CHAPTER 2: THE SECRET HIDDEN IN ANNA'S JOURNAL
For several minutes, nobody spoke.
The video had ended, but Anna's voice remained inside my head.
Do not trust Michael.
Four words.
Four words that had just ripped apart two years of memories.
I wanted to believe there was another explanation.
I wanted Detective Collins to tell me the video was misleading.
That Anna had misunderstood something.
That Michael was innocent.
But deep down, the worst part was that I already knew.
Because a person who has nothing to hide doesn't ask about a missing injector before asking if a child is alive.
"Daniel."
Detective Collins' voice pulled me back.
I looked at her.
"We need to talk about what happens next."
I stared at the USB drive.
"What happens next?"
"Evelyn is in custody, but Michael is still free."
The words felt heavier than they should have.
Free.
Michael was still walking around.
Still breathing the same air.
Still pretending to be my brother.
"Can you arrest him?"
Detective Collins shook her head.
"Not yet."
"Why?"
"Because suspicion isn't enough."
She pointed toward the USB.
"This video is important, but it doesn't prove Michael participated in the attack on Lily."
My jaw tightened.
"But the messages—"
"Suggest involvement."
"Suggest?"
She looked directly at me.
"Daniel, I know what you want to do right now."
I said nothing.
Because she was right.
I wanted to call Michael.
I wanted to hear him explain.
I wanted to ask how many times he had looked me in the eyes while secretly planning to take my daughter away.
But Detective Collins continued.
"And that is exactly what he expects."
I frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"If Michael is involved, he knows Evelyn has been caught. He knows something went wrong."
She paused.
"People who are desperate make mistakes."
I understood.
"You're saying we need to let him think he's safe."
"Exactly."
The idea made my stomach turn.
Pretending everything was normal.
Sitting across from my brother.
Listening to him lie.
But if it helped protect Lily...
I would do anything.
Even if it meant pretending my own family hadn't betrayed me.
The next morning, the hospital room felt different.
Lily was awake.
She was eating small pieces of toast while watching cartoons on the television.
For a few minutes, she looked like a normal eight-year-old girl.
Not a child who had nearly died.
Not a child who had uncovered a conspiracy adults tried to hide.
I sat beside her bed.
"How are you feeling, princess?"
She shrugged.
"Better."
Then she looked down.
"Dad?"
"Yeah?"
"Is Grandma Evelyn going to come back?"
The question caught me off guard.
I carefully chose my words.
"I don't think she'll be visiting for a while."
Lily nodded.
She didn't look happy.
She didn't look angry.
She just looked tired.
"I don't understand why she did it."
Neither did I.
Because Evelyn wasn't just a cruel person.
She was Lily's grandmother.
She had held her when she was a baby.
She had cried when Anna died.
At least, I thought she had.
"Sometimes people hide who they really are," I said.
Lily was quiet.
Then she whispered:
"Uncle Michael knew."
My body froze.
I turned toward her.
"What did you say?"
She looked scared.
"I don't know."
"Lily, tell me."
She squeezed the blanket.
"Before the party, Uncle Michael came into the kitchen."
My heart started beating faster.
"What did he do?"
"He asked Grandma Evelyn if everything was ready."
I felt cold.
"Ready for what?"
Lily looked at me.
"I don't know."
She swallowed.
"But Grandma Evelyn said..."
Her voice became smaller.
"She said, 'After today, Daniel won't be able to take her away from us.'"
The room went silent.
I looked at Detective Collins.
She immediately stepped closer.
"Lily, did you hear anything else?"
My daughter nodded slowly.
"Uncle Michael said..."
She closed her eyes, trying to remember.
"He said, 'Are you sure the recording device is gone?'"
My blood turned cold.
Recording device.
Not injector.
Not medicine.
Something else.
"What recording device?" Detective Collins asked.
Lily shook her head.
"I don't know."
Then she suddenly looked toward her backpack.
"My journal."
I frowned.
"Your journal?"
She nodded quickly.
"The pink one Mom gave me."
"What about it?"
"I had it at the party."
She looked frightened.
"I can't find it."
Three hours later, I was standing inside my house.
The same house where Anna and I raised Lily.
The same house where Michael had slept after Anna died.
The same house where I thought my family was safe.
Detective Collins searched the living room while another officer checked the security footage.
I walked upstairs.
Toward Lily's room.
Everything looked normal.
Too normal.
Her stuffed animals sat on the shelf.
Her drawings covered the wall.
Her little desk remained untouched.
Except for one thing.
A drawer was slightly open.
I knew Lily.
She always closed that drawer.
I walked toward it.
Inside were her pencils, stickers, and notebooks.
But the pink journal was missing.
My hands tightened.
Someone had been here.
Someone had searched her room.
Someone was looking for something.
"Daniel."
Detective Collins stood behind me.
She was holding a small plastic bag.
Inside was a torn piece of paper.
"Where did you find that?"
"Behind the bookshelf."
My heart raced.
She handed it to me.
The handwriting was familiar.
Anna's handwriting.
I unfolded it.
Only one sentence was written.
If anyone finds Lily's journal, they will know everything.
I looked at Detective Collins.
"Anna wrote this?"
"Yes."
"But why would Lily's journal matter?"
Detective Collins looked toward the empty shelf.
"Maybe because Lily saw something."
I remembered the party.
The recording.
The dessert.
The injector.
But maybe the smartwatch recording wasn't the only evidence.
Maybe Anna had hidden something inside that journal.
Something she knew someone would try to steal.
That night, after Lily fell asleep, I searched every corner of the house.
Closets.
Drawers.
Old boxes.
Everything.
Until I found something behind Anna's old bookshelf.
A small wooden box.
I had never seen it before.
Inside was a key.
And a note.
My hands shook as I opened it.
The handwriting was Anna's.
Daniel,
If you are reading this, then my fears were correct.
I didn't tell you because I didn't want to destroy your relationship with your family without proof.
But I discovered something about Michael and my mother.
I stopped.
My mother's?
Anna meant Evelyn.
I kept reading.
They have been planning this since before my accident.
My heart stopped.
Before my accident.
Not before Lily's allergy attack.
Before Anna died.
I turned the page.
Only one sentence remained.
Daniel, your wife was not supposed to survive that night either.
The room suddenly felt freezing.
I dropped the paper.
Anna's death.
The car accident.
The tragedy that destroyed my family.
The tragedy I had accepted for two years.
It wasn't an accident.
Someone had tried to kill my wife.
And if Anna was right...
The people responsible had been sitting at my dinner table.
Sleeping under my roof.
Calling themselves family.
Then my phone vibrated.
A message appeared.
Unknown number.
One sentence.
Stop looking for answers, Daniel. Some secrets buried themselves for a reason.
I stared at the screen.
Then another message arrived.
A photo.
My blood ran cold.
It was a picture of Lily sleeping in the hospital.
Taken from inside her room.
Underneath it were five words.
She isn't safe with you.
I looked toward the hallway.
Toward my daughter's room.
And for the first time in two years...
I realized something terrifying.
Anna wasn't trying to tell me who betrayed us.
She was trying to tell me someone was still watching.
May you like
Someone who had never left.
End of Chapter 2
