On their way home...the sky began to darken and a light rain started to fall. Carly told Javen,"I wish your grandpa knew more about the house...now I'm curious about the Beemens...why did Martha kill herself and why her and Harry never left the farm?"
Javen grinned saying,"Maybe they had sex...then a deformed kid...maybe they"....Carly cut him off saying,"That's disgusting...I do know that something went wrong...somehow... but Javen....that is a disgusting thing to say." Javen defensively said,"Well...that would explain the thing that Brian saw....you know...the deformities."
Carly said back," And....well...how could it survive all these years...in our cistern?" Javen answered,"I don't know...maybe bugs...mice....I'm sure it could find food...it did have plenty of water." Carly excitedly said,"That's it...the pond....it ate fish form the pond....Brian found a tunnel that he said ran off into the cistern...he also said the cistern ran off into the creek!"
They were just driving past Zimmermen's farm as Javen said," Listen to us...Brian probably saw and animal that got trapped in the cistern...you know...too fat to get back out....It was probably nasty looking from being in the dirty water...it's probably the moan you heard." Carly looked out her window at the trees they were driving by and said,"I hope so...I hope it was just an animal."
They were pulling in their lane within minutes. Both had a slight sickening feeling when they saw Brian's van parked by the pump house. Javen backed the truck up to the porch steps...he and Carly carried the sheet of plywood in and placed it over the hole. Javen got his drill and used drywall screws to fasten it to the floor. They sat the table on top of the plywood.
Carly took the gold plate from the sink and read the inscription out loud,"To Mother from your loving Son." She dropped it back in the sink and said,"I have to get my mind off of this...I'm going to work on our costumes for the party." Javen came up behind her...hugged her and said,"I know what you mean....I'm going out to lock up Brian's van and drag that slab of floor to the barn...then...just watch TV."
Carly got her sewing kit and materials....kicked her shoes off and laid on the living room couch. Javen locked up the van and dragged the slab of floor to the barn. He flipped it up on it's side and saw there was a trap door between the floor joists.
It looked like something had clawed at one of the boards by what looked to be a latch. There was also two rusted hinges. He noticed that it was the soft spot he had stepped on before...the scratching at the latch must have been what he heard. It gave him the willies. He looked at the floor slab and said to himself,"When I fill that damned hole...this madness will end....I hope."
He looked out the barn door at the house and thought only of Carly. He couldn't tell her about the floor slab...not now. He did believe that whatever did that to the board by the latch ...was not a rat. Javen closed the barn up and walked back to the house. He found Carly relaxing on the couch while sewing on her costume. He grabbed the remote...turned on the TV and flipped through the channels.
The light rain outside turned heavy and sounded loud on the old tin roof of the house. Javen found an old Clint Eastwood movie...sank in to his lounge chair and watched it until he dozed off. Carly smiled when she saw him sleeping. Her mind kept being pulled to the story about the Beemens.
She wondered what they looked like....what color of hair did Martha have...why the suicide....why did Harry die...what of?" She grinned when she realized the movie Javen had been watching was,"Dirty Harry."
Carly looked out the big picture window and watched the rain. She wished that it could just wash away the bad things that happened. The rain finally lulled her to sleep. Clashes of thunder and lightning didn't wake them up. They were both so worn out from all that went on.
Javen woke up just as Clint Eastwood was saying,"Make my day." He looked and saw Carly sleeping....covered in material and a spool of black thread had rolled to the opposite wall. His eyes followed the thread to the spool...then up the wall to the vent. He froze with fear...then frantically....screamed,"Carly!"
