"Damn insurance. I swear they must be in cahoots with the camera manufacturers. Always tryin' to make an extra buck. Bastards!"
"Yep. It's a scam. How soon can you get them, Big John?" Katie ran her right hand through her hair and realized it was sticking straight up in the most horrible bedhead shape. No wonder Big John wasn't looking her in the eye.
"No problem at all. I can get 'em today. Problem is..."
"What, John?"
Big John, the large and formidable man who had looked like a bone-crushing football player in his early years and was now a massive clothed bear, looked sheepish.
"The new cameras are wireless and I have trouble gettin' them to work with computers..."
"Ah, John. No worries, I can even show you how easy it is if you'd like. It's no problem."
Big John smiled and seemed delighted. Katie surmised that he'd probably have zero interest in learning how to hook it up.
"We're gonna be having a meetin' in town for lunch. The boys will be back in a couple hours and I'll have the stuff. Probably get it partly installed tonight. We can do the rest tomorrow."
"Perfect! Talk to you later!" Katie said. What a relief, she thought. Having the cameras would bring peace of mind.
Or so she thought.
Chapter 7
"Bad news and good news," Mel said. She was carrying her bag and put it down in the living room.
"Oh?"
"I need to go into the office to sign the legal paperwork for that multi-house transaction. It's messy as hell and I’ve got to be there. The good news is it'll only take a few minutes to do and the lawyers are waiting for me."
"Well that's a bummer." Katie looked genuinely down and upset by this.
"You are way too stressed out. You are hardly getting any sleep, you're pushing yourself way too hard, and you're imagining things--"
"Imagining things? What's that supposed to mean?"
"See what I mean?" Mel said, with her hands on her hips.
"Sorry. But I'm not imagining things. Weird stuff is happening here. This place has a bizarre vibe to it."
"Whatever. Come back to my place and hang out for the day. We'll go out for a nice dinner tonight. You come back to my place, crash, get a good night's sleep, and head home in the morning."
"Well..."
"Screw the 'well.' Just say yes, get your stuff and let's get going. I gotta run."
"But what about the boys?"
"What about them? They've got their jobs to do, you can leave the key under the mat, and there's nothing in this house for them to steal that couldn't have been stolen over the past 50 years!"
Katie paused, and then burst out laughing. "You do have a point."
"Get your ass upstairs, get packed and let's get going. The lawyers are waiting for me. Call Big John and tell him that the key is under the front mat."
"We're just gonna stop in to the office for a few minutes, if that's cool with you. Signing the paperwork will only take a few moments to do, then we can go back to my place and crash. Is that cool with you?" Mel said.
"Sounds great to me," Katie said. She was running her hand along the edge of the black leather seat of Mel’s Mercedes. She called it the 'big-ass black Merck.'
"God, I love your car, Mel."
"Well, it's not my car. The bank lets me use it for very generous monthly payments," she laughed. "When you own a real estate business you have to look the part of success, dress the part of success, and have the bank loans to create the illusion."
"You can't fool me. You are successful, in spite of the loans. You're doing fantastic, so don't try to BS me in any way, shape or form. I'll smack you."
"Well, I have done well for myself, I have to say. After a long line of losers in my family I'm the first to succeed."
It was a sad comment to make, but unfortunately it was true. Mel's mother had died from substance abuse, and she had an absent father who did transient jobs. She had started work when she was young, doing odd jobs just to be able to afford a pair of jeans.
Mel had always been good-looking, and a bit of a rebel. When she was 16 she was dating a 24-year-old man who was into real estate. He was a hustler--in a good way--working long hours day after day. He focused on getting listings instead of easy sales and ended up making a small fortune, buying a Porsche with cash. They split up, but she got her real estate license and her inspired drive from him.
Hadn't taken long for Mel to realize she could make more money owning a real estate firm with people working for her and having her signs all over town: Wragg-Brattle Real Estate.
Katie was proud of her best friend.
Mel's house was ranch style and ridiculously huge at 7,500 square feet. Mel claimed she 'needed' it for parties and events. It was in an upper class area, which Mel loved. It validated her.
Mel popped a bottle of wine and brought Katie a glass in the massive living room. Katie sat in possibly the world's most comfortable leather recliner with what seemed like a bazillion different comfort settings. She fiddled with the buttons.
Legs too high. Okay, too low. What the hell is poking my back? Ooops. Ohhh. That is perfect...
Mel headed to her home office--much bigger than her office in town--to take care of some loose business ends. Katie sipped her wine while enjoying the view of the woods and the small lake down the hill.
This is awesome. Just awesome. I needed this, she thought. She reached down into her leather bag, pulled out her laptop, flipped open the screen and pressed the power button.
"Hey, Mel! What's the Wi-Fi password?"
"Naked men wanted one two three--all one word and lowercase..."
"Pig!"
"Complain when those Australian studs drop by for a drink tonight..."
Katie giggled and shook her head. She began a search online for old newspaper archives. After several false starts she signed up for one that offered unlimited searches for seven days for free.
She typed in 'Blackstone Manor + murders.' A cute miniature newspaper popped up and spun around in circles for what seemed like ages. As she was sipping her wine and anticipating a tough search she was surprised to find that 13 hits appeared.
The first headline said "Family Massacred, Father Wanted" and she immediately clicked.
[Story]
November 8, 1954, Riverside: Police report of a grisly discovery of five bodies at the Blackstone Manor off of Main Street. Sheriff is refusing to release other details at this time, other than to say that there was an attempted arson as well. Police are seeking John Blackstone, who is missing. Bodies were discovered by a 13-year-old boy who called on the Blackstone residence to visit a friend. The town is in shock.
Mel broke Katie's concentration when she appeared with the bottle of wine. "How are you doing, need some more?"
Katie replied no, but discovered her glass was empty. "Well, maybe another glass. Hey, I found the newspaper report of the murders at my house--"
"What? How? Online? You can do that?"
"Yeah, I just found a newspaper morgue online. Just like a search engine, you type in something and it pulls up results. The murders made the news all across the States."
"What's it tell you?"
"Hang on, I just read the first one. Doesn't tell us anything much, other than it happened in November 1954."
"That's weird, I thought the murders were in the 1940s. Still, a long time ago... Hey, what else does it say?"
Mel poured a glass for each of them and settled into the matching recliner. She pressed a button and was instantly comfortable. Her chair seemed a mile away from Katie.
"Still checking. Nothing we don't know already, except a kid found the bodies..."
"Oh God. How horrible. Does it say a name?"
"No. I'm just at the breaking news... God, I'm glad times have changed, there's an article about people trying to get rid of Blacks from town..."
"You said the 50s, pretty sad time for racism."
"Oh my God..."
"What? What a
re you reading?"
"The next day they revealed it was five family members. The wife, three kids and mother. All were shot all through the house. Appears that the middle child put up a struggle..." Katie was trying to read and talk at the same time.
"Don't leave me hanging!"
"The boy's name was Daniel. Police figure he was trying to save his sister and was shot doing so. It goes on to say that the mother was shot upstairs in her room and it appears that she was dragged partway but left in the doorway." Katie let out another half-laugh.
"What?"
"Again, different times. Described the mother as being quite fat. Nice."
"Agreed. Glad times have changed. Hey, what about the fire, any mention of that?
Katie was distracted. "Nah... ait...duplicate story... Oh, it looks like someone tried to start a fire but it didn't catch. Although it does say the police were amazed as there were gas cans and rags. 'Miracle' is the word describing it."
Katie kept clicking different newspaper stories. Some were from different newspapers but were duplicates. "Here's another: John Blackstone wanted for the murders of his family. Absolutely no trace of him, although it is confirmed he withdrew nine thousand dollars from his mother's bank account--"
"That would have been a ton of cash back then. And it would have been cash. How the heck do you--"
"Oh my God..."
"Don't do that! Spit it out," Mel said.
"Oh. My. God."
"Did you hear what I just--"
"Jesus. The thirteen-year-old boy who found the family was Chris Watkin--"
"WHAT?"
"Apparently found the bodies and witnessed John Blackstone leave the house--"
"Where did he go?"
"It just says Watkin mentioned the forest. A police search turned up nothing, but the Sheriff at least admitted that they didn't search till the next day--"
"And if you think our police department is small now, it was just a few people back then. This is a pretty quiet town."
Katie glanced out the floor-to-ceiling windows at the lake below. "That would mess anyone up. For sure. Poor kid. Good grief, I should say poor man..."
Mel joined Katie in staring out the window. "Did they ever find this bastard?" Katie asked out loud. She began searching the laptop again.
"Not a trace, according to stories I've heard. They checked bus stations, train stations, airports, everything. If he did skip town, he did it cleanly.
"How does anyone disappear?"
"Again, chickie, different times. Rumor has it he moved to a new town, took up a new identity and that was that."
Katie was reading as they talked. "Crazy..."
Mel waited. Nothing. "You are doing it again. Crazy... WHAT?"
"2004 was the fiftieth anniversary of the massacre, and they used the fingerprints from John Blackstone to do a search in the crime database. In 2014 they did it again with a DNA sample, but it didn't work..." Katie said.
"You know what creeps me out? He could be in a town murdering people and getting away with it--"
"Here's an article that says the family was extremely religious and fanatics--"
"Actually, I don't think that's true. Apparently the whole family stopped going to church. Blackstone taught Sunday school and kept going. If anyone was a fanatic, it was probably him. Don't think the family was."
Katie was excited. She kept interrupting with 'updates' that she was reading. Mel didn't mind, as it was clearing up the story and separating fact from fiction.
"Oh. Here's another one. Two weeks before the murders he was fired from the sawmill. Company was bought out and they eliminated a bunch of management jobs and laid off a number of workers. He was a casualty. Witnesses say he showed up at the library daily in his business suit and read books all day long, as in he was trying to keep it secret."
"Freaky," Mel said.
"Shizzah!"
"I'm going to smack you..."
"Dear Lord."
"Okay," Mel said, pressing the buttons to make her chair return to the sitting position, "I'm coming over and I'm gonna slap you out..."
Katie turned and laughed. "Sorry. It's just incredible what you can find online. There's an article about Christopher Watkin and the weird death of his wife. It references that she's from the Blackstone lineage and how weird it is that he married into the family after their deaths--"
"Oh, it's weird alright. But when you know the backstory it makes sense--"
"Whatever, but doesn't it seem weird he witnesses the deaths, then marries the niece, who then dies and suddenly he owns everything? Mentions he became a millionaire. No mention of his background other than 'humble" family. So, the story goes that the Blackstone family felt sorry for him and would console him by having him over for Christmas dinner, New Year's, etc. And it became a tradition. He and Petula fell in love and got married young."
"The house...it was cleaned up and given to the young couple. Which is friggin' weird if you ask me. Can you imagine? Saying, 'Sweetie, you know the house your aunt was massacred in and your new husband witnessed it? Yeah...it's all yours now!'"
"Ugh. Horrible. Never thought of that! What kind of a monster would do THAT?" Katie twisted her face in disgust. She shifted in her chair just thinking about it.
"Yeah, weird as hell--"
"Oh my God--"
"Not again!" Mel said.
Katie had put the laptop on the coffee table and was holding her glass of wine. She was frozen. Mel leaned in. Katie was processing something in her head, finding words to describe what appeared to be a horrible thought.
"Uh. Yesterday...I was in the library and I thought I saw a worker near the willow tree. I did a double-take and noticed Chris Watkin just...standing...by the tree--"
"What was he doing? How come you didn't tell me?"
"...Well, he wasn't doing anything. He actually was resting his back against it and just...looking at the house..."
"And..."
"Well, I went out to see him. He just said he wanted to see how the house was coming along and commented on how beautiful the outside was looking. Seemed harmless enough..."
"And..."
"Well, now that I think of it, I don't recall seeing a car and don't recall hearing a car pull up."
"He actually gets around on a scooter. Perfect, as he's a weird looking guy on a weird looking yellow scooter--"
"Uh-huh. But I've been getting a feeling of being watched. At first I thought squatters, maybe a Peeping Tom...you don't think it would be him, do you?"
"As weird as he is, I don't think so. His scooter does about 10 miles per hour and it's a long way to come across town...he had the place all these years, I think it's natural for him to come and see it. Promise me you'll tell me if he shows up again?"
"I will."
Chapter 8
Where am I? was Katie's first waking thought. She found herself lying in a king bed in a mostly white decorated room. She blinked her eyes and realized she was at Mel's house. She could smell coffee.
Tossing off the duvet, she opened the silk curtains, exposing a stunning morning view of the forest and the lake below. There was a dock, but no boat. Mel had talked about getting a houseboat to go cruising, but it would have to wait till next year.
Katie opened her door and headed to the kitchen. She was expecting to find Mel, but found a note by the coffee maker: "Hey, fresh coffee for you. When you leave, please text me and I'll set alarm. Fun times. Love ya. M"
Katie poured a coffee and headed to the living room to enjoy the cup and view.
Last night had been a relaxed and enjoyable night in town with a great friend and fabulous Italian food.
Katie sat her coffee cup down and went to pick up her laptop from the coffee table. On top of the laptop was a business card: 'Psychic Diana--Crystal and Tarot reader, house blessings a specialty.'
Katie let out a laugh. She had laughed last night too when Mel suggested getting this woman to come and 'bless' the house with sage to ca
st out any unwanted spirits or energy. She was shaking her head when her cell phone rang.
"Oh my God, Big John. I forgot to tell you I'd be out!"
"Well, it's kinda hard to install stuff in yer house if you aren't around to open the door." He laughed, but it was a polite laugh. As in: I'm laughing, but it's not funny, you idiot.
"So sorry. The key is under the mat at the door..." She paused, and could hear him grunting as he was bending down.
"Found it. Is it okay for me to go in and install the alarms?"
"Please do. Sorry. I'll be back soon."
Katie hung up the phone. She fired up her laptop, answered a few emails and made a short list of groceries, a few items needed for the house, and not long after headed out.
"How the heck am I going to get home without a car?" she said out loud. For a woman who planned down to the tiniest detail, she couldn't believe how scatterbrained she felt.
At the same time, she felt more relaxed than ever before. Everything was going smoothly now, the main work outside was amazing and the 'boys' would have the inside done shortly. She envisioned another nice, profitable flip.
"We'll take the back route, there's construction up ahead, miss," said Eddie, the non-stop gabbing taxi driver.
They drove off of the main street through a residential area. Katie was daydreaming and basking in the wonderful relaxed feeling she felt. She'd have to thank Mel for that when they spoke next.
As the cab made its way down the street she saw a sign outside of one particularly large house with beautiful wooden siding that said "Dentist."
A bit further along was another sign. Not so nice. A bit gaudy looking, with Christmas lights on it. As they drove closer she couldn't believe her eyes.
"Eddie. Did Mel set you up to take me this way?"
Eddie flinched. "No, ma'am. The road is blocked. It would have been much faster had it not been blocked. This is the next fastest way. Why?"
Sight Unseen Complete Series Box Set Page 5