Emily looked down.
The dog wasn't afraid anymore.
She was determined.
The police searched the attic again.
Behind an old wooden cabinet, they found a narrow stairway descending toward the nursery.
The stairway ended at a concealed door.
Miller opened it.
The room beyond was barely large enough for one person.
There was a chair.
A blanket.
A flashlight.
And dozens of scratches carved into the wood.
Daisy had been right.
Someone had been hiding inside the house.
But there was still no person.
Then Miller noticed a trapdoor.
It opened into a lower passage.
The officers followed.
The passage eventually reached the basement.
There, behind a stack of old timber, they found evidence that someone had escaped recently.
A broken exterior grate.
Fresh mud.
A torn piece of clothing.
And blood.
Not much.
But enough to prove someone had been injured.
Emily's fear changed.
She had been imagining a ghost.
A hidden person was much worse.
That evening, Miller told them the truth.
"We believe the person has been living in the house for some time."
"How long?"
"Possibly months."
Emily stared at him.
"While we were there?"
"Yes."
She felt sick.
"Then he saw us."
Miller nodded.
"Possibly."
"And heard everything?"
"Possibly."
Mark tightened his jaw.
"Then we're not going back until you find him."
Miller agreed.
But Daisy kept looking toward the house.
She wasn't watching the windows.
She was watching the wall.
And Emily suddenly realized something.
Daisy had never been reacting to the house itself.
She had been reacting to someone inside it.
Three days later, police received a call from a nearby property.
A man had been seen crossing a wooded area behind Blackwood Lane.
Officers arrived within minutes.
They found footprints.
Then a trail.
It led directly back toward the old house.
Miller called Mark.
"Stay away."
But before they could respond, the police radio crackled.
A search team had located someone.
Emily and Mark waited outside.
Daisy sat between them.
Then the basement door opened.
Two officers emerged.
Between them was a thin man.
His clothes were filthy.
His hair was tangled.
His face looked exhausted.
Emily didn't recognize him.
Miller approached.
"His name is Arthur Vance."
The name meant nothing to her.
"He was reported missing several years ago," Miller continued. "He'd been living around Oakhaven."
Arthur looked toward the house.
Then toward Daisy.
His eyes widened.
The dog stood.
For a moment, neither moved.
Then Arthur whispered:
"She knew."
Emily felt a chill.
"What?"
Arthur looked at Daisy.
"She knew I was there."
Miller gently guided him away.
Arthur resisted.
"No."
"Arthur."
"She knew."
His voice broke.
Daisy didn't bark.
She simply watched him.
Later, investigators explained what they had found.
Arthur had discovered the abandoned passageways years earlier.
He had used them as shelter.
At first, he stayed in the attic.
Then he became increasingly afraid of being discovered.
When Emily and Mark purchased the house, he remained hidden.
He watched them through one of the old observation openings.
That explained Daisy's behavior.