 --> 00:12:07,440 him. His eyes grew wide. Damn, he said, Should we run? 129 00:12:07,080 --> 00:12:13,639 No, that'll look suspicious. Let's just keep walking. We walked until 130 00:12:13,720 --> 00:12:18,279 we were out of eyeshot, and then we ran all the way home. 131 00:12:20,919 --> 00:12:24,600 I'm not quite sure what spooked us so badly, but for some reason, 132 00:12:26,399 --> 00:12:30,799 even when I was back in the safety of my own home, I couldn't 133 00:12:30,840 --> 00:12:37,639 shake the feeling of eyes boring into my back. And soon they'll all be 134 00:12:37,720 --> 00:12:43,720 coming back. It's hard seeing them sometimes, knowing my Oliver was among them 135 00:12:43,720 --> 00:12:50,159 once, sometimes I think I see him. At Least it'll get easier soon, 136 00:12:50,679 --> 00:12:56,480 thanks to you. By the time we went back to school, my 137 00:12:56,600 --> 00:13:01,720 friends had grown bored of the spy gear. I volunteered to return Isaac's speaker, 138 00:13:03,399 --> 00:13:09,240 but he said it was practically useless now since we couldn't retrieve the microphone. 139 00:13:09,519 --> 00:13:15,120 Surprisingly, missus Catlin continued to wear the brooch every day. It was 140 00:13:15,159 --> 00:13:20,159 always pinned to her non work clothes, so the only time she was unbugged, 141 00:13:20,399 --> 00:13:24,480 as Isaac put it, was when she was in her janitorial outfit at 142 00:13:24,519 --> 00:13:30,480 my school. Seeing a guard the brooch so carefully made me feel kind of 143 00:13:30,519 --> 00:13:35,960 bad. Was that the only gift she had gotten for Christmas? Was it 144 00:13:35,960 --> 00:13:41,000 the only gift she had gotten in the past decade. Maybe she wasn't a 145 00:13:41,039 --> 00:13:46,639 witch or crazy. Maybe she was just lonely and had learned to cope by 146 00:13:46,720 --> 00:13:54,759 talking to herself. Months passed, Isaac and company, finally coming to terms 147 00:13:54,799 --> 00:13:58,639 with the fact that they would never get the rise they were looking for out 148 00:13:58,639 --> 00:14:05,919 of Miss Scatland moved on to terrorizing the curmudgeonally old man who lived across from 149 00:14:05,000 --> 00:14:09,879 Cedar Creek Elementary and was always yelling at kids for one reason or another. 150 00:14:11,600 --> 00:14:18,559 I was happy for Miss Scatlan. One day in March I found her sitting 151 00:14:18,600 --> 00:14:22,879 on a bench at the edge of campus during lunch. I took a seat 152 00:14:22,919 --> 00:14:28,720 next door, not expecting much. She took one look at me, then 153 00:14:28,759 --> 00:14:33,200 fixed the gaze back, and a sad looking sandwich in her hand. What 154 00:14:33,279 --> 00:14:39,639 do you want, she asked, without looking at me, nothing. Just 155 00:14:39,840 --> 00:14:46,360 wanted to sit here, she picked at the sandwich. We're not friend's kid. 156 00:14:46,159 --> 00:14:52,679 I know you don't have any friends, That's right, she nodded. 157 00:14:54,399 --> 00:15:00,799 Maybe one day, though, I said, and to my surprise, she 158 00:15:01,039 --> 00:15:07,120 laughed. I didn't realize she was capable of laughing. She looked at me 159 00:15:07,240 --> 00:15:13,919 properly for the first time in our brief conversation, and I noticed that she 160 00:15:13,039 --> 00:15:22,360 was smiling. It was an unpracticed smile, but a genuine one. Yeah, 161 00:15:22,919 --> 00:15:30,200 she said, maybe one day. Miss Catlin pagged up and headed back 162 00:15:30,240 --> 00:15:33,519 to the school building. After that, she left a bag of mini oreos 163 00:15:33,559 --> 00:15:37,960 on the bench next to me. I think she did it on purpose. 164 00:15:41,000 --> 00:15:45,039 I grew accustomed to checking up on her every now and then, listening to 165 00:15:45,120 --> 00:15:50,799 her conversations with herself. Sometimes it almost felt like she was talking to me. 166 00:15:52,679 --> 00:15:56,919 Looking back on it now, I realized what a little villain I was, 167 00:15:56,879 --> 00:16:03,440 and what an immense invasion of private I was committing. I wish that 168 00:16:03,480 --> 00:16:11,519 I could take it back now, especially considering what happened next. Friday, 169 00:16:11,840 --> 00:16:18,440 May seventeenth marked the ten year anniversary of Oliver Gatlin's death. I kept an 170 00:16:18,440 --> 00:16:23,039 eye on Miss Gatlin throughout the day, but she didn't seem any more dejected 171 00:16:23,080 --> 00:16:30,080 than usual. Maybe things were finally looking up for her. In any case, 172 00:16:30,519 --> 00:16:33,200 although I hadn't checked in on her for a while, I decided that 173 00:16:33,399 --> 00:16:38,840 evening to see how she was doing. My parents were gone for the week, 174 00:16:40,360 --> 00:16:42,919 and I was only allowed to stay at home alone if I stayed inside 175 00:16:42,960 --> 00:16:49,240 the whole time, so I ate nothing better to do. Not long after 176 00:16:49,320 --> 00:16:55,039 sunset, as I lounged on the floor of my bedroom, I turned on 177 00:16:55,159 --> 00:17:02,679 the earpiece. Miss Gatlin was talking to herself, as always that there was 178 00:17:02,720 --> 00:17:11,240 something strange about her tone. She sounded more excited than ever. Almost there, 179 00:17:11,559 --> 00:17:18,119 almost there, almost there. She repeated those two words over and over 180 00:17:18,119 --> 00:17:25,000 until at exactly eleven forty four p m. She let out a sound that 181 00:17:25,079 --> 00:17:30,559 I understood years later to be a cry of triumph. It is done. 182 00:17:30,759 --> 00:17:34,400 It's done, dark Angel, thank you, thank you. Ten years of 183 00:17:34,440 --> 00:17:38,680 solitude and it was worth every second. Now Angel, bring him back, 184 00:17:40,000 --> 00:17:45,759 bring him back to me. What was she on about? Now? Were 185 00:17:45,759 --> 00:17:51,400 those song lyrics or something? I strained my ears listening for another person out 186 00:17:51,440 --> 00:17:57,319 of habit, But of course there was only Miss Gatland's voice after a moment 187 00:17:57,799 --> 00:18:04,000 her cries of happiness, a voice taking on her confused tone, what do 188 00:18:04,039 --> 00:18:08,839 you mean? No, I that can't be true. I kept my promise. 189 00:18:10,039 --> 00:18:12,880 I followed every rule. I let no one in, kept no companions, 190 00:18:12,960 --> 00:18:17,240 made no friends. I kept my wish a secret. As you told 191 00:18:17,279 --> 00:18:22,839 me, my angel I. I sat up slowly, the building terror in 192 00:18:22,880 --> 00:18:27,279 her voice putting me on edge, even from miles away. And then she 193 00:18:27,400 --> 00:18:33,720 asked the question that still haunts me to this day, what do you mean? 194 00:18:33,960 --> 00:18:40,720 I had an audience. There was a moment of silence, and then 195 00:18:41,200 --> 00:18:45,599 the sure fire sound of the velvet backing of the brooch being ripped away. 196 00:18:47,200 --> 00:18:52,640 I could hear a breath sharper and clearer than ever before, as she repeated 197 00:18:52,680 --> 00:18:56,799 a single word, no, no, no, no, no, no, 198 00:18:56,799 --> 00:19:02,240 no, no no. She withdrew for the microphone, her rapid breaths 199 00:19:02,319 --> 00:19:06,480 replaced by what sounded like a front door being thrown open with a bang. 200 00:19:07,119 --> 00:19:12,160 There was no more noise from the microphone. I remember standing up in my 201 00:19:12,240 --> 00:19:18,759 bedroom, not quite understanding what had just happened, and not quite knowing what 202 00:19:18,880 --> 00:19:22,799 to do next. Something told me that I should go downstairs and make sure 203 00:19:22,799 --> 00:19:26,920 that the doors were locked, so I tore myself to man off and forced 204 00:19:26,960 --> 00:19:32,920 myself down the stairs to the dark first floor. I made my way around 205 00:19:32,960 --> 00:19:37,559 the whole house, checking the doors and windows. Once I was done, 206 00:19:37,799 --> 00:19:45,079 I just stood there. Somehow I knew she was coming and that there was 207 00:19:45,160 --> 00:19:49,559 nothing I could do to stop it. I thought I was hearing the wind, 208 00:19:51,440 --> 00:19:56,599 but as it grew louder, I realized I was hearing wailing. I 209 00:19:56,640 --> 00:20:02,319 heard it long before I saw her, that good wrench and cry, that 210 00:20:02,519 --> 00:20:07,200 sound that I had previously heard only pale imitations of in movies where a mother 211 00:20:07,359 --> 00:20:12,960 loses a child. Standing in the darkness of my living room, I watched 212 00:20:12,960 --> 00:20:18,400 the sprint from the tree line towards my house. Her mouth was wide open, 213 00:20:18,839 --> 00:20:22,799 her eyes glazed over, and her body dressed in a white nightgown. 214 00:20:23,079 --> 00:20:29,160 She looked and sounded like something out of my worst night terrors. I dropped 215 00:20:29,200 --> 00:20:33,559 to the floor and crawled away from the window, taking cover behind a couch. 216 00:20:34,519 --> 00:20:40,599 Why she howled, her moaning voice rising and falling as she ascended the 217 00:20:40,599 --> 00:20:45,319 steps to my front porch and slammed a fist against the door. Why. 218 00:20:48,160 --> 00:20:51,799 I needed to get to the phone, but the house phone was right next 219 00:20:51,799 --> 00:20:56,119 to the window, and I was petrified. She hit the door so hard 220 00:20:56,359 --> 00:21:00,279 I was afraid that the hinges would give way. How could you do this 221 00:21:00,400 --> 00:21:07,759 to me? I climbed a hand over my mouth. She couldn't possibly know 222 00:21:07,839 --> 00:21:11,720 for certain that I was in the house, could she. The origin of 223 00:21:11,720 --> 00:21:17,200 the wailing shifted as she rounded the wrap around porch, the heavy knocks of 224 00:21:17,240 --> 00:21:19,720 a fist against the door giving way to the thudding of her shoes and the 225 00:21:19,759 --> 00:21:25,880 wooden porch floor. I stuck my head around the couch and saw no one 226 00:21:25,960 --> 00:21:29,960 at the front window. But when I looked at the side, I saw 227 00:21:29,960 --> 00:21:34,039 a face hovering inches from the glass. I screamed at the top of my 228 00:21:34,119 --> 00:21:40,519 lungs as her fist came into contact with the glass, shattering it. I 229 00:21:40,599 --> 00:21:44,519 was so horrified by the rain of blood speckled glass that I almost missed the 230 00:21:44,559 --> 00:21:49,200 sight of the shotgun scabbard strapped to a Torso certain I was about to die, 231 00:21:49,559 --> 00:21:52,880 I screamed at her to go away, to leave me alone, and 232 00:21:53,000 --> 00:21:59,839 she screamed right back at me, asking me questions I didn't understand. Dogs 233 00:22:00,039 --> 00:22:03,599 had begun to bark at the commotion, and my next door neighbor's porch light 234 00:22:03,680 --> 00:22:08,519 turned on. Please just go away, I shrieked as I finally found my 235 00:22:08,519 --> 00:22:14,119 footing and raced to the phone. I grabbed it from its holder and started 236 00:22:14,160 --> 00:22:18,119 the Type nine one one as I decided whether or not I should risk running 237 00:22:18,200 --> 00:22:22,119 up to the neighbor's house. When I looked at the broken window, though 238 00:22:23,440 --> 00:22:30,119 she was nowhere to be seen, the wailing had rescinded, growing fainter and 239 00:22:30,200 --> 00:22:38,519 fainter until I couldn't hear her at all. I stood there dumbly until the 240 00:22:38,640 --> 00:22:48,039 sound faded entirely, my hand shaking. She was gone. I was sure 241 00:22:48,079 --> 00:22:57,680 of it. Should I still call emergency services? After that moment, I 242 00:22:57,759 --> 00:23:07,000 heard another fainter sound and recognized the statugy audio immediately as the transmission from Isaac's 243 00:23:07,000 --> 00:23:11,720 spy gear. I raced upstairs, still clutching the phone, and grabbed a 244 00:23:11,799 --> 00:23:18,000 speaker from the floor where I dropped it. I pressed it against my ear, 245 00:23:18,559 --> 00:23:23,160 listening to the faint sound of a familiar voice. I hope this was 246 00:23:23,200 --> 00:23:30,279 worth a kid, it said, calmly and coldly. I hope you and 247 00:23:30,319 --> 00:23:40,839 your friends can laugh about this. I heard a bang, and then I 248 00:23:40,920 --> 00:23:51,119 heard nothing at all. It took two weeks for the police to find her 249 00:23:51,119 --> 00:23:56,440 body. Her final resting place was deep in the woods, under a thick 250 00:23:56,480 --> 00:24:02,160 shroud of junipers, not far from the banks of Sea Creek. As her 251 00:24:02,200 --> 00:24:07,000 face was mutilated beyond recognition, her body was identified by the shotgun lying beside 252 00:24:07,000 --> 00:24:12,799 her. They say that although she was covered in enough blood to entice every 253 00:24:12,839 --> 00:24:18,920 animal within a three mile radius, her corpse was untouched by the beasts. 254 00:24:19,079 --> 00:24:25,039 Even the insects seemed hesitant to feed, and the fungi slow to grow upon 255 00:24:25,039 --> 00:24:32,519 a body, as though even the lowliest creatures feared contamination by the lonely woman 256 00:24:33,720 --> 00:24:40,799 in the woods. They did not find a brooch on her person.