Chapter 14: The Night Everything Changed
The room exploded with questions.
“You were there?”” Michael demanded.
Daniel looked overwhelmed.
“I can explain.””
I stared at him.
“No.””
My voice was quiet.
And somehow that scared everyone more.
“You have explained enough.””
Daniel looked at me.
“Emma.””
“You were at the accident.””
“Yes.””
“When I lost my memory.””
“Yes.””
“When Lily’s entire history became a mystery.””
“Yes.””
My eyes burned.
“And you never told me.””
Daniel looked broken.
“I thought I was protecting you.””
I almost smiled.
It was the same excuse.
The same words.
The same lie.
Officer Harris stepped forward.
“Mr. Carter, start from the beginning.””
Daniel sat down slowly.
For the first time, he looked like someone who had no more places to hide.
“I got a call that night.””
“From who?”” Officer Harris asked.
Daniel hesitated.
“Michael.””
Everyone turned.
Michael looked shocked.
“Me?””
“Yes.””
Daniel looked at him.
“You told me Emma was in danger.””
Michael’s face changed.
“I never called you.””
“Yes, you did.””
“No.””
The two men stared at each other.
Then Michael looked at me.
“I didn’t call him.””
A cold feeling moved through me.
“Then who did?””
Nobody answered.
Daniel continued.
“I drove to the location.””
“Why?””
“Because I loved Emma.””
I looked away.
The words didn’t mean the same anymore.
“When I arrived, the car had already crashed.””
He rubbed his hands together.
“Emma was unconscious.””
“And Lily?”” I asked.
Daniel looked at me.
“She was still alive.””
My heart broke.
“She was a baby.””
“Yes.””
“Where was Michael?””
Daniel looked at him.
“He arrived later.””
Michael shook his head.
“No.””
Daniel frowned.
“You were there.””
“I wasn’t.””
The room went silent.
Michael looked confused.
“I arrived because someone told me Emma needed me.””
My stomach tightened.
Another fake call.
Another person controlling events.
Officer Harris wrote something down.
“So someone contacted both of you.””
Daniel nodded.
“Yes.””
Michael nodded.
“Yes.””
My mother whispered:
“They wanted all of you there.””
Everyone looked at her.
“What?”” I asked.
She looked terrified.
“This wasn’t about the accident.””
“What was it about?””
My mother stared at Lily and Ava.
“The girls.””
Silence.
Officer Harris stepped closer.
“Explain.””
My mother swallowed.
“Someone wanted Lily and Ava separated.””
“Why?””
She looked at me.
“Because together, they proved something.””
“What?””
My mother shook her head.
“I don’t know.””
Then Vanessa spoke.
“I do.””
Everyone turned.
She was crying.
“I know.””
I stared at her.
“You knew?””
Vanessa nodded.
“I found out after Ava disappeared.””
“What did you find?””
She looked at the girls.
“Their blood.””
I frowned.
“What?””
“Lily and Ava share something unusual.””
Michael looked confused.
“What are you talking about?””
Vanessa looked at him.
“Something that proves who their family really is.””
My heart pounded.
“What does that mean?””
Before she could answer, Officer Harris’s phone rang.
He stepped away.
A few seconds later, his face changed.
“What happened?”” I asked.
He ended the call.
“We found the person who has been sending the messages.””
Everyone went silent.
“Who?””
Officer Harris looked at me.
“The messages came from a woman.””
My stomach tightened.
“Who?””
He hesitated.
Then:
“Her name is Ava’s biological mother.””
Vanessa froze.
“That’s impossible.””
Officer Harris looked at her.
“Why?””
Vanessa’s face went white.
“Because…”
She stopped.
Because everyone was thinking the same thing.
Vanessa was supposed to be Ava’s mother.
Officer Harris continued:
“Because the woman who sent the messages claims Vanessa stole her child.””
The room went silent.
And then my phone buzzed.
A new message.
From the same unknown number.
A photo appeared.
It showed a woman standing outside our house.
Holding a file.
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The caption underneath said:
“Ask Vanessa why she really took Ava.””
