Chapter 2: The Voice From the Past
I stared at the phone in my father’s hand.
The unknown number continued flashing across the screen.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Marcus looked like a man standing in front of a storm he had spent years avoiding.
“Dad,” I said, “who is calling?””
“No one you need to talk to.””
“That’s not an answer.””
He reached for the phone.
I stepped away.
“You told me Mom left.””
Marcus said nothing.
“You told me she chose another life.””
His jaw tightened.
“Daniel—”
“But now you’re scared of a phone call?””
The ringing stopped.
For a moment, the house was completely silent.
Then the phone rang again.
This time, I grabbed it before my father could.
“Hello?””
There was breathing on the other end.
A shaky breath.
A familiar kind of silence.
Then a woman spoke.
“Daniel?””
My entire body froze.
I couldn’t explain why.
I had never heard her voice before.
Not in eleven years.
But somehow, something inside me recognized it.
The woman started crying.
“Oh my God… it’s really you.””
I looked at my father.
His face had gone pale.
“Who is this?””
The woman took a shaky breath.
“My name is Claire.””
I waited.
“I knew your mother.””
My grip tightened around the phone.
“How?””
A pause.
Then she whispered:
“Because I was there the night Elena disappeared.””
My father suddenly stepped forward.
“Give me the phone.””
I turned away.
“No.””
“Daniel, you don’t understand.””
“No, Dad. I understand one thing.””
I looked at the trophy sitting on the table.
“You lied to me.””
Marcus looked down.
And that hurt more than anger.
Because he didn’t deny it.
The woman on the phone continued.
“Daniel, I’ve wanted to call you for years.””
“Why didn’t you?””
Her voice broke.
“Because Elena made me promise.””
My heart stopped.
“What promise?””
“That I would wait until you found the truth yourself.””
I looked at the folded note in my hand.
My mother’s handwriting.
Her words.
A message she had hidden for me.
“Why would she hide something inside my trophy?””
The woman went quiet.
Then she said:
“Because she knew someone would try to take it away from you.””
I looked at Marcus.
He looked away.
That was when I knew.
My father knew about the note.
Maybe he had always known.
“Where is my mother?”” I asked.
The woman didn’t answer immediately.
And that scared me.
“Claire?””
“I’m sorry, Daniel.””
My throat tightened.
“What?””
“She wanted to come back.””
The room started spinning.
“She wanted to come home.””
I closed my eyes.
“Then why didn’t she?””
The woman whispered:
“Because Vanessa made sure she couldn’t.””
I felt the air leave my lungs.
“What did you say?””
Before Claire could answer, the phone was ripped from my hand.
Marcus hung up.
I stared at him.
“What did you just do?””
“You need to stay away from this.””
“Why?””
“Because you don’t know what you’re opening.””
I laughed bitterly.
“My whole life was a lie, and you’re worried about what I’m opening?””
Marcus looked toward the trophy.
Then toward the note.
“Your mother was trying to protect you.””
“From who?””
He didn’t respond.
That was the answer.
I walked past him and went upstairs.
I locked my bedroom door.
Then I unfolded the note.
The paper was fragile.
The ink had faded.
But the words were clear.
My hands shook as I read.
Daniel,
If you are reading this, it means I failed to tell you the truth myself.
I wanted to come back.
I never left you.
I was forced away.
The person you trust most has been keeping my secret.
The person who smiles beside you every day knows what happened.
I stopped reading.
My heart pounded.
The person who smiles beside you every day.
Vanessa.
“No,” I whispered.
I wanted to reject it.
I wanted to believe it was impossible.
But then I heard footsteps outside my door.
I quickly folded the note.
The door handle moved.
“Daniel?””
Vanessa’s voice.
I didn’t answer.
“Open the door.””
My blood went cold.
“How did you get home?””
Silence.
Then she said something that made my entire body freeze.
“Because I need to explain what happened eleven years ago.””
The door handle moved again.
And I realized something terrifying.
May you like
She wasn’t asking to come in.
She already knew what was inside.
