Haunted in the Night

Chapter Thirteen- Part One

Chapter Thirteen.
Bob didn’t speak the whole way back to the police station, he just stared straight ahead at the road, gripping the steering wheel so tight his knuckles were going white.
Claire wanted to say something, anything to help relieve the stress, frustration and anger that was boiling up inside of him but she had no idea on what to say, on what would actually help him, so she sat, awkwardly silent, glancing at him every now and again with concern.
As soon as they were at the police station he pulled himself out of the vehicle, slamming his door shut, throwing the back door opening, grabbed the evidence bags from the backseat and stalked inside, his footsteps heavy and loud on the concrete.
Claire just slowly climbed out, shutting the door softly behind her, he had left the back door completely wide open, she liked to think it was because he wanted to get the evidence tested right away but she knew deep down it was really because he just couldn’t be bothered, he was losing belief in himself, the community doesn’t believe that he can solve this case so now he too was starting to believe it.
Sighing heavily Claire decided that it was probably best that she stay outside, give him space and time to calm down, she didn’t want to say the wrong thing and only make it worse.
Slowly she sat down on the wooden bench that was off to the side, in front of the post office, she watched people walking on the other side of the street, sending glances at her then whispering to the people next to them, no doubt they would have already heard of the latest victim and would be gossiping about how incompetent the work from the police station has been.
She did hear her name mumbled somewhere in between their whispers, and also her parents names but she just paid them no mind, she wasn’t in the mood to have them degrade her or Bob.
But sadly she could understand their hesitation towards going to the police station if they receive a letter, no one had been saved yet but that was also because they hadn’t given Bob many chance of trying, however if they were going to regain the communities confidence there were many questions that would have to be answered first.
Like where was Eric Sale?
Was he kidnapped or did he lure someone to his shed and he did the kidnapping?
Did he blitz attack them? Or was he the one who got the hammer to the head?
More questions were piling up and they were only getting answers for some of them, but if there was one thing Claire knew for certain it was that she was keen to check out those caves in the mountains.
“Claire are you alright?” Claire jumped, she hadn’t heard anyone walk up to her, she had been too lost in her own thoughts.
She turned her head, only to see Chad standing there, a letter in his hand, obviously meaning to be posted.
“Oh yeah, I’m fine" she didn’t know if she meant it, she just said it to try to reassure him and herself, she had been very unsure on her actual feelings lately, just so much had been overwhelming her.
“I heard about Eric going missing, and that he didn’t report the letter, a lot of people are thinking about leaving town" he told her as he quickly put his letter in the post box before sitting down next to her.
“I wouldn’t blame them or judge them, it’s what I did many years ago, I ran from this place" she replied, looking down at her hands that sat in her lap.
“Their talking about how the kidnappings have increased in rate, normally it was just one every few years, now it’s one every few days, it’s getting crazy" he said and she nodded in agreement.
“Are you thinking of leaving?” she couldn’t help but ask, she was too curious to see what he was thinking about the option.
“I had considered the option, but I couldn’t leave the store, plus there’s my dad" he told her and she nodded understandably.
“I’d miss you if you left" she admitted, she didn’t mean to say it but it had just come out and she quickly blushed shyly.
“I know the feeling" he replied, talking about how she had left all those years ago, even when they were just kids he had liked her and seeing who she had become now, he only liked her more.
“I’m glad to see that you are feeling better" he told her and she smiled softly at him.
“It’s been hard" she admitted, the images of last night haunting her and she quickly tried to banish them from her mind.
“You do look exhausted but you look like that a lot the days you’ve been here" he told her, sadness in his voice and eyes, she could see the struggle it also was for him, the urge to help her, he wanted to see her restful and happy, not tired and frustrated.
“I haven’t been sleeping well" she admitted and he nodded sadly, letting out a sigh before he spoke.
“I think a lot of people haven’t been sleeping well lately, there has been a lot of tired faces around town" he spoke as he looked up at the people going about their business, ducking into shops and such, she too noticed what he was talking about, a lot of people, practically the women had pale faces, bags under their eyes and they walked with their shoulders slumped, like they barely had enough energy to even carry their shopping.
The few men that she saw, they tried to hold themselves tall still, shoulders straight, head high but the darkness under their eyes stood out too, even though they tried to hide it with their postures.
She sighed, heavily, she wished more than anything that they could solve this case but she knew deep down where it might lead them, what they might find at the end and with that so wasn’t so sure how much she wished for it.
“Claire are you alright?” he asked her, seeing the weight of the world on her shoulders, he wished he could help her but he wasn’t trained in anything that could actually have him help provide her answers.
“I honestly don’t know" she finally admitted, her heart felt heavy in her chest, she was exhausted, physically and emotionally, keeping it locked inside of herself also didn’t help and she knew she needed to talk to someone, someone other than Bob.
“I just... I don’t even know if I truly want to solve this case, I mean what will I find if we do? The likelihood of finding any of the victims alive is slim to none, I mean how many winters have passed since my parents? I know that their dead and all I’ll find is their remains but some desperate part of me still pleads for them to be alive, still has hope and it makes me sick because I know it’s nothing but false hope, that all I’ll get is torn apart again" she finally admitted to him, letting it all out in a big breath before putting her head down and letting out a small sob as she tried to fight back the tears.
“I know the percentages, and likelihood, but still wouldn’t finding their remains at least provide you with some closure, you could bury them and fully mourn them, you could try to move on from you’re past that is still haunting you and this town after all these years, wouldn’t that at least be better than what you have now?” he asked her and she knew he was right, she just couldn’t say it, not right now, not yet.
“Listen I was hoping you might come over to my place, help me plant these rose bushes, I remember Helena taught you how to garden quite well also and I’d appreciate the extra hands, might be good to get your mind off the case for a little while" he told her and she slowly looked up at him, seeing the hope and compassion in his eyes and she had to smile softly at him.
“I’d actually really like that" she replied, and a big smile grew on his face and his eyes lit up, very happy to get the answer he wanted.
“I’ll just go let Bob now then I’ll be back” she told him as she pointed towards the police station where Bob was.
“Sure, I’ll go grab my truck and I’ll meet you back here" he replied as they both got to their feet.
Inside the station Bob was sitting at the front desk, head in his hands, shoulders slumped and Claire sighed sadly, she hated seeing him this way.
“”I’m going over to Chad’s house to help him plant some rose bushes, do you need anything?” she was sort of hopeful that he would say yes, that there was something she could do for him to help ease his pain but he just shook his head before finally looking up at her.
“You just have a nice time" he told her, but she felt bad just leaving him here like this.
“Are you sure? I can get you a cup of tea, or maybe a muffin before I go" she suggested but he just shook his head once more.
“I’ll be fine, you go, it’ll be good for you" he said and she could see that he meant it, he was happy that she was spending time with Chad, making happy memories with him, he hoped that if she made enough happy memories that it would help with her pain from the bad ones, that is what Helena had been doing for him.
“You know where I am if you need me” she said, making sure that he heard her.
“Same for you, I’ll meet you back at the cabin tonight?” he asked her and she nodded.
“See you tonight” she said before leaving, her heart felt heavy for him, he looked like he had aged years in just days, the corners of his eyes were getting more wrinkles, his hair seemed to be going even greyer, if that was at all possible.
“Hey you all ready to go?” Chad asked her once she walked up to his pickup truck which he was sitting in out the front of the station waiting for her.
“Yeah” she said as she climbed in and put on her seatbelt.
She was quiet for most of the drive there, she could feel him sending quick concerned glances her way but she didn’t know what to say, she was still so worried about Bob.
“Do you think Bob will ever recover from this?” she asked him suddenly and he looked confused for a second before considering her question.
“It depends, on what part you are talking about” he replied, it wasn’t really an answer, just a question asking for more questions.
“All of it” she told him and he considered it again.
“Well he did lose Helena, who I’m guessing was the love of his life, honestly I don’t think anyone could ever truly get over something like that, you learn to live with it but that’s about all you can do, regarding this case, it’s been haunting this town and the townsfolk for years, I think if you solve it people will slowly recover over time but the stories will always remain, the victims will forever be known as those people who were kidnapped by the phantom stalker” he answered honestly, his true thoughts on it and she sighed, it didn’t help her much.
“His going through so much right now, I don’t know how I can help him” she told him and he nodded in understanding.
“I know how you feel, I want to help you also but there is only so much one can do, I think even just having you here helping him with the case has provided him some comfort and relief, it’s all you really can do” he said but again it didn’t really help her much.
When they pulled up Claire had a good long look at his house, it was painted white, with a beautiful wooden porch built onto it, he had one of those double seater swing chairs, and pots that hang under the windows but he had yet to plant anything in them yet.
His front yard was perfect for a garden, straight away Claire saw the potential, he had a nice wooden picket fence that surrounded his house and lovely green grass that was well kept, at the front of the fence though he had it all dug up, obviously where he wanted to lay down the bags of soil he had to plant the rose bushes there.
“This is going to look great when it’s got the rose bushes” she instantly stated as they climbed out of the truck and she walked towards the house to get a closer look, he had parked out the front, it was a secluded place, surrounded by trees, most of the houses in this town were like that unless you lived right near the shops, Claire had always found it creepy not having any neighbours nearby, and she still believed to this day that it was why it was so easy for people to get snatched.
“Yeah, I’m really looking forward to getting my garden growing, I’ve also been thinking about maybe a veggie patch, or at least a couple of fruit trees out the back, I have a nice big backyard that would be perfect for it” he told her as he walked to the back of his truck and pulled down the tailgate to grab out the bags of soil first.
“That would be really cool” Claire said as she walked up to him and put out her arms for one of the bags.
At first he looked at her unsure, he was worried her little arms would just collapse under the weight but when he placed one in her arms and let go of it she held it perfectly fine, pushing it against her chest for a little bit extra support and she walked towards his yard.