Write a story that seems normal on first sight, except for one small detail that makes it extremely creepy on a more careful reading [WP]

She wore over-sized bifocal glasses with bright leopard-print frames, comfortable sweaters under her stainless apron, and a horrifying grimace thanks to the topic of conversation. For fifty-eight years, Betty had acted as the rock of her family. If anybody needed anything, they came to Betty. She was the proud mother of a vagina-crushing nine children, seven of which never stepped foot out of the suburban Salem home in which they were born and raised.

Married and pregnant young to the love of her life, she wound up attempting to raise seven boys and twin girls by herself after that love found himself drafted to fight against the Communist threat. Their relationship was certain to fail the moment Thomas was drafted; even if he had survived, the alcoholism and PTSD-induced-violence would have ended the family sooner than his death did. Twenty-three years. His death took exactly twenty-three years to end the family.

"I - I don't even..." Betty's grimace morphed into a solemn frown and tears began to flow.

Officer Tom Vanderson wasn't quite sure how to console her - he wasn't exactly an expert at this part of his job yet. It had only been a couple of years since he replaced Betty's son as the sheriff of their small town after his mysterious death, and the art of consoling a person in grief still avoided his grasp.

"We're doing everything that we can..." That's all he could muster up.

"I just can't believe that He took another one from me. W-..." Betty wiped her tears away with her wrinkled finger. "What did I do to deserve this?"

Betty's gaze shifted from her feet to the midnight-black cat which climbed into her lap and demanded her attention. Then she began to stare intensely toward a kitchen cupboard. Inside the furthest-top-right shelf, hidden from the rest of the world, were seven tiny, empty vials in an ornate container. The middle of each tiny crystal vial, had the letter "A" printed in bright-red. To Tom, Betty was simply looking away in a moment of grief; but Betty trying to stare right through the cupboard.

"How? How did he die? Don't tell me it was-"

"Arsenic."

The same poison which had resulted in the death of her other six sons had just taken the only one Betty had left.

"I - I can't believe it..."

"I'm so sorry. I-"

"No, it's fine. Just...- here."

Betty quickly and neatly wrapped up her thank-you gift, her specialty pastry, in a paper towel.

"Thanks for all of your help, Tommy."

Tom nodded, accepted her gift, and exited the house. Biting down into the pastry, Tom could only wonder to himself, "How could a whole family die to arsenic poisoning?"

/r/WritingPrompts Thread