So, this chapter is pretty short, but that's okay. Short chapters are good. But what's not good is what Mike and Evan find in the forth closet...
Shout out to Cheah! Thanks dude for the endless support! [heart]
Mike woke up at exactly midnight the next day. It was a strange hour to wake up for him. He tossed and turned for a while to see if he would go back to sleep with no avail. So, with an exasperated groan, Mike threw himself up off his bed.
Everyone else was asleep. Mike learned that pretty quickly. He didn't bother trying to be quiet, walking down the hall. He didn't even make it down to the end. Mike found himself stopping himself at a door that kept itself locked for a year now.
Elizabeth's door.
Afton was right. Thinking about his dead sister pained Michael. At the same time, it filled him with a series of different questions. There was a closed casket funeral for Elizabeth- was there even a body to begin with? Did anybody know what happened to her?
The children came into his mind again. Trying to find them was a tedious job, and the thought of them was always in the back of his head. Taunting. Where he looked, he saw newspaper clippings of missing children. He could already recall their names and the faces that fit those names.
The first one. A little girl about Evan's age. She went by the name of Susie, blonde with curls and blue eyes. Last seen on June 26th. Another kid shared her missing date. The same kid who promised Mike to watch over Evan. Cassidy was described with long black hair, straight, with the same eyes that watched everything. After them came a small group of boys. Fritz, with a mess of red hair and freckles, Jeremy, the last to go missing, and the oldest, Gabriel. All five children and their profiles all marked deep in Michael's mind.
He looked intensely at Elizabeth's door. A voice within his subconscious told him to enter the room. And so, not really having much of a choice about it, he grabbed the handle in his hand.
It turned easily, and the door opened without protest. Mike slowly entered the room, breathing in the stale air. Nothing had changed since it was last used. Toys were still placed in their suited corners, all covered in a fine layer of dust. He could almost see the ghostly figure of his sister playing with her dolls, tempting him to play house with her.
Immediately, Michael got all choked up. He covered his mouth with one hand, feeling sick all over again. He couldn't be in the room anymore.
He left.
He went back to bed.
He dreamt an unpleasant dream about dead kids trying to play hide and seek with him.
He woke up feeling like an insomniac.
The sun bled through the blinds of his bedroom, spewing into the room and landing directly on his face. The unusual rays of light burned against the back of his eyelids. Mike groaned groggily, turning over in hopes to go back to the world of sleep. But he was already wide awake, and it seemed like a waste of time to head back to sleep in fruitless attempts. Might as well start the day.
Outside was still covered entirely with slush and snow. Slipping his sweater on, Mike thought about how long it probably snowed in the prior night. A dark line of thought arrived in his mind- if finding the children would take as long as it is, would that mean someone would be able to find them before he did? Mike shook his head. Nobody knew where they were except Mike and the killer. Besides, Afton wouldn't have done anything that gave himself away?
Right?
Well, Michael wasn't so sure about that. Those notes on Afton's computer was the best amount of evidence he could conjure. Especially if Afton was sending him to court.
Yes, he remembered. It was one of the few interactions he had left with Henry. And Henry was like extended family to him.
Henry was dead.
Charlie was dead.
Who killed Charlie?
Michael rested his hand against the door, hand gripping the handle tightly. His knuckles were turning white with the tension, but he didn't care. The pain helped him, somehow, think more clearly.
Who did kill Charlie? Sweet little Charlie. Impossibly smart, cheerful Charlie. Charlie, Elizabeth's best friend. Thinking about it, all the fingers pointed to Afton. The man was the cause of everything awful for both families.
Perhaps it was a horrible thought to wish Afton suffered like his victims did. Maybe not. Regardless, Michael felt rage consume his person. Rage paired with confusion, the urge of vengeance and sorrow. None of those emotions would get him anywhere if they kept rotting deep inside of him. Mike took in a shaky breath.
"MIKEY!"
Mike's focus was broken immediately. He scrambled to get out of his room. Evan was waiting for him, eyes widened in fear. Before Michael could get a singular word out, Evan grabbed him firmly by the hand and pulled him down to Elizabeth's door.
Evan pushed him towards the door, which was ajar. "There's something there," he said, voice barely above a whisper.
"Nothing's there-"
"Look."
"Nothing's there Evan."
Evan shook his head, hiding behind Michael. With a small foot, he nudged the door open. Small lines of green light seeped across the carpet. Michael cocked his head.
"In the closet."
Michael stepped carefully in the room. Suddenly, he realized he could pick up the sound of machines clicking together, servos moving with life. Evan moved slowly with him, always hiding. When they stepped into the ways of the green light, Evan pointed to the closet to emphasize his point. Michael looked down at the ground.
He bit his lip. There was something definitely residing in the closet. He lifted his head up. And whatever it was, it was big.
"Who's there?" Michael asked. He thought asking was so smart…
Unknownst to the boys, a voice answered. A sweet, soprano voice that sounded too familiar.
"Check the fourth closet. Or perhaps not. It's your choice after all, dearest Mikey."