Chapter 7: The Man in the Mirror
For several seconds, I couldn't move.
The man standing behind our reflections had my face.
Not someone who resembled me.
Not a distant relative with similar features.
He was me.
The same crooked nose from an old soccer injury. The same scar above my right eyebrow. Even the small indentation in his chin was identical.
But his eyes were different.
Blue.
He pressed his palm against the mirror again.
Then he smiled.
"Ryan," my mother whispered.
"Step away from it.""
I couldn't hear her.
The man moved his lips.
Open the door.
I looked around the bedroom.
There was no door behind the mirror. Just wallpaper and an old wooden dresser.
"Who are you?"" I whispered.
The man's expression changed.
He pointed toward the floor.
Then he mouthed another sentence.
He has the children.
The mirror suddenly went dark.
A second later, something struck it from the other side.
CRACK!
Lily screamed.
I grabbed her and pulled her against my chest.
Claire rushed forward.
"Ryan, we need to get out of here!""
My mother stood frozen beside the closet.
Then she whispered, "Subject B.""
I turned toward her.
"Who is that man?""
She swallowed.
"His name is Daniel.""
"He's my twin?""
She nodded.
"Your father separated you when you were born. He claimed one of you had a medical condition and needed special treatment. I didn't understand what he was doing until it was too late.""
"Why did you let him?""
Her face crumpled.
"I was afraid.""
"That's not an answer!""
She looked at Lily.
"Your father told me that if I ever tried to leave, he'd make sure neither of you survived.""
I wanted to scream.
Instead, I carried Lily into the hallway.
"Where's Emma?"" I asked.
My mother pointed toward the staircase.
"There's another passage behind the linen closet. It leads to the old laboratory.""
Claire stared at her.
"You told me that passage had been sealed.""
"It was.""
"Then how—"
A phone rang.
It was coming from the bedroom dresser.
My father's old landline.
Nobody in the house used it.
I walked back and picked up the receiver.
"Hello?""
A familiar voice answered.
"Hello, little brother.""
My throat tightened.
"Daniel?""
He chuckled.
"Still using the name Ryan?""
"Where are the children?""
"Safe.""
"Put them on the phone.""
There was a pause.
Then I heard Lily's voice.
"Daddy?""
I closed my eyes.
"I'm here, sweetheart.""
"Grandpa says you have to come downstairs.""
My father took the phone.
"Your brother and I are waiting.""
"Listen carefully. If you touch either child, I'll kill you.""
He laughed.
"That's exactly what I said twenty years ago.""
The line went dead.
I turned toward my mother.
"Take Claire and Lily outside. Call the police.""
She nodded.
But Claire refused to move.
"I'm not leaving Emma.""
"Claire, I need you to keep Lily safe.""
She looked at our daughter.
Then she kissed her forehead.
"Mommy's coming back, sweetheart.""
Lily clung to her.
"Don't leave me.""
Claire's face broke.
"I won't.""
I handed Lily to my mother.
"Get her out.""
My mother took the child and hurried toward the stairs.
Claire and I went to the linen closet.
Behind a stack of towels, we found a small brass handle. I pulled it.
A narrow wooden door opened.
Cold air rolled out.
The passage smelled of dust and disinfectant.
We descended a short staircase and reached a corridor lined with old electrical cables.
At the far end was a steel door.
A keypad blinked beside it.
Claire stepped forward.
"I know the code.""
I looked at her.
"How?""
She hesitated.
"Your father gave it to me.""
I stared at her.
"Why would he give you access?""
"Because he wanted me to help him.""
My stomach tightened.
"Help him do what?""
She entered six numbers.
The door unlocked.
Inside was a small office filled with monitors, medical equipment, and filing cabinets.
On the largest screen, I saw three live camera feeds.
One showed Emma sitting in a small room.
Another showed my mother carrying Lily through the kitchen.
The third showed a man sitting in front of a computer.
Daniel.
He looked exactly like me.
He wore a dark shirt and had a fresh cut across his forehead.
Claire covered her mouth.
"He's alive.""
I approached the screen.
"Can you hear me?""
Daniel looked up.
For a moment, he seemed surprised.
Then he leaned toward the camera.
"Hello, Ryan.""
"Where's Emma?""
"With me.""
"Why are you doing this?""
His smile disappeared.
"Because you got everything.""
I frowned.
"What?""
"You got the parents. You got the childhood. You got the freedom. I got a locked room and a lifetime of being told I was defective.""
I looked at Claire.
She was staring at the monitor as if she'd seen something impossible.
Daniel continued.
"Do you know what Father told me when I asked why you got to live outside?""
I said nothing.
"He told me you were the successful version. That I was a mistake.""
My chest tightened.
"Daniel, listen to me. We can get you help.""
He laughed.
"Help? You think I want your help?""
He turned his camera toward Emma.
She was sitting on a bed, holding a stuffed rabbit.
My stomach dropped.
"Don't you touch her.""
Daniel leaned closer.
"You still don't understand, brother. Father never wanted you dead.""
He paused.
"He wanted you to become me.""
Then the monitor switched to another video.
It showed my father standing in a hospital room, holding a newborn baby.
Beside him was a woman wearing a nurse's uniform.
My mother.
But the baby in his arms wasn't me.
It was Daniel.
My mother appeared in the doorway behind us.
She had followed us.
She stared at the screen and whispered:
"That's impossible.""
Daniel's voice came through the speakers.
"Ask Mother what happened to the real Ryan.""
I turned slowly.
"What?""
My mother began trembling.
Daniel smiled.
"One of us was adopted, brother.""
The screen went black.
Then a printer beside the computer suddenly started working.
A single document slid into the tray.
At the top was my full name.
Below it was a photograph of a newborn baby.
May you like
And beside the photograph, in bold red letters, were the words:
*BIOLOGICAL IDENTITY: UNCONFIRMED.*
