by Willow Rose
The nurse closed the door, and we were alone with Per Larsen, who was sitting completely still in the chair, looking at us out of the corner of his eye.
Morten exhaled. “Are you happy? You’ve seen him.”
I kneeled in front of Per Larsen and tried to look into his eyes. “Hello Per. My name is Emma Frost. I think you can hear me. I think you can understand and hear me perfectly, can’t you?”
Per Larsen didn’t react. A couple of moaning sounds escaped his mouth. I glanced around his room, and my eyes fell on the computer in the corner.
“So, you like computers, do you?” I asked.
“Come on, Emma. Let’s go home. This is ridiculous.”
“I don’t think so.”
“Emma,” Morten said, but I didn’t listen. I walked to the computer and pressed the keyboard. The screen turned on. Minecraft was open.
“Like to play Minecraft, do we?” I asked and pressed login. I heard the wheelchair move behind me. Per Larsen turned, and now I was certain he actually looked at me.
“All this because they hit you with the car?” I asked. I entered the game and didn’t have to go any farther. His profile was wearing a skin he had designed himself. Maya used to do the same thing. His character in the game looked exactly like Slender Man, with the black suit and tie and the expressionless face.
Per Larsen approached me from behind. Morten came closer too. “I think you need to call Allan,” I said.
“You really think he’s Slender Man?” Morten asked.
“I not only think it, I know it. And when the police get this computer and go through it, they’ll know it as well. He used those kids to get his revenge. They ruined his life back then.”
I kneeled in front of Per Larsen, who groaned loudly. I had a feeling he was trying to speak. Our eyes locked for a second and I felt his sorrow, his deep profound sadness.
Morten called Allan, who came to the home with Officer Tim and I told them everything. They confiscated the computer as part of the investigation. Morten and I decided to leave it all in their hands and drove home. On our way back, I spotted someone riding her bike on the street. I hit the brakes of the car.
“What are you doing?”
“There’s still one person who knows what really happened to Per Larsen, and who knows why Per wanted this revenge so badly. See, the way I figure it, everyone thought he was completely lost to the world. It wasn’t until he got the computer and tried to use it that he realized he suddenly had a way of communicating with the world for the first time since he’d been hit by the car at only six years old. He came up with the idea of using the kids he got to know through Minecraft. He probably read about Slender Man and about the teenagers in the States, and came up with the idea of impersonating this myth that many kids online believe in, the myth of Slender Man. But what makes you want revenge that badly after so many years? Certainly not an accident.”
I got out of the car, and as soon as Jonna Frederiksen saw me, she jumped off the bike.
“We need to talk,” I said.
EPILOGUE
November 2014
“WHAT ABOUT THAT ONE over there?”
I pointed at a golden retriever in the corner. I had always wanted a golden retriever, since I thought they were the nicest dogs in the world. But Maya had already set her heart on a small black curly-haired dog that kept barking at everything and everybody and biting his friends at the shelter.
“No, I really want this one,” she said.
I sighed. “But it looks just like Kenneth, and it seems to be just as misbehaved. You really think that’s a good idea?”
“That’s why I like it,” Maya said.
I smiled as I watched Maya pick up the small curly-haired dog. It was a crossbreed, they told me. Someone had found it in the street and given it to the shelter, so they had no idea how old it really was or where it came from. It wore no collar.
“Probably left by some German tourists who couldn’t take care of it anymore,” the red-haired lady named Camilla said.
“I want him,” Maya said with stars in her eyes. “I’ll call him Kenneth II.”
“You’re the one responsible for him then,” I said. “You have to take care of him and feed him and walk him.”
“Of course.”
I looked at the red-haired woman. “We’ve made our choice.”
While Camilla finished the paperwork, and Maya held Kenneth II in her hands looking happier than ever, I thought about how much had happened since we had been there last. Luckily, Jonna Frederiksen had told me everything and repeated it to Officer Allan. She had explained how Ulrik Larsen had killed the old man on the farm next to theirs because of what he had done to Peter, and then about how they wanted to beat Per Larsen up to shut him up, but he had run into the street and they had hit him with the car. I got a feeling it felt good for her to finally be able to tell the story and get it off her chest.
Lisa Rasmussen won the election, since she had no opponent, and she promised on the local TV to make sure there would be no lay-offs at the police station, since we needed every one of the officers we had here on the island. She was very grateful for their service, especially since they had saved her life during the assassination attempt. I was very pleased that she would fight for my boyfriend’s job.
Morten had gotten his job back. Since he had helped solve the three murders, the chief of police in Esbjerg called him in and told him the charges against him were dropped after they had seen the footage of Dr. Sonnichsen admitting to having framed him with the email, and later by paying someone to beat up Michael. I was also acquitted of my charges, since they couldn’t find any evidence against me, since my computer had been destroyed. PE wasn’t too happy about dropping the charges, but they had no choice, my lawyer told me. I just had to be more careful in the future, I had to promise her.
The three teenagers were convicted of murder and sentenced to juvenile prison, all three of them obtaining psychiatric help for their problems. Christoffer escaped with nothing worse than the fright.
They had examined Per Larsen’s computer and found lots of material, enough to take him to trial, even though it would be hard to put him in a prison worse than the one he was already in. At least he would never be let near a computer again, Morten had told me.
The charges against Dr. Sonnichsen were major, and still piling up, as far as I knew. Morten did most of the investigating, and I knew it was quite extensive. I was certain she was going away for a very long time. Finally, that story was over. She was out of my life, and my family and I could move on. Tonight, I was taking Morten folk dancing downtown.
“All you need to do is sign right here,” Camilla said, and pointed at the dotted line. I glanced at Maya right before I put the pen to the paper, then signed my name.
“There you go,” Camilla said. “The dog is yours. Good luck.”
THE END
Dear reader. Thank you for purchasing Emma Frost Mystery Series vol 7-9.
I truly hope you enjoyed this book. The idea for SLENDERMAN actually appeared when I heard that back in the sixties and even seventies, many Danish parents of autistic children were told that they should simply forget about their children while they were put in a home. The doctors told the parents to pretend the child had died and go have another one. Many autistic people in Denmark have therefore grown up in homes and never known their families or where they came from. I later read an article about a man who became autistic after being hit by a car, and that gave me the idea for what happened to Per .Don't forget to leave a review or to check out my other books if you haven't already read them.
Take care,
Willow
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BOOKS BY THE AUTHOR
MYSTERY/
HORROR NOVELS:
HIT THE ROAD JACK (JACK RYDER #1) - http://www.amazon.com/Hit the road Jack
SLIP OUT THE JACK (JACK RYDER #2)
ONE, TWO ... HE IS COMING FOR YOU (Rebekka Frank #1) - http://www.amazon.com/One, two ...
THREE, FOUR ... BETTER LOCK YOUR DOOR (Rebekka Frank #2) - http://www.amazon.com/Three, Four ...
FIVE, SIX ... GRAB YOUR CRUCIFIX (Rebekka Frank #3) - http://www.amazon.com/Five, Six ...
SEVEN, EIGHT ... GONNA STAY UP LATE (Rebekka Frank #4) - http://www.amazon.com/Seven, eight ...
NINE, TEN ... NEVER SLEEP AGAIN (Rebekka Frank #5) - http://www.amazon.com/Nine, ten ...
ELEVEN, TWELVE ... DIG AND DELVE (Rebekka Frank #6) - http://www.amazon.com/Eleven Twelve ... Dig and delve
THIRTEEN, FOURTEEN ... LITTLE BOY UNSEEN (Rebekka Frank #7) http://www.amazon.com/Thirteen fourteen ...
EDWINA - http://www.amazon.com/Edwina
ITSY BITSY SPIDER (Emma Frost #1) - http://www.amazon.com/Itsy Bitsy Spider
MISS DOLLY HAD A DOLLY (Emma Frost #2)- http://www.amazon.com/Miss Polly
RUN RUN AS FAST AS YOU CAN (Emma Frost #3) - http://www.amazon.com/Run run
CROSS YOUR HEART AND HOPE TO DIE (Emma Frost #4) - http://www.amazon.com/Cross your heart
PEEK A BOO I SEE YOU (Emma Frost #5) - http://www.amazon.com/Peek a Boo
TWEEDLEDUM AND TWEEDLEDEE (Emma Frost #6) - http://www.amazon.com/Tweedledum and Tweedledee
EASY AS ONE TWO THREE (Emma Frost #7) - http://www.amazon.com/Easy as One Two Three
THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME (Emma Frost #8) - http://www.amazon.com/Theres no place like HOME
SLENDERMAN (Emma Frost #9) - http://www.amazon.com/Slenderman
HORROR SHORT STORIES:
EENIE, MEENIE - http://www.amazon.com/Eenie, Meenie
ROCK-A-BYE BABY- http://www.amazon.com/Rock-a-bye
NIBBLE, NIBBLE, CRUNCH - http://www.amazon.com/Nibble, Crunch
HUMPTY, DUMPTY - http://www.amazon.com/Humpty, Dumpty
CHAIN LETTER - http://www.amazon.com/Chain Letter
PARANORMAL ROMANCE/SUSPENSE/FANTASY NOVELS:
BEYOND (AFTERLIFE #1) - http://www.amazon.com/Beyond
SERENITY (AFTERLIFE #2) - http://www.amazon.com/Serenity
ENDURANCE (AFTERLIFE #3) - http://www.amazon.com/Endurance
COURAGEOUS (AFTERLIFE #4) - http://www.amazon.com/Courageous
SAVAGE (Daughters of the Jaguar #1) - http://www.amazon.com/Savage
BROKEN (Daughters of the Jaguar #2) - http://www.amazon.com/Broken
A GYPSY SONG (The Wolfboy Chronicles) - http://www.amazon.com/A Gypsy song
I AM WOLF (The Wolfboy Chronicles) - http://www.amazon.com/I am WOLF
BOX SETS:
REBEKKA FRANCK SERIES - http://www.amazon.com/Rebekka Franck
DAUGHTERS OF THE JAGUAR - http://www.amazon.com/Daughtersof the Jaguar
THE AFTERLIFE SERIES - http://www.amazon.com/Afterlife
HORROR STORIES FROM DENMARK - http://www.amazon.com/Horror Stories
THE WOLFBOY CHRONICLES - http://www.amazon.com/THE WOLFBOY CHRONICLES
EMMA FROST MYSTERY SERIES VOL 1-3 - http://www.amazon.com/Emma Frost Mystery vol 1-3
EMMA FROST MYSTERY SERIES VOL 4-6 - http://www.amazon.com/Emma Frost Mystery vol 4-6
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
WILLOW ROSE is an international Best-selling author.
She writes Mystery/Suspense/Horror, Paranormal Romance and Fantasy. Originally from Denmark, she now lives on Florida's Space Coast with her husband and two daughters. She is a huge fan of Agatha Christie, Stephen King, Anne Rice, and Isabel Allende. When she is not writing or reading, you'll find her surfing and watching the dolphins play in the waves of the Atlantic Ocean. Sold more than 900.000 copies of her books.
Connect with Willow online:
http://www.willow-rose.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/willowredrose
https://twitter.com/madamwillowrose
The following is an excerpt from Willow Rose's Bestselling Horror Novel ELEVEN TWELVE ... DIG AND DELVE.
ELEVEN TWELVE
DIG AND DELVE(EXCERPT)
DAY 1
OCTOBER 6TH 2014
THE COLLAPSE
1.
IT WAS ONE of those things no one could have expected, and from where he was standing Claus Frandsen couldn’t have seen it coming, even if he knew in advance. It wasn’t something anyone felt or even suspected could happen in the neighborhood, especially since it was such a nice neighborhood. It was one of those that had a great school within walking distance, one where the owner’s association made sure people’s hedges met the right requirements and never became too high or too low, one of those that every year arranged a Christmas banquet at the community center, where most of them would attend and bring a dish. The kind of neighborhood where your children could play in the cul-de-sac without you having to keep a constant eye on them. It was a neighborhood where young people would settle, have their children, and then grow old there. They rarely left. It wasn’t a particularly expensive neighborhood, just a really good one with good and decent people.
At least that’s what they all thought it was. Until it happened. Until this thing happened that changed everything, even the people. Some would later say it brought out their true colors…that the disaster brought out their true nature.
Claus Frandsen from number ten was walking out his front door to get the newspaper. His dog Fifi, a small and, according to the neighbors often too loudly (but they would never tell him) barking poodle, tagged along with him. It had finally stopped raining after days of heavy rainfall. He was wearing his bathrobe over his PJ’s that his wife had ironed so neatly the day before, but were now all wrinkled up after a long night of sleep.
Claus Frandsen was whistling. He wasn’t usually a particularly happy or positive man, but this day was different. This morning, he had finally managed to persuade his wife, Ana, to let him have that motorcycle he had always dreamed about. Now that he was retired, he thought it was about time he realized his dreams.
“But I want to travel,” his wife had said, once he had aired the idea for the first time.
“Then let’s travel on my bike,” Claus had argued.
“I’m not going anywhere on a thing like that,” she said.
And that had been the end of that discussion so far. Until this morning, when she had finally caved in. She had rolled over to his side of the bed and looked into his eyes with a look Claus knew only meant that she wanted something from him.
“If I let you have a bike, will you buy me a house in Greece where we can go for three months every summer? Just like the Jespersens have?”
It was an expensive deal, but well worth it, Claus had thought. Now as he was whistling and walking to pick up the paper, he felt very satisfied with the deal. It was only too bad that he wouldn’t be able to bring his bike with him to Greece every summer. It was, after all, in the summertime that it was best to ride a bike. The rest of the year it was cold, well it was cold for the most part in Denmark, but if you were lucky you could get a month or maybe three good weeks in July or August.
We should go in the winter instead, he thought to himself as he opened the mailbox and pulled out his newspaper. The headlines talked about the growing tension between Russia and Ukraine, about the possibility of a war in Europe again.
Claus Frandsen scoffed. Had history taught them nothing? All this aggression led to nowhere. Everybody always ended up as losers in war. Claus should know. After spending years trying to help clean up the mess they made in the former Yugoslavia in the early nineties, as the Commander in Chief for the Danish Battalion, he’d seen his share of atrocities and heard a lot of stories that didn’t need to be told again.
When will they ever learn?
Fifi barked and he petted her on the top of her curly head. It was Ana’s dog, but he had kind of grown to like her over time.
“Yes, Fifi, I know you’re anxious to get your breakfa
st and, frankly, so am I,” he said.
The two of them started walking back towards the house as Claus spotted his neighbor from number twelve, Mrs. Sigumfeldt. She was walking to her car, followed by her three little munchkins, ages six, eleven, and twelve.
“Good morning,” he chirped and waved. “It’s going to be a beautiful one.”
Mrs. Sigumfeldt shooed her children into the station wagon one after the other, then waved back.
“We’ll have to see about that, Mr. Frandsen. Looks like it won’t stay dry all day. Got them big dark clouds coming at us again. Enjoy your day.”
“You too.”
Fifi barked like she wanted in on the conversation, but Mrs. Sigumfeldt had already closed the door and started the engine.
Claus Frandsen called her towards the door and opened it for the small dog. “Come on, Fifi. Let’s go get breakfast.”
The two of them had about fifty seconds more to live.
2
MRS. SIGUMFELDT WAS late, as usual. In the back seat of her minivan, the kids were arguing—also as usual. As a matter of fact, everything seemed to be just as usual, and it might as well have been, if it hadn’t been for the disaster luring underneath the road on which she was driving.
She couldn’t hear it because of the kids quarreling inside the car, but underneath the wheels of her Kia minivan, the ground was crackling, some would later in interviews on live TV refer to it as the ground sighing; others would say they had noticed a wailing rumble in the distance, like the ground was weeping. If that was true or just something they made up because they wanted to be on TV, no one would ever know.