Chapter One: Where Her Ghost Story Begins

Mary Todd: The House of Music and Shadows

A Novel of Grief, Ghosts, and Becoming

PROLOGUE — The Candle and the Veil

The candle burned low in the Red Room, its flame trembling as though afraid of the dark gathering around it. Mary Todd Lincoln sat motionless before it, her hands hovering above the table, her breath shallow, her eyes fixed on the wavering light.

Outside, the winter wind clawed at the windows.

Inside, the silence pressed close, thick as velvet.

“Willie…” she whispered.

The flame bent toward her, as if listening.

In that moment, Mary felt the veil thin — felt the world she knew stretch, tremble, and open like a seam. She felt the presence of her son, the echo of his laughter, the warmth of his small hand in hers.

But the dead do not come from nowhere.

They come from memory.

From longing.

From the shadows of a life shaped by loss.

And Mary’s shadows began long before the White House — long before the war — long before the séances and the whispers and the grief that hollowed her.

Her ghost story began in a house of music and shadows, in a childhood gilded with privilege and haunted by silence.

It began in Lexington.

It began with a mother’s hands.

It began with a death.

EPIGRAPH I

“Some houses remember.

Some houses grieve.

And some houses keep their ghosts.”  

— Kentucky proverb

EPIGRAPH II

“A child’s first haunting is often the loss of a mother.”  

— Anonymous, 19th‑century diary fragment

CHAPTER ONE — Where Her Ghost Story Begins

The Todd mansion stood on Main Street like a grand, brooding sentinel — three stories of red brick and white trim, its tall windows gleaming in the morning sun like watchful eyes. The house was elegant, yes, but beneath its polish lay a stillness, a depth, a sense that the walls themselves were listening.

Inside, the air carried the scent of beeswax polish, coal smoke, and lavender water. The floors gleamed with such care that the reflections of passing figures shimmered like ghosts. Servants moved through the halls with practiced quiet, their footsteps softened by thick carpets imported from the East. Portraits of stern ancestors lined the walls, their painted eyes following the children as they ran past.

And the children did run.

The Todd household was a small universe of motion and noise: laughter echoing down staircases, the thud of hurried footsteps, the rustle of skirts, the clatter of dropped toys. The mansion, for all its grandeur, felt alive.

But even in its liveliness, the house held shadows — long, reaching shadows that pooled in corners and stretched across hallways as though waiting for someone to notice them.

Mary noticed them.

Even as a child, she felt the house watching her.

The Mother of Light

At the center of this world was Mary’s mother, Eliza Parker Todd.

Eliza moved through the home with a softness that warmed every room she entered. She had a way of smoothing a collar, brushing a curl from a forehead, or adjusting a ribbon that made the world feel safe. Her presence softened the edges of the house, turning its grandeur into something gentle.

In the evenings, she played the piano in the parlor — a room of pale blue walls, tall windows draped in silk, and a chandelier that caught the lamplight like a cluster of stars. Eliza’s fingers drifted across the keys with a quiet tenderness that made the entire house pause.

Mary would sit cross‑legged on the rug, tracing patterns in the carpet while the notes drifted around her like warm light.

“Again, Mama,” she would whisper.

Eliza smiled — always with her eyes first — and played the melody once more. Mary leaned her head against her mother’s knee, feeling the vibration of each note through the floorboards. She didn’t know she was storing the sound away like a keepsake — something she would cling to long after the music itself had vanished.

To Mary, her mother was not just a parent.

She was the sun.

The center.

The warmth that made everything else make sense.

Mirrors and Shadows

There was a tall mirror in the upstairs hallway — a gilt‑framed thing imported from France, its surface so polished it reflected the world with unsettling clarity.

Mary avoided it.

Sometimes, when she passed it at dusk, she thought she saw movement in the reflection — a flicker of shadow, a shift of light, something that didn’t match the world behind her.

Once, she paused before it, her small hand reaching toward the glass. Her reflection stared back — wide‑eyed, solemn, too still.

Behind her, the hallway stretched long and dim.

In the mirror, it seemed even longer.

“Mama says mirrors remember,” she whispered.

And the mirror seemed to listen.

The Children of the House

The Todd children were a constellation — each bright, each different, each orbiting around their mother’s warmth.

Elizabeth, Frances, and Ann, the older sisters, hovered protectively around Mary. They braided her hair, read to her from their schoolbooks, taught her French phrases, and let her tag along even when she was too young.

The younger children were whirlwinds of energy. They raced down hallways, hid behind velvet drapes, giggled during lessons, and whispered secrets long after bedtime. Their laughter echoed through the house like bells — bright, chaotic, alive.

Mary was right in the middle — old enough to help, young enough to play, sensitive enough to feel every shift in the air.

The house was noisy, chaotic, joyful.

But beneath the laughter, there was always a faint tremor — a sense that the harmony of the household depended entirely on one woman’s presence.

And Mary, even as a child, sensed it.

The Storm

The night the storm rolled in, the sky turned the color of bruised violets. Thunder rumbled across the horizon like distant cannon fire. The wind pressed against the windows, making the glass tremble.

Mary stood at the parlor window, watching the trees bend and sway. The piano sat silent behind her, its keys gleaming faintly in the lamplight.

Her mother had been in bed for two days.

The storm felt like an omen.

A warning.

A breath held too long.

When lightning flashed, Mary saw her reflection in the window — pale, wide‑eyed, ghostlike. For a moment, she didn’t recognize herself.

The Day the Music Stopped

Eliza had just given birth to her fourteenth child — a tiny baby boy named George. The house buzzed with excitement, servants rushing about, siblings whispering eagerly. But Mary felt something else. A heaviness. A stillness. A wrongness that settled in her stomach like a stone.

That night, she stood in the dim hallway clutching her doll. The gas lamps flickered, casting amber pools of light that made the shadows seem to breathe. A door creaked open. Elizabeth stepped out, wiping her eyes quickly.

“Is Mama sleeping?” Mary whispered.

Elizabeth knelt, forcing a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “She’s… resting, darling.”

But Mary saw the fear in her sister’s trembling hands.

Her mother lay pale and trembling in her bed, fever burning through her body. Mary wasn’t allowed inside, but she stood in the hallway, gripping the banister so tightly her knuckles turned white. Doctors whispered behind closed doors. Her older sisters cried quietly in corners. 

Her father paced the hallway, boots striking the floor with sharp, anxious echoes.

Hours passed.

Then a day.

Then another.

The fever worsened.

The newborn cried in the next room — a thin, desperate sound that cut through the silence like a blade.

And then… silence.

The doctor stepped into the hallway, face pale, spectacles fogged. Robert Todd stood rigid, hands clasped behind his back.

“It’s over,” the doctor whispered.

Robert’s jaw tightened. His eyes closed for a single, fragile second — the only moment he allowed himself to break. Then he straightened, spine stiffening, grief swallowed whole.

Mary watched from the staircase.

Later, she slipped into her mother’s room. The curtains were drawn. The air was still. Her mother’s hand — once warm and soft — was cold.

Mary touched it anyway.

“Mama… please wake up.”

But Eliza Parker Todd would never wake again.

And the warmth of the Todd home vanished with her.

A House Hollowed by Grief

After Eliza’s death, the mansion didn’t simply grow quiet — it grew hollow. The rooms felt larger, emptier, as though the walls themselves had pulled back in mourning. The piano sat untouched, its keys gathering dust. The air felt colder, even in summer.

Shadows lengthened.

Floorboards creaked at odd hours.

Mirrors seemed to darken around the edges.

Mary began waking in the night, certain she heard footsteps in the hallway — soft, slow, hesitant. When she opened her door, the corridor was empty, the lamps flickering as though someone had just passed.

Robert moved through the house like a figure carved from stone: shoulders rigid, jaw clenched, eyes fixed straight ahead. He mourned the only way he knew how — silently, rigidly, alone.

One night, Mary wandered past his study. The door was cracked open. Inside, Robert sat at his desk, head bowed over a letter he wasn’t writing. His shoulders shook once — a single, silent tremor. By the time he opened the door, his face was stone again.

Mary hid behind the corner, watching him walk past without seeing her.

Within months, he remarried.

To Mary, it felt like betrayal.

The Winter That Moved In

Elizabeth “Betsey” Humphreys Todd arrived at the mansion like a winter wind — sharp, brisk, impossible to ignore. She carried herself with rigid posture, chin lifted, eyes sharp as glass. Her footsteps echoed with purpose. Her voice cut through the air like a blade.

She was everything Eliza was not: strict, formal, emotionally distant, obsessed with propriety.

On her first day, she stepped into the foyer and surveyed the house with a critical eye. Mary clutched her sister’s hand. Betsey’s gaze landed on her.

“You must learn to stand straighter,” she said, adjusting Mary’s posture with two firm fingers.

Mary flinched. No one had ever touched her like that.

Betsey brought several children of her own. They entered the Todd mansion quietly, almost cautiously, like guests unsure if they were welcome. They were reserved, watchful, disciplined, unfamiliar with laughter.

At dinner, they sat stiffly, hands folded neatly in their laps. The Todd children shifted uncomfortably. Mary reached for a biscuit.

“Use your left hand,” Betsey said sharply.

Mary froze. The silence was suffocating.

A House Divided

The mansion grew colder. The piano sat silent. The laughter faded. The hallways felt longer, darker, emptier.

One evening, Mary slipped into the parlor and pressed a single piano key. A soft, trembling note.

“That is not appropriate at this hour,” Betsey said from the doorway.

Mary’s hand fell away from the keys.

She learned to navigate the new household like a battlefield: watching, listening, anticipating, adapting. She learned to hide her feelings behind a practiced smile. She learned to swallow her grief before anyone could see it. She learned to sharpen her wit like a blade.

In her bedroom, she stood before the mirror, smoothing her dress. She practiced a smile — small, polite, unbreakable.

“Be strong,” she whispered.

And the girl in the mirror obeyed.

Storms at the Dinner Table

At dinner, political arguments erupted like summer storms — slavery, states’ rights, the future of the country. Voices rose. Tempers flared. Lines were drawn.

Mary sat quietly, absorbing every word. Politics became her second language. She learned how to read a room, how to sense tension before it broke, how to speak with precision — or stay silent with purpose.

She was a girl born into privilege… but shaped by grief.

A girl surrounded by luxury… but haunted by loneliness.

A girl raised in a mansion… but living in the shadows of her own home.

She once wrote that she was taught to appear strong, “even when my heart was breaking.”

And that mask — polished, practiced, unyielding — would follow her for the rest of her life.

CLOSING VIGNETTE — The Breath on the Glass

One winter night, long after the lamps had been extinguished, Mary crept to the parlor. The moonlight spilled through the tall windows, silvering the piano, the chairs, the silent room.

She approached the window and pressed her palm to the cold glass.

Her breath fogged the pane.

For a moment, she imagined another breath meeting hers from the other side — warm, familiar, comforting.

Her mother’s breath.

She closed her eyes.

When she opened them, the fog on the glass had formed the faintest shape — a curve, a line, something that could have been nothing…

…or could have been a handprint.

Mary stepped back, heart pounding.

The house was silent.

The shadows were long.

The air felt heavy with memory.

She whispered into the darkness:

“Mama… are you still here.”

The silence did not answer.

But it did not feel empty.

Not anymore.

FINAL PARAGRAPH — The Foreshadowing

Outside, far beyond the quiet streets of Lexington, a young lawyer in Illinois was rising before dawn, straightening his worn coat, and stepping into a life he did not yet know would collide with hers. He was tall, awkward, brilliant, restless — a man shaped by his own shadows, his own griefs, his own ghosts.

Mary did not know his name.

Not yet.

But the world was already shifting toward him, drawing two distant lives onto the same path.

And in the silent parlor of the Todd mansion, with her breath fading from the glass, Mary Ann Todd took her first step toward the future that waited for her — a future that would bind her to that man forever.

Happy Accident: The Birth of Teflon

In 1938, 27-year-old chemist Roy J. Plunkett made one of the most serendipitous discoveries in modern materials science. While working at DuPont’s Jackson Laboratory in Deepwater, New Jersey, Plunkett was experimenting with tetrafluoroethylene gas (TFE), hoping to create a new refrigerant in the Freon family. But when he opened a pressurized cylinder, he found that the gas had polymerized into a waxy white solid. That substance—polytetrafluoroethylene, later branded as Teflon®—was slippery, chemically inert, and heat-resistant. It would revolutionize everything from cookware to aerospace.

Born on June 26, 1910, in New Carlisle, Ohio, Plunkett’s path to discovery was paved with academic rigor. He earned a B.A. in chemistry from Manchester College in 1932, followed by a master’s and Ph.D. from Ohio State University by 1936, where he studied carbohydrate oxidation. That same year, he joined DuPont.

Plunkett’s invention wasn’t immediately commercialized. It took over a decade before Teflon found its first major application—coating gaskets and valves in the Manhattan Project, due to its resistance to corrosive uranium hexafluoride gas. By 1949, it was being used in consumer products, most famously in non-stick cookware.

In 1951, Plunkett received the John Scott Medal from the city of Philadelphia, an honor reserved for inventions that promote the “comfort, welfare, and happiness of humankind.” Guests at the ceremony received Teflon-coated muffin tins—a poetic nod to the material’s domestic future.

He continued to rise within DuPont, eventually supervising the production of tetraethyl lead and holding key leadership roles. His contributions earned him induction into the Plastics Hall of Fame in 1973 and the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 1985.

Plunkett passed away from cancer on May 12, 1994, at his home in Corpus Christi, Texas, at the age of 83. His legacy lives on in every frictionless surface, every heat-resistant seal, and every pan that lets an egg slide free.

The Last Breath of Mercy Brown

*A true tale of grief, fear, and fire in 1892 Rhode Island*

They called it *consumption*, because it consumed you—slowly, cruelly. First the cough, then the fever, then the wasting. One by one, the Brown family of Exeter, Rhode Island, faded like breath on a windowpane.

First went Mary Eliza, the mother. Then Mary Olive, the eldest daughter. Then Edwin, the son, left for Colorado in a desperate bid for dry air and healing. And then, in the bitter winter of 1892, Mercy Lena Brown—just 19—died.

But Edwin returned home still sick. Pale. Weak. Dying.

The townsfolk whispered. Too many Browns had died. Too quickly. Too completely. And Edwin—he was being *drained*. Not by disease, they said. By the dead.

The villagers remembered old tales. From Europe, yes—but also from their own soil. In Vermont, they’d burned the heart of Frederick Ransom. In Connecticut, they’d dismembered corpses. In rural New England, the dead were not always dead. Sometimes, they fed.

So they came for Mercy.

Two months after her burial, they exhumed her grave. Her body, unlike the others, was strangely preserved. Her hair had grown. Her nails, too. And—most damning of all—there was blood in her heart.

They removed it.

They burned it.

They mixed the ashes with water and gave it to Edwin to drink.

This was not a horror story. This was *medicine*, by 19th-century standards. A folk cure. A desperate act of love and fear.

Edwin died anyway.

But Mercy lived on—in legend. Her grave, in Chestnut Hill Cemetery, still draws visitors. Some leave vampire teeth. Others leave flowers. All leave wondering: how could grief twist into ritual? How could love become exhumation?

And what if the dead *do* whisper?

My Crimany Cryptid Chronicles- The Angulia Peluda: Demon of the Ravine

The Anguila Peluda: Demon of the Ravine

Anguila Peluda, the hairy eel of Anaga. A demon in disguise. Exorcised, but never gone.

High in the Anaga mountains of Tenerife, where mist clings to volcanic cliffs and ravines cut deep into stone, lies Barranco de los Infiernos—the Ravine of the Damned. Within it, a pool known as Charco de la Anguila. The Pool of the Eel. But this wasn’t just any eel. This one had hair.

Locals spoke of a monstrous eel that slithered through the Palmital ravine, its head covered in thick fur, its gaze full of malice. They feared it wasn’t just a beast—it was something darker. Something sent to torment.

The Anguila Peluda—Hairy Eel—was said to be enormous, with a head bristling with coarse hair and eyes that gleamed with malevolence. Some claimed it could hypnotize with a glance. Others swore it was a demon. Its presence was so disturbing, a priest was summoned to exorcise it.

Historian Manuel de Ossuna y Van Den Heede recorded the tale in 1897. The priest came. The rites were performed. And the creature vanished.

But here’s the twist—even after the exorcism, the fear remained. The pool kept its name. The legend lingered. And some say, on moonless nights, the water still stirs.

For me, Anguila Peluda isn’t just folklore—it’s a symbol. A creature that wears its curse like a coat. That spirals through myth and memory. That reminds us: not all demons wear horns. Some wear fur.

Was the Anguila Peluda a real animal? A metaphor for colonial dread? Or something else entirely—a cryptid born of volcanic isolation and whispered warnings? Whatever it was, it left behind a name, a story, and a chill in the water.

False Friends Fade.

 “False Friends Fade”

We laughed in borrowed light, Shared secrets like coins tossed in a well— But your echoes never reached the bottom. You clapped for my mask, Not the soul beneath it.

I mistook proximity for care, Mistook your silence for depth. But when storms came, You vanished like chalk in rain.

You liked me best diluted— Softer, smaller, less. And I wore that shrinking cloak Until I couldn’t breathe.

So I left. Not with fury, But with the quiet grace Of someone who finally sees.

Now I walk with fewer shadows, But the light is mine. And the friends I keep Know how to hold truth Without flinching.

The Hollowing.

 **“The Hollowing” **

We built our truths in whispered tones,  

On midnight walks and broken phones.  

You held your heart like sacred glass—  

I never thought you'd let it pass.

But somewhere in the gilded chase,  

You bartered soul for fleeting grace.  

A smile too sharp, a word too slick,  

Integrity undone by tricks.

I watched you paint your name in gold,  

On stories bought, on secrets sold.  

The mirror cracked, the mask grew tight—  

You called it growth. I knew it might.

You once stood tall with quiet fire,  

Now bent beneath a thin desire.  

The compass spun, the needle lied,  

And all the good in you… just died.

Yet still, I mourn—not out of spite,  

But for the friend who chose the night.  

I keep the echo, not the face,  

And walk alone with quiet grace.

Missing Frame — The Jean Spangler Story

Hollywood has always been good at vanishing acts. Stardom flickers into obscurity. Names are etched in sidewalk stars, then stepped over. But in October 1949, one woman didn’t just fade from the spotlight—she disappeared entirely.

Los Angeles, 1949. The city was a furnace with diamond teeth. 

“You want a name in lights? First, they’ll carve it in shadows. I learned that fast.”

The air smelled like exhaust and gardenia. Jean Elizabeth Spangler—5’6”, striking, 26 years old—had the kind of face directors remembered. Long dark hair, curled soft at the edges. Green-hazel eyes full of dare. Lips curled into a half-smile like she already knew your secret.

She wasn’t famous. Not yet. But she lived on the fringes of fame—the chorus line, the party crowd, the second glance on a studio lot. A dancer at Florentine Gardens. Extra work in Technicolor dreams: *When My Baby Smiles at Me*. *Young Man with a Horn*. You might’ve seen her. One blink in a wide shot. She moved like liquid joy.

Her life wasn’t some starlit fantasy. Behind the makeup and pasted-on grins, she was a single mother to five-year-old Christine. Divorced from Dexter Benner—a man who didn’t take losing custody lightly. Jean had clawed her way to independence: living with her mother Florence and sister-in-law Sophie, dodging bills, sewing hope into every hemline.

But she made space for fun. Friends said she was flirtatious, warm, quick with a laugh. Lipstick that left ghosts on coffee cups. Fast talk and louder laughter.

“People remember me smiling, and that’s fair. But I had grit, too. You don’t survive in this town on charm alone.”

**October 7, 1949 — The Last Known Day**

That afternoon, Jean slipped out of her Park La Brea apartment. Told Sophie she was meeting her ex-husband about child support, then off to a night shoot. Winked as she left, like she knew something the rest of us didn’t.

She phoned later to say she’d be working late.

But the Screen Extras Guild confirmed—Jean wasn’t scheduled to work that night.

She simply vanished.

**Griffith Park, October 9, 1949**

 “They say the city never sleeps, but the park does. It dreams in silence. That’s where they found my purse—like a whisper left behind.”

Two days later, a groundskeeper named Henry Angu spotted her handbag at the Fern Dell entrance of Griffith Park. The strap was torn—violently, or suddenly. Inside were her ID, compact, lipstick… and one note.

 “Kirk: Can’t wait any longer. Going to see Dr. Scott. It will work best this way while mother is away,”

It ended with a comma. As if she’d meant to come back to it. As if someone—or something—cut her off.

Police ruled out robbery—her sister-in-law said Jean hadn’t left with any money. More than 100 volunteers and 60 officers combed the 4,000-acre park.

They found nothing.

Well—nothing but a denim jail uniform, half-buried in the soil. Unrelated, they said.

But eerie.

 “They said I liked to flirt with danger. Maybe I did. But I never thought it would flirt back.”

Jean had been seen with two men before she vanished: **Davy “Little Davy” Ogul** and **Frank Niccoli**. Enforcers in Mickey Cohen’s crime syndicate. Both under indictment. Both dangerous.

And both—gone.

Ogul vanished on October 9, two days after Jean.  

Niccoli had disappeared earlier—his car keys found in a sewer.

People said they saw Jean with them in Palm Springs. In Vegas. One El Paso hotel clerk swore she checked in with the two men. Border agents thought she crossed into Mexico.

But there was no paper trail. No receipts. Just traces. Just shadows.

“They said I got around. Maybe I did. But I wasn’t careless. I was curious. There’s a difference.”

That note—"Kirk… Dr. Scott…" It echoed louder than any scream. It was Jean’s handwriting. It was unfinished.

Police interviewed every Dr. Scott in Los Angeles. No one admitted to knowing her. Not officially.

But L.A. has always had two maps. One you read. One you whisper.

In 1949, abortion was illegal—and terrifying. Women turned to backroom clinics. Retired med students. Strangers with dirty instruments.

Jean’s friends said she was three months pregnant. She hadn’t named the father. But she had said: “I’m going to take care of it.”

There were rumors. A man called “Doc” who worked the Sunset Strip. A fixer in the shadows.

But no one ever found him. Maybe he vanished when Jean did.

 “I wasn’t reckless. I was careful. But when you’re a woman in 1949 with a secret, your choices shrink fast.”

#### 🔪 *Botched Procedure*

She died during the abortion. The doctor panicked. Disposed of her body and planted the purse as a distraction.

#### 🎭 *Staged Disappearance*

Was the note a red herring? A final act? But why write it in her own purse—unless she meant for it to be found?

#### 💣 *Mob Involvement*

If Jean was pregnant by someone powerful—someone connected—was it all arranged? And when it went wrong… was silence the only outcome?

Despite the leads, "Dr. Scott" was never found. No one charged. Nothing confirmed.

Jean's mother, Florence, said a man named “Kirk” had picked her up before. Always stayed in the car.

The city moved on. But Christine waited.

 “They kept looking for me. In diners. In border towns. In the faces of strangers. I became a rumor with lipstick.”

The years that followed weren’t silent—they *rattled*. Sightings, whispers, near misses.

 A gas station attendant in Central California saw a distressed woman mouth:  

 “Have the police follow this car.”  

  The man drove off. The police never found them.

In El Paso, a customs agent swore Jean checked in with Ogul. Hotel staff confirmed her likeness. But there were no names in the ledger.

A 13-year-old girl in North Hollywood said she saw Jean in a car with an older man.  

 “She looked nervous,” she said.  

  The tip went cold.

 “I became a face in the fog. A name whispered in diners. A question no one could answer.”

 “It’s funny. They try to solve me like a puzzle, but I was never the kind with edges that fit.”

Even now—75 years later—these are the dominant theories:

#### 🧬 1. *The Secret Pregnancy*

The botched abortion theory remains the strongest. But there’s no body. And no “Dr. Scott.” 

However, there was Kirk. Jean had recently worked as an extra on the film Young Man with a Horn, alongside rising star Kirk Douglas. He later claimed he barely knew her. But the tabloids had questions. Was "Kirk" in the note him?

#### 🕴️ 2. *Mob Retaliation or Escape*

She fled—or was silenced. Ogul vanished too. The connection runs deep.

#### 👔 3. *The Ex-Husband*

Jean told her family she was meeting **Dexter Benner** that night. He denied it. His wife backed him.  

Benner had motive. He hated losing custody. After Jean disappeared, he got their daughter—and fled the state.

Just... plausibility.

#### 🧠 4. *The Black Dahlia Echo*

Two young starlets. Two unsolved disappearances. Both in Hollywood’s orbit.  

Coincidence? Or something colder?

#### 🧤 5. *Voluntary Disappearance*

Could she have staged it? Started over?

She had no funds. No passport. No one heard from her again. And she loved Christine fiercely.

 “If I ran, it wasn’t away—it was toward something.  

If I stayed, it wasn’t willingly.”

### 🎬 *A Cold Case Still Warm*

Jean Spangler’s case remains officially **open** in Los Angeles. No remains. No suspects. No closure.

 “Maybe I wasn’t meant to be solved,” she might’ve said.  

 “Just… remembered.”

Day Four in "Doomsday Mom" Lori Daybell's Trial 2025: Next Witness Is Sarena Sharp.

 

Adam Cox, Lori’s brother and a professional pickleball coach, testified about his concerns regarding Lori’s unusual beliefs, her increasingly close and "odd" relationship with Alex, his suspicions of her affair with Chad Daybell, plans for an intervention with Charles to address her behavior, and his conviction that Lori and Alex conspired to kill Charles, reflecting on strained family dynamics throughout his testimony. Darkmatter: Day Four in "Doomsday Mom" Lori Daybell's Trial 2025: Lori's Brother Adam Cox Is The Next Witness.

Sarena Sharp, a resident of Queen Creek, Arizona, testified in court about her experiences from 2018-2019 when she lived in Connecticut before relocating to Arizona prior to the COVID pandemic. Sarena, who identifies as LDS and considers herself spiritual, attended two "Preparing a People" conferences focused on emergency preparedness and preparing for the second coming of Jesus Christ.

In November 2018, she attended a conference in Arizona where she had known Melanie Gibb and Jason Mow through prior phone conversations. Both offered to host her during her visit. Melanie picked Sarena up from the airport and instead of staying at her own home, took Sarena to her friend Lori Vallow's house. This was Sarena’s first meeting with Lori. Sarena also met Chad Daybell at Lori’s house that weekend. She later encountered Chad again at a February 2019 conference in Idaho. Contemplating a move to Idaho, Sarena met with Chad and explored housing options in Rexburg with a realtor.

In March 2019, Sarena was invited back to Arizona for a girl’s weekend at Zulema’s house. She believes she first met Zulema at the November 2018 conference in Arizona. Participants in the girl’s weekend included Lori, Melanie Gibb, Zulema, Christina, Nicole, and Sarena—all members of the LDS Church. During the weekend, Lori shared beliefs that went against the teachings of the LDS Church, including the claim that repentance was no longer necessary. Lori cited Bible verses to support her view, but Sarena doesn’t recall if Lori applied it to herself or the entire group. Sarena later told police in April 2021 that Lori tried to convince everyone of this belief, which deeply shocked and concerned her.

Sarena also recalled Lori discussing "light and dark levels" and changes both physical and spiritual. Lori introduced the concept of "casting," or casting out evil, which Sarena remembers being mentioned on multiple occasions. During the March 2019 girl’s weekend, Lori claimed her husband Charles was possessed by an evil spirit named "Ned." Lori even described this possession as being related to the term "zombie," which stood out to Sarena as a shocking and unusual belief. Sarena stated that she initially thought of zombies as a Hollywood concept, but Lori explained them in terms of evil spirits inhabiting a person.

During the group casting, Lori requested the women’s help to cast out the spirit from Charles, asking everyone to take turns. Sarena noted that this practice was entirely new to her and something she had never done or heard of in a group setting. Sarena recalled that this casting occurred only once during the weekend. She raised questions about Lori’s claims and discussed her concerns with the other women, which seemed to change the dynamics within the group.

Later, after Charles’ death in July 2019, Zulema organized a girl’s lunch that Lori attended with her brother Alex. During the lunch, Lori invited the women to her house to talk. Sarena attended and noted Lori’s stoic demeanor, observing no signs of mourning or crying despite her recent loss. Multiple women, including Melanie Gibb, were present at Lori’s home. Sarena found Lori’s behavior concerning, given the circumstances, and sent her a few texts afterward expressing her worries, though they had little contact after that. Sarena never saw Lori again following that meeting.

During Lori’s questioning in court, she asked Sarena for specifics about the use of the term "zombie." Lori asked if Sarena was certain Lori had used the term at the girls’ weekend in 2019. Sarena responded to the best of her recollection, explaining it was six years ago, and she didn’t remember verbatim. Sarena acknowledged it was possible someone else had used the term "zombie" instead, but this stood out to her in connection to Lori’s descriptions.

Lori questioned Sarena about the girl’s weekend, asking why she stayed if she felt uncomfortable with some topics. Sarena explained that she had flown across the country to be with friends, which made it difficult to leave. Lori confirmed with Sarena that she was a grown woman with her own opinions, and Sarena agreed. Lori also asked if it was fair to say they had a fun weekend, which Sarena acknowledged was true. Lori suggested that Sarena may have since changed her perspective about the weekend.

Lori asked about Sarena’s communications with others, including Christina Atwood, Zulema, Kay Woodcock, and Melanie Gibb. Sarena shared that she communicated "many" times with Christina, sometimes weekly or daily, though she wasn’t sure how to quantify it. She confirmed occasional contact with Melanie but stated she didn’t know Kay Woodcock. Lori also inquired about Sarena’s recollection of Lori’s statements on repentance, asking what exactly was said. Sarena explained she couldn’t remember verbatim but recalled Lori saying something to the effect of not needing to repent.

Lori asked how many times Sarena had been interviewed by police. Sarena said she had been interviewed a couple of times, with the first occurring in spring 2020 by Nate Moffatt, though she didn’t recall how long the interview lasted. Lori further questioned what Sarena could contribute in meeting with police for 90 minutes about someone she had only met a few times. Treena objected to this line of questioning as speculative, and the judge sustained the objection. Lori asked what Sarena told police during the interviews but was again met with objections to the broadness of the question, which the judge sustained. Lori asked if Sarena had anything to offer today in relation to the crime Lori is charged with, prompting another sustained objection for relevance. Lori asked if Sarena ever saw or heard anything about Lori conspiring with her brother to murder her husband, to which Sarena replied "No."

Treena returned for re-direct questioning, asking Sarena if being "translated" is something unusual to her. Sarena said she has read about it in religious books but doesn’t know anyone who has been translated. Treena also asked about prayers during the girls’ weekend. Sarena acknowledged the group said other prayers, such as over food, but stated the casting prayer felt very different. Treena inquired whether Sarena had gotten together with other women from the group to fabricate a story about Charles being possessed, which Sarena denied. Treena confirmed with Sarena that everything she testified to was to the best of her knowledge and noted that six years had passed since the events. Sarena’s testimony concluded.

Day Four in "Doomsday Mom" Lori Daybell's Trial 2025: Lori's Brother Adam Cox Is The Next Witness.

 

Day three of Lori's trial included testimony from veteran officer Daniel Coons supporting the sequence of Charles's shooting, Nancy Jo Hancock's insight into Charles's kind yet strained personality and her shock at his death, and Christina Atwood's account of disturbing beliefs and actions within Lori's relationship. Darkmatter: "Doomsday Mom" Lori Daybell's Trial 2025 Day Three Recap.

Adam Cox, Lori’s brother and a professional pickleball coach, testified as the next witness. He previously worked as a radio morning show host in Wichita and grew up in Southern California. Adam mentioned his four siblings—Stacy, Alex, Lori, and Summer—and noted that Lori and Summer were particularly close. Melanie Boudreaux, Stacy’s daughter, is Adam’s niece. Adam acknowledged that Lori, his sister, was present at the defense table.

In July 2019, Lori was married to Charles, with whom she had been together for over ten years. After Charles’s death, Lori married Chad. Lori had two children, Colby and Tylee, from a prior marriage before marrying Charles. During their time together, Adam’s son Zac lived with Lori and Charles. Charles also had two sons from a prior marriage, who visited occasionally but did not live with them. In 2019, JJ and Tylee resided with Lori and Charles.

Adam confirmed that Lori and Charles didn’t always live in Arizona—they had also lived in Texas and Hawaii. When asked about his relationship with his brother Alex “Al,” Adam described it as somewhat close. He noted that Lori and Alex had a normal sibling relationship but grew closer over 4-5 years, with a brief period when their closeness became “odd.” He said Charles and Alex had a typical brother-in-law relationship. Their family often held big events where everyone came together.

Adam grew up as a member of the LDS Church and is still a member. He noted that Alex was excommunicated twice as an adult but was unsure of the exact dates. When asked about excommunication, Adam explained that it involves the church removing certain privileges and denying access to the temple.

Adam shared that he and Charles communicated through texts and phone calls. Charles had a family cell phone plan, though Adam was unsure about car insurance. Charles worked in insurance, assisting schoolteachers with their financial situations, and traveled frequently for work. Prior to marrying Charles, Lori worked as a hairstylist, but she stopped working after their marriage to focus on caring for the children "for the most part." 

Adam mentioned discussing Lori and Charles’s marital problems with Charles. He revealed that Lori held beliefs outside the teachings of the LDS religion. Lori told Adam she was in the process of transitioning from a mortal to an immortal, celestial state—a concept Adam had not encountered in the LDS faith. She also claimed to have more priesthood authority than the priesthood itself, which Adam found strange, as the priesthood is traditionally held by men in their religion. While Adam did not confront Lori directly, he expressed his disbelief, saying, “I don’t know if you’re crazy but what you’re saying is not real.” After this interaction, Lori stopped speaking to Adam.

Adam tried to inform his family about Lori’s unusual beliefs, but one reaction was that Lori was in a delusion and would eventually come out of it. Adam said, “They basically cut me off,” referring to his family. At the end of June 2019, Adam reviewed an email Charles received about Chad coming to Arizona to write a book about him. Charles, who had played minor league baseball, was not interested in the proposed book. The email was from someone impersonating Charles, which led Adam to suspect that Lori was having an affair with Chad Daybell. Adam and Charles discussed the matter. Adam noted that Charles thought Lori was overboard in her behavior, including attending the temple five times a week. Charles believed that if Lori’s temple recommend were revoked, it might bring her back to normal.

Adam also spoke with Charles about planning an intervention for Lori. Charles was desperate because members of their family refused to speak with him, likely due to Lori’s influence. Charles proposed an intervention to record Lori’s statements, share the recording with the stake president, and attempt to bring Lori back to mainstream LDS beliefs. Adam explained that wards are smaller church groups, and several wards form a stake, which is led by a stake president—a high-ranking figure in the LDS Church. The intervention’s goal was to revoke Lori’s temple recommend. Charles discussed flying Adam to Arizona to assist with the intervention and offered to buy his plane ticket. At the time, Lori, Charles’s parents, Alex, and Summer all lived in Arizona.

Adam reached out to Alex and asked if he could stay with him during his trip to Arizona. Alex agreed initially. Adam flew to Phoenix on July 10 but ultimately did not stay with Alex. Upon landing in Phoenix around lunchtime, Adam texted Alex but received no response, which he found unusual. Adam also tried calling Alex, but Alex did not answer—a behavior Adam considered strange and bizarre. Alex never followed up or contacted Adam. As a result, Adam stayed at his parents’ house instead. Adam did not see Charles or Lori on July 10. His parents picked him up, and they went to lunch and later spent time at the house. Zac, Adam’s son, was living with his grandparents at the time. Charles had planned to pick up JJ and take him to school. Adam noted that Charles and JJ shared a very close relationship.

On July 11, Treena Kay moved to admit text messages from the morning of that day. Lori objected, claiming the texts were a report, not an extraction. The judge overruled the objection, and the texts were displayed in court. Adam knew Charles had reached out to Lori about the fake email from Chad and recalled Charles also reaching out to Tammy Daybell. The texts revealed exchanges between Charles and Adam regarding their travel plans. At 9:11 a.m. on July 9, Charles messaged Adam about how they could all meet without Lori discovering the intervention. Adam responded that he would visit Lori and record her without her knowledge. In the texts, Adam emphasized the importance of being on record to have “proof for Holmes,” the stake president. Another text mentioned Zac and Brandon, who had played basketball with Adam and Holmes. Adam thought Brandon might be able to help with the intervention.

At 1:13 p.m. on July 9, Charles informed Adam that his flights were booked and expressed concern that Lori might grow suspicious. Adam noted that when Charles had previously tried to serve Lori with divorce papers, she had disappeared, and no one knew her whereabouts. Charles worried she might flee again, as she was “flighty,” according to Adam. Charles planned to take JJ to school and mentioned using a second recording device to ensure they captured Lori’s statements. Adam described Charles as “desperate,” viewing the intervention as a last-ditch effort to free Lori from the "spell she was under." Despite everything, Charles stated that he still loved Lori. The texts showed ongoing communication between Adam and Charles. Adam did not recall speaking with Charles on July 10, the day before he was shot, and assumed they would meet on July 11 without specific plans. On the morning of July 11, Charles texted Adam, “Al is here. At Lori’s.” This shocked Adam, who responded, “Really...I wonder why he never called me back.”

Adam then texted Charles, “They are planning something.” Adam felt deeply suspicious, especially about Alex being at Lori’s house that morning, which “felt like something was really off.” Adam texted Alex again, but Alex did not respond. At 7:49 a.m., Adam texted Charles to say he planned to play basketball with Zac, noting that Holmes, the stake president, was usually present either playing basketball or conducting interviews. Adam intended to catch Holmes for a conversation, describing him as “an old friend.” Charles never responded. That evening, Adam and Zac played basketball, but Holmes was not there. Adam did not learn of Charles’s shooting on July 11, as no one in his family informed him. On July 12, Adam still heard nothing from Lori, Alex, or any other family members. The following day, Adam visited a friend named Eric in Tucson, taking Zac with him. Adam expressed to Eric how suspicious it was that he had not heard from Charles, saying, “My mind was spinning. I had no clue what was going on.” Adam speculated that Charles might simply have wanted to be with JJ but wondered if other issues were involved. 

Adam eventually asked his family if anyone had heard from Alex, but no one had. Adam had kept the intervention a secret at Charles’s request, fearing that Alex, Mom, Dad, or Summer might try to prevent it. While speaking with Eric, Adam mentioned that something felt off. Eric asked for Charles’s last name, Googled him, and discovered that Charles Vallow had been killed by his brother-in-law. Adam described the moment as “chaos, a knot in my stomach, probably one of the worst feelings I’ve ever felt in my life.” Adam knew Alex regularly went shooting. He never told anyone in the family about the intervention, yet Lori told police she was aware Adam had been planning one. When asked if he had told her about it, Adam responded, “No.”

Treena asks Adam to recount the story of Nephi, a prophet whose brothers attempted to kill him. Nephi was sent to retrieve sacred plates from Jerusalem, making multiple attempts as directed by the Lord. During his final attempt, he encountered King Laban, who was drunk and lying on the ground. Adam explains that Nephi was instructed by the spirit or God to kill Laban, which he did.

The conversation then shifts to Charles’s death. Adam describes the emotional impact of learning about it—shock, grief, and anger. He stuck up for Charles, which created a break in the family and led to a period where they didn't speak for a long time. Since then, communication has resumed. Adam first reached out to Kay to confirm the news, and she had just learned of it herself. He then called his mom, who knew about Charles’s death but acted strangely, challenging Adam to explain the situation. This strained their relationship further, and a tense conversation at her house deepened the rift.

Treena has no further questions, and Lori begins her cross-examination. Lori lists all the cities where Adam worked and notes, “And I was in Texas, Arizona, Hawaii.” She asks if they have not been physically close during the last 20 years, to which Adam agrees. Lori then asks if Adam saw, heard, or personally witnessed her conspiring with Alex Cox to murder Charles Vallow. Adam states, “No.” Lori thanks him and concludes her questioning.

Treena resumes questioning and asks Adam if he has spoken to Lori since Charles’s death. Adam says no; he had cut off all communication after Lori began expressing beliefs about becoming a celestial being and sharing other ideas that conflicted with LDS faith. After Adam challenged her beliefs as untrue, their relationship effectively ended. Treena also asks Adam if he was supposed to be with Alex on the 10th until the 11th, to which Adam responds, “If I would have spent the night with him, yes.” Adam reflects that this stood out to him, as he had made plans with Alex.

Later, Adam testifies about concerns regarding Alex and guns. Adam was aware his brother had guns and was concerned about Alex being at Lori’s house so early. It seemed unusual that Alex brought a loaded gun with extra magazines to a house where JJ was present. Lori objects, claiming this line of questioning is beyond the scope, but the judge overrules. Adam didn’t know at the time that Alex had a gun and extra ammunition at the house, but he now believes it was excessive. Adam told his family afterward that he believed Lori and Alex had conspired to kill Charles. He mentions Lori's claim that Charles’s body was inhabited by a zombie named Ned. Adam firmly states, “No doubt in my mind that they killed him.” Treena has no further questions, and the judge acknowledges that this line of questioning was beyond the scope. Lori is allowed to re-cross on these issues but declines after consulting her advisory attorneys. The judge asks if the jury has any questions; they do not. Adam’s testimony concludes.

Darkmatter: Day Four in "Doomsday Mom" Lori Daybell's Trial 2025: Next Witness Is Sarena Sharp.