Free Watcher in the Woods by Robert Liparulo Page A

wrapping things up—you know, with the house sale and stuff. How’s that sound?”
    None of them replied.
    To David, coming up with an explanation for Mom’s absence felt like turning a page and leaving her behind. He knew Dad was right and they had to do it, but he didn’t have to like it.
    Dad stopped at the end of the road. In the woods, the house seemed to be waiting for them. It was barely visible in the shadows, with its green paint now weathered to a dull gray. David felt it, though. It was like waking up at night and knowing someone was in the room with you, even when you couldn’t see him. You just knew .
    Dad killed the engine and turned to look at each of them. He said, “Well? Can we keep what happened to Mom a secret?”
    Xander looked like he’d been asked to swallow a slug. He nodded.
    â€œToria?” Dad said.
    â€œFor how long?”
    â€œTill we get her back.”
    â€œWhat if they make me tell? What if they torture me?”
    Dad thought about it. “If they torture you, you can tell them the truth.”
    That seemed to satisfy her. “Okay.”
    Dad smiled at David. He said, “I know you can do it, Mr.
    My-Brother-Punched-Me-in-the-Face.”
    David said, “If it will help get Mom back.”
    â€œIt will.”
    â€œAll right then.” He had the feeling that this was an important moment, a decision they would always remember. He hoped it was the start of a successful rescue and not something he would have to talk about in court someday. He squeezed his eyes closed, trying to push from his mind all the courtroom dramas he had seen on TV. There seemed to always be a time when someone made the decision to start lying, and everything went downhill from there. This had better not be that moment for them.
    Moving on—because his heart had to move on—he said, “What are we gonna do about dinner? I’m starving.” He opened the car door and hopped out.
    On the way to the house, Xander moved in close to him. “Ever see Spy Kids ?” he asked.
    â€œYou know I have,” David said. “We have it on DVD.”
    â€œSo you know the story. Some kids save their parents from a bad guy who imprisoned them.”
    David stopped walking. “What’s your point?”
    Xander shrugged. “The kids weren’t always up-front about what they were doing. If they were, someone would have stopped them from rescuing their parents.”
    David rolled his eyes. “Xander, I hate to break this to you, but that was a movie. This is real life.”
    Xander chuckled. “What’s the difference, Dae?”

CHAPTER sixteen
    SUNDAY, 7 : 07 P . M .
    While Xander helped Toria start dinner, David and Dad put locks on all the third-floor doors. David kept the screws in the sling with his broken arm, along with a snack-sized bag of Fritos. When Dad needed a screw, David would pull it out and hold it in place. As soon as Dad’s power screwdriver drove it into the wall, David released it and watched it shrink shorter and shorter until it was all the way in. They had been working in the third-floor hallway for about a half hour. Six doors were now padlocked shut. Fourteen to go.
    At the first door, David had cracked it open and peered in. A fishing rod and thigh-high waders rested on the bench. From the hooks hung a tackle box; a vest with pockets everywhere and fishing flies hooked into a patch of thick, yellow wool where ribbons went on a military shirt; and a floppy, wide-brimmed hat.
    David had said, “Fishing stuff.”
    â€œShut the door, David. Let’s stay on task.” When David hesitated, he added, “These rooms have a way of drawing you in. We’ve got to be careful.”
    â€œDraw you in? Like how?” He popped the last of the Fritos in his mouth.
    His father dug around in the shopping bag of hardware. “Haven’t you noticed? You kind of want to go over?”
    David