Chapter 6: The Truth Behind The Silence
I didn’t speak to Derek for the rest of the night.
Not because I was calm.
Because I was trying not to break.
Too many questions were fighting inside my head.
Why was my mother involved?
Why did Emma say someone in my family helped Derek?
And why did Derek look afraid when she said it?
Ava was asleep upstairs.
I checked on her every hour.
Every time I saw her face, I remembered the cardboard sign.
I remembered how easily I could have missed it.
How easily I could have believed Derek’s lies.
The next morning, I made one decision.
I needed answers from the person who might still have them.
My aunt Claire.
My mother’s younger sister.
She was the only person who had been there before I met Derek.
When she opened her front door, her face changed the moment she saw me.
“Aaliyah?””
She looked nervous.
Not surprised.
Nervous.
That told me everything.
“You know why I’m here.””
Her eyes dropped.
“Your mother told me this day might come.””
My heart started pounding.
“She expected this?””
Claire stepped aside.
“Come in.””
I walked into her living room.
The same place where I spent holidays as a child.
The same walls where my mother used to laugh.
But now everything felt different.
“Tell me about Derek.””
Claire sat down slowly.
“Your mother wanted to protect you.””
“From what?””
Claire looked at me.
“From the truth.””
I crossed my arms.
“I’m tired of everyone saying that.””
My voice cracked.
“Everyone protected me while my daughter was being hurt.””
Claire looked down.
“I know.””
The way she said it made me angry.
“You knew?””
She closed her eyes.
“We suspected.””
I felt my anger rise.
“You suspected?””
“We didn’t know what he would do.””
“He put a sign around my daughter’s neck.””
Claire looked devastated.
“I’m sorry.””
“No.””
I shook my head.
“I don’t want apologies. I want answers.””
Claire reached into a drawer.
She pulled out a small notebook.
“This belonged to your mother.””
I stared at it.
“What is it?””
“Everything she discovered about Derek.””
I opened the notebook.
The first pages were filled with dates.
Names.
Notes.
Then I saw something that made my hands freeze.
Ava’s name.
My daughter’s name.
Written years before Derek ever met her.
I looked up.
“How did my mother know about Ava?””
Claire’s face turned pale.
“She didn’t.””
“What?””
“She wrote that after she realized Derek had started watching your life.””
My blood went cold.
“What are you saying?””
Claire whispered:
“Derek didn’t meet you by accident.””
The room went silent.
I looked down at the notebook again.
There were pages and pages.
Plans.
Observations.
Information about my job.
My routine.
My family.
He had been studying me.
Before I ever knew his name.
My phone suddenly buzzed.
A message from an unknown number.
I opened it.
A photo appeared.
It was Derek.
Standing outside Claire’s house.
My heart stopped.
Then another message appeared.
“Ask your aunt why she never told you the truth.””
I looked out the window.
Derek was gone.
But the message remained.
And underneath it was one final sentence.
“He’s not the only person who has been watching your family.””
I looked at Claire.
She was crying.
May you like
Because she knew exactly who sent it.
And she knew what was coming next.
