“The 5-year-old pointed to the family photo and said, ‘He’s in the freezer.’” During a family gathering, my son suddenly burst into tears when he saw a photo of himself with his uncle who had been missing for two years. He pointed directly at the photo and said something that left the whole family speechless. The police checked the freezer behind the house and…
The first snowstorm of the season arrived in Minnesota earlier than expected, blanketing the old Anderson family farm in a blanket of white, cold and lonely. Outside, the wind howled through the ancient pine trees like a mournful lament. But inside, the fireplace blazed, the aroma of roasted turkey, pumpkin pie, and mulled wine filling the air.
It was Thanksgiving. For the first time in two years, the entire Anderson family was gathered together.
I, Sarah, sat on the edge of the sofa, my glass of wine clutched tightly. I watched my husband, David, chatting animatedly with my parents across the room. He looked perfect: his neatly groomed blond hair, his charming smile, and the confident demeanor of a successful businessman. In the past two years, since his twin brother – Caleb – had run away from home due to gambling debts, David had changed. He had become stronger, shouldering the family business and providing attentive care for my mother and me.
“Mom, can I look at the pictures?”
My five-year-old son Leo's childish voice pulled me back to reality. He was pulling an old photo album from under the table. It was a cherished keepsake we'd kept for a long time.
“Of course, darling,” I smiled, stroking his hair.
Leo flipped through the pages. Yellowed photos of David and Caleb as children, identical in every way. Then came wedding photos, picnic photos.
Suddenly, Leo stopped at a family photo from Christmas three years ago. In the picture, David and Caleb were standing arm in arm, smiling brightly in front of the Christmas tree.
Leo's face changed. His big, round eyes widened, fixed on the photo. He began to tremble.
“What's wrong, Leo?” David stepped closer, placing his hand on his son's shoulder. “Did you see Uncle Caleb? He's traveling far away.”
Leo pushed his father's hand away. He stepped back, his tiny finger pointing directly at the man on the right in the photograph – it was Caleb.
And then, he said something that instantly froze the cozy atmosphere of the living room:
“Not on vacation. He's in the freezer.”
The laughter and chatter died down. Only the crackling of wood in the fireplace remained.
My mother dropped her fork onto the porcelain plate, creating a jarring sound. David froze, his smile stiff as a broken mask.
“What are you saying, Leo?” I quickly knelt down to his eye level. “Don't talk nonsense. Which freezer?”
Leo began to cry, tears streaming down his frightened face. “The big freezer in the shed behind the house, Mom! I saw him sleeping in there! He was freezing! He was turning purple!”
“Enough!” David yelled, his voice strangely hoarse. “The boy's been watching too much TV. Sarah, take him upstairs.”
But my father, Frank, a retired Sheriff, didn't think so. He stood up, his sharp gaze fixed on his son-in-law.
“Wait,” Frank said, his voice deep and husky. “Why is he talking about the industrial freezer in the shed? We locked it two years ago, didn't we?”
“I… I don't know,” David stammered, sweat beading on his forehead despite the cold. “He probably snuck in to play. Kids imagine monsters.”
“I didn't imagine it!” Leo yelled, clinging to my shirt. “I opened it! I opened it last night! I talked to him! I told him, ‘Stay put, don't even think about coming back!'”
I looked at my husband. Last night? David said he went out to smoke. He'd been gone for almost an hour. When he returned, his brother reeked of mint – a scent he often used to mask… something.
“I'll go check,” Frank said firmly. He walked toward the gun cabinet, took out a large flashlight and a spare set of keys.
“Don't, Dad!” David lunged forward, shielding his father-in-law. “It's stormy outside. Besides… it's just venison in there. Opening it will ruin the meat.”
“Get out of the way, David,” Frank pushed his son-in-law aside.
I picked Leo up, my heart pounding. A vague but terrifying fear was creeping through me. I watched my father and his two burly cousins walk out the back door, disappearing into the white night.
Fifteen minutes felt like an eternity. David paced back and forth in the living room, tearing at his hair. He didn't dare look me in the eye.
Then, the siren blared. Not one, but three local police cars ripped through the quiet night, their flashing red and green lights illuminating the snow. My father had called an old colleague the moment he stepped out of the house.
The back door swung open. My father stepped inside, snowflakes clinging to his shoulders. His face was deathly pale, drained of color. He looked at David—not with the gaze of a son-in-law, but with the gaze of a monster.
“Handcuff him,” Frank said to the two officers accompanying him.
“Dad? What's wrong?” I rushed forward. “What's in the freezer?”
Frank trembled, swallowing hard. “There's a body, Sarah. Wrapped in industrial plastic, hidden under a pile of venison.”
I collapsed into a chair. David—my husband, the man I'd shared my life with—had killed his brother? Killed Caleb because of debt? Or because of a conflict?
David was pinned to the floor by the police, handcuffs snapped onto his wrists. He didn't resist, he just collapsed.
My head bowed, my shoulders trembling.
“Why?” I cried out, tears streaming down my face. “Why did you do this to Caleb? He's your brother, David!”
The police chief, who had just examined the body, walked in. In his hand was an piece of evidence in a plastic bag.
It was a ring. A white gold wedding ring engraved with names.
“Mrs. Sarah,” the officer said, his voice apologetic. “We need you to identify this.”
I took the plastic bag. This ring… I knew it. It was David's wedding ring. He said he lost it swimming two years ago, around the same time Caleb went missing. We bought a new one then.
“Yes, this is my husband's old ring,” I sobbed. “It was on the body?”
“Yes,” the officer nodded. “But there's a problem.”
He stared at David kneeling on the floor, then at me.
“The body in the freezer was completely frozen, but the face was still intact. It was his twin brother. But… on the ring finger of the body, there was a long, Y-shaped scar. A surgical scar from a finger tendon repair.”
I was speechless. The blood in my veins stopped flowing.
David didn't have that scar.
But Caleb didn't.
That Y-shaped scar… was David's.
My husband, David, had a work accident at age 28 and had finger surgery. I was the one who cared for him all those months. That scar was the only distinguishing feature between the twins, even from a distance.
If the body in the freezer had the scar… then it was David.
So who was the man kneeling on my floor, the man who had shared my bed for the past two years, the man playing the role of the perfect husband…?
I slowly turned to look at the handcuffed man. He lifted his head. Gone was the fear and weakness. A twisted, cruel smile spread across his lips – a smile I'd glimpsed before but always dismissed.
It was Caleb's smile.
“Hello, sister-in-law,” he said, his voice hoarse and cunning. “Long time no see, huh?”
My world crumbled.
Two years ago. Caleb owed the mafia a huge sum of money. He was being hunted. He'd gone to David for money but was refused. A fight had broken out in the warehouse.
Caleb had killed David.
And then, realizing his chance to escape, he'd thrown his brother's body into a freezer. He'd taken David's wedding ring, dressed in David's clothes, cut his hair to look like David's. He'd impersonated David. And “Caleb” was reported to have fled without a trace.
He'd lived his brother's life. He slept with his brother's wife. He raised his brother's child.
“You…” I was speechless, my throat choked with disgust and pain. “You're a devil!”
“I did better than him!” Caleb yelled as the police dragged him away. “I saved the company! I made you happier than that boring David ever! You should thank me!”
“Shut up!” My father lunged forward and punched him in the face.
Leo stood on the stairs, hugging his teddy bear, looking down at the chaotic scene. He wasn't crying anymore. He looked at Caleb with a cold, mature gaze.
The police chief approached me. “Ma'am, we need to take you and the child to the station for questioning. This case… is too complicated.”
I nodded unconsciously.
But as I passed Leo, I saw him whispering something to his teddy bear. I leaned closer to his ear.
“Dad,” Leo whispered. “I'm sorry. I promised not to tell. But Uncle Caleb scared me.”
I froze.
“Who did you promise?” I asked, my voice trembling.
Leo looked up at me, his eyes clear.
“I promised you, Dad.”
“You mean… you promised the man who was just arrested?”
“No,” Leo shook his head. “I really promised you, Dad. You're in the freezer.”
A chill ran down my spine. “How… how did you talk to your father?”
“He came home every night,” Leo said casually. “He stood at my window. He was freezing, he was shivering. He said, ‘Leo, don't say anything. Uncle Caleb is impersonating me to avoid paying his debts. If you tell anyone, the bad guys will come and kill our whole family. Let him handle the money.'”
I was stunned. It turned out Leo had known all along. Did the boy see his father's ghost? Or was it a child's defense mechanism after witnessing the horrific events of that night?
“But yesterday,” Leo continued, his voice sharp. “Uncle Caleb opened the freezer. He laughed and spat in Dad's face. He said, ‘You rot there, I'm going to sell the house and move your wife and kids somewhere else.' Dad cried, Mom. He told me, ‘It's time, Leo. Save me.'”
I hugged my son tightly, tears streaming down my face.
Caleb thought he had fooled the world. He thought he had perfectly replaced his twin brother. But he forgot one thing.
He could fool his wife, his parents, even the law.
But he could never deceive the eyes of a child—and the soul of a father who died unjustly, lying frozen beneath the ice for two years, waiting for justice to be served through his own five-year-old son.
Outside, the snowstorm had subsided. The police lights cast a red glow on the white snow, like the blood of betrayal that had been exposed display.