CHAPTER 7: THE FIRST PAGE
Richard stared at the leather journal for what felt like an eternity.
His father's handwriting.
He recognized it instantly.
The sharp slant of every letter...
The way the ink pressed harder at the beginning of each sentence...
There was no doubt.
It belonged to Edward Sterling.
"Don't touch it."
Detective Hayes' voice cut through the silence.
"It could be another trap."
Richard didn't answer.
If someone had orchestrated this entire night just to bring him here...
Then whatever was inside that journal was more valuable than money.
More dangerous than the bombs.
He reached out.
His fingertips brushed the worn leather.
Nothing happened.
No explosion.
No hidden mechanism.
Only silence.
Slowly, he opened the cover.
The first page contained just one sentence.
If Richard is reading this, then I have already failed.
His heart skipped a beat.
Below it was another line.
Son... the greatest mistake of my life was believing I could bury the truth.
Richard turned the page.
It wouldn't move.
The remaining pages had been glued together.
Only the first page could be read.
Tucked inside the journal was a brass key no longer than a finger.
A small paper tag hung from it.
LOCKER 27
Hayes took a photo of the page before sealing the journal in an evidence bag.
"Locker twenty-seven..."
Richard frowned.
"Any idea where?"
Before Hayes could answer...
The speaker crackled again.
"You found the key."
The old man's calm voice echoed through the chamber.
"But keys only matter..."
"...when someone remembers the lock."
Suddenly, every photograph on the walls began sliding downward.
Not electronically.
Mechanically.
Hidden gears groaned behind the stone.
As the pictures disappeared...
Something else emerged.
Names.
Hundreds of names.
Children.
Every name was followed by a date.
Some had red marks beside them.
Others had black circles.
Luna's name was there.
LUNA REYES
No red mark.
No black circle.
Just a question mark.
Hayes quickly photographed the wall.
"These aren't random."
Richard scanned the list.
Many names had one thing in common.
Each child had disappeared over the past fifteen years.
Some cases had made national headlines.
Others had never been solved.
Marina's voice trembled.
"This... this is impossible."
Then Ethan pointed toward the corner.
"Dad..."
"Someone's there."
Every flashlight swung toward the darkness.
A small figure stepped into the dim red glow.
Barefoot.
Yellow dress.
"Luna!"
Richard rushed forward.
The girl lifted one hand.
"Stop."
Something in her voice made everyone freeze.
She wasn't crying anymore.
She wasn't frightened.
Her eyes remained fixed on the journal.
"You opened it."
Richard nodded.
"Yes."
She lowered her head.
"Then they know."
"Who?"
She looked around the chamber as though afraid the walls themselves were listening.
"The ones who never show their faces."
Hayes stepped closer.
"Luna, who are they?"
Before she could answer...
The mansion's emergency radio suddenly crackled back to life.
A panicked voice shouted through the speaker.
"Sir!"
Richard grabbed the radio.
"What happened?"
"It's the surveillance room!"
"What about it?"
"Every security recording..."
The guard struggled to catch his breath.
"...has changed."
Richard frowned.
"What do you mean 'changed'?"
"The footage from tonight..."
"...doesn't show Luna entering the mansion."
Silence.
The guard continued.
"Sir..."
"It shows..."
"...you carrying her into the house."
"...alone."
Richard's blood turned to ice.
"That's impossible."
"We checked every camera twice."
Hayes slowly turned toward Luna.
"So..."
he whispered.
"If the cameras never captured her..."
"...then who did everyone see?"
At that exact moment...
The little girl smiled for the first time that night.
Not an innocent smile.
Not a frightened smile.
A sad one.
She looked directly into Richard's eyes and quietly asked,
"Mr. Sterling..."
"Do you remember the daughter you lost?"
The question struck him like a hammer.
His vision blurred.
A forgotten memory forced its way to the surface.
Rain pouring across a bridge.
A little girl's hand slipping from his grasp.
A scream.
Then darkness.
Richard staggered backward, clutching his head.
Because somewhere deep inside...
He realized he had heard that scream before.
May you like
Years ago.
And he had spent his entire life convincing himself it had never happened.
