Chapter 4 - THE DRAWING UNDER THE PILLOW
Leah drew the same picture four times.
A blue square.
A small girl.
A black line across the door.
And a woman standing outside.
The first drawing appeared on Tuesday.
The second on Wednesday.
By Thursday, I began noticing details.
The woman had long fingers.
A necklace.
And something red in her hand.
I didn't ask Leah to explain.
Instead, I sat beside her with crayons.
“Can I draw too?”
She nodded.
I drew a yellow house.
A green tree.
A purple cat.
Leah laughed at the cat.
“Cat purple!”
“Very fashionable cat.”
She giggled.
Then returned to her blue square.
I watched quietly.
She drew the woman again.
This time, she added a tiny circle beside the girl's face.
“What is that?” I asked gently.
Leah touched the circle.
“Button.”
“A button?”
She nodded.
“Push.”
My stomach tightened.
“Who pushes it?”
Leah looked toward the door.
Then whispered:
“Lady.”
I didn't ask another question.
I simply said:
“Thank you for showing me.”
That evening, I found a small red plastic button beneath Leah's bed.
It was attached to a broken piece of wire.
I stared at it.
A toy?
A remote?
Something else?
I placed it in a clean envelope and brought it to Matteo.
He examined it.
“Where did you find this?”
“Under Leah's bed.”
He frowned.
“I've never seen it.”
“Neither have I.”
He turned it over.
A tiny manufacturer's mark was stamped on the back.
Matteo's expression changed.
“What?” I asked.
He looked at me.
“This belongs to the old nursery monitoring system.”
I felt cold.
“The one in the blue room?”
He nodded.
“It was installed after Isabella's pregnancy complications.”
I looked at the button.
“Why would Leah have it?”
Matteo said nothing.
Then he stood.
“Come with me.”
We walked toward the east hallway.
At the far end stood a door painted pale blue.
A brass keyhole sat beneath the handle.
Matteo stopped.
For a moment, he looked like a man standing before a grave.
May you like
Then he reached into his pocket.
And unlocked the door.
