He had not come, and he had sent money believing that would be enough.
“I am going to take you out right now,” Shawn said urgently.
He began trying the old keys in the padlock, but none of them worked.
“Brenda has the key,” his father said. “And Shawn, be careful, because we do not know how far she might go.”
At that moment they heard footsteps upstairs, followed by the noise of the kitchen door opening.
Shawn stood up quickly.
“Shawn?” Brenda shouted from upstairs.
There was complete silence.
The steps began to descend slowly.
Until Brenda appeared on the last step, holding her purse and clutching a bunch of keys in one hand.
Her face no longer showed surprise, but pure fury.
“I told you not to come down here,” she said angrily.
Shawn stood firmly in front of his parents and said, “Open the gate.”
“You do not know what you are doing,” Brenda argued.
“Open it right now,” Shawn demanded.
Brenda let out a bitter laugh and said, “Of course, you arrive after twelve years and now you want to play the perfect son.”
“This has nothing to do with me,” Shawn replied. “Look at how they are living down here.”
“It is all about you!” she shouted. “You were the successful one, you were the pride, while I came back broken and no one asked what I needed.”
Shawn pointed to his parents and asked, “And that is why you locked them up?”
Brenda’s eyes filled with tears as she said, “I needed to sell this place.”
“Sell what?” Shawn asked coldly.
She remained silent, and Shawn felt a terrible premonition.
“Brenda, what did you do?” Shawn asked again.
His sister tightened her grip on the keys and whispered, “The house already has a buyer.”
Don Joseph raised his head in shock. “What did you say?”
“The deal will be signed on January 2nd,” she admitted. “I have already received an advance payment.”
Shawn then understood that the confinement had not been a sudden impulse, but part of a calculated plan.
“Did my dad sign it?” Shawn asked.
