Page 2 — The Door That Should’ve Been Open
The patrol units arrived at 2:03 a.m.
From the outside, the place didn’t scream crime scene. No broken windows. No flashing lights. Just a small rental house at the end of a quiet street—dark, still, like it was asleep.
But one detail made Officer Darnell Hayes stop short on the porch.
The mailbox was stuffed to the point of splitting.
Then he saw it.
A delivery tag on the doorframe. Three days old.
People don’t ignore their own front door for three days unless something is wrong.
Hayes knocked hard. “Police!”
No answer.
He knocked again.
