A 6-year-old boy’s horrific life is brought to light as cops break open the door to his house and discover him sobbing uncontrollably inside.
Sally Peterson leaned on her windowsill, wondering if what she’d heard last night was true or just a hunch. She was 80, and given the troubles that had befriended her in old age, it was not surprising that she could imagine the 6-year-old Jason crying at night.
However, something in her heart told her otherwise, so she decided to discuss it with her neighbor and good friend Mrs. Martin to confirm her concerns.
“Hello, Billie,” she said softly, her voice anxious. “Sorry for showing up uninvited at your house, but did you also hear Jason weeping around 9 p.m. last night?” she inquired, standing on their porch.
“Oh, Sally, good morning. Come on in. I was just making tea. What did you say? Jason? The little boy whose dad….”
“Exactly, Billie. I noticed the boy crying loudly last night, and to be honest, I haven’t seen his mother Addison at home in a few days. Do you think we should keep an eye on them?”
“You know how abusive the boy’s father is, darling. When we invited Addison to a tea party last time, the man came up to our house and dragged her away. He’s such a jerk, I tell you! Even his son, that small boy…he’s out of the ordinary. He hardly ever interacts with other children, and he can’t even hold a conversation. Take my advice and stay away from those weirdos!”
“But Billie, I’m worried about Jason. That boy… I’m sure… Or, I believe, it was him crying in the middle of the night.”
“Oh dear,” Billie laughed. “You are aware that we are old birds, dear. I’m sure it was all in your head. If it had been something like that, others would have heard it as well. Anyway, two sugar cubes for your tea, as usual?”
Sally gave a nod. “Oh, I do hope I’m wrong, Billie, and you’re right,” she said, hoping Jason was fine and it was all a figment of her imagination. But she heard the wailing sound again that night. This time it seemed louder, and Sally instantly dialed Billie’s number.
We should always trust our instincts.
“Billie. I’m sure Jason is crying again. Let’s go check on him, please. I feel there’s something wrong.”
“All right, Sally, calm down. Let’s get some people to join us. I’m concerned we shouldn’t go by ourselves.”
“Okay, I’ll meet you at the front door,” the elderly woman said before hanging up the phone.
A few minutes later, Sally, Billie, and Billie’s next-door neighbors, the Andersons, arrived at Jason’s door.
“Sally, I hate to admit it, but you were right,” Billie said. ” Carrie and Jake just told me that they overheard some of our neighbors complaining about Jason sobbing in the middle of the night. I hope the boy is okay.”
“Oh dear, I knew something was wrong. I hope that little boy is okay…” Sally’s heart was racing in her chest. She rang the doorbell several times but got no answer.
“Jason? Mr. Barrett? Could you please open the door? This is Mrs. Peterson – Sally Peterson – your next-door neighbor.” Again, there was no response, but the crying sound became louder.
“Jason? Is that you, sweetheart? Could you please open the door? We are here to help you. You don’t need to be afraid, okay?” Sally reassured him, figuring the boy was near the door, but he didn’t respond.
At that point, the neighbors decided to call 911. Around 10 minutes later, what felt like an eternity to Sally, the cops arrived on the scene.
Officer Reid, the chief inspector, directed his crew to smash open the door after many unanswered knocks and doorbell rings. As the wooden door tumbled to the floor, they discovered little Jason whimpering under the stairway.
“Don’t worry, champ. We are all good,” Officer Reid reassured the child. He carried Jason to the police car, and Sally quickly handed him her scarf. “Jason, honey, you okay? Where are your mommy and daddy?”
“Momma, momma, hospital….daddy….scary,” the boy kept repeating and crying. None of the neighbors understood what he was saying, but Officer Reid quickly realized that the boy had speech issues.
“Jason, could you try to write or draw what you’re saying for us?”
“Drawing…pencil…colors…” he said along with other words that were hard to make out.
“Ma’am,” Officer Reid whispered to Sally. “Can we get a plain sheet of paper and a few colored pencils if possible? I guess he’s trying to say something that happened to his parents.”
At that, Carrie spoke up. “Sure, officer. I have my kids’ crayons at home. I’ll get them now.”
After providing Jason with crayons and sheets of paper, he drew a few things that attracted Officer Reid’s attention — an ambulance, a woman — lying in a coffin, a man with his bag leaving the house.
Officer Reid concluded that the man was Jason’s father leaving their home and that his mother was most likely dead. However, in order to corroborate this, he thought it best to contact a child specialist. Therefore, Jason was escorted to the police station.
After almost 8 hours of counseling there, the child therapist, Dr. Caroline Woods, confirmed that Officer Reid’s analysis was correct.
Jason had overheard his father talking about leaving town for a while after refusing to pay for Addison’s treatment and abandoning her in the hospital to die. These events had a traumatizing effect on Jason, and he was crying at home because he was scared to be alone and missed his mother. At one point, he wanted to talk to his neighbors, but his father had threatened him that he would be “dead,” much like his mother if he revealed anything.
After the terrifying event, Jason was sent to therapy, and Officer Reid frequently checked on him throughout that time. Meanwhile, his team looked into Mr. Barrett’s whereabouts after Addison’s death was confirmed at a city hospital.
The search for Mr. Barrett lasted nearly six months before he was apprehended in Mexico. It turns out he and his rich girlfriend were on vacation when they got the news about how he was exposed for killing his wife.
“He was nothing more than a burden to us. That weirdo should have died! Just like his loser mother. She was sick, and so is he!” he said, mocking his son and late wife in court.
But karma caught up with him. After the trial, he and his beloved were sentenced to prison, while Jason’s life improved dramatically.
Officer Reid and his wife, who were unable to have children, adopted and raised the young boy as their own. They also sent him to counseling, which healed his speech problems. You won’t believe it, but Jason Reid is now a TV presenter for a well-known news channel. And every time he sits down and focuses on the camera, he thanks God for that night when Sally and Officer Reid came into his life.