Chelsea woke with a start about midnight to a knock at the door. Her parents weren’t home yet, and she decided they must have lost their keys or something and have been waiting for her to open the door for hours. She leaped off the couch and raced toward the door.
She was about to swing the door wide upon, but, remembering the scream from outside before, she hesitated. Chelsea peered through the peephole to see two police officers, one shouting to the other that he thought he heard someone inside.
As the door creaked open, the second officer stared on in surprise while the other threw him an “I-told-you-so” glance. Upon the sight of Chelsea Selsia, both officers jumped back.
“E-e-excuse me, Miss, but are you Chelsea Selsia?” the first officer stammered.
Chelsea nodded.
“I’m officer Walden, and he’s my partner Tuttle. Pardon our surprise, but we’d assumed you were dead. No one has seen you in five years.”
“May we come in?” Tuttle asked. “We have some news about your parents.”