The Man in The Shadows

Jessica’s heart pounded as she clutched the worn leather journal to her chest. Dust swirled around her in the dim barn loft, caught in the slanted beams of fading sunlight filtering through the cracks in the wooden walls. The smell of hay and aged wood filled her nose, grounding her in the eerie stillness of the moment. Jessica was so caught up in her search, she had not realized how long she had been in the barn.

Jessica swallowed hard. She didn’t have a reason to be hiding. The deputy’s tone wasn’t harsh, but there was something in it…something that made her want to believe he was on her side.

She took a slow breath, repostioning the journal under her jacket before carefully descending the ladder. The daylight was fading fast. How long had she been in the loft reading the journal entries? She had lost all track of time.

Deputy Callahan stood at the barn entrance, his flashlight beam cutting through the dust-filled air. His face was shadowed, but his sharp eyes locked onto hers the moment her feet hit the ground.

"You wouldn't happen to have found anything, would you?" he asked.

Jessica’s arm pressed protectively against the journal hidden beneath her jacket.

"Like what?" she asked, keeping her voice neutral.

Callahan exhaled slowly, like he was choosing his next words carefully. "Jessica, I’ve been digging into your father’s past. There are things you don’t know—things that could be dangerous if you go poking around in the wrong places."

Her pulse quickened. The journal outlined a past of evil Jessica wanted nothing to do with. She looked the Deputy in the eyes.

"What are you saying?" she asked trying to keep the crack in her voice at bay. What she had already seen in the journal was enough to make anyone afraid.

"I'm saying someone was in town yesterday asking questions about your father. Someone who doesn’t want the past uncovered." His voice was low, deliberate. "And if they know you’re digging around, that puts you in the middle of something you might not be ready for."

Jessica’s grip on the journal tightened.

She thought about the old letters, the hidden journal, the secrets whispered in her father’s words from beyond the grave. And now—someone else was looking for the same answers.

She glanced past Callahan, out into the darkened fields beyond the barn.

A shadow moved.

Not the swaying of trees in the wind. Not a trick of the moonlight. A figure. Watching. Waiting. Her breath hitched. She was visibly shaking.

Callahan must have sensed her change in demeanor because his hand dropped to his holster.

"What is it?" he asked, voice now sharp with urgency.

Jessica licked her lips. She had a choice. Tell him about the journal, about what she found. Or keep it secret—because something told her the answers in these pages could change everything.

And maybe not everyone could be trusted, but maybe this young deputy could be.