Detective Harris arrived at 1:16 in the morning.<\/p>\n
By then Doug had forbidden me from touching anything else, which would have been more useful advice before I picked up the rabbit.<\/p>\n
The stuffed animal sat inside a clean grocery bag on my kitchen counter.<\/p>\n
Maddie remained asleep upstairs.<\/p>\n
Bentley did not.<\/p>\n
He sat wrapped in one of Ray\u2019s flannel blankets, knees pulled against his chest.<\/p>\n
Harris read the note without expression.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re sure this looks like Nolan\u2019s handwriting?\u201d<\/p>\n
Bentley nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow do you know?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wrote stuff before.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat kind of stuff?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNotes to Mom.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you read them?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did they say?\u201d<\/p>\n
Bentley\u2019s eyes dropped.<\/p>\n
I interrupted.<\/p>\n
\u201cEnough for tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris looked at me.<\/p>\n
Then at the boy.<\/p>\n
He nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cAgreed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doug pulled up the security footage on his laptop.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShow me.\u201d<\/p>\n
He played the clip.<\/p>\n
12:42:38.<\/p>\n
The porch empty.<\/p>\n
12:42:41.<\/p>\n
A flicker.<\/p>\n
12:42:44.<\/p>\n
The rabbit appeared at the top step.<\/p>\n
No person.<\/p>\n
No hand.<\/p>\n
No visible movement.<\/p>\n
Harris leaned closer.<\/p>\n
\u201cBack it up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doug did.<\/p>\n
Same result.<\/p>\n
\u201cCamera glitch?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe,\u201d Doug said.<\/p>\n
Harris shook his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cCheck the side camera.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doug clicked.<\/p>\n
A timestamp appeared.<\/p>\n
12:42:39.<\/p>\n
Then the screen froze.<\/p>\n
For twelve seconds.<\/p>\n
When playback resumed, nothing was there.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat causes that?\u201d Harris asked.<\/p>\n
Doug frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWi-Fi interruption.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom outside?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt shouldn't.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCould someone block it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith the right device, maybe.\u201d<\/p>\n
I disliked maybe.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow would Travis know we installed cameras tonight?\u201d<\/p>\n
No one answered.<\/p>\n
Harris looked toward Bentley.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen did the rabbit disappear from upstairs?\u201d<\/p>\n
Bentley thought.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaddie had it when I tucked her in.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat time?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout ten-thirty.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWas her door locked?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho was in the house?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUs,\u201d Doug said.<\/p>\n
Harris looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho is us?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMom. Me. Bentley. Maddie.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo one else?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris returned his gaze to the rabbit.<\/p>\n
That was when the unease in the room shifted.<\/p>\n
Until that moment, we had all assumed Travis had approached from outside.<\/p>\n
But the rabbit had started inside.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you thinking?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
Harris didn't answer immediately.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf Nolan came onto the property, he either entered the house or someone brought the toy out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doug stared at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think one of us did it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m eliminating possibilities.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBentley didn't.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn't say he did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wouldn't scare his sister.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bentley raised his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe back window.\u201d<\/p>\n
We all turned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn Maddie\u2019s room.\u201d<\/p>\n
My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat about it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt doesn't lock right.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doug closed his eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was going to fix that tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cShow me.\u201d<\/p>\n
We went upstairs.<\/p>\n
Maddie remained asleep despite five adults moving around her doorway.<\/p>\n
The window looked ordinary.<\/p>\n
Until Doug touched it.<\/p>\n
The lower sash lifted with almost no resistance.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo latch,\u201d Harris said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBroken,\u201d Doug replied.<\/p>\n
Outside the window was a narrow section of roof over the kitchen addition.<\/p>\n
From there, someone could reach the drainpipe.<\/p>\n
Or a ladder.<\/p>\n
Or possibly climb from the trellis.<\/p>\n
I thought of the side camera freezing.<\/p>\n
Someone had not entered through the front door.<\/p>\n
They had entered through a child's bedroom.<\/p>\n
I looked at Maddie.<\/p>\n
Her hair curled damply near her forehead.<\/p>\n
She had slept through it.<\/p>\n
Bentley had not.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen did you last check on her?\u201d I asked him.<\/p>\n
\u201cEleven-fifty.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI went to sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris scanned the room.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnything else missing?\u201d<\/p>\n
Bentley looked around.<\/p>\n
Then opened the small overnight bag he had packed for Maddie.<\/p>\n
He went still.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
He pulled out a folded shirt.<\/p>\n
Then another.<\/p>\n
\u201cHer picture.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat picture?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe one from Mom\u2019s wallet.\u201d<\/p>\n
He emptied the bag.<\/p>\n
Socks.<\/p>\n
Pajamas.<\/p>\n
Diapers.<\/p>\n
A hairbrush.<\/p>\n
No photograph.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did it show?\u201d Harris asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cMom holding Maddie when she was a baby.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy did you have it?\u201d<\/p>\n
Bentley swallowed.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo Maddie could see Mom.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris wrote something down.<\/p>\n
That detail frightened me more than the note.<\/p>\n
The rabbit could have been intimidation.<\/p>\n
The photograph meant someone had stood close enough to Maddie\u2019s belongings to choose something personal.<\/p>\n
By two-thirty, police had checked the yard.<\/p>\n
They found a shoe impression beneath the kitchen trellis and a partial scrape along the drainpipe.<\/p>\n
No fingerprints worth using.<\/p>\n
No witness.<\/p>\n
Travis\u2019s truck was gone from the address officers had on file.<\/p>\n
At three, Harris insisted we sleep.<\/p>\n
I laughed at him.<\/p>\n
He didn't.<\/p>\n
Instead he arranged for a patrol car to pass the house every hour until morning.<\/p>\n
I moved Maddie into my bedroom.<\/p>\n
Bentley slept on the floor beside the bed.<\/p>\n
Doug stayed downstairs.<\/p>\n
No one rested much.<\/p>\n
At sunrise I made coffee strong enough to remove paint.<\/p>\n
Doug sat at the table staring at camera logs.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you looking for?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe outage.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou already saw it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt bothers me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat narrows nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n
He glanced up.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese cameras are new.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember. You drilled holes until midnight.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe system updated automatically when I installed it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo remote access wasn't configured.\u201d<\/p>\n
I waited.<\/p>\n
He turned the laptop toward me.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe signal interruption wasn't remote.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSomeone physically interfered with the router or power.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe router is inside.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYour basement.\u201d<\/p>\n
I put down my coffee.<\/p>\n
The basement door stood beside the kitchen pantry.<\/p>\n
It had been unlocked all night.<\/p>\n
Anyone entering through the back cellar door could reach the electrical panel and router without crossing the main floor.<\/p>\n
\u201cCheck it.\u201d<\/p>\n
We went downstairs.<\/p>\n
The concrete floor was cold under my slippers.<\/p>\n
Doug examined the router.<\/p>\n
Then the outlet.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere.\u201d<\/p>\n
The plug was slightly loose.<\/p>\n
\u201cCould that happen by itself?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
He crouched near the old basement window.<\/p>\n
The latch hung crooked.<\/p>\n
Ray had meant to replace it years ago.<\/p>\n
I had forgotten.<\/p>\n
Doug pushed.<\/p>\n
The window opened.<\/p>\n
Dust along the sill showed a clean smear.<\/p>\n
Someone had entered there.<\/p>\n
Police returned.<\/p>\n
This time Harris brought a crime scene technician.<\/p>\n
They photographed the basement window, the trellis, the upstairs room, and the rabbit.<\/p>\n
Bentley watched from the stairs.<\/p>\n
When Harris noticed him, he walked over.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou doing okay?\u201d<\/p>\n
Bentley shrugged.<\/p>\n
\u201cCan Travis come inside anytime?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe did.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris paused.<\/p>\n
Bentley continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore. At our old house. Mom changed locks but he still got in.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he ever talk about locks?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said locks were for people who asked permission.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris wrote that down.<\/p>\n
After police left, I tried to convince Bentley to attend school.<\/p>\n
He refused.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaddie needs me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe has me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat if he comes back?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen you being ten years old will not stop him.\u201d<\/p>\n
His face flushed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not what I mean.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
I softened my voice.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut hiding here isn't keeping her safe either.\u201d<\/p>\n
He stared toward the living room.<\/p>\n
Maddie was coloring with Doug.<\/p>\n
\u201cMom said I had to watch her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYour mother also told you last night that you've done enough.\u201d<\/p>\n
His jaw tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was before this.\u201d<\/p>\n
I had no answer.<\/p>\n
At noon Amber called.<\/p>\n
Her voice sounded stronger.<\/p>\n
Not strong.<\/p>\n
But stronger.<\/p>\n
I told her about the rabbit.<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
Then, \u201cGet them out.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPolice are watching the house.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe knows that house.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo do we.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don't understand.\u201d<\/p>\n
I closed my eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am beginning to hate that sentence.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat don't I understand?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe doesn't scare people just by showing up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Amber\u2019s voice lowered.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe studies routines.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe watches until he knows when people get coffee, when lights turn off, which window sticks, where spare keys are hidden.\u201d<\/p>\n
I thought of the basement window.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe knew about that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you ever tell him anything about this duplex?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCould he have watched before Monday?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy would he?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause he found us.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said it as fact.<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore the attack?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI think so.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn't you tell Bentley?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause then he'd start watching too.\u201d<\/p>\n
He already had.<\/p>\n
\u201cAmber, what does Travis want?\u201d<\/p>\n
She breathed out slowly.<\/p>\n
\u201cControl.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat isn't specific enough.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s all of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMoney?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaddie?\u201d<\/p>\n
A long pause.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wants proof that I can't keep anything from him.\u201d<\/p>\n
That sentence stayed with me.<\/p>\n
After lunch Doug suggested moving Bentley and Maddie to his house across town.<\/p>\n
Bentley overheard.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019d be safer,\u201d Doug said.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMom will come here.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe knows this house.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe can call.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bentley shook his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m staying.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doug looked at me for help.<\/p>\n
I had none.<\/p>\n
Children who had lost control rarely gave it up willingly.<\/p>\n
Then Bentley added something unexpected.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe won't know where Uncle Doug lives.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doug blinked.<\/p>\n
\u201cI'm not your uncle.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bentley shrugged.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou act like one.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doug\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n
He looked away quickly.<\/p>\n
\u201cFair enough.\u201d<\/p>\n
By evening we compromised.<\/p>\n
Bentley and Maddie would stay at Doug\u2019s house for one night.<\/p>\n
I would go with them.<\/p>\n
Police would keep watching the duplex.<\/p>\n
Bentley packed carefully.<\/p>\n
Two shirts for himself.<\/p>\n
Three outfits for Maddie.<\/p>\n
Her rabbit was still with police, so he found an old stuffed bear in my guest room and gave it to her.<\/p>\n
\u201cTemporary,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n
Maddie kissed its nose.<\/p>\n
At six-thirty we loaded the car.<\/p>\n
Doug drove.<\/p>\n
I sat beside him.<\/p>\n
The children were in back.<\/p>\n
We made it four blocks before Bentley leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat truck.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doug checked the mirror.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBehind us.\u201d<\/p>\n
I turned.<\/p>\n
A black pickup was two cars back.<\/p>\n
My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cMissing hubcap?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI can't tell.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doug made a left.<\/p>\n
The truck did too.<\/p>\n
Another left.<\/p>\n
The truck followed.<\/p>\n
\u201cCall Harris,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
I reached for my phone.<\/p>\n
Bentley\u2019s voice sharpened.<\/p>\n
\u201cDon't go to your house.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doug glanced at him in the mirror.<\/p>\n
\u201cWasn't planning to.\u201d<\/p>\n
We turned onto Madison Avenue.<\/p>\n
The truck remained behind us.<\/p>\n
I called 911.<\/p>\n
The dispatcher told us not to stop.<\/p>\n
Doug drove toward the police station.<\/p>\n
For six blocks, the truck stayed close.<\/p>\n
Then, at a red light, it disappeared down a side street.<\/p>\n
Bentley watched through the rear window.<\/p>\n
His face was pale.<\/p>\n
\u201cWas it him?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't know.\u201d<\/p>\n
But he did not sound uncertain.<\/p>\n
We reached the police station.<\/p>\n
Harris met us outside.<\/p>\n
He listened.<\/p>\n
Then asked Doug for the dash camera footage.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don't have one.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cLicense plate?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDriver?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCouldn't see.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt anger rising again.<\/p>\n
Always almost.<\/p>\n
Almost a plate.<\/p>\n
Almost a clear face.<\/p>\n
Almost enough evidence.<\/p>\n
Then Bentley said, \u201cThere was a sticker.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris turned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBack window.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat kind?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA snake.\u201d<\/p>\n
He drew it on a scrap of paper.<\/p>\n
A coiled snake around a red letter N.<\/p>\n
Harris stared at it.<\/p>\n
\u201cAre you sure?\u201d<\/p>\n
Bentley nodded.<\/p>\n
Harris stepped away and made a call.<\/p>\n
When he returned, his expression had changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat symbol belongs to Nolan Recovery.\u201d<\/p>\n
Amber had never mentioned a business.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat's Nolan Recovery?\u201d Doug asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cA towing and repossession company Travis used to work for.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUsed to?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCompany dissolved eighteen months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why is the sticker useful?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause we have photographs of employee vehicles.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hope rose too quickly.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis?\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cA black Ford.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMissing hubcap?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot in the old photo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bentley spoke.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe hit a curb.\u201d<\/p>\n
We all looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe day Mom got hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow do you know?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI heard it when he left.\u201d<\/p>\n
A memory clicked into place.<\/p>\n
Travis had driven away fast.<\/p>\n
The damaged hubcap may have happened then.<\/p>\n
Harris sent the information out immediately.<\/p>\n
By seven-thirty, patrol units were searching.<\/p>\n
We remained in the station lobby.<\/p>\n
Maddie fell asleep against my side.<\/p>\n
Bentley sat beside me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were right about the sticker,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n
He shrugged.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou notice everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
His face became serious.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have to.\u201d<\/p>\n
I hated how normal that sounded to him.<\/p>\n
At eight-fifteen, Harris returned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe found the truck.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bentley sat upright.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBehind an abandoned warehouse on Tucker Road.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWas Travis there?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Of course not.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnything inside?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey're getting a warrant.\u201d<\/p>\n
Again, waiting.<\/p>\n
Again, procedure.<\/p>\n
At nine-twenty, Harris\u2019s phone rang.<\/p>\n
He listened.<\/p>\n
His face went still.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is it?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
He ended the call.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey opened the truck.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked at Bentley, then at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe found the photograph missing from Maddie\u2019s bag.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bentley grabbed my hand.<\/p>\n
Harris continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd something else.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA key.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doug frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo what?\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris placed a clear evidence bag on the desk.<\/p>\n
Inside was an old brass key.<\/p>\n
I recognized the small strip of blue paint near its teeth.<\/p>\n
My breath left me.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s Ray\u2019s key.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doug looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe old master key.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor the duplex?\u201d<\/p>\n
I nodded.<\/p>\n
The key had disappeared years ago.<\/p>\n
Long before Amber moved in.<\/p>\n
Long before Travis was supposed to know anything about us.<\/p>\n
Harris\u2019s voice was careful.<\/p>\n
\u201cMrs. Whitaker, we need to know who had access to this key.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at the brass shape inside the plastic.<\/p>\n
And for the first time, Travis no longer felt like a danger approaching from outside our lives.<\/p>\n
Somehow, he had been connected to the house long before any of us realized it.<\/p>\n
Detective Harris arrived at 1:16 in the morning. By then Doug had forbidden me from touching anything else, which would have been more useful advice before I picked up the … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7642,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7648","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chapter-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7648","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7648"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7648\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7668,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7648\/revisions\/7668"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/7642"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7648"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7648"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7648"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}