Reader\'s Digest AU NZ 03.2020

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CHRISTOPHER

SADOWSKI

(HOUSE)

READER’SDIGEST

A

fterhe’dfinishedpaintingoneevening

athisnewhouseinWestfield,New

Jersey,DerekBroaddusfoundan

envelopeaddressedinthick,clunky

handwritingto“TheNewOwner”.

Dearestnew neighbour at 657

Boulevard,allowmetowelcomeyou

totheneighbourhood.

Buying 657 Boulevard hadful-

filleda dreamforDerekandhiswife,

Maria.Thehousewasa fewblocks

fromMaria’schildhoodhome.Their

threekids,whowerefive,eightand

tenyearsold,werealreadydebating

whichofthehouse’sfireplaces Santa

Clauswoulduse.

Thetypednotewenton:

Mygrandfatherwatchedthehouse

inthe1920sandmyfatherwatched

inthe1960s.Itisnowmytime.Do

youknowthehistoryofthehouse?

Doyouknowwhatlieswithinthe

wallsof 657 Boulevard?Whyareyou

here?I willfindout.

TheletteridentifiedtheBroaddus-

es’Hondaminivan,aswellasthe

workersrenovatingthehome.

I seealreadythatyouhavef lood-

ed 657 Boulevardwithcontractors

sothatyoucandestroythehouseas

itwassupposedtobe.Tsk,tsk,tsk...

badmove.Youdon’twanttomake

657 Boulevardunhappy.

Earlierintheweek,thefamilyhad

gonetothehouseandchattedwith

theirnewneighbours.Theletter

writerseemedtohave noticed.

Youhavechildren.I haveseenthem.

SofarI thinktherearethreethat

I havecounted...OnceI knowtheir

namesI willcalltothemanddraw

themtoo[sic]me.

The envelope had no return

address.

WhoamI?There arehundreds

andhundredsofcarsthatdriveby

657 Boulevardeachday.MaybeI am

inone.Lookatallthewindowsyou

canseefrom 657 Boulevard.Maybe

I aminone.

Welcomemy friends,welcome.

Letthepartybegin.

Asignaturewastyped in a cursive

font:

• TheWatcher

I

t wasafter10pm,andDerekwas

alone.Heracedaroundthehouse

turningofflightssonoonecould

seeinside,thencalledthepolice.An

officercametothehouseandread

theletter.HeaskedDerekwhether

hehadenemiesandrecommend-

edmovingapieceofconstruction

equipmentfromthebackverandah

incasetheWatchertriedtotossit

througha window.

DerekandMariaemailedJohnand

Andrea Woods, the couple who’d sold

94 March 2020