Chapter 6: The Sister I Never Knew
I couldn’t breathe.
For several seconds, I thought I had misunderstood.
“My sister?””
My mother started crying.
“No.””
The word came out like a plea.
“No, Jenna. Not like that.””
I stepped back.
“Then explain it.””
Nobody spoke.
Not my mother.
Not my father.
Not Ryan, who had followed us upstairs.
I looked at all of them.
“My entire life, you told me I was your only child.””
My mother wiped her tears.
“You were.””
I shook my head.
“You just said Lily was my sister.””
My father finally spoke.
“Jenna, enough.””
I turned toward him.
“Enough?””
My voice rose.
“You lied about a woman who owned this house. You lied about why you wanted me to give it to Ryan. And now I find out there was another child?””
My father looked away.
That was the moment I knew.
The truth was worse than anything I imagined.
Ryan stepped forward.
“Dad, what is happening?””
My father ignored him.
I laughed bitterly.
“Even Ryan doesn’t know.””
That seemed to hurt him.
Because for once, the secret wasn’t protecting him.
It was destroying him too.
My mother sat on the stairs.
“Lily was your father’s daughter before he met me.””
I stared.
“She was from a previous relationship.””
My father closed his eyes.
“She was twelve when I married your mother.””
I waited.
“And?””
My mother’s voice broke.
“And she disappeared.””
The hallway went silent.
I looked at the locked door.
“From this house?””
She nodded.
“When?””
My mother looked terrified.
“The night before she was supposed to tell someone the truth.””
“What truth?””
Nobody answered.
I grabbed the doorknob again.
“What’s in this room?””
My father stepped forward.
“Don’t open it.””
I looked at him.
“Why?””
His face changed.
Because he knew there was no way to stop me anymore.
“Because there are things in there that should stay buried.””
I stared at him.
“No.””
My hand tightened around the handle.
“Things stay buried when people are ashamed of them.””
I turned the lock.
The door opened with a long, painful creak.
Dust filled the air.
The room looked untouched.
A small bookshelf.
An old desk.
A faded blanket on the bed.
It felt like someone had walked out and never returned.
On the wall were drawings.
Pictures.
A child’s handwriting.
I stepped inside.
Then I saw the desk.
There was a box sitting on top.
My name was written across it.
JENNA.
My heart stopped.
I slowly opened it.
Inside was a collection of letters.
All addressed to me.
Letters from someone I had never met.
The first one began:
*Dear Jenna,*
*If you are reading this, it means Dad failed to keep the truth hidden.*
I stopped.
My father moved closer.
“Jenna, don’t.””
I kept reading.
*I don’t know if you remember me. You were little when I left. But I remember you. You used to follow me around this house and call me your big sister.*
My hands shook.
A memory surfaced.
A blurry childhood image.
A girl with dark hair holding my hand.
A girl my parents told me was “just a family friend.””
I looked at my father.
“You erased her.””
He didn’t deny it.
The next line on the letter made my blood run cold.
*The night I disappeared, I found proof that Dad took this house from someone who trusted him.*
I looked up.
My father’s face was completely pale.
And then the final sentence appeared.
*Jenna, if Dad ever gives you this house, it means he’s trying to hide what happened here.*
I slowly lowered the letter.
My father had not bought me a dream home.
May you like
He had given me evidence.
And somewhere inside those walls was the truth about why my sister vanished.
