A mother who took the lives of her husband and two of their young children made a heartbreaking final promise.
Police responded late Monday after a 911 call reported multiple deaths in a Madbury, New Hampshire, home, as reported by the New York Post.
Inside, they discovered 34-year-old Emily Long dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Autopsy results confirmed she had fatally shot her husband, Ryan Long, 48, and their two eldest children — Parker, eight, and Ryan, six — before turning the gun on herself.
Both children were shot once in the head, while Ryan, who was battling terminal brain cancer, sustained multiple gunshot wounds.
Their youngest child, a three-year-old boy, was miraculously found alive and unharmed.
Authorities believe he may have been left alone in the home for hours before being discovered. He is now in the care of relatives.
A firearm was recovered at the scene. While police have confirmed the sequence of events, investigators admit the question of motive remains unanswered.
“One of the biggest questions they have right now is motive, why?” Assistant Attorney General Ben Agati told WCAX. “And I think that’s probably one of the more difficult things that they are trying to grasp to understand how this came to be.”
The tragedy unfolded against the backdrop of Ryan’s declining health.
The school psychologist at Oyster River Middle School was diagnosed with glioblastoma, an aggressive and incurable brain cancer. Emily often spoke about his battle on social media, revealing the immense toll it took on the family.
Just two days before the shootings, Emily posted what would become a chilling final video to her nearly 8,000 TikTok followers, per the Mirror.
In it, she admitted she had been “really depressed,” but promised she was trying to change her mindset. “Today I decided I need to make a conscious effort to shift my mindset. I’m getting out of this depression whether I want to or not,” she said.
In the same clip, she explained: “I am determined to create normalcy. I have been struggling so much and really depressed and just have really become reclusive, and just wanted to be with my kids and my husband.
"That being said, I’m making a change and it is starting today… And I’m making a point to get out of my depression and do this for my family.”
But her posts also hinted at despair. In one since-deleted video, she confessed: “I know that I need to see a therapist, I know that I need to ask for help... but I’m not ready to acknowledge that, I think.”
In another, she admitted she felt as if she was “withering” away, adding: “I’m mourning my husband, I’m mourning my marriage and it’s still there. It’s very confusing and it’s very overwhelming.”
On May 11, Emily uploaded a video captioned: “Want to watch someone actually fall apart before your very eyes? I swear, this cancer will be the thing that breaks me.”
Neighbors described the Longs as a picture-perfect family. “It was a perfect family as far as we knew. It was shocking. We didn’t see it coming,” said Bevy Ketel to WBZ-TV, who remembered seeing the children running a lemonade stand just weeks before.
Others who knew the couple struggled to reconcile the tragedy with the people they remembered.
One longtime friend wrote online: “I’ve known Emily for many years and no one that knows her or Ryan could have EVER suspected this would have happened to this beautiful family. They were incredible people and parents, which I know will be difficult for people to understand right now. They were both smart, kind and loving.”
Authorities emphasized that while Emily’s despair and Ryan’s illness were known, the reasons behind Monday’s violence may never be fully understood.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or visit 988lifeline.org.