Daddy's Little Girl, Too

Chapter 29: Hide and Seek

It is one thing to be in the presence of a murderer; to feel a certain degree of responsibility for the actions of such a monster, can weigh heavily on one's heart. However, when that murderer happens to be a five year old little girl, the stress of any given situation can suddenly multiply exponentially. Even worse than being in the company of such a young killer, is to lose track of them and not know their whereabouts or even more worrisome, what they are doing.

Harvey hurries to the house, searching on all sides. Aware of the time, he must be careful not to speak too loudly; he raises his voice just above a whisper. "Abby? Abby, where are you?"

Thus far, his ill prepared plan has proven to be nothing short of disastrous. Harvey knew in is gut something bad was going to happen, and now, in this moment of desperation, his instincts have been vindicated.

As his heart pounds vigorously and his mind runs laps around the unknown, Harvey ceaselessly calls out her name. "Abby?"

Though he is persistent in his search, his efforts seem to be hopeless. Each unanswered call applies a greater pressure upon his chest. As the anxiety mounts, it seems to suck the life from his soul, leaving behind a dreadful emptiness.

***

The partially senile Mrs. Pickett leads Abby into the kitchen. "Have a seat, Emma." She picks up her phone, prepared to dial. "Do you know your phone number?"

Abby sits at the table staring back at this woman. "No."

"No? Emma, sweetie, you really should memorize your phone number." Mrs. Pickett starts to dig through a messy drawer. "I think I have it in here somewhere."

Abby scans the room, searching for a means of murder. The kitchen offers a variety of useful utensils. Forks and knives would be an obvious choice, but there are so many unique ways to kill someone, Abby looks for something different, something new. She has brought her teddy bear as a back-up plan. However, she would prefer to make the death look accidental, rather than outright stabbing the woman.

Mrs. Pickett soon closes the junk drawer. "I don't see it in there. I'll be right back." She exits the kitchen.

Abby quietly follows her target, patiently stalking her prey like a hungry wolf. She sees the old woman slowly making her way up the stairs.

A few minutes pass before Mrs. Pickett carefully descends the steps. "I've found it." She returns to the kitchen to realize no one awaits her. "Emma? Emma dear, where've you gone?"

She checks the dining area, "Emma?" There is no child to be found. Mrs. Pickett starts to worry.

She has brief doubts about her sense of reality. Due to her advanced age, on a few occasions, she has experienced memory failure. Whether it is simply forgetting something, remembering something incorrectly, or in the worst case, remembering something that has never happened, Mrs. Pickett must question if Emma Young was ever even there to begin with.

She checks the bathroom and the hall closet but she appears to be all alone in the house.

"Emma?" She opens the door to the dark basement and calls into the blackness. "Are you down there?" She pauses and listens but only silence returns. "Where are you Emma?"

From behind, Abby reveals herself. "Emma's not here."

The startled woman spins to see the sneaky little girl. "Oh, there you are, Emma."

She stares emptily at the old woman. She repeats, "Emma's not here."

Slightly confused, Mrs. Pickett asks, "What do you mean? You're Emma."