EPILOGUE

On the outskirts of Beechwood sat North Hill, a fancy neighborhood that overlooked town, where the houses had gates and were protected by cameras. The whole area was surrounded by trees, shrouding it in a canopy of mystery. Rube and his friends rarely went there. It’s too snooty, they’d say. But one among their group had been living in North Hill, right under their noses.

Zach crept through his father’s mansion carefully, taking soft steps so he wouldn’t make any noise. Though his father hadn’t been home in weeks, Zach never knew when he might show up unexpectedly, so he was always careful to complete his chores. Anything less would be deemed unacceptable. On this particular night, all Zach had to do was drop off Gladys, the creepy doll, in his father’s study and go to bed. A simple enough task.

But as Zach got closer to the study, he noticed a light coming from underneath the door. His father was home. This was not good. Thinking he could get away with a quick and stealthy drop-off, Zach slowly opened the door to his father’s quarters, praying it wouldn’t creak. No such luck.

“Did you think I wouldn’t find out?”

A figure sat in the darkness, nestled comfortably in an old castle chair, facing away from the door and toward a roaring fire. Zach felt his heart drop. It wasn’t supposed to be like this.

“I did everything you told me to do, Father—”

“And you still failed,” the man in the chair grumbled. “Now the Goldberg boy has suspicions, his little gal pal has suspicions, even their idiot friend has suspicions.”

“But they don’t know the whole story. How could they? You’re so close to achieving your goals already. By the time they figure it all out—”

“Failure is unacceptable!” The man slammed his fist onto the nearby end table.

Zach trembled with fear, his natural response to his father’s heartbreaking cruelty. “It won’t happen again, Father. If you’re planning on punishing me for my incompetence—”

“Stop blubbering! For bungling my long-term plans for this town, you deserve much more than just punishment. And to think I assumed you might be able to execute this mission. Tsk, tsk, tsk. How embarrassing. Not only are you a disappointment to our bloodline, you’re without value as a human being. Worthless in every way.” The man stood up from his throne and moved closer to the fire. “Bring me the toy.”

Zack’s feet wouldn’t move. He was frozen with fear. The man walked over, ripped the creepy doll out of Zach’s hands, and violently tossed it into the fire. As the stuffed idol crackled and burned, the flames grew brighter, revealing the identity of Zach’s mysterious father: Professor Zeero.

“What now?” Zach asked.

“Failure or not, the end is near. So we go underground as the pieces fall into place. The final part of my plan is on the horizon, and no one, certainly not a group of ignorant children, can stop what’s coming next.” A wicked grin sprouted on Professor Zeero’s face. “Beechwood is mine.”