John’s truck swerved to avoid hitting the animal and drove off the road and into a ditch, rolling over a few times before coming to a stop, resting on its roof. Susan could just make out John moving around in the cab, trying to release his seatbelt. She blinked and when she opened her eyes, Archibald was inside the truck pinning John’s chest to the seat with his knees. The elderly man stopped struggling and hung limply, held aloft by his seatbelt, behind the steering wheel. Archibald moved through the truck door and stood beside the vehicle looking up at the twilight sky. His laughter rang through the woods when it started to rain and the bottom of the ditch turned into a puddle of mud, which the truck’s cab slowly sank into.

Emma touched Susan’s arm and quietly said, “Come, let us return. I have showed you enough.” A tear rolled down Susan’s cheek, as everything faded away and they were once again standing in the Anders bedroom.

Emma allowed the other woman a few minutes to collect herself before she continued, “Before I leave you to sleep away the remainder of this night, I have an important warning to impart.”

Susan looked up at Emma spirit and asked, “A warning? What type of warning?”

“In order to end this,” Emma turned a circle in the room with her arms spread, “all of this, every event that Archibald’s anger and pride has caused—Jebediah’s horrible death, my own death, the murders caused by your ‘Warning Killer’, John M. Johnson’s death, the strange things that have been happening to you, even these haunting visits from me—in order to end it all, the truth must be uncovered and the past must be set right. All of Archibald’s victims are counting on you; we wish to move on and finally be at peace.” A simmering tear slid down Emma’s cheek and after hanging off the edge of her chin for a second fell to the floor.

“What…” Susan broke into a series of hiccups, “What must be done?”

“With our help you have already done much.” Seeing Susan’s confused expression, Emma continued, “We, Archibald’s restless victims, have helped you every step of the way.” Smiling she said, “We made it so you found that initial article about the unexplained murders of the ‘Warning Killer.’ Jebediah helped you find and buy this house. We knew that you were our last chance to obtain the rest we long for so much.”

Susan looked at the other woman and stammered, “You…you’ve been using us. Every step of the way, you have been manipulating us. How could you? How could you put us through all of this?”

Shocked by Susan’s outburst, Emma stared at her then explained, “It was not like that. We did not manipulate you, all we did was set the path ahead of you and when you turned down it, we assisted you all that we could. We tried to make your work easier for you.”

Susan snorted through her nose and interrupted her speech, “Yeah, right.”