Chapter 5
“When your father died, his blood and flesh cast a shadow in the sand. Slowly, under Death Valley’s supernatural influence, that shadow became a monster.“]
“It absorbed your father’s blood and remains, gaining his memories, but at its core, it’s still a shadow creature with a violent temperament!”
“It can’t tolerate sunlight or heat. It needs cold air to mask that stench–the smell of your father’s decaying flesh. You’ve noticed it, haven’t you?”
“I knew he wasn’t your father from the moment he returned. That’s why I left for Death Valley the next day and found the remedy on the wind–carved rocks there. It makes him reveal his true form and leave. If he stays near humans for a full month and absorbs their essence, he’ll never want to leave.”
“Our only option now is to expose him to sunlight, separate him from water, and let him evaporate completely!“[]
“Charlotte, you can’t show mercy, understand? Only you, as your father’s flesh and blood, have the power to make him disappear. Otherwise, he’ll haunt you forever!”
Mom said much more, but I barely heard it. All I could think about was the picture that Dad melting in that bathtub.]
It was horrifying.]
Like a corpse dissolving in water.]
No matter how neglectful my real Dad had been, he was never… that.]
The disgusting image made me retch. I had no idea what to do!
It seemed Mom hadn’t read Dad’s journal and didn’t know what his final entry
I felt caught in the middle, uncertain which way to turn.]
Just then, my phone pinged.]]
It was “Death Valley Mystery” again:]
[When are you coming to see me? Or should I come find you?][]
[The situation is urgent. We must meet!]]
S
I thought this person might really know the truth–might tell me things others wouldn’t.[]
Soy made an excuse to Mom and headed to the location from the message.]
The small museum was entirely dedicated to Death Valley. It was privately owned, normally free to the public, but had been closed recently.
I met the person who had texted me–a man around my father’s age, an experienced explorer who also worked as a photographer, capturing stunning images.]
Chapter 5
My father had changed course and joined this man’s team to visit the ghost town Rhyolite.]
He introduced himself as Mr. Sullivan and asked me to call him Uncle Sullivan.[]
Among his exhibition photos, I saw one of him with my father. They stood side by side at the ghost town, both smiling.
At first glance, the photo seemed normal, but looking closer, something was off.[]
In the photo, Dad and his shadow were clearly mismatched–same position, completely different shadow.]
“You see it too, don’t you? Your father’s shadow was already wrong back then.“[]
“When was this taken?” I asked.]
“Our second month in Death Valley.“]]
What does that mean? Dad’s shadow was already wrong then? But wasn’t he still alive? Mom said this shadow monster formed after Dad died, from his blood and flesh.“[]
“That’s one theory, yes–shadow creatures consume human blood and flesh to take human form. But there’s another theory: these shadow creatures are clever and target those dying man!“]]
“Dying man?”
“Exactly. I didn’t notice it then. It wasn’t until recently when I developed these photos for exhibition that I saw something was wrong. By then, your father had been missing in Death Valley for four years. By that point, your father was probably already dying! He didn’t just disappear in Death Valley–he died there. We just never found him!”
