Chapter 3

Three years.

Three years of silence.

The world moved on, but I stayed in that house, a recluse.

The home security footage became my life.

I watched it a thousand times, maybe more.

The camera in the living room, overlooking the dining area.

It was supposed to be a celebratory dinner. Mom' s recovery.

The footage was chillingly clear.

They sat at the table. Dad, Michael, Grandma Rose. Talking, a small smile on Dad' s face.

Mom walked in from the kitchen.

Her face was blank, expressionless.

Then, a flash of something savage, a cold intensity in her eyes.

She attacked. Fast, brutal.

No warning.

They didn't scream, not really. Just sounds of shock, then silence.

It was too quick.

Before she left, Mom walked towards the security camera.

She stared directly into it, her face unreadable again.

Then she was gone.

Ethan was my only contact.

My college boyfriend.

He left university too, said it was to support me.

He brought groceries, sat with me sometimes while I stared at the screen.

He' d say, "Sarah, you can't keep doing this."

Or, "Miller and the police, they've got nothing. It's been three years."

His frustration was quiet, but it was there.

I barely heard him.

The footage looped.

Again.

And again.

Then, one night, my eyes caught something.

Something I' d seen but not seen.

When Mom left, she took nothing.

No purse, no coat.

Except for one thing.

A garment bag from the hall closet.

I knew that bag.

It held a dress.

A beautiful, vintage lace dress.

It was Grandma Rose' s wedding dress.

Dad had restored it, lovingly, by hand.

He gave it to Mom years ago.

Mom always said she wanted me to wear it at my wedding.

Or that she would wear it, if I ever had a big celebration, for me.

A specific dress.

Why that dress?