Mr. Parkin who did this! He's the one who kidnapped Wendy. Damn, how was Daniel going to handle all of this? Mr. Parkin was a monster disguised as a human, and if he was with Wendy then it meant that she was in danger. Wendy could be the hi meal.
Daniel's pedals were still pedaling very fast. Without thinking, he darted towards Mr. Parkin's house. The distance was not too far from his house, about two kilometers to the east which could be reached easily by bicycle.
Daniel's breath catches as his bicycle has slammed on the ground. When he saw the tall gate of Mr. Parkin's house, Daniel tried to enter. But unfortunately, the gate was locked.
Overwhelmed by confusion Daniel shouted, "Mr. Parkin! Mr. Parkin, are you in there?" At least Daniel shouldn't look suspicious in that place. There were still a few houses standing not far from Mr. Parkin's house, and the occupants were sure to be ready to scout. Instead of looking for new problems, Daniel better be careful.
There was no answer from within. The house also looked empty and lonely, lifeless. Daniel concluded that it seemed that Mr. Parkin was not home yet, given the locked gate of his house. It's just that Daniel always had another suspicion that who knew Mr. Parkin had other secret doors around his house? So he could pass through the secret door to hide his activities in the house.
Daniel walked around the big European-style house. Walls and gates blocked every entrance and exit. There was a small gap in the corner of the wall on the south side, but it would not fit a human. If Mr. Parkin in monster form can get past him, then not Wendy who was an ordinary human. So Daniel didn't have to worry about it, he thought.
When Daniel reached halfway around Mr. Parkin's house, there was a woman who rebuked Daniel. The woman was quite young, in her forties, with thin hair, and pale skin. Her eyes were always alert, and she was quite frightened when she saw Daniel. No idea what made her want to greet Daniel.
"W - who are you?" asked her trembling. She was wearing an old-fashioned dress with a scarf wrapped around her shoulders as if to make a blanket.
"I'm Daniel, Teddy Simon's nephew. He is a man who used to work in the military, "replied Daniel, trying to explain himself as he looked confused.
Although Daniel's explanation was convincing enough, the woman was still on high alert. She also put a lot of suspicion on Daniel, as if Daniel had made a fatal mistake and had to be prisoned. But the law couldn't touch him. That terrifying feeling was currently reflected in her eyes. "What do you want in this house?"
Daniel had been waiting for that question all along. So with great enthusiasm, Daniel replied, "I'm looking for Mr. Parkin. He should have brought my cousin home from camp. But she still wasn't home.
She should have come home. Her cell phone number is off, and I don't have Mr. Parkin's cell number." Daniel gasped as he said all that, feeling like his chest was going to burst with anxiety.
To Daniel's surprise, the woman in front of him turned very pale. Even the line of her lips which was thick enough seemed to be swallowed up along with her fear. Her eyes glared, and sweat began to pour down her forehead, along with her thin, very limp hair. "I do not know! I - I don't know! And I didn't see anything! I didn't see Mrs. Parkin being eaten. I'm not like that, I don't know. I'm not crazy!!!"
Then she ran unsteadily. She even had time to fall and fall on the ground. But she hurriedly got to his feet, turned nervously at Daniel, and then darted into one of the closest houses.
Daniel froze. Her words had many meanings. It seemed she knew that Mr. Parkin was a monster, or at least not human. However, she got into a lot of trouble because she was considered insane and crazy. Daniel knew how that feels.
Now Daniel came to his senses. He had visited Mr. Parkin's house but found a deadlock. He decided to call Uncle Ted, trying to be as calm as he could when he said it. "Uncle, Catty said that Wendy came home today and Mr. Parkin brought her home. But they still weren't there. I just wanted to tell you so you don't need to worry. "
There are many hidden meanings in Daniel's words. He had told Uncle Ted, quite often, of her suspicion that the real Mr. Parkin had died.
Daniel pulled another piece of evidence in the form of the disappearance of Mr. Parkin's wife who had previously gone insane in a short time. Daniel had said it all, and all he got was a strong rebuttal and a warning from Uncle Ted to be polite in social life. Now Daniel wanted to know, how would Uncle Ted react if he found out that Wendy was in Mr. Parkin's hands, which had to be weird lately.
All that could be heard from Uncle Ted was, "We'll wait until they get home." and the call was muted.
Daniel felt paralyzed, he did not know how to convince his uncle anymore that Mr. Parkin was a person to watch out for. And now Wendy was with him! Secretly, Daniel hoped that the fighters would save Wendy if she was in danger.
…
There was no sign of Wendy even after dinner had arrived. Daniel couldn't stop glancing at Uncle Ted to see his expression. He could see that his uncle was holding a lot of emotions on his face, between anger, anxiety, and frustration.
At nine o'clock at last Uncle Ted was impatient. He drove his old motorbike to get to Mr. Parkin's house, Daniel participated like a chick who continued to follow his mother.
In front of Mr. Parkin's house, the gate is still locked. Daniel couldn't stop himself from confessing, "I went here this afternoon, Uncle. And at that time the situation was the same, the house was empty and locked. "
Uncle Ted chose to ignore Daniel. He went to one of the nearby houses to ask. They answered that they had no idea where Mr. Parkin was at the moment, and they could only help by giving Uncle Ted his cell phone number.
So Uncle Ted immediately called Mr. Parkin's cell phone number. Hopefully, he sat crouched on the edge of the outer gate, rubbing his chin and looking serious. In that mode Uncle Ted couldn't be bothered, so Daniel just waited like an obedient boy.
But beyond Uncle Ted's watch, Daniel squinted secretly to keep an eye on Mr. Parkin's house. There was nothing to see except a large yard, a few trees that were flourishing, then a few flower pots that were no longer useful because their flowers were wilted.
In the house, there was only emptiness, and also darkness. The door was tightly closed with no openings visible. Maybe if there were binoculars he would find it a little helpful.
Amid all his investigations and focused thoughts, Daniel was shocked by the strong curses of Uncle Ted. When he turned his head and examined him, Uncle Ted was already gritting his teeth. "The cell phone is off! I don't want to take this method but…. Dan, you stay home. I'm going to the police station."
***