Matthew DeRoche

“What do know about your grandmother?” My partner, Kevin, sat next to me in the booth of the small coffee shop across from the station. He pitched his voice low despite the quiet of the early evening patrons. “Not as much as I should. Thinking back on it… I can’t remember if I ever had a real conversation with her. Does that make me a bad grandchild?” “Probably. But most are.” “Her maiden name was Staunton.” “Wow.” “Wait, wait. She was born on Mackinac Island. Uh… they met in high school, b...

Beep. “Sammy? Pick up Sammy-girl. Guess your not home yet. Listen… I need you to do something for me. Go out back of the shed and put my snow shovel away for me, okay? Tell Mom I’ll be home with supper for her later tonight. You kids order a pizza - I left some money in the change jar. Don’t go crazy though; I don’t want you two getting sick. Alright. Love you. Bye.” Beep. “Eddie - it’s Bill. It’s about 4PM on February 3rd. I need you to pick up a couple of packages from us and bring them to...

“Find the box. Sort it. Understand. Find her. Burn it all.” This was the text message I found unsent on my grandfathers phone to me. Grandma had been missing for just under 24 hours and a Silver Alert had just kit everyone’s phone in Florida, Georgia, and Alabama. His phone had buzzed loudly from the cracks of his old lounging chair. Grandma hadn’t been able to find it. Find her. How would he have known she would disappear when he died? He knew he was going to die - he had told me as much the...

"I have done things that I can never take back. I have taken lives and destroyed families, and the guilt and shame have been eating me alive for years. It started with small things, like torturing animals or stealing things that didn't belong to me. But then I realized that I had a taste for something much darker… No that’s dumb. Ugh. I’ll try this again later-“ —————— That was from a microcassette labeled “June 2003”. There are hundreds of tiny cassettes in this box. Here - this one is labele...

Dearest Mary, I hope my letter finds you well. I’m stuck in Arkansas for a few more weeks. I wanted to say I love you and to let you know that I'm thinking about you constantly. It's can’t believe it’s been 10 years already. It feels like just yesterday that we exchanged our vows and began our journey together. I'm so grateful for every moment we've spent together, both the good times and the bad. You've been my rock and my best friend through it all. As I sit here writing this letter, I can'...

2023-04-17 My name is Detective Harrison Stride. On April 2nd, my grandfather, James Edgar Crawford, passed away at his home from lymphoma at the age of 83. On April 4th, my grandmother, Mary Crawford, disappeared. She is 84 years old and has dementia. Today, I found the box. ——————————————————————— 1970-11-13 Dearest Mary, I hope my letter finds you well. I’m stuck in Arkansas for a few more weeks. I wanted to say I love you and to let you know that I'm thinking about you constantly. I...