My mom was the one who “suggested” I volunteer at the little history museum in the park. Her idea of suggesting was signing me up and popping her head in my room later on to tell me I was expected to show up the following Saturday at 7 AM. “It'll look good on your college... Continue Reading →

The steak was the first thing to go missing. I'd left it to defrost in the fridge overnight, but by morning, only the plate it had been sitting on remained. I asked my husband, Connor, about it, but he said he hadn't touched it, and our seven year old son, Jamie, was so thoroughly grossed... Continue Reading →

Things had been rocky lately. I knew the first year of marriage was supposed to be one of the hardest, but no one had said there'd be days where I felt like I was waking up next to a stranger. I'd stare at his face, still lined with tension even in his sleep, and I'd... Continue Reading →

When my sister told me she was moving for a new job, I was torn; part of me was thrilled for her, part of me didn't want to see her go. We'd never lived more than an hour apart and the idea of her being so far away was an alien one that would take... Continue Reading →

The clock struck one AM. Don got up to get his usual mid-shift cup of coffee, Margery was trying to explain to a belligerent drunk that no, he couldn't have his toddler arrested for removing his diaper and smearing its contents across the TV, but she was happy to send a squad car over, and... Continue Reading →

You loved me once. It’s the only thing I still believe. It sustains me, even now, in the darkness. Even now, after you’ve gone. It was the first passage on the first page in the diary we found while exploring one of the basement rooms of St. Flora’s. My boyfriend, Damien, had been the one... Continue Reading →

I tried really hard to get my kid out of my neighborhood. When he was born, I made all the promises I'm sure my old man made to me when I was young. You're not gonna live like this. You're gonna be better than me. You're gonna be somebody. But what does an eighteen year... Continue Reading →

I was still new to the evidence locker when the dollhouses were brought in. I had been warned that I'd see some strange, disturbing things coming in and out of the cage, but I never could have imagined anything like that. I'd only been an employee for the sheriff's office for a month when the... Continue Reading →

I didn't think much of it when I showed up to the Lorries’ and found seven year old Rona June cuddling a stuffed unicorn. It seemed like she had a new toy for every day of the week; her parents’ answer to any complaint the kid might have. Loneliness, boredom, sadness, it all could be... Continue Reading →