Chapter 2: The Stranger Who Knew My Daughter
I stopped breathing.
The man’s voice wasn’t loud.
It didn’t need to be.
Every word felt like it had been carved into the air above me.
Where did she hide it this time?
My fingers pressed against the carpet beneath me.
I couldn’t see his face.
Only his boots.
Old black work boots covered in dried mud.
The man walked farther into Maya’s room.
A drawer opened.
Then another.
He wasn’t searching casually.
He knew exactly what he was looking for.
The sound of papers moving made my stomach twist.
Who was this person?
And why was he inside my home?
I reached for my phone.
Slowly.
Carefully.
I had already turned the sound off, but my hands were trembling so badly I almost dropped it.
I needed proof.
I needed to know who he was.
Then my phone screen lit up.
A notification appeared.
My heart nearly stopped.
It was a message from Maya.
*Mom, please don’t come home early today.*
I stared at the words.
My daughter knew.
Somehow, she knew.
Before I could process it, the man above me spoke.
“You should have listened to me, Maya.””
I felt ice run through my veins.
He said her name.
He knew her.
The bedroom door opened.
A second set of footsteps entered.
Smaller.
Lighter.
My daughter.
“Maya,” the man said, “I’m running out of patience.””
I wanted to crawl out.
I wanted to grab her and pull her away.
But I stayed still.
Because something in his voice told me moving too soon could make things worse.
“I told you I don’t have it,” Maya said.
Her voice was different.
Not the confident voice she used with me.
This was a frightened child.
“You expect me to believe that?””
“I’m serious.””
The man laughed quietly.
“You’re just like your father.””
My eyes widened.
My ex-husband’s name had not been mentioned in years.
“Maya,” the man continued, “your mother doesn’t know, does she?””
Silence.
That silence answered him.
The room suddenly felt too small.
“What doesn’t she know?”” I whispered inside my head.
The man moved closer.
“You promised you would bring it to me.””
“I changed my mind.””
A pause.
Then a chair scraped across the floor.
“You don’t get to change your mind.””
My hand tightened around my phone.
I needed to call the police.
But I needed to understand.
“Maya,” the man said, “I gave you enough time.””
“You’re not getting anything from me.””
The confidence in her voice surprised me.
For the first time, I heard something familiar.
My daughter.
The girl who stood up for classmates when others stayed quiet.
The girl who hated unfairness.
The girl who was hiding something much bigger than skipping school.
The man sighed.
“You really think your mother can protect you?””
My entire body went cold.
Then Maya whispered:
“She can protect me from you.””
The room went silent.
The man suddenly moved.
Fast.
A drawer slammed.
Maya gasped.
I almost moved.
Almost.
Then a sound came from the hallway.
The front door opened.
Someone else had entered.
The man froze.
“Who’s here?””
Nobody answered.
The footsteps in the hallway stopped outside the bedroom.
And then a voice I recognized said:
“Renee?””
May you like
My heart dropped.
It was Mrs. Patterson.
