The Grinning Golly: Predator and Prey
Episode 5: Harlow goes on the hunt.
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Previously on The Grinning Golly:
Jackson staggered through the fallout of being doxxed, his dead daughter’s photo turned into a weapon against him. While he was patching himself together, Sadie rocketed from suspect to symbol: her confession and article went viral, she became the new face of the movement, and she and Jackson shared a fragile, hopeful dinner that finally felt like a win. Then the threats escalated, the phrase “comfort turns to terror” slithered back into the conversation and a final text dropped into his phone—a photo of Sadie on a kitchen floor, blood blooming around her and that jade necklace catching the light.
The Harlow Residence
Tuesday, 6:47 PM
I stood staring at my phone. My body wouldn’t move. But my mind was spinning like an angry tornado. Was it real? Was I really looking at Sadie Broussard’s dead body?
It couldn’t be. But I knew it was.
I broke out of the trance and snapped into action. I had to know.
I jumped in my car and set my phone’s GPS to Sadie’s address. My heart was a jackhammer pounding on the inside of my chest like a machine gun.
I probably broke a record number of traffic laws on my way to the apartment. I ran at least one red light. Every minute felt like an hour.
Sadie Broussard’s Apartment
Wednesday, 7:15 PM
I finally arrived. I turned off my car and sprinted up the stairs. The door was slightly ajar. Not a good sign. I entered the apartment, trudged to the end of the hall, looked to the kitchen on the right, and my heart turned to ice. A metallic scent assaulted my nose as if to rub the tragedy in my face.
Sadie lay on the kitchen floor, just like Dolly had, face up. Except this time, there were wounds on her face. The killer hadn’t snuck up on her as he did with Dolly. In an act of futility, I placed two fingers on Sadie’s wrist. There was no chance that there would be a pulse — but I had to be sure.
I pulled out my phone and dialed 911. “There’s a body. It’s a murder,” I told the dispatcher before giving her the address. I hung up.
