The Basement That Wasn't There

I was house sitting for my neighbor when I found a locked door in their basement I'd never noticed

before. The key was hidden under a potted plant. Inside was a fully stocked bunker with

canned food, water, and weirdest of all, a wall covered in

newspaper clippings about missing persons from our town going back 30 years. My hands were shaking

as I took photos. Then I heard footsteps upstairs. They weren't supposed to be back for three

more days. I quietly locked the door and sprinted up the basement stairs.

Turned out to be their son who forgot his charger. But when they came home,

I casually asked about their basement. They looked at each other with the strangest expression and said,