Having run into more than their share of trouble over the last two years at ETU, the sleuths decided to attend a gun show in Houston and pick up some additional firepower – a .357 revolver for CP and a shotgun for Matt. On their return trip, while driving Marina’s SUV on an isolated pine-forest road, several of the passengers spotted an eleven-year-old girl by the side of the road, and Matt heard a voice in his head – the voice of a small girl saying, “Help me. Help her.”
Mariana turned around and the juniors investigated the area where they had seen the girl. Troy found no tracks in any direction, but Ryo discovered some old police crime scene tape and a small funeral wreath in the area. Marco remembered hearing about a missing girl’s body being found in the area, and some quick Internet searches revealed the girl’s name was Christina Levens, and described her abduction from her home. CP and Matt attempted to raise her spirit to speak with them, but did not succeed. While they did so, however, Marco recalled a recent Amber Alert and determined that a 10-year-old girl had gone missing two days before.
The group headed to the neighborhood where Christina was abducted, and found the Levens’ house without much difficulty. The house had a “For Sale” sign out front and appeared deserted, but Mariana caught sight of some movement inside. Troy managed to pick the lock and enter the house, which had clearly not been occupied for months. Pictures on the walls showed Christina and her parents. As the team began to wrap up their search, the ghost of Christina reappeared in the living room, pointed out the front window, and shook her head sadly. She appeared to have been pointing at a neighbor across the street who was unloading groceries from his car.
CP confronted the neighbor, who became very agitated when questioned about the little girl and entered the house, turning on some loud music. Marco, however, heard faint cries over the music, suggesting the missing girl might be inside. The group split up, with Troy and Ryo going to the back door; CP, Matt, and Mariana to the front; and Marco to a window. Marco threw a rock through the window as a distraction and CP and Ryo kicked their doors in.
In the house, they found the man brandishing a kitchen knife. Matt attempted to get him to freeze, aiming his new shotgun at him, but the man didn’t stop, and Ryo engaged him in hand-to-hand combat. With the help of gunfire from Mariana and CP and slingshot fire from Troy, Ryo managed to knock out the man as sirens approached. The team found the girl in a hidden space under the kitchen floor and carefully brought her and the abductor outside, where he was taken into custody. The grateful police provided each sleuth with a $600 reward and waived all charges associated with breaking into the house using the Good Samaritan clause.
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