WEBVTT 1 00:00:01.399 --> 00:00:06.839 This episode may contain content that is not suitable for all audiences. Listener discretion 2 00:00:06.919 --> 00:00:16.519 is advised, especially for those under the age of thirteen. Welcome to ind 3 00:00:16.559 --> 00:00:20.600 to the night. I'm Nari your guide on to day's excursion down a twisted 4 00:00:20.640 --> 00:00:24.559 path. Be careful not to get lost. Be it dark or light, 5 00:00:24.640 --> 00:00:28.960 It's easy to lose your way. Are you ready, then let's begin. 6 00:00:32.880 --> 00:00:39.920 It depends how you frame it. The afternoon sun streamed through the windows of 7 00:00:39.920 --> 00:00:44.960 the art studio located on the second floor of a rambling farmhouse. Long ago, 8 00:00:45.439 --> 00:00:49.560 urban sprawl crept around the home until now it was in the center of 9 00:00:49.600 --> 00:00:54.840 a modern residential area. All other farmhouses were demolished or destroyed by fire or 10 00:00:54.920 --> 00:01:00.119 neglect over the years, and now this house remained as the last vestige of 11 00:01:00.200 --> 00:01:04.040 years past. It stood like a glimpse back into the time when most people 12 00:01:04.120 --> 00:01:10.560 made their livings by farming. Cookie cutter suburban homes now surrounded the place. 13 00:01:11.000 --> 00:01:17.799 Located at one five seven five Crittenton Avenue. Scarlet McDowell stopped hand in mid 14 00:01:17.840 --> 00:01:22.400 air to admire the effect of the light coming through the window. The branches 15 00:01:22.400 --> 00:01:26.920 on the tree outside bobbed and swayed in the breeze and combined with the sunlight 16 00:01:26.040 --> 00:01:30.799 to produce a mosaic of dancing shadows on the canvas. Scarlet always delighted in 17 00:01:30.840 --> 00:01:36.359 beautiful moments like this one. In a strange way, ever since she was 18 00:01:36.400 --> 00:01:42.319 a child, Moments like this reminded her that anything was possible. I guess 19 00:01:42.359 --> 00:01:47.760 that's why I've always been a dreamer. Scarlet smiled and went back to her 20 00:01:47.760 --> 00:01:52.159 oil painting. She added a touch more blue, and then a splash of 21 00:01:52.200 --> 00:01:57.319 red. This one's coming together nicely. Within a half an hour. She 22 00:01:57.480 --> 00:02:02.439 was satisfied with her work, carefully inscribed one seven four two on the corner 23 00:02:02.640 --> 00:02:07.400 under her signature, Now you need to dry and you'll be ready to frame. 24 00:02:07.240 --> 00:02:12.960 In her younger years, she'd painted mainly landscapes. Capturing the nuances of 25 00:02:13.000 --> 00:02:17.680 passing clouds or dandelion seeds blowing in the breeze helped her hone her artistic skills. 26 00:02:19.639 --> 00:02:24.159 Creating images that evoked feelings in people became her passion. My mother called 27 00:02:24.199 --> 00:02:29.639 it a gift. She cleaned her paint brush and thought about all the generations 28 00:02:29.639 --> 00:02:34.319 of her family who made this house their home. Great grandmother told me stories 29 00:02:34.360 --> 00:02:38.479 by the hour in her youth. She was a beauty and she had many 30 00:02:38.520 --> 00:02:45.919 adventures with her sisters and three boy cousins. Nothing bad, just innocent child's 31 00:02:45.919 --> 00:02:51.360 play by country kids. They didn't have the technology that cripple's imaginations in today's 32 00:02:51.400 --> 00:02:55.520 generation, so they had to create their fun. Scarlet washed and dried her 33 00:02:55.520 --> 00:03:00.879 hands, then looked back out the window. She saw past the tree waving 34 00:03:00.919 --> 00:03:05.080 in the wind, and viewed row after row of suburban homes in her neighborhood. 35 00:03:05.360 --> 00:03:10.159 Shaking her head, she let out a sigh. My grandparents would be 36 00:03:10.240 --> 00:03:15.400 heartbroken to see what's happened to the farm. Piece by piece it sold to 37 00:03:15.439 --> 00:03:19.960 developers. I wish I could make them all go away and have peace and 38 00:03:20.080 --> 00:03:23.159 quiet around here again like it used to be. She watched as a moving 39 00:03:23.240 --> 00:03:28.560 van pulled into the driveway of a nearby house. I bet the real estate 40 00:03:28.560 --> 00:03:31.800 agent never said a word about the crime around here. There isn't a house 41 00:03:31.800 --> 00:03:36.800 in this neighborhood that hasn't had something horrific happened. In the past few years. 42 00:03:37.879 --> 00:03:42.919 Crime stories made the local news regularly, and Crittenton Avenue and surrounding streets 43 00:03:43.000 --> 00:03:49.960 now had a dangerous reputation. Murders, suicides, hostage situations and other unseemly 44 00:03:50.000 --> 00:03:53.879 acts plagued what used to be a family friendly neighborhood. You just never know 45 00:03:53.960 --> 00:03:59.960 what's going to happen around here. Next, Scarlet's delicate fingers lightly touched her 46 00:04:00.039 --> 00:04:04.639 throat as she watched a family unload belongings from the moving van. Fifteen seventy 47 00:04:04.639 --> 00:04:09.719 eight, Crittenton was the scene of a greesome murder two months earlier. It's 48 00:04:09.719 --> 00:04:13.759 a shame. They look like nice people. They don't have a clue with 49 00:04:13.840 --> 00:04:17.920 this neighborhood is like, she sighed and looked around the studio. It's too 50 00:04:18.000 --> 00:04:23.680 early to stop painting now. I feel like starting something, meaning her previous 51 00:04:23.759 --> 00:04:28.399 project sat drying, but another easel held a blank canvass, inviting Scarlet to 52 00:04:28.399 --> 00:04:31.959 pick up her brushes again. While the landscapes were once her passion, she 53 00:04:32.079 --> 00:04:36.759 went through a phase of painting portraits. She dabbled in those until she grew 54 00:04:36.759 --> 00:04:42.560 tired of them. Never a social person, being surrounded by the faces staring 55 00:04:42.600 --> 00:04:47.680 at her from canvases unsettled Scarlet. Even in school, she dreaded giving presentations 56 00:04:47.680 --> 00:04:51.879 in front of the class because she wasn't comfortable being the center of attention. 57 00:04:54.000 --> 00:04:59.399 In fact, for a while, Scarlet lost interest in painting altogether when the 58 00:04:59.439 --> 00:05:03.199 portrait came to a close to occupy herself. During that time, she discovered 59 00:05:03.240 --> 00:05:09.439 podcasts, especially those dealing with true crime. Initially, she wasn't sure what 60 00:05:09.600 --> 00:05:15.560 gave her this new fascination, but strangely, the storylines gave her inspiration at 61 00:05:15.560 --> 00:05:18.600 a time when she'd lost her artistic news. She listened to the shows often 62 00:05:18.639 --> 00:05:24.839 while she painted. One podcast host in particular was her favorite, Bailey, 63 00:05:25.360 --> 00:05:30.879 irreverent and comical while telling listeners about gruesome crimes, created the mood Scarlet thrived 64 00:05:30.920 --> 00:05:34.199 in while painting. These days. On her phone, she pulled up the 65 00:05:34.240 --> 00:05:40.160 most recent episode of her favorite podcast and began listening. She set to work 66 00:05:40.240 --> 00:05:44.800 and chose the colors to use, then walked to the easel. She situated 67 00:05:44.839 --> 00:05:47.519 it so she could face the window and watch her new neighbors risk their lives 68 00:05:48.040 --> 00:05:53.600 moving into an increasingly dangerous area. Dabbing her brush on the palette, she 69 00:05:53.680 --> 00:05:58.680 put the first strokes onto the canvas. A rich brown color provided the perfect 70 00:05:58.680 --> 00:06:03.120 background for what she had in. A smile crept across her face as the 71 00:06:03.120 --> 00:06:10.240 painting grew more vibrant with every brushstroke, A shocking edition of Crimson highlighted the 72 00:06:10.279 --> 00:06:15.879 scene she painted. Engrossed in her work, she barely noticed the podcast in 73 00:06:15.920 --> 00:06:19.399 the background had ended and the next episode began. Lost in her thoughts, 74 00:06:19.800 --> 00:06:27.040 the creative energy flowed onto the canvas. Finally, she exhaled a triumphant sigh. 75 00:06:27.600 --> 00:06:31.560 As she finished the painting, she signed in the right hand corner and 76 00:06:31.680 --> 00:06:36.240 carefully added one, five, seven eight. My work for today is almost 77 00:06:36.240 --> 00:06:41.360 finished. I think I'll take a break, eat something, and come back 78 00:06:41.439 --> 00:06:46.199 up here to frame both paintings. Standing back and admiring the day's accomplishments, 79 00:06:46.240 --> 00:06:51.279 she smiled, you turned out so nicely. After a few hours, as 80 00:06:51.319 --> 00:06:56.680 the sun hung low in the sky, Scarlet returned to the art studio and 81 00:06:56.800 --> 00:07:00.920 framed the paintings. Once I hang you in my gallery, you will be 82 00:07:00.000 --> 00:07:05.480 ready to come to life. Scarlet matted and framed the paintings, then carefully 83 00:07:05.560 --> 00:07:10.120 carried the completed projects to the next room, which she used as gallery. 84 00:07:11.120 --> 00:07:15.360 Right here you go, and you will go over here. The scenes she 85 00:07:15.439 --> 00:07:19.399 painted were so lifelike they would have shocked an outsider. To Scarlet, they 86 00:07:19.399 --> 00:07:25.040 were masterpieces that helped her achieve her goal. All I've ever wanted was for 87 00:07:25.160 --> 00:07:30.680 this house to be alone once more, without neighbors constantly encroaching. One four 88 00:07:30.759 --> 00:07:36.560 seven two and one five seven eight simply represented her most recent triumphs, one 89 00:07:36.639 --> 00:07:42.399 portray of vicious and bloody murder suicide, and the other a Heina's crime by 90 00:07:42.399 --> 00:07:46.720 the husband against his wife. In fifteen seventy eight, darkness fell and she 91 00:07:46.839 --> 00:07:51.120 heard screams into the night coming from fifteen seventy eight and seventeen forty two. 92 00:07:51.759 --> 00:07:56.160 She knew what she had to do. It was the same thing she'd done 93 00:07:56.480 --> 00:08:01.480 when her paintings came true in the homes located at sixteen two, fourteen oh 94 00:08:01.519 --> 00:08:05.680 eight, and eighteen seventy five, and all the other paintings that hung on 95 00:08:05.720 --> 00:08:11.319 her wall as momentums of her handywook. She picked up her phone nine one 96 00:08:11.360 --> 00:08:15.279 one, what's your emergency? Quick? I've heard screams coming from two homes 97 00:08:15.279 --> 00:08:18.279 in my neighborhood. I'm afraid someone's been murdered. What's the address, ma'am? 98 00:08:18.399 --> 00:08:24.079 Fifteen seventy eight Crittenton Avenue and seventeen forty two, also on Crittendon. 99 00:08:24.639 --> 00:08:28.600 We will send emergency vehicles now. Thank you for calling. Stay inside and 100 00:08:28.680 --> 00:08:33.279 do not leave your house. Scarlet hung up the phone and waited eagerly for 101 00:08:33.320 --> 00:08:39.840 the whales of sirens. Maybe, just maybe I'll get rid of enough people 102 00:08:39.879 --> 00:08:45.679 around here that no one will ever bother us again. She turned and looked 103 00:08:45.679 --> 00:08:50.600 at the portrait of her great grandmother. I'm doing this for you, a 104 00:08:50.759 --> 00:08:54.720 quiet smile formed on the lips of the wrinkled old woman in the painting. 105 00:09:05.320 --> 00:09:09.720 Thank you for joining me for Into the Night an anthology series written by Caroline 106 00:09:09.759 --> 00:09:15.679 Giamanco. Narration by Nari Quok, Theme music by Nico Rodriguez. All original 107 00:09:15.799 --> 00:09:18.919 music, sound design and editing provided by Flyboy Entertainment. You can find our 108 00:09:18.960 --> 00:09:24.000 links in the show notes. Please remember to like and subscribe, and if 109 00:09:24.000 --> 00:09:26.200 you enjoy what you hear, please leave us a five star review to help 110 00:09:26.240 --> 00:09:31.600 other excursionists to join us. You can find us on your favorite podcast directory. 111 00:09:31.960 --> 00:09:35.879 See you next time, and remember, whether in the shadows or in 112 00:09:35.919 --> 00:09:39.840 the daylight, all Twisted Paths take you into the night. Into the Night 113 00:09:41.080 --> 00:09:43.159 is a creative typo entertainment production.