Chapter 8: Anna’s Final Warning
Claire was waiting outside her apartment when I arrived.
She looked like she hadn’t slept.
The moment she saw me, she handed me a small leather notebook.
“Where did you find this?””
“In Anna’s old storage box.””
I held it carefully.
“Why didn’t you give it to me before?””
Claire looked away.
“Because Anna asked me not to unless something happened.””
I stared at her.
“Something happened.””
She nodded.
“I know.””
We sat at her kitchen table.
The journal was worn.
The edges were damaged.
But it was unmistakably Anna’s.
I opened it.
Most pages were ordinary.
Notes about Lily.
Family memories.
Little things Anna never wanted to forget.
Then I reached the final entries.
My hands slowed.
*I don’t know if I’m being paranoid anymore.*
I stopped.
Claire watched my face.
“What does it say?””
I continued reading.
**Victoria keeps asking questions about Lily. Not about how she feels. Not about what she likes. About legal things.
Documents. Money. Guardianship.**
My chest tightened.
I turned the page.
*She smiles when people are watching. But when we are alone, she asks why Lily still keeps pictures of me.*
I closed my eyes.
The locket.
The photos.
The blanket.
Everything.
Anna had seen it coming.
The next entry was shorter.
*I confronted her today.*
I kept reading.
*She said something I will never forget. She said children don’t need memories of people who are gone. They need someone who is still here.*
I looked at Claire.
“She said the same thing.””
Claire nodded sadly.
I turned the page.
The final entry.
And every word felt heavier.
*If something happens to me, Ethan must know this: Victoria is not trying to join our family. She is trying to rewrite it.*
I stopped.
My eyes burned.
But I kept reading.
*Do not let Lily believe she has to choose between loving me and loving someone else. Anyone who asks her to forget me does not love her.*
I closed the journal.
For a moment, nobody spoke.
Then Claire whispered:
“Ethan, there’s more.””
I looked at her.
“What?””
She reached into her bag and pulled out an envelope.
“This was attached to the journal.””
I opened it.
Inside was a document.
A legal document.
With Victoria’s name.
My stomach dropped.
“What is this?””
Claire looked at me.
“Anna found it two weeks before she died.””
I read the first page.
It was a request for guardianship review.
Filed by Victoria.
Before she had even met me.
I looked up.
“That’s impossible.””
Claire shook her head.
“It gets worse.””
She pointed to the bottom of the document.
A signature.
A witness.
Someone who had approved it.
I stared.
Because I knew the name.
The same person from the photograph.
The same person who had been standing beside Victoria before Anna died.
Evelyn.
I looked at Claire.
“Why would Anna’s own mother help her?””
Claire’s face went pale.
“She didn’t.””
“Then why is her signature here?””
Claire slowly answered:
“Because someone forged it.””
My phone rang.
Victoria.
I ignored it.
It rang again.
And again.
Finally, a voicemail appeared.
I played it.
Her voice filled the room.
“Ethan, I know you found the journal.””
I froze.
How did she know?
Her voice continued.
“You need to understand something.””
A pause.
Then the words that made my blood run cold.
“Anna wasn’t protecting Lily from me.””
The recording crackled.
“She was protecting Lily from what I was going to reveal.””
The message ended.
And on the screen appeared a second notification.
A photo.
Sent from Victoria.
A photo of Lily sleeping.
Taken inside my house.
May you like
That meant one thing.
Victoria had never really left.
