The Collector

 

  

In the little town of Foxridge, there was a young man named Daniel, whom the neighbors always knew to be helpful and who smiled a lot, making sure everyone was happy and taken care of in the area. He never caused trouble until the day he decided to turn his hobby into something criminal. Daniel was popular, but his secret fascination with keys and locks stemmed from a desire to uncover the mysteries people kept locked away.

One Monday evening, during a quiet game of basketball with his friend, Daniel decided to share something interesting. Moving closer, he uttered, “If someone builds a door, it’s because they are hiding something.” With that cryptic remark, Daniel took another shot at the goal and walked home. As the sun set, the usual rhythm of Foxridge gently carried Daniel back to his house.

Daniel reached home, went into his room, and locked his door without a word. His mother stood at the bottom of the stairs, hoping that Daniel wouldn’t become like his alcoholic father, who vanished and left them with his debt. Daniel’s mother secretly put some money away so that Daniel could get out of the house for the summer. They were going to the Beach resort, a place Daniel had always wanted to go ever since he was a little boy. He always heard his friends talking about how fun it was.

In the summer of 2019, all the kids were on break, and one Saturday night, there was a call for a break-in at Mrs. Road’s home. She wasn’t there, and no valuables like money were taken. The detective found it hard to believe that someone would take photos of the family and nothing more. The detective saw a key with a date on it sitting on the bed, but they thought it was some sort of prank and dismissed it; they still noted it in the investigation.

Everything was okay until Mrs. Caldten was a victim of a break-in, but she was not so lucky. She was gone, there on the ground with nothing but hundreds of keys surrounding her. One key stood out: “22-Daniel.” The detective raced over there quickly. Daniel and his mother let the police search his room, and all they could see were photos of each victim’s door up on the wall and all sorts of keys just scattered on his desk and floor. Daniel didn’t deny it; he even gave a reason. “I wanted to know,” he said softly. “I wanted to know what people keep locked away.” “I just wanted to know. Am I in trouble?”

The court date came fast, and with that, Daniel never showed any grief or sadness. He looked up at the judge and uttered, “You still haven’t opened all the doors.” A creepy smile showed up out of nowhere on Daniel’s face, and the courtroom began to gasp and whisper. “I knew he was like his father,” one lady said at the very back. “Another look over at Daniel’s mother, and she shook her head with shock and mouthed, ‘You poor woman.’” Daniel’s mom got up and ran outside, trying to hold back tears.

Every day, the townspeople swear that they find new keys on their porches just waiting for someone with the courage to turn them. Some say that they saw Daniel standing outside their home in the darkness.

Daniel was sentenced to 25 to life for the robbery and murder of Mrs. Caldten, and his mother moved to the countryside to be alone, far away from everyone.

© Lakeyia Lugo, 2025. All rights reserved.