Seventeenth Dawn

Epilogue

Casey

Everything was back to normal pretty quickly. I finally nailed Uncle Vic down long enough to ask about the mysterious errands he had been running.

"Detective Hussler wanted me to keep an eye on that agent. I followed him to the house and called Hussler to tip him off. When I realized it probably was that group, I hurried back to you before Hussler got there. We became acquaintances after your parents disappeared. I was trying to help him, and I believe the same theory that it's a group."

We attended Officer Benson's funeral shortly after the court hearing. Hussler was cleared, of course, and everything was pinned on Jake and Baxter.

My wrist is finally almost healed, and my leg is coming along as well. Daniel finally got his mom to agree to let him tell Maya what really happened--excluding all the scary, gory details, of course. He's been spending more time with his family and less time with me, which I understand.

We both returned to school the week after he was found, and now we're sitting together with history textbooks open on the table.

"I still get shivers thinking about Rick," I say. "He's just gone. But where's his body?"

Daniel shrugs, tired of this same topic of conversation.

"I'm sorry. I know it's not something you really want to talk about. I just don't get it. How much landscape do they really have to sift through?"

"I don't know, Casey," he snaps with more force than necessary. He looks instantly guilty. "Can we go five minutes without talking about it?"

I blink back tears. "Yeah...um, sorry."

I hobble upstairs to my bedroom to grab a notebook and see a piece of paper sitting on my dresser. I pick it up.

"Daniel!" I shout. Footsteps race up the stairs. "Read this." I pass the small square of blue paper to him, hand shaking.

"'So you got Jake. What's fair is fair. More will come. But who will be the second one of ours you take to fully balance the scale? After all, every child has two parents.'" I look up at her. "What is this?"

I shake my head. "Flip it over."

"'David next? Or should we send Rick back?'" I blink at the note. "What does that mean? Rick's body?"

"Or is he one of them?"

***

Two weeks later, as Daniel and I trample through the woods--my legs finally both in normal, cast-less condition--we see the cabin lit up. Occupied. And through the window I see a face I recognize. "Rick."

When we go back the next day, he's gone. But a little boy disappears the same week. Another generation younger.