Rachel Shannon

At that time, no one thought to question this.

As I stated, John and Lois had always dreamed of moving to a coastal town upon retirement.

Plus, some friends had received postcards from Clacton signed by Lois.

They were still receiving communication from her, which assured everyone in their lives that they were out there happily living their lives and soaking up their retirement.

Meanwhile, other family members, including their own siblings and children, started asking questions as well.

Virginia's siblings would always ask her to see Lois or John, but there was always a reason for them not to.

Virginia would say that they're out of town in Clacton.

Either that or they weren't feeling well and didn't want company.

Years started passing without any family members actually seeing John or Lois in person.

but it wasn't for a lack of trying.

Again, anytime people would try and visit, they were either out of town or sick.

And again, Lois and John kept to themselves for the most part anyways, so it wasn't that hard for some to believe that they may have just left to their coastal retirement and weren't making an effort to reach out to family.

However, by the fall of 2013, John and Lois' general practitioner became concerned after realizing he hadn't seen or heard from them in years.

Since 2019, Virginia had canceled multiple appointments for them on their behalf, always having a variety of reasons for why they were canceling.

I want to note that part of the reason it took so long for this doctor to notice or raise concerns is because, obviously,

2020 and 2021 were marked by lockdowns and people not really leaving their homes.

So them not going to their appointments those years and reaching out to family or visiting people in person, that didn't really arise any concerns because nobody was going to their appointments or visiting family.

However,

When things opened back up and still years were passing without seeing John or Lois, their doctor did become worried for their well-being.

So by September of 2023, their general practitioner called the authorities requesting a welfare check on John and Lois to make sure they were okay.