The screen blankly comes into a gray awareness, the slightest flickering of frames being taken showing that the video has started. A noise in a unseen background is crisply heard.

"I don't think the shutter's open," a male voice mumbled, sounding much like a person talking to himself. In a second the world comes to life, and it takes a split second for the blurry streams of light to be focused.

The ground is seen. It is checkered black and white, and has the worn look of a floor that has been stepped on several times. Steady breathing is faintly heard. Suddenly the view is jarred upward and steadily drawn across in a panoramic view. It's a store. A camera store.

"Cool. I'll take it."

Another male voice, an adult one that has the quick talking edge of a salesperson, not heard before, says: "You sure?"

"Yep." The video suddenly shuts off.


Again, the dim gray screen returns. The shutter is quickly opened this time. An adolescent's cluttered room comes to view. It's really spacey. The unmade bed, the desk with high school textbooks strewn all over it, the grimy laptop, and the clothes all over the floor quickly is glimpsed. Then the picture whirls around. It's a boy's face, at least fourteen years old but no older than sixteen. He has shaggy brown hair and bright gray eyes. A bit of the shirt below is seen, and with a little thought the words "Life's Good" can be deduced.

"Hello," the boy said. "I'm Jack. And I only bought you because you're the last purchase I'm ever going to make."

While those words are still being imprinted into you, 'Jack' suddenly sets you down on his desk. He smiles a fearful smile.

"This is the fourth story of my mansion," 'Jack' shouts loudly as he paced across the room, opening the window. "Think I'll make it?"

He jumps out the window.

The video scrolls on for minutes more, hours more, until the sun begins to go down. A Mercedes-Benz drives up a private road, then shoots out of sight. It squeals to a stop, that noise is heard.

And then, a scream of a woman who rarely has screamed before. "God, no!"