Chapter 13 - A Ghost from the Past
I sprinted out of the bathroom, my mind racing faster than my pounding heart. I grabbed a pair of latex gloves from the kitchen cleaning supplies, retrieved the bloody camera from the closet, and wrapped it tightly in a thick plastic garbage bag. I shoved it deep into my oversized leather tote.
"Emma! Noah! Get your coats, right now!" I yelled, trying to keep the sheer panic out of my voice.
Noah looked up from his new toys, his little brow furrowed. "But Mom, we just opened our presents."
"I know, baby, I'm sorry," I said, grabbing their snow boots and practically forcing them onto their feet. "It's an emergency. We have to go on a surprise road trip. Right this second."
My frantic energy terrified them into compliance. Within three minutes, we were running out the back door leading to the attached garage. I threw them into the backseat of my SUV, buckling them in with shaking hands.
As the garage door slowly rattled open, the piercing wail of police sirens echoed in the distance. The sound was growing louder by the second, bouncing off the silent, snow-covered houses of my new neighborhood.
I slammed the car into reverse, peeling out of the driveway just as the flashing red and blue lights illuminated the front gates of the community. I kept my headlights off, taking the narrow service road that led to the rear maintenance exit.
We slipped out into the dark, freezing January night exactly as a fleet of police cruisers swarmed my front lawn.
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I drove aimlessly for thirty minutes, taking every backroad I could find to put distance between us and the city. Emma was crying quietly in the backseat, holding her brother's hand. I promised them everything was going to be fine, but the bitter taste of a lie lingered on my tongue.
I pulled into the parking lot of a deserted 24-hour diner. I needed a burner phone. I needed cash. But most importantly, I needed to know exactly what was on the blood-soaked device sitting in the passenger seat.
