Check on the Children

"Have you checked on the children?" Those words changed everything. A teenage girl babysits

at a remote Minnesota home. The kids are asleep. She settles on the couch… then the

phone rings. Heavy breathing. Then a voice: “Have you checked on the children?”

A prank, she thinks. Hangs up. Fifteen minutes later… the call

again: “Why haven’t you checked on the children?” Panic. She calls 911.

The operator instructs her to keep the line open if the caller calls back. The phone rings…

“Check on the children.” The operator’s voice shakes over the line: “Get out of the house.

NOW. The calls… they’re coming from upstairs.” She hesitates—worried about the kids.