…that she was dead.
But that wasn’t what made me freeze.
The woman I saw on TV looked exactly like the woman who had hired me.
The news reporter said she had been found dead in her car at 11:47 p.m. the night before.
I stared at the screen.
Then I looked toward the little boy sleeping on the couch.
He slowly opened his eyes.
“Is my mom on TV?” he asked.
I couldn’t speak.
He sat up and smiled.
“She told me you’d be scared when you found out.”
My phone suddenly buzzed.
Unknown Number:
Don’t let him see the TV.
I looked back at the boy.
He was no longer smiling.
Then another message appeared.
And whatever you do…
don’t tell him his mother is dead.
Because the moment I read it, the boy whispered:
“She isn’t.”
Then someone knocked on the front door.
Three slow knocks.
The boy looked at me and said,
“That’s her.”