ARMOIRE
The already foreboding armoire seems to have gained a new layer of menace. The dolls seem more like a collection of tiny corpses, and the shadows at the back of the armoire itself seem to writhe. The Salesman’s briefcase sits unlocked on the top shelf. There is also a still-locked cabinet beneath the main compartment. The doors of the armoire sway ever so slightly, noticeable only due to the haunting creak accompanying their almost imperceptible movement.
You lean in to study the dolls. At least, you try to. As you scan them, you can’t help but get the impression you’re being studied in return. Movement, always just at the corner of your eye, has your gaze skipping back and forth. Has that one always been grinning at you? And that tall one, has it always leaned so close? It’s the giggle, just loud enough to startle you, too quiet to know which one it came from, that has you leaning away and moving on.
You lean in to study the dolls. At least, you try to. As you scan them, you can’t help but get the impression you’re being studied in return. Movement, always just at the corner of your eye, has your gaze skipping back and forth. Has that one always been grinning at you? And that tall one, has it always leaned so close? It’s the giggle, just loud enough to startle you, too quiet to know which one it came from, that has you leaning away and moving on.
You remove the briefcase from the shelf and unlatch it, revealing its contents. All that remains inside is this torn poster:
The smell of old leather enters your nostrils, and in the blink of an eye the Salesman appears in front of you.
“Sure thing Doc, anything to help.”
“I wish I knew! That poor kid can’t even get any peace in the afterlife. If it’s not people poking their noses into the crime, then it’s something or someone hiding her away somewhere to keep this all quiet. Something twisty is going on here, Doc, and I’m as lost as you.“
“Let’s see, after being invited inside, a bit of chaos ensued. There was hurried talk about what to do with the broken down car, and then the neighbor was there. I’m not sure when she entered the room, but she was insisting that something be done about the children. The next thing I know, I’m offered some hot cocoa from a tray, I think Mrs. McDermott was holding it. The cocoa must have been poisoned! I unknowingly take a few sips, then excuse myself to the bathroom. Admittedly, I was looking for Elsie’s room. I wanted her to see the dolls! Before I could find her, however, I heard a blood-curdling scream from the main room. Rushing back, I saw the neighbor, Birdie, hunched over in the hall in a most agonizing-looking fashion. I felt a great pain in my stomach, my vision started to blur, and an awful taste entered my mouth. Nevertheless, I made it back to the others in time to see the corpses of Mrs. McDermott on the floor and Aunt Jane slumped down in a chair. As my vision darkened and I fell to the ground, I saw the boy, standing in the doorway, watching! My goodness… was it the boy all along?“
“Hey! That’s private information Doc, keep your voice down! Sure, ok, you got me! I did some shady things, ok? I may be a crook and a coward, but I swear on our graves I’m no killer. What happened was I had a good business selling used wheels. I’d get junkers for cheap, then fix ‘em up for resale. Let’s say, hypothetically, I only mostly fixed ‘em up. Enough to get off the lot and away to home. Let’s also say, hypothetically, that I was doing good business till some fool in one of my cars was in a crash, a fatal one. Well, the cops, hypothetically, would come sniffing around, talking about “liability”. In that case, hypothetically, wouldn’t it make sense to leave town before things got too hot? And what better job to keep Johnny Law off my back than traveling sales, so the cops never get the chance to catch up to me? Hypothetically, of course. Like I said, I might, hypothetically, be a crook, but I wouldn’t kill no kid.“
You remove the briefcase from the shelf and unlatch it, revealing its contents. All that remains inside is this torn poster:
The smell of old leather enters your nostrils, and in the blink of an eye the Salesman appears in front of you.
“Sure thing Doc, anything to help.”
“I wish I knew! That poor kid can’t even get any peace in the afterlife. If it’s not people poking their noses into the crime, then it’s something or someone hiding her away somewhere to keep this all quiet. Something twisty is going on here, Doc, and I’m as lost as you.“
“Let’s see, after being invited inside, a bit of chaos ensued. There was hurried talk about what to do with the broken down car, and then the neighbor was there. I’m not sure when she entered the room, but she was insisting that something be done about the children. The next thing I know, I’m offered some hot cocoa from a tray, I think Mrs. McDermott was holding it. The cocoa must have been poisoned! I unknowingly take a few sips, then excuse myself to the bathroom. Admittedly, I was looking for Elsie’s room. I wanted her to see the dolls! Before I could find her, however, I heard a blood-curdling scream from the main room. Rushing back, I saw the neighbor, Birdie, hunched over in the hall in a most agonizing-looking fashion. I felt a great pain in my stomach, my vision started to blur, and an awful taste entered my mouth. Nevertheless, I made it back to the others in time to see the corpses of Mrs. McDermott on the floor and Aunt Jane slumped down in a chair. As my vision darkened and I fell to the ground, I saw the boy, standing in the doorway, watching! My goodness… was it the boy all along?“
“Hey! That’s private information Doc, keep your voice down! Sure, ok, you got me! I did some shady things, ok? I may be a crook and a coward, but I swear on our graves I’m no killer. What happened was I had a good business selling used wheels. I’d get junkers for cheap, then fix ‘em up for resale. Let’s say, hypothetically, I only mostly fixed ‘em up. Enough to get off the lot and away to home. Let’s also say, hypothetically, that I was doing good business till some fool in one of my cars was in a crash, a fatal one. Well, the cops, hypothetically, would come sniffing around, talking about “liability”. In that case, hypothetically, wouldn’t it make sense to leave town before things got too hot? And what better job to keep Johnny Law off my back than traveling sales, so the cops never get the chance to catch up to me? Hypothetically, of course. Like I said, I might, hypothetically, be a crook, but I wouldn’t kill no kid.“
