hi dearest friends. has it really been so long? my poor laptop died in November, and ive been without one ever since. ideas for stories never leave my mind for long, and this chapter has been written in my head for about a month though. it just took this long to get it all written down. this will be the third and final installment of the Harold Caldwell series that all started so long ago with Secrets of the Manor. this chapter is super short, and will be the shortest of any future chapters. it is just to test out to see who is still actually reading stories connected with the series that has sadly shown its last episode. enjoy!

"The past is never where you think you left it."
― Katherine Anne Porter

Aedan McCormick stretched out his legs, and rested them on the coffee table in front of the couch. It had been a long day. Hell, it had been a long year. Aedan had taken up Reid's offer, and lived with the agent until he graduated from high school. They needed each other. No one else in the world knew what they really went through, locked away from life itself in the grasp of Harold Caldwell. It was a long road to recovery, and as much as he hated to admit it, he would never really be himself ever again. That ended the afternoon he was abducted with his older brother. Endless counselors and medication helped to calm the constant nightmares, but they weren't helping much when it came to the unimaginable loss of his brother or the chills that went down his spine whenever he saw his scars in the mirror. He tried as hard as he could to move past the horrors that remained in his mind, but that was who he was. He was coming to terms with the facts that he would never see his brother or uncle again, and that he would always have an aversion to classical music and the dark. For the first week after their release from the hospital, he always had to sleep in Reid's room. It was never anything sexual. They just needed to be with each other to feel safe. When Aedan proclaimed that he wasn't afraid anymore, he started sleeping in his own room. With the lights on. He always had the lights on. Harold was dead, and there was nothing else to be afraid of.

He moved into his own apartment the week he started college. He didn't know who he was trying to prove himself to, but he wanted everyone to think that he was doing okay. He qualified for a service dog because of his severe PTSD so that meant he was never alone. The golden retriever wasn't much of a guard dog, but the dog went everywhere that Aedan did. The dog, named Buddy, kept Aedan constant companionship during the long nights. Reid called him every single night to check up on him, but as the months went by, Reid called less and less. He was getting on solving dangerous cases while Aedan was still fighting to pass Algebra quizzes. Life was moving on because it had to. It wasn't going to wait until Aedan felt better.

Aedan formed a small group of friends through his college courses. None of them were that close because he wouldn't let them get close. All of them knew about his past experiences, and while they never specifically asked what happened, he was sure they were judging him. Most teenage boys didn't need a trained dog to help them get an Uber. He tried dating again shortly after Christmas, but when the girl leaned in to kiss him, he almost kicked her. He didn't mean to, but she never called him again. A therapist assured him that, with time, he would be able to hold steady relationships, but he didn't think that would be any time soon. He just wasn't ready yet, but he never told Reid.

Aedan just finished his last test of the year, and while he didn't think he got the perfect score, he knew he passed. School was over until next fall, and he was thrilled to finally be done. He didn't choose an official major yet, but it felt good to be getting the basic classes out of the way. Since he didn't live in a dorm, he didn't have to worry about moving out. The summer was all his, and he was planning to enjoy it. He chose a random cartoon to watch on television while he waited for his pizza to come. Buddy curled up next to him, and he could have just fallen asleep with the TV running. He slept more than he probably should have, but the therapist assured him that was normal after what he went through. The doorbell ringing brought him out of his spur of the moment slumber, and Buddy jumped off the couch. Aedan took a $20 bill out of his wallet, and headed towards the door. He paid for the pizza online already, but he was always generous with his tips. He had more money than he knew what to do with, and felt the need to pay it forward to those who weren't in his same situation. He opened the door only to be rudely shoved back inside the apartment. The $20 bill fell on the carpet while Aedan landed on his butt. He didn't have time to access the situation though. Buddy was barking, and the intruder was blocking the only way out of the apartment.

Aedan pushed himself to his feet and ran blindly towards the bedroom. His cell phone was lying forgotten on the couch, but he didn't want to be in an open room with the presumed robber. He locked the door behind him just as two gunshots filled the air. Buddy stopped barking. Aedan ran over to his window. His apartment was on the first floor so he didn't have to worry about breaking his neck during the escape, but the door was kicked open before he even attempted opening up the window. Aedan froze in place. He didn't have anything to defend himself with so he felt his legs walking him back against the wall as the stranger got closer.

It was a man. Aedan knew that much. He was wearing all black with a ski mask covering up his face. He looked even bigger than Agent Morgan was. It wasn't hard to spot the muscles protruding through his shirt making Aedan feel even smaller.

Aedan put up his hands to show that he wasn't armed. "Please man. I don't know what you want, but there's like $200 in my wallet. I could give it to you. Is that what you want?"

The man didn't answer, but with every second, he was one step closer to Aedan. "I have credit cards too. I can give them to you win the pin number. Please. Take whatever you want. It's all yours. Laptop. Camera. It's seriously all yours."

It was obvious that the intruder didn't want anything that Aedan owned. Aedan took a deep breath, and dodged underneath the large man's legs, and made a run for the front door. He stopped short when he saw Buddy sprawled out on the kitchen floor. His golden fur was matted with dark blood, and Aedan's heart dropped. He turned back towards the front door, but his moment delay was a second too long. The man in black grabbed Aedan's dark hair and slammed his head against the kitchen counter. Aedean's body crumpled next to his beloved dog. Aedan never knew what hit him. He was out of it before his body hit the floor.

please review if you guys want me to continue. xoxo