Speaker 1: Hello, I'm welcome's stories all the time. Glad you are here.
Let's get into it. Callie didn't see her friend Apple
until she was standing right beside her, and jumped in
surprise at the sound of her voice whof Sorry, did
not mean to scare you, Apple apologized, I just had
a quick question. She paused, actually a huge favor, to
be honest, Cally rolled her eyes. I know what you're thinking,
Apple said, I ask you for big favors all the time,
but this one is actually huge. There's something in it
for you this time, though. She rubbed her fingers together.
Cally asked how much three hundred bucks? Apple replied, three
hund gees, Apps, What do you need me to do?
Kill the principal? Apple smiled, her mouth opened to its
fullest and reminded Calli of the guy on her dad's
Arrowsmith poster in the garage, Tyler something while other yes,
but no, Apple finally said, it's a babysitting gick that
pays three hundred raised her eyebrows. Well, it's over an
night for the whole weekend. Apple's cheeks flushed. You'd be
watching an eight year old girl and a twelve year
old brother at their house while their parents go to
a silent retreat. Callie asked, what's a silent retreat. It's
where you go somewhere remote and everyone hands out without
any technology or sell service or anything, and nobody can
talk the whole time. Apple said, why, just to reconnect
with yourself. It's a good thing to do every once
in a while. Why do you know so much about it,
Callie asked, feeling she was scratching at the surface of
something Apple didn't want to discuss. Oh well, Apple shuffled
in place. She adjusted the backpack hanging from her left shoulder.
I'm kindly going to go there too with my parents,
But don't say this is a hippy thing. Callie Finnison laughed,
You know that after naming their daughter Apple, nobody is
surprised by your mom's doing hippie things, right, Apple smiled.
She knew Cully only gave her a hard time out
of love. All the other kids smiled and pretended to
accept her, but she knew they all sneered and Joe
behind her back, not Calli. Though Callie put the jokes
up front and backed them up with love. Apple found
her far more accepting and inclusive than everyone else who
put love up front and hit the jokes behind. So
will you do it? Apple asked, I'm their usual sitter,
So I told them I would find someone I trusted.
That basically means you. Why you really know how to
butter me up, don't you? Callie gave her a friend
and knowing, look, yeah, I'll do it the Bulganner ring,
So just text me the details. Apple threw her arms
around Calli, whose arms were too full of books to
return the embrace. Then Apple was washed away by the
rapid river of high school students rushing off into their
classroom tributaries for the next period. Callie couldn't help but
feel a little irritated at Apple. Once she had the
specifics of the babe sitting gig. The silent retreat wasn't
on just any old weekend. It was that coming weekend,
three days away. Hallie wished she had some righteous reason
to be upset, some planned she would have to cancel,
some promise she had made to someone else. But her
weekend happened to be wide open. She would be babysitting
Riley eight and Dean twelve for not one, but two nights.
She had to be there at seven on Friday evening,
and the parents wouldn't get home until a round seven
Sunday evening. Calli started having second thoughts. The town talyzing
three hundred dollars suddenly seemed cheap. It might have been
enough for Apple, who apparently knew these kids already, but
for Kelly to sleep in a strange home for two
nights and spend two whole days with children she had
never met, she would need a little more incentive. She
texted this Apple, who didn't respond for a long time.
Calli started to think maybe her friend would find some
one else instead. She hoped so, but no Apple. But
a while later they said they can do three doll
those fifty cents. As a high school senior, Cally had
been shopping for colleges. She knew what it was going
to cost. It's hard for in eighteen year all to
wrap the head around what fifty thousand dollars a year
truly means, But Cally knew it was a heft to
chunk of change. With that bill looming over her future,
she didn't feel it would be wise to turn down
three hundred fifty dollars just because she felt uncomfortable. After
checking that it was okay with her parents and convincing
them this wasn't just a cover for a weekend rendezvus
with a new boyfriend. Calli told Apples she would accept.
At six point fifty five on Friday evening, Cally knocked
on the unfamiliar door at nine hundred wan Steinbeck Avenue,
the address texted to her by Apple. A stern looking
woman in business casual attire opened the door. Her horn,
roomed glasses and thick moroon lipstick made her look like
someone you wouldn't want to say the wrong thing to.
So Cally stay quiet. Good to me, you, Cally, Why
don't you come in? The intimidating woman stepped aside, allowing
Cally into a large tiled entryway. The walls were white,
the tile and trim were rusty orange almost red. A
curved staircase and the right laid up to the second
floor at a glittering shindolia hung down from the ceialing
two stories above their heads. The kids are up in
their rooms. I would introduce you, but we're running late,
said the woman. You know how to negotiate, so I
assume you're smart enough to figure out the rest of
what you need to know, Plly shirked at the thinly
veiled dick. The kids mostly take care of themselves. You're
just here to make sure they don't, you know, burn
down the house as they say, Where should I sleep?
CALLI asked. She was glad this woman, Frances, was in
a hurry to leave. She didn't want her around any
longer than she needed to be. She had expected parents
more similar to Apples Mom, since they were doing the
same heavy stuff over the weekend. It seemed these parents
were just a power couple. Acknowledging the trendinness of holistic living,
Frances said, I turned over our bed. Our room is
upstairs on the right. Otherwise the couch pulls out. You
can decide what's best for you. Then ah, here's Matthew. Matthew,
this is Cally. Please write her a check so we
can leave. She even spoke to her husband like a child.
The man who had come down the stairs was wearing
dark khakis in a sweater with a white collar of
a dress shirt poking out around his neck. He had
a neatly trimmed beard and round glasses. His appearance made
him look soft, safe, passive, but his eyes traveled up
and down, Cally in a way that made us quorum.
Good to meet you, Cally. I'll cut the check, Matthew said.
He disappeared through the door under the second floor balcony.
Looking to fill the silence, Callie asked, so do the
kids like movers? Francis exhaled sharply through her nose and said,
don't expect the children to spend any time together. They
don't get alarm Dean and says son, playing a character
Riley would rather not s sate with. I usually just
let them be. Callie got the feeling frances was quite
good at letting her children be. She was more than
happy to let the siblings hang out in their respective rooms.
Though in her backpack, which she unloaded from her shoulder
and set to the side, she had brought plenty to do. Matthew,
whom Cali guess never let anyone call him. Matt materialized
in the doorway with a check. Did you forget anything,
Francis asked her husband. If I forgot, how would I
owe yes? Hush, she scolded. It seemed to even meet
Matthew wasn't immune to the opportunity for a good dad joke. Well,
unless a babysitter has any more questions, I think we
should go No bym all good, Calli said, I'll just
go upstairs and introduce myself to your kids. If either
of the parents caught her subtle derision, they didn't react
all right. In the car, Matthew, Francis spoke to her
husband like a child again. Calli felt grateful that the
retreat they were headed to a cut them off from
the rest of the world. As if reading her thoughts,
Frances spun around again to face Calli. Oh, one last thing,
we won't have any contact once we arrive at the lake.
I put the emergency number up on the fridge. If
something goes wrong, call that number. Tell them what happened,
and if it rises to the level of urgency which
should require our attention, the attendants will tell us. With
a curt nod, Francis turned and exited the house. Matthew
gave Calli a slightly more gracious nod and the hint
of a smile, but Cally saw his eyes drop to
her chest before he turned away again. She had his money,
That's all that matter. As the front door shut behind Matthew,
Cally looked up the stairs supposedly there were two bedrooms,
each containing a child up there. She decided to go
meet them. The plush white carpet of the stairs patted
her every footstep. The third stair from the top was
the first to make any noise at all. They groaned
beneath her foot, but then the last two were silent.
Collie stood at the top, looking down and across the
narrow hallway. As Francis had described, the master bedroom was
off to the right. Through the open door, Callie could
see it also hit the small bathroom she could use.
The full bathroom was just across the hole from the
master bedroom. On the other side of the stairs were
three doors, two on the right and one on the left.
The one on the left, based on how much space
was available, had to be a closet, Callie decided, so
the other two doors contained her charges for the weekend.
She knocked on the first one. Yeah, A smaller version
of France's voice asked, Callie cracked opened a door. The
girl Riley, was lying on her stomach on her bed,
with her head propped up in her hands, her face
too mature for her age, Callie thought were reflected life
from the iPad propped up in front of her. An
extuberant voice was coming through the device. Hey, I'm Cally.
Just wanted to say hi since I'll be here all weekend.
Briley paused whatever video she was watching and raised her
eyebrows at the babysitter. I thought Apple was coming, she said, Oh, well,
Apple was actually going to the same place as your parents.
I'm her best friend, though, so hopefully we can have
just as much fun together. Riley's eyes flicked back to
her screen. Cally said, well, let me know if you
need anything. I'm gonna go say hi to your brother.
Riley sighed, I wouldn't bother. She pressed play on her video.
Halie shut the door. She took five steps to the
next door, noting how quiet the floor was. Same thick
carpet from the stairs padded her footsteps. Callie hoped the
kits went out to sneak around at night, because there
was no way she would hear them. She knocked him
the second door, but received no answer. A little nervous
to open the bedroom door on a twelve year old boy,
Cally gripped knob loudly and gave it a dramatic, rattling twist.
Even then she opened the floor. The room was dark
and red red light covered everything. Lockout curtains were drawn
shut over the windows. The boy was standing directly in
front of a heat lamp dangling from the ceiling. Cally
saw the silhuet of his back. He was wearing big headphones,
and Callie could findy hear music that sounded like an
alumin and trashpin rolling down a cement hel being chased
by a squ dreaming pick. No wonder he didn't hear
me knock? She thought. She knocked hard on the wall
and half shouted hey. Dean's head whipped around. With one hand,
he pushed his head funds back slightly. In the other,
he held a wriggling rat. What, Callie gasped, Are you
the babysitter? Dean asked and phased. What is that? Callie demanded,
pointing at the rat. Haven't you seen a rat before?
Why is it inside the house? Dean stepped beside and
callous all He had been standing in front of a
large glass case a terrium, unperched on an artificial lock.
Behind the glass was a thick yellow schnick with big
brown spot across its back. Callie gasped, again. She hated snakes.
Nothing scared her more. She stepped back and shielded herself
with the door. A smoke grin cracked across Dean's face.
He tossed the live rat into the terrarium and closed
the lid. The snake snapped forward, and before Calli could blink,
it had twisted its sizeable body around the road in
three times only. The rat's tail was moving now, flicking
up and down, slower and slow. She's a bull python,
Deans said, matter of factly, she's pretty right. Can we
talk out here, Callie asked. Dean wiped his hands on
his pants and stepped toward her. Sure, what's up? He
said that they never like gets up, does it? He
let it go free sometimes, just around my room, Dean said,
But if you're scared, I won't do it while you're here.
That would be really great. Thanks. So who are you,
Dean asked, Oh, sorry, my name's Cally. I'm Apple's friend.
I'm here to babysit this weekend. Yeah, I guess that part.
I'm Dean. Why is your room so dark, Cally asked.
Dean shrugged, It's just the way Vallac likes it. Who
the snake. I named her after that demon in the
Conjuring Oh. Cally said, that's well, that's something. Do you
like horror movies? My sister never comes out of her room,
so maybe we can watch one later. Cally was surprised
the snake feeding, horror loving metal had kid was the
friendlier of the two siblings. He seemed almost eager to
spend time with her, but didn't creep her out like
his dad had. He genuinely seemed like he wanted a friend,
or maybe a parent. Your parents are okay with you
watching that stuff, Dean said, well, I guess they don't
really know what I watch. We don't talk that much,
you know. M Sorry, but I don't really handle those
move as well. Callie felt a growing soft spot for Dean.
She gave him a sympathetic nod, but as she looked
over his shoulder, she saw the rat's hind legs disappeared
down the snake's rope its tail twitched. Callie looked away quickly.
Nice meeting you, she said. She briskly traveled down the
halt of the master bedroom, shutting the door behind her.
She ran to the toilet and dropped to her knees.
She heaven gagged, but thankfully did not puke. Callie returned
to the entryway once her stomach had settled and she
could stand without feeling dizzy. Her back back wasn't where
she had left it. She scanned the entire fay and
didn't see it anywhere. Hey, guys, she called up the stairs. Unsurprisingly,
she didn't get an answer. She yelled hey, making it
clear she meant business. One door opened and Dean appeared
with his headphones wrapped around the back of his neck.
He leaned over the rilling. What's up, he asked. Did
you do something with my back back? He said? No,
want met, asked Riley, please, Cally replied impatiently. The boy
turned and Kelly heard a door creak open. At least
there's mixed some sound, she thought. A moment later, Riley
screened something Kelly didn't catch, and the door slam shot.
Dean reappeared, red faced. She says she doesn't have it.
Thanks for checking. Kelly said she didn't trust these kids,
but she didn't know them well enough to go prying
in their rooms at either. She was less than ten
minutes into her forty eight hour assignment. Those ten minutes
had not, bolded. Well, hey, have you guys eaten dinner already?
She asked Dean. He nodded, all right, Well, I'm just
going to look around for my bag and then I
don't know, watch some t V or something. Dean nodded again.
He put his headphones over his ears and vanished. Cally
explored the rest of the house, which didn't take long.
The house had clearly been designed to look more impressive
than it Ashley was. It looked big from the outside,
but was actually quite shallow. The large entryway, painted white
to make it appear even larger, gave an impression of
wealth and status, but it hid the tiny, if well
furnished kitchen and cramped living room beyond, and that essentially
was the whole house. Calli was pretty sure her family's
humble ranch style home had more usable square footage. She
located the emergency number on the fridge, then filled a
pot with water to boil for macaroni and cheese. She
reached over the pot, found the right knob for the burner,
and turned it all the way to high. She retracted
her arms. Suddenly, a steam shot up from the uncovered
pot of water. The steam was so hot at left
a red mark along the back of her arm. Callie
stood in complete shark staring at the water, which had
automatically jumped to a boil. Was this some kind of
new stove technology? How hot did a stove have to
get to instantly boil a pot of cold water? Callie
dumped in the noodles, then searched for a stirring spoon.
She found one in a drawer, then returned the pot
to see it had gone still. No steam rose from
the water's flat surface any more. She gave the noodles
a stir, but no steam was released. Destinately, she dipped
a finger into the water. It was cold, impossible. Calli
left the burner alone, and after a few minutes the
water began to boil normally. She was able to finish
making her macaroni without incident, but she couldn't stop thinking
about the water. She wanted to call up about it,
but of course APS was at the silent retreat. If
Cali wanted to talk to her, she would have to
use the same emergency number Franc's had left in the fridge.
Carry took her mac and cheese to the couch and
turned on the TV. She didn't want to start something new.
She felt too off, kilt and uneasy already, so she
put on Family Guide to pass the time, the warder,
her backpack, the strange quietness of this house. Individually, each
of these made her uncomfortable, but together they frightened her
more than she was willing to admit. How was she
supposed to sleep in this weird house with that snake
down the hall? Deane said he wouldn't let it out
of the room, but accidents happen. She pictured the rat's
tail twitching as it hung out of the python split drawls.
As she watched the show, Callie straddled the line between
ignoring the noises from the floorb of monitoring them. The
kids were old enough to come get her if they
needed something, she thought, but a shriek made her think otherwise.
Still chewing, Callie rented the stairs. She could see Riley's
bedroom door was cracked open. The girl was still screaming inside. Riley,
Callie called. As she bolted up the stairs. Dean's door
was opened, to the red light spilling out onto the carvet.
She pushed open Riley's door and saw the girl standing
up near the head of her bed, backed all the
way into the furthest corner. What is it, Callie asked desperately.
Briley continued screaming and pointing at something low behind the door.
Terrified she was about to see the snake loose cinches
from her feet, Calli stepped back to peer between the hinges.
Please just be Dean with a nerf gun or something,
she thought, But no, it was much smaller. Hallie had
to bend nearly half way over to see what was
moving behind the door. One of the formerly silent boards
in the hole suddenly decided to groan, as if stretching
after a long nap. The creature behind the door turned
toward the sound. Besides locking with Kelly's it raised its nose,
showing sharp teeth protruding from its pointed jaw. The creature
was a rat. Dean Cally shouted, this was what and
I are into the gig and already she was scolding
one of the children. With her situation continually worsening, Cally
decided to put a dead stop to this misbehavior. Dean
had seemed innocent, but Cally wondered if he had been
hiding his true nature down the hall. A toil of
flushed a faucet turned on, splashing wet hands on dry
jeans the bathroom doorknob. What Dean asked, sounding as stupid
as his expression when he exited the bathroom, he had
your rat off of your sister's room, Cally ordered. Riley
was still screaming. Dean run passed Cally into Riley's room
and searched frantically around. It's behind the door. You would it,
Riley screamed. Dean's bun then immediately dove for the rudent.
He caught it deftly with one fluid motion, and took
it back to his room. Cally followed why, She asked,
why would you do that to her? I thought you
too left each other alone. We do deem pleaded, taking
on his innocent alter ego. Honestly, I don't know what happened.
Check the keys yourself. There's no way he could have
gotten out on his own. I didn't think he did,
Cally said, shrudly, But I was. I was in the
bath room. You saw me come out. Dee looked down, defeated.
He should have seen it coming. I didn't see you
go in, though, Cally retorted. She crossed her arms and
leaned on his door frame. Yet I know, Dean replied,
I don't want any of this for the rest of
the weekend, but I bet if I have to call
that emergency number, your mam is going to be pissed. No, please,
Dean shouted and stepped forward. Cally worried he might run
at her. Don't call mom. I promise I'll make sure
there's no more rats in Raleigh's room. I promise. Should
be easy enough, Cally thought, to stump it any more
in there, Calli threw away the rest of the mac
and cheese after it went cold. These people could afford it.
She didn't feel like furnishing the show either. She hadn't
checked on Riley. Oh well, the kid would have come
down if anything was wrong, and Cally wanted to shower.
As she undressed, Calli was grateful for the locks on
both the master bedroom door and the master bathroom door.
She felt confident that we had little Dean couldn't possibly
spy on her while she got cleaned up, that is,
unless he climbed all the way up to the second
story to look into the small window in the bathroom.
She wondered why any bathroom would ever have a window
in it. She cranked the shower up just about as
hot as it could go, and took her sweet time.
If Dean had been able to climb up to that window,
he wouldn't have been able to see anything anyway, thanks
to the cloud of steam. After another five minutes or so,
Cally shut off the water and felt around for the
glass door. It was fogged and dripping. She drew back
the door and set one foot out of the shower.
It felt cold. Of course, air of any temperature might
have felt cold after such a hot shower, but Cally
could tell this air was colder than it should open
and with horror she realized the cloud of steam had vanished.
How quickly it had evaporated it was impossible, like water
instantly boiling, she thought. But unfortunately, there was a very
reasonable physical explanation. This time. The window was open, the
window which had certainly been closed and locked before she
got in the shower, and her clothes were gone. Annik
discussed unbah. The emotions wrapped themselves around Cally beneath her towel.
Once covered, she stood on her tiptoes at the window
and looked out. She thought, if she was lucky, she
could catch the creep who stole her clothes before he
got away. But no one was outside, no ladders or
anything else that could be used to ascend to the
second story. Calli slammed the window and locked it, for
what little good that would apparently do. But wait, no,
she was being ridiculous. There was absolutely no way to
unlock the window from the outside, so it must have
been opened from it in. She put it all together.
Dene had figured out how to unlock the bedroom and
bathroom doors, had snuck in, taken her clothes, and and
tossed them out the window. Cally pondered this as she
opened the bathroom door, not noticing that the lock clicked,
indicating it had either remained locked or been locked from
the inside. Again. Callie rifled through France's stiff clothes, quickly
sliding every shirt, blouse, and dressing the closet aside. Finally,
she thought to check the dresser and found some white
soak pajamas with a blue floor oprint. They were a
little bag, but better than nothing. Dean, She stormed into
the hallway, stomping toward the boy's room. She didn't necessarily
expect to find him there. He was probably out in
the garage, trying on her unaware for all she knew.
As if to defy her imagination, Dean opened his bedroom
door just as Cally stepped up to it. Hay, he said,
all too casually, give them back. Cally demanded, give what
back my clothes? Creep, I know what Dean's ignorant mac
begg to be slapped. His shaggy heath fell into his eyes,
and he whipped his head to the side to clear them.
Cally thought, this kid is a stereotpe of trouble. He
took my clothes from the bathroom while I was in
the shower, Cally screamed. Riley opened her door and peeked out.
This doesn't concern you, Riley, Cally said, without turning around.
She didn't hear the door close, but didn't care. I
swear I didn't do anything deep and said, I've just
been in my room, I promise. Oh yeah. Then who
opened the window in the bathroom? It was locked? Someone
opened it from inside, Cally said, with a prosecutor's confidence.
Dean looked Riley as if she might help him out.
Cally now turned to look at the grinning little girl.
She could tell Riley loved watching her big brother's squirm,
Cally wondered how often he was held accountable for his
little misdeeds. Let me look in your room, then, Callie demanded,
as she turned back to Dean. I don't think now,
Kelly pushed past him. No wait, I needed the baby sitters.
Horrified shriek cut him off. Four stilvretts lay on the floor.
Their necks were broken. The python watched their cooling bard
as lazily from its cage as a digestive dead friend.
I told you I wouldn't let any more get into
Riley's room, Dean said, meekly. So your solution was to
just just murder them. Well, I couldn't figure out how
that one got out, so yeah, I can still feed
them to Valak, so I won't waste them. That's it.
Cally put both of her hands on top of head.
Tell me where my clothes sorrom we'll just forget about it, Okay.
I don't want to be in this room. I don't
want to talk to you. I don't even want to
be around you. I just want my clothes and my
back back. I still don't know where it went, and
it has all my stuff in it. Dean looked like
he might actually cry. He said, I'm telling the truth.
I don't know what happened to your clothes or your
back back. I'll help you look if you want. Oh
so you can play the letzele hero and magically fine everything.
No thanks, I'll find it all myself. Cally stormed out
and slammed the door. Riley had wisely retreated into her
own room. Already just go to bed, Cally shout it
over her shoulder. She shut herself into the master bedroom,
too angry to do anything else since Dene could apparently
unlock the door. Somehow, she propped a chair under the knob,
like you see people do in movies. She wasn't sure
it actually worked, but it made her comfortable enough to
get into bed. There's she stayed until morning. When Cally
emerged from Frances in Matthew's bedroom a little after eight,
she expected the kids to be down in a kitchen
getting breakfast, or in the living room watching TV. But
Frances hadn't been kicked. They really did stay in their
rooms all the time. Sleep had refreshed to have given
her a clear pair of eyes for the day. She
decided it was time to take a new approach with
the kids, with Dean in particular, but she would include
Riley to avoid seeming like she was singling him out.
You catch more flies with honey, as they say. Callie
knocks off the on Riley's door first. She wasn't sure
how Lee kids usually slept. The door opened, and Riley
smiled up at her, already fully dressed. Hi, Cally, you
gonna make some breakfast, the little girl asked, I cod
I was hoping to talk to you and your brother
downstairs first, if that's okay. Callie thought the trick might
be getting the two of them out together. Oh sure,
Riley didn't seem too in teast about the idea. Why
don't you meet me down there. I'll get Dean, we'll talk,
then I can make whatever you want for breakfast. It goes,
Riley asked hopefully. Callie chuckled, nodded, and rubbed the top
of Riley's head, then sent her downstairs. Yo, Dean, she
said into his closed door. As she knocked you up yet,
there was no verbospond from the other side, but Kelly
heard movement. She waited patiently until the door cracked open.
Dean's messy hair covered most of his face, and he
was wearing a shirt. He apparently, unlike his sister, was
not an early riser. It's so early it, Dean said.
Kelly nodded sympathetically. Yeah, I know, but we need to talk.
Your sister's waiting downstairs. I need you there too. Is
this still about your clothes, Dean asked. Kelly said, it's
about everything. I'll see you downstairs. She turned away, and
Dean closed his door again. Five minutes later, the tree
sat in the living room. Callie took the big arm
chair in the corner so Dean and Riley would have
to sit in the couch where she could see them
both at once. She loved how this made Dean's corn. Okay, listen,
she started. We've got two whole days to get through together,
and I know we'll all go crazy if it's like
last night the whole time. The kid soddily nodded. So
here's the deal. We can forget about everything and start over.
I just want my things back. I'm going to make breakfast,
so I'll be in the kitchen while I'm down here.
I want my clothes and when my backpacked to magically
reappear on your parent's bed. Okay, I won't ask any questions.
I wouldn't point any fingers. If my stuff comes back,
we can all just relax this weekend. Gard it. Dean
looked up and opened his mouth to say something, but
it never escaped his mind. He shut his mouth, looked
back down and nodded. All right, run upstairs and let
me make some eggos. That sit, Raleigh asked. She actually
sounded disappointed. Yeah, that it. Raleigh slid off the couch
and ran to the stairs. You two, Dean, Cully ordered.
As she stood. Dean nodded again and slunk out of
the living room. Kelly found a cup in one of
the cupboard above the sink. It was a heavy, thick,
class high quality. She folded from the tap, brought it
to her lips, and tipped it back. With her eyes closed,
she didn't see the steam. Scalding water splashed into her
open mouth. She shrieked and spat at the same time,
dropping the glass in the sink, where it split into
the rest of the water, splashed out and steamed up
the cold metal basin. Kelly's tongue had been burned raw,
her lips in the roof of her mouth had been
scorched as well. She double checked the tap, sure she
had lifted the handle towards cold. She definitely had. She
tested the water. It came out cold. Even when she
turned in the hot water. It continued to come out
cold until it slowly warm. What the hell, CALLI wandered aloud,
unwilling to touch her tongue to a path of her mouth. Yet,
she went to the fridge, found some cold apple juice
and drank it from a new glass. It cooled her tongue,
but only time would heal it. Unable to solve the mystery,
Cally put a breakfast of eggos and oranges together, then
called the kids back down. They passed her with worry gunss.
In the stairs, Francis and Matthew's bed was the same
and team as Cally had left earlier, no clothes, no backpack.
She gritted her teeth. She'd given those kids a chance,
the chance to make things right into a nice, smooth weekend.
She would not give them another. While the kids were
busy eating dance stairs, Cally decided to have a look
around her rooms. She started in Dean's room, assuming she
would find everything there and be done. As Python watched
her look behind and under the bed, in the closet,
and in all the dresser draws. The backpack in particular
couldn't have been hiding anywhere else in the small room,
and that was the most important item at this point.
It hit her phone, her computer, and all of her
extra clothes in it, So then it was onto Rally's room.
Riley had a big closet where Cally looked first. Walking
with clothes hanging on either side beneath lunch shelves, her
rectannula scuttered door to the attic rested above her head.
Calli run her hands along the shelves where she couldn't see,
and quickly determined if things were not there. When she
checked under the bed, her hand brushed against something that
slid into the light. It looked familiar, but she couldn't
quite place it. The item's shape was a flat round
a triangle with a hole in the scenter at the
bottom was padded with felt. Behind her, the closet door
she had left open slowly began to close. What are
you doing, Dean's voice made Carly hid her head in
the bottom of Riley's bed. She grunted and removed herself
from the small space. The closet door click shut. She
and Dean Boath stared at it. I must have Cali
trailed off. Dean shrugged. Cally said, um, since you asked,
I'm looking for my staff. It seems, however took it
still doesn't want to give it back. Look, I didn't
take your things. I don't know what else to say,
Dean said. There was no argument or defiance in his voice,
only pleading surrender. Well, then, don't expect to have much
fun this weekend. I'm going to call my parents and
have them bring me some clothes, and after that I'm
going to sit down in the living room in front
of the TV. You and your sister can stay in
your rooms and leave me alone. As she said it,
Callie realized this probably didn't sound like much of a punishment.
When you get that. Dean pointed to the triangular object
in Cally's hand. I found it done here. Cally replied,
she's always taking my staff, Dean said, huffing into the room.
He took the object out of Cally's hand and of
under the bed. So now you're stealing your sister's stuff too,
CALLI ask, it's not stealing if it's yours, Dean replied,
emerging with a folded game board in his hand. She
stole this out of my room? What is it? Callie
ask but Dean laughed without answering he didn't actually need to.
Seeing the game board made Kelly realize what the triangular
object with the hole in the center was Supplanchet, the
only game piece needed to play Weeja. What in the
world was little Riley trying to do? Talped to the
dead alone again, Callie suddenly felt unsafe. She stood, then froes.
She felt watched. She felt like someone was about to
touch her shoulder. She thought of the closet door closing itself,
the closet door directly behind her, and ran out of
the room. Dean's door was already closed. Fine, he could
stay in there. Downstairs, Callie found Rabbi running her finger
through the lot of a syrup on her plate and
licking it clean. Time for you to go back upstairs,
Cally said, did your clothes come back? Riley? But you
know I didn't take them right. Riley looked hurt. Riley,
I need to make a phone call. Can you please
just go upstairs? Fine? A look of indignation swallowed the
out on her face. As Riley pushed her plate away
and stopped out of the room. Hallie used the land
line to call her mom. She didn't pick up, probably
because of the unfamiliar number, so CALLI left a message
asking to have some clothes dropped off. She mentioned that
she had lost her phone, so if either of her
parents needed to talk to her, they would have to
call The house. Phone rang just two minutes after Kelly
hung up. Hey, Cal, how's it going over there, her
mom asked. Cally sighed, it's not great, mom. These kids
are causing some problems, like hiding my things from me.
That's why I don't have my phone. Oh, I'm sorry
to hear that. I hope it turns up. Yeah, me too. Hey,
can you bring me some clothes to day? After a
pregnant pause, Cally's mom said, I'm so sorry I texted you,
but now I'm realizing you couldn't have seen it. What mom, Well,
your dad and I haven't gone away just the two
of us in a long long time. With he being
busy the whole weekend, we thought, well, we thought it'd
be fun to fly out to Vegas for a couple
of days. You're telling me you're in Nevada right now,
Hallie asked. We booked a late fight last night and
got in early this morning. We just checked in at
the mirage. I'm sorry, Honny, that's all right, a fun
I'll see you when you get home. Her mom started
to say I love you, but Kelly hung up. Not
feeling very lovely at the moment, She watched the TV
until the stomach growled. For lunch, she found some frozen
pizzas in the freezer and thought she could take some
up to the kids so they wouldn't even have to
come out to eat. She set the oven to four
hundred twenty five and returned to the couch to wait
for it to heat up. An auxious Odes snuck into
the living room while Cally waited for the oven. It
burned her sinuses and made a stomach ert. At first,
she didn't make the connection. She was actually on her
way upstairs to demand to know what Dean was burning
when she passed by the oven and saw the plume
of black smoke spelling out of its fence. She shut
the oven off and opened the door. A ball of
smoke shot out at her as if from a cannon.
She stumbled back against the counter, hacking. Smoke detectors in
both the kitchen and living room started blaring. Cally Riley's
nervous force came from the stairs. A preludeor padded feet
rushing down stayed there, Callie commanded. She coughed some more.
The smoke refused to clear. She turned on the fan
above the stove, but it still lingered. Actually helped me
open some of these windows, she shouted into the entryway.
She could barely see Ryley floating like a wraith through
the smoke in a long night dress. Together they opened
every window on the first floor of the house. Hallie
returned to the kitchen when she thought it was safe
to breathe in there again, a blackened heap of melted
something sat on the top rack. She dawned of amit
and pulled the rack out. Few sippers gave up the mystery.
The overbaked item was her backpack. What is it? Riley
asked from a safe distance. Hallie didn't answer, couldn't answer.
This went too far. Had her backpack been in there
the whole time waiting for this to happen? It didn't matter.
Dean had to pay rage seat under her skin and
on her sword hand. Callie grew up a pair of scissors,
protruding from the knife block by the sink. She cut
a sled in the melted polus so next to the
tops of her the teeth of which had been welded shut.
Cold air fluttered through her borrowed pajamas as a breeze
passed through the house, dispersing the last wafts of smoke.
She checked her phone first. The screen had chattered and
turned brown near the corners, a black and mass protruded
from the bottom like a tumor. She checked her laptop next,
hope and she might still be able to send messages
with that. The MacBook's metal exterior was in fine shape,
but when she opened it up, she saw the same
brownish ray discoloration that infected her phone screen. The laptop
refused to turn on, even though she had put it
in the back back with a full battery. Another minute
in the oven, and Cally wondered if that battery would
have exploded for charging cables were an unrecognizable mass of
black and rubber and scorched. Why the extra set of
clothes she had pat some yoga pants and a T
shirt smelly and discolored. The Yuga pants wouldn't even unfold.
The smoke detective in the living room had stopped on
its own, and now the one in a kitchen shut
up as well. Cally turned and saw Raleigh standing beneath
it on a chair with a pencil and hand. Thanks,
Calli said flatly. Then out of the corner of her eye,
she saw Dean standing in the doorway. I didn't do it,
he said, automatically. I didn't say you did, Calli responded,
although her voice betrayed this suspicion you were going to,
Dean said, I'm calling your parents. This is too much
what they paid me to be here once even cover
my phone, that alone, my computer, and now I don't
have any clothes at all. Please don't, Deane said, looking down.
Riley left the room. You think I'm going to listen
to anything you have to say after this, kid, you'd
better pray I don't see you, or maybe get you
charged with attempted murder. What would have happened if my
laptop blew up and caught the whole oven on fire? Ha,
your sister's room is right up there. You could have
killed us both, But I didn't do it, Dean said, finally,
seeming as angry as Cally knew he was beneath his
coal fasault. Then who did Riley? Come on, kid, I'm
not an idiot. She hates me, and Deane said, back
to his meek self. She wants you to think it's
me please? No, really, I bet she put my rat
in her own room too. She's done stuff like that
before because she knows Mam and Dath think I'm weird
and don't like me very much, but they love her
to death. Even if that's true, Cally started, then softened
her tone when she saw Deane had started crying. Even
if that's all true, I don't think she could have
reached that bathroom window. So who opened that? Dean sniffled,
looked up, then looked back down. Cally saw conflict in
that brief flash of his eyes. He been about to
say something he thought better of. Cally took a deep
breath and caught the stench of smoke again. It was
lace in her hair. Okay, new deal. I'm going to
go take another shower. When I come back out, I wonderful,
honest explanation about what's been going on. If I'm satisfied.
I won't call your parents yet, but if I have
a single doubt about your story and calling and telling
them I'm leaving so they'll have to come back. Guessing
they won't be too happy about that. Dean stood still
as Cally brushed past him to go upstairs. Just as
she passed, Dean muttered something she didn't catch. What was that,
she asked, whipping around, she has helped, Dean repeated, pho Riley.
Dean nodded his cunners sound crazy, but I've heard her
talking to some one. She goes in her closet and
shuts the door. Sometimes sometimes she talks back to herself
in a weird voice. You're going to have to do
better than that, Kelly replied. She went upstairs to shower.
This time she locked both doors and put the chair
under the door knob. Again, she shared the smoky silk
pajamas and toned on the water. She tested it with
the back of her hand until it felt just right,
then stepped under the steam. The second her back was turned,
absorbing the full blast of the well pressure shower. The
water turned scalding hot, so hawt it instantly fogged up
the shower door. Calli screamed in shock and paint and
jumped into the corner, away from the painful stream. She
couldn't reach the door without putting her arm in the
burning water. She couldn't reach the dial Eata. She could
see it barely turned the quarter of the way toward
the hottest setting. What is wrong with this house? She
yelled to no one but herself. Steam now filled the
whole room again. Calli slid along the shaw wall, getting
flit by droplets of hot water as she reached for
the dial. Just as her finger tips finally touched the
slippery metal, she heard a mute streek from somewhere else
in the house. She wondered if one of the kids
had tried to wash their hands and been burned away
she had by the shower. Finally, Calli managed to kill
the shower stream. She wrapped herself in a towel and
went into the bedroom. She cracked up in the bedroom
door and called out, as everything okay out there, He
let his snake loose Riley scream from her bedroom. Callie
instinctively slammed the door shut and frantically looked around for
dean python. He was dead if his parents didn't hurry
back after she called them, which she was absolutely going
to do now. She was going to kill the boy herself.
When she felt sure enough the snake wasn't hiding in
the room, Callie hurriedly put on another set of pajamas.
Where is it now? She called through the door. I
don't know, Riley screamed. Callie slid along the wall until
she reached Riley's doorway. The girl was up on her bed,
as she had been when the rat was in her room.
Where is dean? Callie asked, I don't know. Great so
he lets the snake out and disappears one lost her
all before I bring the fury of his parents done
on him. Okay, just stay there, she told Riley. The
poor child was in tears. Can you check in a closet,
Riley asked. Hallie swallowed hard and nodded. She opened the
closet door. There were no pythons in sight. Callie tried
to close the door, but Riley moned, did you check
the whole thing? Where ile ead it? Please? Kelly. Everything
within her thought to stay out, but she stepped into
the closet anyway. The door slam shut behind her. Riley,
Callie called, the door was locked. Ray, She shouted onder
beside a sliver of light crawling under the door. She
was in pitch darkness. Something behind her moved it's little
on the floor. Cally screamed for Riley once more. As
she kicked blindly, she remembered the way the snake had
snapped round the rat the day before. Would it be
able to do that to her? As panic rose within her,
Calli grabbed one of the high shelves and pulled herself up.
With some effort, she managed to bring one leg up,
then the other, until she was on all fours in
the shelf of Hythen below her hissed, Riley helped me.
Callie screamed. She was so terrified of the snake she
didn't stop to consider it could have been Riley who
slammed the door, Riley who had lured her into the closet.
It was Riley. In a silence that followed her cry
for help, Cally realized Dean had been telling her the truth.
It had been Riley the whole time. Her head bumped
the ceiling, but rather than give her a lump, the
ceiling gave way. Cally remembered the scuttle door she had
seen up there the attic. She didn't know if it
would offer her an escape, but it would at least
put something between her and the loose python. She nudged
the scuttle doorside and climbed into the musty attic. Something
tickled her cheek, causing her to scream and nearly fall
back through the opening, But when she batted the thing away,
she realized it was only a bea decord. She gave
it tug, and thankfully the attic lit up. Calli dropped
the scuttle door back over the opening to seal herself
off from a snake and child below. It was immediately
apparently attic off a noer'scape, only temporary protection. Insulations built
out of every corner. The whole attic was smaller than
the master bedroom. In one corner, Calli finally found her clothes.
They were stuffed with insulation and propped up as if
a person, as if she herself was sitting there watching her.
Wiley did take them. Cally realized only how remained a
question Beside the life sized makeshift all stood at tank.
Cally guest was the water heater. The attic was cold
and Cally wondered if the water he could warm her up.
She crawled over to it and huddled against the wall
from her bulging clothes. In the opposite corner, Riley's uffled
voice traveled up through the floor. Okay, she's up there, now,
what should I do? Callie held her breath to hear
who Riley was talking to? Dean the snake neither, It
turned out the voice which replied also belonged to Riley,
but it was altered. It sounded deeper and somewhat choked.
Get the poison. The choked voice said, what they know?
It was me? Riley asked, I'll take care of it,
dear one. The other voice replied. Riley's footsteps shuffled out
of the closet below. Callie searched for something, anything she
had missed, which she could use to block the scuttle
door from opening. The only thing she could think of
was herself. Riley's footsteps came back, dragging something behind her.
Callie threw herself over the door, and a moment later,
the little girl pushed up on the door and found
it wouldn't move. Get off, Riley screamed, Let me go.
Callie screamed, back. You have to die, Riley replied. Something
flashed beneath the water heater, stealing Cally's gaze. The tiny
blue flame underneath its swelled and fell rapidly, as if
it were panting. Calli took a calculated risk and off
towards the heater and snuffed out the pilot flame. It
relied itself there with her face and the floor. Looking
under the water heater, she found a sculpture. It appeared
to be made from baked clay and roughly resembled a person,
a person with two long horns protruding from their head.
The scuttle door burst open, and Riley's hands grabbed the ledge.
She lifted her head to the but froze when she
saw what Calli held in her hand. She found it,
the other voice said, through Riley's mouth, leave it alone,
Riley said, in her own hand, she held a tall
green cane, a butt bomb, the tap that releases enough
insect killing fog to have filled the attic four times over.
What if I don't, Calli demanded, no answer, fine and
smashing it. No, the other voice yelled. Riley dropped the
canister and disappeared from the hole. You'll let me, come down,
Calli asked, yes. An angry voice below hissed. It could
have been Riley or the other. Where's the snake back
in its cage? Right, said, her voice still contained venom.
I'll break your a little doll if you're lying. Cally said.
There was no answer, but she moved toward the exit. Anyway,
I'm coming down. Riley waited in the closet doorway, scowling
until Kelly dropped on to the chair below. Now give
it back, Riley said, no, not until after I've called
your parents. This is over. Riley snarled, her eyes widened,
her pupils expanded, her hands tightened into claws. She only
took one step before Cally threw the clay figuring in
the floor and stomped on it. Riley unleashed an agonized scream,
then collapse. Callie didn't look back as she ran out
of the room. She found Dean lying still on the
floor beside the stairs. It appeared he had been pushed
over the rail. Thankfully, he was still breathing. Without thinking
about how things would look for her, Cally ran to
the phone and called nine hundred eleven. Both children lived.
Dean had a concussion and a broken clavical but nothing
that wouldn't heal with time. Riley had no injuries at all,
but she seemed distant. After she woke up, she seemed hollow.
It seemed part of her, a significant part, hadn't woken
up with her, and Kelly hoped it never would. The
police contacted Francis and Matthew, who hurried back, or so
they claimed, Calli was detained until Dean was well enough
to corroborate her story. The psychologist interviewed both children. It
seemed Rileigh had contacted something Otherwolsey through the weag aboard.
It had instructed her to create the little figurine, to
bring it into the world of the living. The psychologist
said this was all Raleigh's way of coming to terms
with a psychotic break, but Callai knew better. She knew
Rileigh couldn't have reached that bathum window, couldn't have gotten
through the locked door, and absolutely could not have instantly
boiled a pot of water. Some mystery remained around Riley's
intentions with the life sized replica of Calli in the attic.
N de Francis no Matthew seemed to want to accept
that the sweet little girl had almost killed their supposedly
satanic son. They tried to press charges against Calli, but
Dean's story vindicated the babysitter. Plus there were no actual
signs of harm done to Rileigh, and Cally never mentioned
the bug bomb to any one. Riley was getting the
help she needed. Calli never cashed her check, she never
asked for any compensation for her phone, UHA computer. Of course,
this was not out of sympathy or compassion. This was
not because of some lingering guilt. No, it was far simpler,
Although perhaps difficult for someone else to understand. Cally quite
simply wanted absolutely nothing to do with that family ever again.
And that is the end. Thank you for listening, and
I will see you in the next one.