The next morning, Jonathan acted off. His actions were less calculated, and he seemed more rushed than usual. He said he needed to pick up a few things from the hardware store around 12PM, that he'd probably be back a bit before 1. He asked Branden to feed the dogs and collect the eggs while he was gone, something to occupy him to avoid getting bored.

Jonathan left, and Branden collected the eggs and fed the dogs. He still had about a half hour of alone time before Jonathan got back, and decided to look around in the library. It was across from the office and was slightly larger than it, mostly to accommodate for the shelves. He guessed there were probably around 150 books in total, filling 3 large shelves that nearly reach the ceiling. A large and thick carpet adorned the majority of the floor, covered in brightly colored flowers and leaves.

It felt like he was standing on two carpets as he stepped on it, like walking on a thick, hard cloud. He didn't like it very much. It reminded him of the carpet in the living room of his home as a child. He would constantly tell his mother that she should replace it with something else, but she maintained that it was nice and irreplaceable, that only a few were made because of how high quality they were. He would always tell her that maybe they didn't make very many because they were so ugly and they didn't want to waste their time making a lot of them. She would laugh and light a cigarette, walking out to the back porch as if the conversation never happened.

There was no window in this room, making it dimmer than all the others. The aura was dark, and the majority of the books looked old and worn. Their covers were simplistic in design, only the title and author over a dark, base color. None of the books are modern, the most recent one dating back to the 1980s.

While looking at some of the books, a key falls out from between the pages of Moby-Dick by Herman Melville. He takes a closer look at it and thinks it might be the match for the box he found. He puts it in his pocket and checks the time, which is 12:20PM. He goes into Jonathan's bedroom and takes out the hammer, removing the board from the floor. He inserts the key in the hole, which fits and he is able to open the box. Inside is a stack of paper, tied together by a thin piece of string. They look old and worn, the pages stained a dark yellow color and some containing other splashes of old color.

He unties the string and finds that the papers are letters addressed to one specific person: Brian.

One specific letter catches Branden's attention more than the others, it reads:

Dear Brian,

The police are onto me, and I'm worried it's the same for you too. I'm not sure how much they know, but if they get any further in the investigation, we'll both surely be arrested. We need to be more subtle with the girls we take. We might have to halt our plans for a little while to get the cops off our tail, but I'm willing to do anything to get this load off of us.

I assume you're still going through with taking Caitlyn? You'll have to find a way to break off the relationship, but if you don't, I'm not taking the fall with you if you're caught. I don't think the police would notice the secret door in my barn, but I might have to find a more secretive place to hide the girls from now on. I just don't know where.

As always, I hope you're doing well. I'm not sure what will have happened by the time this letter reaches you, but I'll try to keep you as updated as possible regarding the circumstances.

Sincerely,

Jonathan

Branden takes a picture of the letter, intending on showing it to the police. He ties up the letters and puts them back in the box as they were before, covering up all evidence of him ever being there. He puts the key back in the same spot in the book as he found it as well, and soon after he clears everything up, Jonathan arrives home. He has a plastic bag in his hand, and says he's going outside to do some work in the barn. He takes the bag with him, along with the toolbox from under his bed, and heads outside.

When Branden asked what he was going to do with the barn, Jonathan only said that he was 'touching it up a bit'. He didn't pry any further, though he was now starting to become more suspicious of anything involving the barn. He didn't bother following him either, since he figured Jonathan wouldn't let him in the barn while he was working in it.

Branden decides to go outside and pick fruit to pass the time, but can't stop thinking about all that he's found so far, and what he hasn't yet, or maybe never will. He goes inside after a while and calls the number on the card the police gave him. He asks to meet with them at a cafe tomorrow to show them the letter he found.

*****

The next day, Branden meets with the two police officers to show them the letter. He tells Jonathan that he's going out to meet with a friend in the area for lunch at a cafe, a half truth. He gets in his car and drives off, leaving his windows down. The sun was shining and the sky was clear. There was a 0% chance of rain listed on his phone, and it was the perfect temperature to do anything outside.

He arrived at the cafe after about a half hour of driving, and took a seat outside to wait for the officers to arrive. He was a few minutes early, so he expected them to get there soon, and they did. They both sat down across from him, and he showed them the picture he took. After the few seconds it took for both of them to read it, they asked him where he found it.

"It was in a box I found under the floor. Jonathan hid it really well, he probably didn't want anyone finding it."

"This is good, but not enough. You need to find more evidence if we're ever going to get any charges on him. Something more concrete."

"Okay. I'll see what else I can find."

"Thanks. We'll be in touch." The officers leave, and Branden gets himself something to eat from the cafe, having not eaten anything since he woke up. After eating, he gets back in his car and decides to drive around town for a little while, since Jonathan said he didn't have to do very much work that day.

It was a quaint town, and he could tell most of the residents would be friendly to him. It wasn't very busy today, only a few people roaming the sidewalks and walking in and out of buildings, and he could count on his hands how many cars he saw. While driving, he came across a small shop that sold pottery, and decided to check it out.

A small bell rang as he opened the door, and a friendly woman greeted him as he entered. He smiled and nodded back at her and began roaming around the store. It was as small as it looked on the outside, and only a few small shelves were stocked with handmade pottery, various objects like bowls and cups with intricate designs. He picks up a large blue mug, and looks at the tag wrapped around the handle, which reads 18 dollars. He brings it up to the front counter and pulls out his wallet.

"I haven't seen you before. Do you live here?" She asks him.

"Oh, no. I'm just visiting for a few weeks."

"Oh, that's nice! I hope you enjoy your stay here. Are you staying with someone? I'd probably know them."

"Yeah, I'm staying with Jonathan West. You know him?"

"Oh, Jonathan! Yes, I know him," she replies, smiling. "We don't talk much anymore, but we went to the same school. I was a grade below him, we would talk any chance we could get. He was really sweet. Is he still farming?"

"Yeah, he is. That's what I'm here for, actually. Helping him out with the harvest," he responds, smiling.

"Isn't that nice! Hopefully he doesn't work you to death," she jokes. "Well, what's your name?"

"Branden. And you?"

"Julia. Jonathan would always call me jewel, he said it fitted me better. He was such a romantic," she says, smiling fondly.

"That's sweet." He smiles back. "Well, here's the cash. You can keep the change," He says, giving her 20 dollars.

"Thanks! Have a nice day."

"You too. See you around!" He walks out the door and places the mug in the passenger seat. He drives around a little while longer and goes home after finding nothing else of interest. Jonathan is mowing the grass when he gets back, and Branden goes inside to get a glass of water. He ponders how he should find more evidence of what Jonathan might have done, but puts it aside for a little while to do his work for the day. He finishes in about an hour and a half and goes inside to shower. After getting dressed, he goes downstairs to see Jonathan eating at the table.

"Hey!" Jonathan says.

"Hey," he replies, opening the fridge.

"Have a nice time with your friend?"

"Yea! We had lunch and went out shopping. I bought a mug from a pottery shop. Here, let me get it. I think you might know the owner, too."

"Oh? What's their name?"

"Julia. I didn't get her last name, though. You went to school together, apparently. Here's the mug. Pretty, isn't it?" He puts the mug down on the table for Jonathan to see.

"Yea, it's nice! And I remember Julia. She was a sweet girl. I figured she'd get into something like that. Pottery was one of her hobbies. She took a class for it in highschool. How is she doing? We haven't talked in forever."

"She seems good from what I heard from her. She seemed to like you a lot, said you were sweet in school."

"Well, that's nice of her. We'll have to get together sometime. It'd be nice to catch up."

"Yea." Branden sits down next to him, with a sandwich, and begins eating.

"Any more plans for today?" Jonathan asks as he gets up from his seat and places his plate in the sink.

"No, none come to mind. We could watch a movie later if you want."

"Sure! I've got some I think you'd like."

The rest of the day goes on without interruption. They watch a movie, and Branden goes to bed soon after, thoughts running through his head that make it more difficult to fall asleep. He plans, as he lies in bed, to search for more evidence tomorrow, but worries more than ever that he would be caught by Jonathan while doing so. God knows what would happen to him if that were to happen.