Speaker 1: Hullo, I'm welcome's stories all the time. Glad you are here.
Let's get into it. April fourteenth, twenty twenty one, marked
the day Rin Harris left Change forever. April fourteenth was
his birthday, and in that particular year, the year he
turned eight, his parents gave him the only present he
had ever specifically asked them for. He had never been
greedy or needy, never one to focus on material possessions,
but he had begged his parents for his very own
metal detector. Neil and Trisha, Quinn's parents, had held a
private discussion shortly before the boy's birthday and decided a
metal detector, although quite expensive, would be a wonderful way
to get their sunnets boring outside in a day and
agent which most kids would rather stay in, and most
parents would rather allow voices behind screens to do their
job for them. After every other present had been opened
and Quinn was sitting on the couch force in a
contented and thankful expression despite his seeing disappointment, Neil Harris
brought out a lawn box wrapped in green paper, Quinn's
favorite color. Not even heer, Quinn's fifteen year old sister
knew about the metal detector. She thought she had gotten
her brother the premiere present of the year, a digital
watch that read the temperature, showed the moon cycle, and
told the date and time all at once. But she
never see watched her father into the living room with
a victorious grin on his normally placid face. She knew
her watch was about to be buried by whatever her
father held in that box, and she was delighted. Erra
loved her little brother and could tell he had been
disappointed by his gifts. He had never in his life
seemed ungrateful, that day being no exception, but ere could
tell something had been missing, and she hoped her dad
was about to deliver it. Her hope was not misplaced.
Quin tore through the paper. Before he had even pulled
the last bits of wrapping away, he was shouting, thank you,
thank you, and bancing up and down on a patent
rug in front of the couch. The dick finder pro
It's exactly the one I wanted. Who knows what I'm
going to find with this, Oh thank you. Quinn would
have gone strayed outside to search for antent treasure's loss
beneath suburbia, but the dick find of prose or chargeable
battery had come out of the box drained. Sorry, kiddo,
we're going to have to plug it in for a while,
Neil said, as he glanced over the user manual. Era
took advantage of the forester lay and sure Quinn had
set up his fancy new watch. By the time the
metal detector charged, the sun was cresting over the horizon,
and Tricia was put in the final touches. On dinner,
Quinn had chosen Hamburger's, his favorite, for his birthday meal.
Quinn downed his burger in a few mad swallows, but
Teresia made him wait to eat his cake until every
one had finished. By the time the birthday song had
been sung, the candles blown out and the cake eaton,
the sun had traded places with the moon, and the
temperature had plummeted. It's dark out there, kiddo, Neil told
his crestful and birthday boy. I don't mind, I can
take a lantern. Quinn protested, Yeah, but it's cold now too.
Neil said it was warm enough with the jacket earlier,
Quinn argued. Neil smiled ruefully and shook his head. Welcome
to Iowa might have been warm a few hours ago,
but you'll be shivering out there now. You'll get your
chance tomorrow. Trisha said, yeah, I'll go out with ye.
Ere are offered. Quinn said okay, but he sounded far
from it. The sun rose on that beautiful Sunday morning
and walked the lightly sleeping, freshly eight year old boy.
Anticipating a day full of metal detecting, Quinn rose immediately
leaving his room, far before any one else in his
family would stir. His brand new dig finder rested against
the wall in the living room, still plugged into the charger,
but now with a little green light where it had
once glowed red. One pulled out the plug and let
the cord fall to the floor. He stopped only to
open the closet and a free of his winter coat.
It was still cold and would probably stay that way
for a few hours. Of Quinn's eight years had taught
him anything. Once he bundled himself up and slipped into
his tattered tennis shoes, Quinn rushed at the door, dig
finder under one arm. No sooner had he stepped off
the concrete porch into the dry brown grass than Quinn
started to wave the dig finder over the ground. The
heavy device had been designed for a grown adult. Point
was tall for his age, but not quite tall enough.
The metal detector's handle stretched almost to the top of
his head. Still, Quinn may dear. Rather than use the
ergonomic grip at the top of the handle, he clutched
the middle of the shaft. He was having far too
much fun surveying the yard to notice how quickly his
cold hands were cramping around the cool metal handle. Nearly
fifteen minutes went by with nothing but the sound of
the magnet brushing the top of the grass. Snot had
started to evaporate from the edges of Quinn's nostrils, chapping
them and making them glow red and smart. Still, the
boy didn't pay any mind to the cold, nor the
chilly breeze, which only accelerated as the sun aarct above him.
Quinn finished scanning the front yard and began to lose
the battle against disappointment. Of course, it's unlikely to find
anything interesting buried in the front yard of a practically
brand new house, but try telling that to an eight
year old boy with an explorer's ambition in his mind.
He had as much chance of digging up an old
revolver or the spur of some long dead cowboys boot.
As he did a discarded roofing nail, he accidentally scraped
the bottom of the dig finder on the sidewalk and
instinctively pulled it back. The sudden, joking motion made him
look up for the first time since he had stepped
off the porch. He looked across the sidewalk to the
patch of grass on the other side and the bushes
lining the road. There they stood tall enough to obstruct
the view of the Harris house from the street, which
meant they were technically hedges, but Quinn had never heard
them call that they also obstruct a Quinn's view of
the street from his yard. He he had never liked
those bushes or hedges. He sometimes felt the tickle of
eyes peering through them. He thought of how easy it
would be for some terrible person with sordid motors to
spy on him while he played outside. For this reason,
Quinn usually steered clear of the towering plants and never
set frut only unless he was with his parents or error.
But today he had his brand new dig finder. The
grown up to he made him feel all grown up. Too.
Something about its sturdy metal bild gave him confidence. Without
any fear or trepidation. Quinn stepped over the sidewalk on
his own for the first time, and he was rewarded.
The dick finder finally whined. At first, the sound came
out scratchy and wheezy, like a mouse dying of pneumonia.
But as Quinn walked closer to the hedges, the wheezy
wine became a high, bulvering. It sounded like a hot
great monitor flat lining, but Quinn's heart was racing. The
indicator light in the top of the magnet changed from
red to orange. He was close, just a couple more steps.
Don't you dare dake k in these bushes, boy? Quinn
loosed a tiny scream and dropped the dig finder on
the grass. The ugly voice had come from the hedges
in front of him. He stared into them, searching for
whomever had spoken. His hands trembled. He wanted to shove
them into his jacket pockets, but he couldn't bring himself
to move a single muscle. His already racing heart so
light with excitement and anticipation, now beat heavy and fast
to drive as much blood as it could to his
legs so he could run, but his brain wouldn't let
him move. That's right, dear one, stay back, stay away.
There ain't nothing for you to find here that's worth finding.
The same dick, find a lane in front of Quinn's
tennis She'd begged to differ, but he wasn't going to argue.
Who are you, the terrified voice stammered, Come closer and
see if you like. The gnulled voice rasped, and no,
thank you, Quinn whispered. The voice and the hedges cackled,
and for the first time, quinkerd to Juice's owner was
a woman. She sounded ancient and sick. Such good manners, boys,
she said, So, why don't you use them. Be a
good little boy and stay away from the bushes with
your marvelous little toy there unless you want it to
disappear forever? Is that what you want? Little boy? Um?
Excuse me and other feetemale voice entered the conversation from
behind Quinn. This one, he recognized, and that it exactly
the opposite effect on his mind and body. Is the
ugly one in the bushes. Ere stood next to her brother,
picked up his metal detector and said, If this thing
goes missing, I'm sending the cop straight to your door.
Why don't you just come get at yourself, sweet eat,
the haggard voice asked, and go nearer dump of a house.
No thanks, Now, my brother has every right to be here,
so Ier told the woman in the bushes to go
do something Quinn had never heard of before. The voice
cackled again, but quickly went silent, and after a rustle
of brittle leaves, the woman was gone. Thanks, Quinn said, breathly.
Do you know who that was? Yeah? Couldn't you see her?
Error replied Quinn shook his head as she handed over
the dig finder. Ear said, I guess you aren't tall
enough to see her face over the bushes. That was
Shonna from across the street. She's such a creep. Why
didn't she want me looking in the bushes, Quinn asked.
She probably just doesn't have anything better to do than
boss little kids around. Ear extended her hand. She held
a sharp spade, which she handed to Quinn. He thanked
her as his face flushed. Embarrassed. He had not thought
that far head himself. But who knows, Eros said, in
a cheesy, gullish voice. Maybe this is where she baries
her enemies. Quinn smiled broadly, and his sister, whose face
was somewhat of a feminine mirror of quin'son, reflected his
joy back at him. He swung the dig finder toward
the bushes, and the orange light turn green. I've got something,
he shouted, er pointed to the spade in his hand.
Quinn nodded eggerly and dropped to his knees. He dug
into the dry dirt, flinging pebbles and bits of dust
in every direction. During his clumsy excavation, Irera stopped to
turn off the dick finder before its manic wind drove
her insane. After less than a minute of digging, the
siblings heard a metallic scrape. Quinn gave his sister another
joyful grin, then switched to digging with his hands so
as not to damage whatever he had discovered. It's a,
the boy trailed off as he raised a golden pocket
watch from the dirt. Here is jaw dropped. It's a,
Quinn said again, but his fist twisted in confusion. Open
it up. Iras said, still astruck. That's gonna make the
one I gave ye yesterday look like a toy. Puinn obeyed,
Then as jaw dropped open, it's o'clock, he shouted, standing
up in excitement. A watch actually, Ear corrected, it's cold
a pocket watch. I wonder if it's real. It's not ticking,
so probably not. Quinn said, well, yeah, it probably needs
to be wound. But I actually meant the gold Quinn,
if that's real, goal, you just found a real life
bar treasure. I did, Yeah you did. Quinn leapt into
the air when is lighter than air. Feet hit the ground.
He lunged forward and threw his arms around his big sister.
He clutched the pocket watch in his dirty fist behind
her back. He pulled away slightly to look up at
Err and said, I still like the watch he gave
me better. Iro was about to respond when someone behind
her clamped a dry hand over Quinn's fist. Startled. He
let go of the watch and stumbled backward, shrieking with
terror as he fell on his rear and the whole
he had duck. Eerra looked at him dazed. Then she
saw his eyes were focused over her shoulder and turned
around just in time to see a bony, gray forearm
disappeared through the hedges. A withered hand clutching Quinn's burrowed treasure,
followed the forearm through the green leaves and vanished. Oh hell, no,
Ear shouted. She reached her own arm through the bushes
and grabbed the person on the other side. Give that back,
she screamed. Suddenly, the look on Ear's face shifted from
rage to surprise. She was yanked forward until her whole
body was pressed against the prickly hedge. She squeezed her
eye shut to keep them from being scratched or poked out.
Her left cheek received a long scratch, and she finally
let go a was release. Quinn could not tell which
ire did not have the golden pocket watch. When she
fell away from the bush, his sister screened another word
Quinn didn't know. Astays of rage filled her now urban eyes.
She stormed back toward the house, and Quinn, not wanting
to be left alone near the bushes, followed her. The
siblings went inside, ere sobbing and Quinn's silence by shock.
His little heart could hardly handle the emotional ceasa that
had just rocked him. He had been elevated by his
incredible discovery of the pocket watch. Then dumped back down
when it was stolen so shortly after Erer, what wrong, honey,
Susia called out from the living room couch. She and
Neil were both sitting there staring into their phones. Trucia
didn't even look up when she called to her daughter
as she kicked off her shoes by the door. Erera, yell,
we've got to do something about the old hag across
the street. Era. That's no way to talk about the elderly,
Neil said. His rectannula glasses slid down his nose slightly
and he didn't bother to push them up. Ere entered
the living room speak to her parents face to face,
or at least face the back of hand wrapped round phone.
Kin almost followed her, but after he had set side
his methyl detector and sat to take off his shoes,
he couldn't bring himself to stand up again. The low
place on the floor felt like were he belonged. Ira said, well,
the sweet elderly lady just stole aldgly treasure from your son.
What does that make you want to call her? Neil
finally pushed up his glasses, but didn't take his eyes
off the screen in his hands. I'm sure there was
some misunderstanding. This understanding, really, she ripped it straight out
of his hands. I don't think there was a whole
lot to I don't like the tonia taking Trishard munished,
Oh my god, you too are worthless. You were a
stumped to heel. His fresh tears welt in her eyes.
Both of the phones in front of her with the
beady Camerlen's eyes lowered for human eyes now glowerdare. She
left the living room, and Quinn saw her return to
the entryway with her joel set in firm determination. Ere
get back here. You can't talk to us that way,
Neil said. Even Quinn heard how pathetic his father sounded,
and it made him mad too. Why weren't his parents angry?
Why was it up to his sister to protect him.
Ere was already putting her shoes back on. What are
you doing, Quinn whispered to her from the comfort of
the lowly floor. I'm going to get it back, Ere
said flatly, Please don't. I don't want it that bad. Really,
Are wiped her tears and pierced through his lige with
her sharp green eyes. O kay, yeah, I want it back,
but I don't want anything bad to happen to you.
Oh please, nothing bad's going to happen to me. She's
just a little old lady. Then, loud enough for her
parents to hear, she added, just a little old tack.
Before Neil she could respond, Iro went out to the
door and slammed it behind herself. Quinn, are you still
over there, Neil asked from the couch. Yeah, Quinn answered weakly.
Is your sister telling the truth? Did you find something
out there? Yea, dad, but that lady, good for you, kiddo,
Neil interrupted, apparently hitting his limit for feign interest. Quinn
opened the front door and stepped on to the porch
to watch his sister. She had already gone around the
hedges and was now striding down the sidewalk. At first,
Quinn didn't know where she was going. Shawna mayor's house,
was directly across the street from their room, But then
Quinn noticed Shauna, the old hag, sitting in a rocking
chair under the shadows of her front porch. Her eyes
were closed as she rocked back and forth. She held
something small in her hands that she stroked gently. It
wasn't the watch, he didn't think. He couldn't really tell
from so far away, but the way she touched it
was too loving for an inanimate object. Er continued on
the sidewalk for half a block, then made a sharp
turn and trotted across the street. Quinn realized what his
sister was doing and suddenly felt fraid for her. He
got chanced at the old woman in the rocking chair,
then back at his sister, and back again. He really
wished he could see Shaana better. He wanted to know
if her eyes were actually closed because he felt watched.
An idea struck him. His birthday present last year had
been a pair of adjustable binoculars. He had uced them
constantly for weeks, then set them upon his calls at
shelf and never touched them again. At least he knew
where they were. Quinn checked on his sister, quickly saw
she was analyzing the tall fence a round Shawn Amir's property,
and went inside. Rower Is that you, Shusha, asked, just me, mom,
Little Quinn replied. His mother said nothing. Quinn ran into
his bedroom, threw open his closet door, and kicked the
small footstool he kept near by in front of his
hanging clothes. Even on the footstool. He had to stretch
his arms to their fullest length to reach the dusty
beanos up on the shelf. He knocked and down with
one hand and caught them in the other. Then he
darted back out of the room and at the front
door once again. Quinn realized once he was stationed back
in the porch that old chawn A Maier would know
something was up if she looked across the street and
saw a bow pointing out pair of binoculars directly at her.
Then he remembered how well the old woman had been
able to hide herself behind the bushes. He hadn't known
she was there until she spoke to him directly. Quinn
ran across the yard, jumped over the sidewalk, and knelt
in the grass right next to the hole he had
dugged to find the pocket watch. He found a good
place where two of the hedges parted near their bases,
and lay down on his stomach, propping himself upon his elbows. First,
Quinn checked on his sister. She had scaled the fence
and was now quietly trying to lower herself down on
the other side. It didn't appear to be going well.
Something hidden behind the fence must have been an obstacle.
Era started shimming along the fence to find an easy
way down, and Quinn shifted his focus to the old
woman in her rocking chair on the porch. When he
swung the beano's back in Shanea's direction, he first landed
on her hands folded in her lap. She was still
stroking a little bird. Quinn recognized the bird, sort of.
He knew what Aniston gulf which looked like because he
had learned about the state bird of Iowa in school.
This bird looked exactly like one of those, except from
beak to tail, as feathers were black. The blackfinncher's beady
black eyes seemed to be trained on him. Quinn slowly
raised the binoculars until he had shone his resting face
in view. She was indeed closing her eyes while she rocked.
She may have even been asleep, sleeping or not. She
didn't seem to have any idea what was going on.
Just a few yards away in her back yard, Ira
had just jumped off the fence and disappeared back there.
Quin's heart sank as he realized he wouldn't have any
idea what was happening to his sister until she came
back over the fence. She had successfully vanished, which was
good for her but stressful for her little brodder. He could, however,
keep an eye on the old hag Jana. He swung
the beanos toward the old woman again, and this time
stopped dead on her canyon face. Her eyes were suddenly open,
her gray irises, magnified to six times their real size,
felled Quinn's view. He held his breath and decrease in
magnification just slightly enough to see she was looking directly
at him, with a hard, hateful expression that deepened the
wrinkles around her thym mouth. The wrinkles rithed like a
dozen dying worms, until her pale lips were turned up
in an insidio smile. The blackfinch launched out of the
old woman's lap and disappeared from the binocular's vignette. Before
Quinn could even lower the binoculars, the bird was pecking
at his hand mercilessly while shielding his eyes. Quinn tried
to wiggle backward to get away from the bush and
rise to his feet. The bird wouldn't let up. Warm
blood truckled down the back of Quinn's hand, under his
jacket's sleeve, down his forearm. The young boy shrieked and
screamed until he heard the front door open behind him.
What in the world, Neil's ordinarily monotoned voice rose to
a newly excited pitch. Quinn rolled away from the bushes,
and the black finch shot away from him like a bullet.
Neil knelt by his son and examined his bleeding hand.
What was that the boat, Nil asked, his whimper and
child Quinn ignored him. He fumbled around in the grass
for the binoculars and returned to his knees once he
had done in hand. His dad looked on in days
confusion as Qrin scanned the old woman's property for any
sign of his sister. This time he did so from
further back, so he wouldn't be as easy to spot,
Or so he told himself. Quinn could find no sign
of his sister across the street. He han't seen her
since she dropped off the fence, and she hadn't reappeared anywhere.
As if her disappearance went stressful enough on its own,
the old woman had vanished as well. Her rocking chair
continued to roll back and forth on its own, as
if the witch. This was the first time Quinn thought
of her as such. It had gotten up in a hurry. Quinn,
will you tell me what's going on? Where is your sister?
Neil asked, Yeah, Dad, where is she? Quinn thought to
himself he had to make a decision about what to
say aloud. If he told his father Warrier had gone,
she would most certainly be punished. This was, of course,
preferable to getting butchard and boiled by the witch, if
that's what Chauna Mayr really was. However, if Shawna did
not catch hearer, Quinn had no doubt their father would
make her go back and confess her transgression to the
old woman and apologize. Quinn had to give her a
chance to get out on her own. It was the
only way to keep the father from getting involved in
something he didn't care to understand. I don't know, Quinn lied.
It was the biggest lie he had ever told his father,
and the most consequential lie he would ever tell. I
think she just went for a walk. So what are
you spying on? Neil asked, why do you suddenly care?
Quinn silently wondered birds, he replied. Neil said, ha, I
would have thought he'd be playing with your a new
toy out here. It cost a lot of money, you know.
He stirred and brushed nothing off the knees of his jeans.
Quinn continued to strain his eyes through the lenses of
the beanos, hoping to catch a glimpse of his sister,
a flash of color in the window, a shimmer of hair,
anything that might show him a sign of life. Neil
left his sun there by the bushes. He had his
phone in his hand before he even got inside, and
didn't look back even once. One major disadvantage to peering
through the binoculars as the elimination of peripheral vision. Quinn
thought he was doing a good job of scanning the
field as he watched for his sister O the Witch,
but a gentle hand on his shoulder caught him completely
off guard. He dropped the binoculars as he twisted away
from the hand and shouted, stay back, relaxed, creeper, It's
just me. Ear beamed down at him, swinging from her hand,
reflecting the adolescent rays of the sun. Was the golden
pocket watch? How did you get it back, Quinn asked,
astonished he had never admired his big sister more. Well, look,
it's not stealing if you take something that already belongs
to you. Right and merful, Grin parted her lips slightly.
Iro he stole from the witch. The w earro laughed.
That's hilarious. I've always thought she could be a witch too.
I guess if this she fits. What's shoe? Asked Quinn.
Ere rolled her eyes and tossed him the pocket watch.
It's an expression. It just means if you and I
both think she seems like a witch, maybe she is.
Quinn looked nervously over his shoulder in the direction of
Shawna's house, and ear laughed again. Come on, let's go
get some breakfast. The moundane Sunday came to an end,
and little Quinn prepared for bed as he always did.
He brushed his teeth, filled a glass of water to
keep by his bed, put on his pajamas, and said
good night to his parents and sister. To ear, he
gave a big huggin whispered thank you. They both knew
what for it was. Sitting on Quinns night's done next
to the glass of water. He and her had figured
out how to wind it, and now it take delicately
in the dark. Quinn found it soothing he fell asleep
to its rhythm. He awoke to the same with them,
tick tick tick, only now it sounded more like tap
tap tap. The sound was bolder and rounder, and it
was not coming from his bedside, but across the room.
The tap and kept perfect time with the ticking pocket watch,
but it was clearly coming from something else. Quinn held
the now cold pocket watch by his ear to hear asticking, distinctly,
unsure he wasn't fooling himself or still in the mucky
haze of her dream. No, the tapping most certainly had
a unique origin. Quinn slipped out of bed, sliding out
of his covers as his feet lined softly on the
bedroom's thick carpet. Tap tap tap. Quinn rubbed his eyes
and looked around as they adjusted. Tap tap tap. It
was coming from the curtain tap taut tap behind a
curtain tap tap dap. Too tired, too foggy to really
feel afraid, Quin groggily pulled the curtain aside. He only
pulled it halfway before being snapped to fall up by
a bony finger outside tap tap, tapping a thick, long
finger nail against a glass. The curtain still blocked her face,
but Quinn could see the frizzle of the Witch's hair
glowing in the moonlight like an aura and an ANGELICALO.
Don't scream, little boy, chen Emire, the old hac from
across the street commanded, don't cry and don't run. Quinn
could not have done any of those things, even if
he had wanted to. His legs were locked in place trembling.
He could not cry or scream because his froot had
become a narrow tib, only wide enough to let in
enough oxygen to keep him conscious, and even that only
for now. To Quinn, who had never been truly scared
for his life before, it felt he had been placed
under some black magic urse. I won't hurt you, she
said earnestly. I only want what's mine. Her finger nail
tapped once more, then remained in place. Shanna slowly dragged
it across the crystalline surface of the glass. The curtain
buckled as the witch slid her finger across the glass.
The curtain inside followed it, sliding open to reveal Schennamer's
horrible leathery face. Her uneven yellow teeth appeared delminescent behind
the glass as she bit her lower lip and grinned,
Her eye shifted from Quinnt to something behind him. He
knew what she was looking at without looking back. Put
it back where you found it, and I'll return what
I've taken from you, little boy. With this final instruction,
she raised the bony finger with which she had tapped
on the gloss to her lips, backed away from the window,
and vanished into the moonlight shadows. Quinn, feeling he had
been released from the witch's spell, darted forward and shut
the curtain with one swift tuck. His breath returned in
rapid and even bursts. He ran back across a room,
dove on to his bed, and yanked his covers over
his head. There in his cocoon, he sobbed when he
had no tears left to cry. He wondered why that
horrible woman was doing this to him. Why had she
buried that pocket watch in the bushes if she so
wanted it so bad a what did it mean to her?
One particularly ominous question kept him in sleep, repelling suspense.
What had she taken from him. Somehow, some way, Kuldn
fell asleep. He wasn't aware that sleep had overtaken him
until he woke up some night. Framed his dark curtain
looking brighter than usual, Quinn panicked looked at his digital watch,
the gift Fromira. It was nearly eight o'clock. Why hadn't
his parents woken him up for school? He shimmered into
a pair of jeans that lay on his floor, pulled
a t shirt off a hanger in his closet without
really looking at her, and grabbed the top pair of
socks from his dress. A draw Clothed, he barreled out
of his room and into the kitchen, where he found
his mom, also dressed, sipping a cup of coffee at
the counter. She scrolled on her phone, Mam, why didn't
you wake me up? I'm late for school and bother
Tricia glanced up at him, then back down at a screen.
It's spring break, honey, you don't go back to school
until next week, she said. Oh. Quinn stood still for
a moment while this registered. His heart slowed down, and
a feeling like a warm blanket came over him. No
school for a whole week, and he had his bran
newdach finder to pass the time. He still had the
whole backyuche explore, But then the joyful blanket was ripped
off his shoulders. There was one thing he had to
take care of before he could enjoy anything else, but
he didn't want to do it alone. He's heer up yet,
he asked his mother. Cursed, she dropped her phone on
the counter and set down her coffee. Sorry, honey, now
I'm goin to be late. You still have to work,
Quinn asked, afraid, so what about that he's already gone.
Quinn watched his mother's scurry through the house, gathering her shoes,
her purse, her card again, which she had left draped
over the chair. She took one last sip of coffee,
kiss Quinn on the forehead, and hurried out the door.
Quinn was left in the quiet house alone besides maybe
his sister. He went back toward the bedrooms to check
on her. If Era had remembered spring break, which Quinn
was sure she would have, she was probably sleeping in
He hated to wake her up, but he didn't want
to delay returning the pocket watch, and he didn't want
to go outside by himself. He knew that which would
be washing waiting. He knocked on near his door to
see if she was already awake, but she didn't answer.
Quinn cracked open the door and peeked inside. His sister's
curtains were open and sunlight lit up her empty bed.
Her room was a mess, even worse than usual. It
smelt powerfully of nail polish. Quinn always hated when his
sister painted her nails, because the burning scent lingered on
her for hours after, but never this straw before er.
He called into the room loud enough for her to hear,
even if she was somewhere else. No addswer. Next, he
wondered if maybe she had had already left to Maybe
she had gone to hang out with some friends, but
this early. It wouldn't be like Ear or any one
she usually hung out with, to be up before nine plus.
When Quinn went to check by the front door, Ear's
shoes were still there. She had other shoes, of course,
but she usually only wore those on special occasions when
she dressed up. Quinn didn't know why his sister would
have dressed up before ate him. Then Quinn realized Ear
couldn't have gone anywhere, because his mom would not have
left him alone if she hadn't thought Ero was home
to keep an eye on him. At the same time
at which he had this thought, he noticed a bottle
of purple nil polish overturned on Ear's vanity. It had
spilled all over the surface and down one side. Why
she hadn't righted the bottle or cleaned up the mess,
Quin couldn't even guess. He waited and listened for his
sister to show up for almost an hour. As the
morning crept by, Quinn grew nervous, not for Ira, but
about the pocket watch. He worred if he delayed much longer,
the witch might come back to visit him again. He
hated the thought of going out to the bushes alone,
but he hated the idea that hideous woman coming to
the house while he was all alone, much more so.
Link small and weak, Quinn retrieved the pocket watch from
his nightstent, slipped into his tennis shoes, and went outside.
Shann A Mayer was rocking in her chair on her
pouch again. She smiled wickedly as Quinn stepped out onto
his She bit her lower lep a sheier behind the
window her blackfinch rested in a cupped hand while she
stroked its little feathers with the other. Quinn held up
the pocket watch to show her his intention. The witch
nodded toward the bushes. Quinn found the hole from which
he had dug the pocket watch yesterday. The turn dirt
had dried and become gray, His space still lay beside it.
He picked up the spaite and started digging. At first,
the dir came out easily, but then the tip struck
something hard like clay. Quinn thought he must have dug
too far, since he hadn't had noted any clay the
day before. He pulled the spade from the dirt and
saw the tip was a muddy red color. Easing his hands,
quin scoop loose stirred out of the hole Towards the bottom.
His finger brushed something soft and cold, the clay, he thought.
He reached him with both hands for one final big
scoop before he would drop the pocket watching and be
done with it for good. As he pulled up, he
heard something snapped, like a twig or brittle root. He
looked into the hole two fingers one the pinky was
now sticking out a crooked angle he had broken. It
snapped the narrow bone. The flesh between the fingers had
been sliced. A dark stains spread slowly from the cut.
But that was what horrified Quinn the most. What made
him sick were the purple finger nails at the end
of both fingers. Quinn stumbled back and vomited across the street.
The witch cackled, This was her way of returning what
she had taken from Quinn. She didn't stop laughing even
as Quinn ran back inside and slammed and locked the door.
Shane A. Mayer had apparently anticipated that her retaliation against Quinn,
Harris and his burgling sister would unravel the charge she
had constructed around her evil deeds. Along with Ear's body
in the Pocket Watch, various other evidences of missing men, women,
and children from across the state were unburied from the
earth below those bushes, Those bushes grown in blood. But
evidence is of little use without the culprit and Shaneamier
the hag. The witch vanished before Quinn even called his
mom at work. Perhaps here Harris was her final victim,
one last he wrought to show the wall which she
was capable of or perhaps more likely if you ask me,
she's feeding the bushes somewhere on you, and that is
the end. Thank you for listening, and I will see
you in the next one.