My Widowed Mate

Where's Brad

Trixies POV

I couldn't get that man out of my head. I've seen him twice now, and both times he's vanished in front of me. I have to be going crazy. This stuff doesn't just happen. I shook the thought from my head as I left my office for the day. I could've just been seeing things. My eyes were still hurting from crying then.

I headed to my car, ignoring that weird feeling I've been getting since yesterday. I just needed to go home and climb into bed. I headed straight home, telling myself I'd just order something to eat when I get home. Haven't eaten since lunch yesterday, and I was starting to feel it.

I arrived home 20 minutes later, relieved to be home. I entered my small kitchen to get water when I noticed something sitting on my kitchen table. I picked it up, seeing it was the electricity bill. I rolled my eyes, "unbelievable." I told myself as I pulled out my phone to dial the number.

Skipping the introductions, I selected the number to make a payment and put my service ID number in. Listening waiting for it to tell me the exact amount. To my surprise, the voice told me I owed $0. That wasn't right. The letter in front of me said $500. I wondered if I should address it or leave it alone. If it was a mistake on their end, they might not notice it. Doing the responsible thing, I pressed to speak to customer service.

I was shocked to learn that a payment went through today to pay for the full amount. They were unable to tell me who paid for it. I thanked them and hung up the phone. That was odd. Who would pay for my electric bill?

There was a knock at the door, pulling me away from my thoughts. I answered the door to see Brad's dad, Paul, standing there smiling. He was holding up a pan of casserole his wife must've cooked for me today. Smiling from ear to ear, I opened the door to let him in.

"This is a nice surprise," I said to him as he walked through the door. He stopped several feet by the door and looked around. His eyes were wide as he scanned the room. I looked around and felt embarrassed as the place looked awful.

"I'm sorry for the mess, I've been working a lot," I said as I took the pan away from him and headed to the kitchen. It was still warm and smelled so good. Peel off the aluminum foil to reveal the casserole. From what I could tell, there was rice, some veggies, chicken, and a lot of cheese. It's just what I needed after today. My stomach grumbled at the thought of digging in. I called out to Paul, who was still in the other room.

"Have you eaten yet? I wouldn't mind some company," I asked him as I pulled out plates and silverware. I heard him slowly walk into the kitchen. I looked towards him, and he looked like a ghost touching the electric bill. I felt a bit offended he was looking at my bills, but I shook it off.

"Don't worry, it's paid in full as of today," I reassured him.

He was definitely acting weird. He wasn't speaking and that was not like him. He was just smiling a moment ago outside the door. Was he having a stroke? Heart attack?

"Paul, what's wrong?" I asked worriedly.

He finally looked up at me and thought for a moment. "I need to know Trixie. Have you had anyone ever at all? A male at all?" he asked me quietly.

Confused and offended by his question, I shook my head no. I wasn't ready for someone else in my life, Brad was still missing.

Paul picked up the bill and smelled it several times. Giving him a weird look, I took a step back. Why the hell was he smelling my bills? Looking at them is one thing but smelling?!

Paul looked at me again. "You said this paid off? By you?" he asked.

I shook my head, narrowing my eyes.

I wasn't ready for what he did next. He threw the bill, stomped over to me, grabbed my arm, and started pulling me out of the kitchen. I yelled and fought back against him.

"You're not safe here anymore. We must go," Paul yelled at me.

"The only one making me feel unsafe right now is you! What the hell is going on?" I yelled back at him. I was able to rip my arm away from him. I rubbed my skin, and it hurt, taking a few steps back. Paul watched me and narrowed his eyes.

"There's been a creature in this house, and I promised Brad I would protect you." Paul whispered aggressively.

Brad? Creatures? I think he is having a stroke.

"Paul, if you know where Brad is, you have to tell me." I said to him calmly.

Paul rubbed his tired eyes. He was frustrated, but I didn't care he was acting crazy.

"Trixie, Brad is dead. He was killed by the same type of creature that was in this house. You have to trust me," he yelled.

Tears formed in my eyes. This was a cruel joke. I don't know how he could say this s**t to me. These lies.

I shook my head. "You need to leave," I told him, looking away from him.

He grabbed my arm again to try to make me listen, but suddenly, there was a loud snarl from outside. Did a dog get out? Paul dropped my arm immediately and looked around. He looked back at me as I backed away.

"One of them has chosen you. I can not protect you if you choose to be with them," Paul said, then turned and ran out of the house into his car.

I stood there in shock by what had just happened. I slowly walked over to the door and shut it, snapping the lock shut. I leaned against the door, rubbing my temples as I thought about what he said.

Brad's been missing for months, and his dad comes in here telling me my husband's dead by the hand of some type of creature? Maybe he was in denial. Maybe the pressure of losing his son caused him to crack under pressure. I wanted to cry, but I couldn't, I was too exhausted.

Walking away from the door, I headed to the kitchen and put away the casserole. The nonsense that just happened made me lose my appetite.

I scoffed, thinking about what Paul said again. Brad had gone out with some of his friends a few months ago to go camping. He told me where he would be at and where they would set up camp. When he stopped calling or answering my phone calls, I contacted the police in that area. They searched the grounds for weeks. They never found them or any of their belongings. They vanished. I held on to hope that Brad was alive somewhere. I didn't even care if he ran off with some girl, as long as he was alive.

Yet the longer he's been gone with no sign of him or his friends, the worse the outcome is. All of his friends have had funerals with empty caskets or a memorial service in their honor. I've just refused to give up no matter how many times his parents tried to help me come to peace with this matter. I think his dad actually knew the truth then, thinking back to every murder documentary I watched. It's sick to have that thought, but this is my husband's life we are talking about.

I phoned the sheriff and left a message to call me back. I had new information to add to the case.