The photograph was still glowing on Chloe\u2019s phone. Chloe zoomed in on the photograph.<\/p>\n There was something behind the four men.<\/p>\n A building.<\/p>\n An old warehouse.<\/p>\n And on the side of the building was a faded number.<\/p>\n 17.<\/strong><\/p>\n I stared at it.<\/p>\n Something about that number bothered me.<\/p>\n I couldn’t explain why.<\/p>\n Then I remembered something.<\/p>\n Dad’s letter.<\/p>\n The one Alan had given us.<\/p>\n I rushed upstairs.<\/p>\n Chloe followed.<\/p>\n I pulled open the drawer beside my bed and grabbed the envelope.<\/p>\n The paper was still folded exactly the way Dad had written it.<\/p>\n I opened it.<\/p>\n We had read the letter dozens of times.<\/p>\n But now, knowing what we knew, I read it differently.<\/p>\n I went through every sentence.<\/p>\n Every word.<\/p>\n Every warning.<\/p>\n Then I stopped.<\/p>\n \u201cChloe.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n I pointed to a sentence.<\/p>\n She leaned closer.<\/p>\n Dad had written:<\/p>\n If you ever discover the truth about the night I died, remember the number seventeen.<\/strong><\/p>\n Chloe’s face went pale.<\/p>\n \u201cSeventeen.\u201d<\/p>\n I nodded.<\/p>\n \u201cThe warehouse.\u201d<\/p>\n Neither of us moved.<\/p>\n Then Chloe whispered,<\/p>\n \u201cDad knew we’d find it.\u201d<\/p>\n I looked at the letter.<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n She frowned.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe didn’t know.\u201d<\/p>\n I pointed to the handwriting.<\/p>\n \u201cHe was warning us.\u201d<\/p>\n A long silence followed.<\/p>\n Then Chloe asked the question neither of us wanted to ask.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy would Dad leave a clue about the night he died?\u201d<\/p>\n I looked at her.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause he knew someone would try to hide what happened.\u201d<\/p>\n Chloe slowly sat down on the edge of the bed.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd Alan knows.\u201d<\/p>\n I didn’t answer.<\/p>\n Because deep down, I knew she was right.<\/p>\n The message from the photograph had told us exactly what to ask.<\/p>\n ASK ALAN WHAT HAPPENED ON THE NIGHT YOUR FATHER DIED.<\/strong><\/p>\n So we did.<\/p>\n We called him.<\/p>\n Once.<\/p>\n No answer.<\/p>\n Twice.<\/p>\n No answer.<\/p>\n Three times.<\/p>\n Straight to voicemail.<\/p>\n Chloe stared at the screen.<\/p>\n \u201cThat’s strange.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe always answers.\u201d<\/p>\n I felt a cold sensation move through me.<\/p>\n \u201cCall again.\u201d<\/p>\n She did.<\/p>\n This time, someone answered.<\/p>\n But nobody spoke.<\/p>\n \u201cUncle Alan?\u201d<\/p>\n Silence.<\/p>\n \u201cAlan?\u201d<\/p>\n Still nothing.<\/p>\n Then we heard breathing.<\/p>\n Slow.<\/p>\n Heavy.<\/p>\n Close to the phone.<\/p>\n Chloe looked at me.<\/p>\n I mouthed,<\/p>\n \u201cPut it on speaker.\u201d<\/p>\n She did.<\/p>\n \u201cAlan,\u201d I said. \u201cWe need to talk.\u201d<\/p>\n A voice finally came through.<\/p>\n But it wasn’t Alan.<\/p>\n It was a man’s voice.<\/p>\n Low.<\/p>\n Calm.<\/p>\n Almost amused.<\/p>\n \u201cYou should have stopped after your mother was arrested.\u201d<\/p>\n My heart dropped.<\/p>\n Chloe grabbed my hand.<\/p>\n \u201cWho are you?\u201d<\/p>\n The man laughed quietly.<\/p>\n \u201cYou really don’t recognize me?\u201d<\/p>\n I stared at the phone.<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou’ve seen me before.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWho are you?\u201d<\/p>\n Another pause.<\/p>\n Then he said,<\/p>\n \u201cAsk your uncle.\u201d<\/p>\n The call ended.<\/p>\n Chloe immediately tried calling back.<\/p>\n The number was disconnected.<\/p>\n I looked at her.<\/p>\n \u201cWhere is Alan?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don’t know.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCould he be in danger?\u201d<\/p>\n She didn’t answer.<\/p>\n Then her phone buzzed.<\/p>\n A new message.<\/p>\n This time, there was no photograph.<\/p>\n Only one sentence.<\/p>\n HE’S ALREADY AT WAREHOUSE 17.<\/strong><\/p>\n We looked at each other.<\/p>\n And within five minutes, we were in the car.<\/p>\n The warehouse was almost an hour outside the city.<\/p>\n It stood at the edge of an industrial district that had been abandoned years earlier.<\/p>\n Broken windows.<\/p>\n Rusting metal.<\/p>\n Overgrown weeds.<\/p>\n No lights.<\/p>\n No people.<\/p>\n Nothing.<\/p>\n Except one thing.<\/p>\n A black SUV parked beside the entrance.<\/p>\n Chloe stopped the car.<\/p>\n \u201cThat’s Alan’s.\u201d<\/p>\n My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n We got out.<\/p>\n \u201cStay close,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n \u201cI wasn’t planning on leaving you.\u201d<\/p>\n We walked toward the warehouse.<\/p>\n The front door was slightly open.<\/p>\n That was the first thing that frightened me.<\/p>\n The second was the blood.<\/p>\n There was a small smear on the door handle.<\/p>\n Chloe froze.<\/p>\n \u201cFaye\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI see it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cShould we call the police?\u201d<\/p>\n I pulled out my phone.<\/p>\n Before I could dial, the warehouse lights came on.<\/p>\n All at once.<\/p>\n Bright white lights filled the enormous room.<\/p>\n And we saw him.<\/p>\n Alan.<\/p>\n He was sitting in a chair in the middle of the warehouse.<\/p>\n His hands were tied behind his back.<\/p>\n His face was bruised.<\/p>\n There was blood on his shirt.<\/p>\n \u201cUNCLE!\u201d<\/p>\n Chloe ran forward.<\/p>\n I grabbed her arm.<\/p>\n \u201cWait!\u201d<\/p>\n Something was wrong.<\/p>\n Alan looked up.<\/p>\n His eyes widened.<\/p>\n \u201cFaye\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n His voice was weak.<\/p>\n \u201cGet out.\u201d<\/p>\n Chloe stared at him.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cGet out of here!\u201d<\/p>\n Then a voice came from the darkness behind us.<\/p>\n \u201cI knew you’d come.\u201d<\/p>\n We turned.<\/p>\n A man stepped out.<\/p>\n He was tall.<\/p>\n Gray hair.<\/p>\n Dark coat.<\/p>\n And a scar above his eyebrow.<\/p>\n Victor Hale.<\/p>\n Chloe whispered,<\/p>\n \u201cYou.\u201d<\/p>\n Victor looked at us.<\/p>\n Then he smiled.<\/p>\n \u201cI was beginning to wonder whether you two had inherited your father’s intelligence.\u201d<\/p>\n I stepped backward.<\/p>\n \u201cYou kidnapped Alan.\u201d<\/p>\n Victor shook his head.<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n He glanced at Alan.<\/p>\n \u201cYour uncle came here willingly.\u201d<\/p>\n Alan shouted,<\/p>\n \u201cDon’t listen to him!\u201d<\/p>\n Victor smiled.<\/p>\n \u201cHe’s very good at that.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAt what?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPretending he’s innocent.\u201d<\/p>\n Alan struggled against the ropes.<\/p>\n \u201cFaye, listen to me!\u201d<\/p>\n Victor raised one finger.<\/p>\n \u201cLet him speak.\u201d<\/p>\n Alan looked at me.<\/p>\n His expression changed.<\/p>\n I had never seen fear like that on his face.<\/p>\n Not even when we were children.<\/p>\n Not even when Edric had threatened us.<\/p>\n This was different.<\/p>\n This was the fear of someone who knew exactly what was coming.<\/p>\n \u201cFaye,\u201d he whispered.<\/p>\n \u201cI lied to you.\u201d<\/p>\n Chloe’s face changed.<\/p>\n \u201cAbout what?\u201d<\/p>\n Alan looked down.<\/p>\n \u201cAbout your father.\u201d<\/p>\n The warehouse suddenly felt smaller.<\/p>\n I couldn’t breathe.<\/p>\n Victor stepped back.<\/p>\n He seemed content to watch.<\/p>\n Alan continued.<\/p>\n \u201cDavid didn’t die the way I told you.\u201d<\/p>\n I felt my hands begin to shake.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n Alan closed his eyes.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was supposed to be a meeting.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWith who?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cVictor.\u201d<\/p>\n Victor laughed.<\/p>\n \u201cThat is not entirely true.\u201d<\/p>\n Alan glared at him.<\/p>\n \u201cLet me finish.\u201d<\/p>\n Victor shrugged.<\/p>\n \u201cGo ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n Alan looked at us again.<\/p>\n \u201cYour father discovered the financial fraud before anyone else knew.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe know.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n He shook his head.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know about the money.\u201d<\/p>\n He looked at Chloe.<\/p>\n \u201cYou don’t know what he discovered.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat did he discover?\u201d<\/p>\n Alan’s voice dropped.<\/p>\n \u201cThe company wasn’t simply losing money.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt was being used to move something else.\u201d<\/p>\n I frowned.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIdentities.\u201d<\/p>\n Chloe stared at him.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n Alan swallowed.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople who were supposed to be dead weren’t dead.\u201d<\/p>\n I thought about the photograph.<\/p>\n The unknown man.<\/p>\n The note.<\/p>\n HE NEVER DIED.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cWho?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n Alan looked toward Victor.<\/p>\n Victor’s smile disappeared.<\/p>\n Then Alan said the words that changed everything.<\/p>\n \u201cYour mother’s first husband.\u201d<\/p>\n Silence.<\/p>\n Chloe’s eyes widened.<\/p>\n \u201cThat’s impossible.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat’s what your mother believed.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cShe said he died.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cShe was told he died.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBy who?\u201d<\/p>\n Alan didn’t answer.<\/p>\n I stepped closer.<\/p>\n \u201cBy who?\u201d<\/p>\n Alan looked directly into my eyes.<\/p>\n \u201cBy David.\u201d<\/p>\n My entire body went cold.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n Chloe shook her head.<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n Alan nodded.<\/p>\n \u201cYour father helped make it look like he was dead.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBecause that man was dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n Victor interrupted.<\/p>\n \u201cVery dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n Alan continued.<\/p>\n \u201cHe had been involved in the same network David discovered.\u201d<\/p>\n I felt dizzy.<\/p>\n \u201cThen why did Dad help him disappear?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe didn’t.\u201d<\/p>\n Alan’s eyes filled with tears.<\/p>\n \u201cHe tried to expose him.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThen why did you say Dad helped him?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBecause\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n Alan hesitated.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause I was there.\u201d<\/p>\n I stared at him.<\/p>\n \u201cYou were there that night.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou saw Dad?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou saw him die?\u201d<\/p>\n Alan closed his eyes.<\/p>\n \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n Chloe covered her mouth.<\/p>\n I felt something crack inside me.<\/p>\n All these years.<\/p>\n All the questions.<\/p>\n All the stories.<\/p>\n All the explanations.<\/p>\n And Alan had been there.<\/p>\n \u201cYou told us Dad died in an accident.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou told us he lost control of the car.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou told us there was nothing anyone could have done.\u201d<\/p>\n Alan’s voice broke.<\/p>\n \u201cI lied.\u201d<\/p>\n Chloe screamed.<\/p>\n \u201cWHY?\u201d<\/p>\n Her voice echoed through the warehouse.<\/p>\n \u201cWHY WOULD YOU LIE TO US?\u201d<\/p>\n Alan couldn’t answer.<\/p>\n Victor stepped forward.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause he was afraid.\u201d<\/p>\n Chloe turned toward him.<\/p>\n \u201cAfraid of you?\u201d<\/p>\n Victor smiled.<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n He looked at Alan.<\/p>\n \u201cAfraid of the fourth man.\u201d<\/p>\n I stared at the photograph in my mind.<\/p>\n David.<\/p>\n Victor.<\/p>\n Edric.<\/p>\n And the unknown man.<\/p>\n \u201cThe fourth man,\u201d I whispered.<\/p>\n Victor nodded.<\/p>\n \u201cYou finally understand.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWho is he?\u201d<\/p>\n Victor didn’t answer.<\/p>\n Instead, he walked toward a table.<\/p>\n On it was an old metal box.<\/p>\n He opened it.<\/p>\n Inside were dozens of documents.<\/p>\n Photographs.<\/p>\n Bank statements.<\/p>\n Passports.<\/p>\n And newspaper clippings.<\/p>\n He pulled out one photograph.<\/p>\n Then he placed it on the table.<\/p>\n I walked closer.<\/p>\n Chloe stood beside me.<\/p>\n The photograph showed our mother.<\/p>\n Much younger.<\/p>\n Standing beside a man.<\/p>\n The man from the warehouse photograph.<\/p>\n But there was something else.<\/p>\n A child stood between them.<\/p>\n A little girl.<\/p>\n Maybe three years old.<\/p>\n I looked at Chloe.<\/p>\n Then at the photograph.<\/p>\n \u201cWho is that child?\u201d<\/p>\n Alan whispered,<\/p>\n \u201cYour sister.\u201d<\/p>\n The world stopped.<\/p>\n Chloe’s face went completely blank.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n Alan looked at us.<\/p>\n \u201cYou had another sister.\u201d<\/p>\n I shook my head.<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOur mother had three children.\u201d<\/p>\n Chloe backed away.<\/p>\n \u201cWhere is she?\u201d<\/p>\n Nobody answered.<\/p>\n I turned toward Victor.<\/p>\n \u201cWhere is she?\u201d<\/p>\n Victor’s expression became serious.<\/p>\n \u201cThat’s the question your father spent the last year of his life trying to answer.\u201d<\/p>\n I felt my heart pounding.<\/p>\n \u201cWhere is she?\u201d<\/p>\n Victor looked at Alan.<\/p>\n Then back at me.<\/p>\n \u201cShe was taken.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBy who?\u201d<\/p>\n Victor opened another file.<\/p>\n Inside was a birth certificate.<\/p>\n The name on it was partially blacked out.<\/p>\n But the child’s first name was visible.<\/p>\n MAYA.<\/strong><\/p>\n Chloe whispered,<\/p>\n \u201cMaya\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n I couldn’t stop staring at the paper.<\/p>\n \u201cOur sister is alive?\u201d<\/p>\n Victor didn’t answer.<\/p>\n Alan did.<\/p>\n \u201cShe was alive the last time David saw her.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n Alan looked down.<\/p>\n \u201cWe don’t know.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou’re lying.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI’m not.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou’re all lying!\u201d<\/p>\n My voice echoed across the warehouse.<\/p>\n I grabbed the photograph.<\/p>\n \u201cWhere is Maya?\u201d<\/p>\n Victor stepped toward me.<\/p>\n \u201cYour father found her.\u201d<\/p>\n I froze.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe found her.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThree weeks before he died.\u201d<\/p>\n Chloe stepped closer.<\/p>\n \u201cThen why didn’t he tell us?\u201d<\/p>\n Victor looked at her.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause he couldn’t.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBecause the people holding her were watching you.\u201d<\/p>\n My breathing stopped.<\/p>\n \u201cThey were watching us?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n Victor’s voice became quieter.<\/p>\n \u201cYour father knew that if he went after Maya openly, you and Faye would be killed.\u201d<\/p>\n Chloe started crying.<\/p>\n \u201cThen why did he die?\u201d<\/p>\n Victor looked at Alan.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause someone betrayed him.\u201d<\/p>\n I looked at Alan.<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n Alan shook his head.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn’t betray him.\u201d<\/p>\n Victor said nothing.<\/p>\n I stared at Alan.<\/p>\n \u201cThen who did?\u201d<\/p>\n Alan’s eyes filled with tears.<\/p>\n \u201cI don’t know.\u201d<\/p>\n Victor suddenly laughed.<\/p>\n \u201cYou still don’t understand.\u201d<\/p>\n He picked up another photograph.<\/p>\n This one showed our father standing outside a hospital.<\/p>\n Beside him was a young woman.<\/p>\n Our mother.<\/p>\n But she was holding something.<\/p>\n A baby.<\/p>\n A newborn.<\/p>\n Victor placed the photograph down.<\/p>\n \u201cThis photograph was taken one day after Maya was born.\u201d<\/p>\n I looked at the date.<\/p>\n Then I stopped breathing.<\/p>\n The date was twenty years ago.<\/p>\n The same year our mother told everyone Maya had died.<\/p>\n Chloe whispered,<\/p>\n \u201cMom knew.\u201d<\/p>\n Victor nodded.<\/p>\n \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThen why did she lie?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBecause she was threatened.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBy who?\u201d<\/p>\n Victor didn’t answer.<\/p>\n I slammed my hand against the table.<\/p>\n \u201cWHO?\u201d<\/p>\n Victor looked directly at me.<\/p>\n \u201cYour father.\u201d<\/p>\n I froze.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDavid threatened her.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat makes no sense.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe told her that if she went to the police, Maya would disappear forever.\u201d<\/p>\n Chloe shook her head.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy would Dad threaten Mom?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBecause your father wasn’t protecting your mother.\u201d<\/p>\n Victor leaned closer.<\/p>\n \u201cHe was protecting Maya.\u201d<\/p>\n I stared at him.<\/p>\n \u201cFrom whom?\u201d<\/p>\n Victor looked toward the warehouse entrance.<\/p>\n His expression suddenly changed.<\/p>\n Fear.<\/p>\n Real fear.<\/p>\n \u201cFrom him.\u201d<\/p>\n We all turned.<\/p>\n A shadow stood in the doorway.<\/p>\n A man.<\/p>\n Watching us.<\/p>\n Alan’s face went white.<\/p>\n \u201cNo\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n Victor whispered one word.<\/p>\n \u201cImpossible.\u201d<\/p>\n The man stepped inside.<\/p>\n He slowly removed his hat.<\/p>\n I looked at his face.<\/p>\n And even though I had never met him before\u2026<\/p>\n I knew exactly who he was.<\/p>\n Because his face was in the photograph.<\/p>\n The fourth man.<\/p>\n Our mother’s first husband.<\/p>\n The man who was supposed to have died twenty-one years ago.<\/p>\n He looked at me.<\/p>\n Then at Chloe.<\/p>\n And smiled.<\/p>\n \u201cMy daughters.\u201d<\/p>\n Chloe grabbed my hand.<\/p>\n I couldn’t move.<\/p>\n The man walked toward us.<\/p>\n \u201cYou’ve grown.\u201d<\/p>\n I whispered,<\/p>\n \u201cWho are you?\u201d<\/p>\n He stopped.<\/p>\n \u201cMy name is Daniel.\u201d<\/p>\n He smiled again.<\/p>\n \u201cDaniel Morgan.\u201d<\/p>\n Our father’s name.<\/p>\n Our mother’s first husband’s name.<\/p>\n And suddenly I understood why Dad had spent so many years hiding the truth.<\/p>\n Because there were two men connected to our family with the same name.<\/p>\n And one of them had died.<\/p>\n But we had no idea which one.<\/p>\n Daniel looked at Victor.<\/p>\n \u201cYou kept them alive.\u201d<\/p>\n Victor stepped backward.<\/p>\n \u201cI tried.\u201d<\/p>\n Daniel’s eyes narrowed.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd you failed.\u201d<\/p>\n Then he pulled something from his coat.<\/p>\n A small black phone.<\/p>\n He pressed a button.<\/p>\n The warehouse doors slammed shut.<\/p>\n Chloe screamed.<\/p>\n The lights went out.<\/p>\n And in the darkness, we heard a gunshot.<\/p>\n Then another.<\/p>\n Then Alan shouted,<\/p>\n \u201cRUN!\u201d<\/p>\n I grabbed Chloe’s hand.<\/p>\n We ran blindly through the darkness.<\/p>\n Behind us, someone screamed.<\/p>\n Glass shattered.<\/p>\n Something hit the floor.<\/p>\n Then we heard Daniel’s voice.<\/p>\n Calm.<\/p>\n Almost gentle.<\/p>\n \u201cYou should have listened to your father.\u201d<\/p>\n We found a side door.<\/p>\n I pulled it open.<\/p>\n Cold night air hit my face.<\/p>\n We ran.<\/p>\n We didn’t stop until we reached the car.<\/p>\n Chloe slammed the doors shut.<\/p>\n I started the engine.<\/p>\n Neither of us spoke.<\/p>\n Then Chloe looked at me.<\/p>\n \u201cFaye.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n She was crying.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was something on the table.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe last photograph.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat about it?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI saw it before the lights went out.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat did you see?\u201d<\/p>\n She swallowed.<\/p>\n \u201cIt wasn’t a photograph of Maya.\u201d<\/p>\n My hands tightened around the steering wheel.<\/p>\n \u201cThen what was it?\u201d<\/p>\n Chloe looked at me.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was a photograph of us.\u201d<\/p>\n I stared at her.<\/p>\n \u201cUs?\u201d<\/p>\n She nodded.<\/p>\n \u201cFaye\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe photograph was taken yesterday.\u201d<\/p>\n My blood turned cold.<\/p>\n \u201cYesterday?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHow do you know?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBecause\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n She slowly pulled out her phone.<\/p>\n \u201cI was wearing the same shirt.\u201d<\/p>\n I stared at the screen.<\/p>\n The photograph showed us standing outside our house.<\/p>\n Taken from across the street.<\/p>\n Someone had been watching us.<\/p>\n For days.<\/p>\n Maybe weeks.<\/p>\n Maybe longer.<\/p>\n Then my phone buzzed.<\/p>\n A message.<\/p>\n One sentence.<\/p>\n YOU FOUND THE WRONG SECRET.<\/strong><\/p>\n Another message arrived.<\/p>\n MAYA IS NOT YOUR SISTER.<\/strong><\/p>\n I stared at it.<\/p>\n Then a third message appeared.<\/p>\n SHE IS YOUR MOTHER.<\/strong><\/p>\n I couldn’t breathe.<\/p>\n Chloe screamed.<\/p>\n \u201cNo!\u201d<\/p>\n The phone buzzed one final time.<\/p>\n A photograph appeared.<\/p>\n A woman.<\/p>\n Older now.<\/p>\n Standing in a dark room.<\/p>\n Her face was partially hidden.<\/p>\n But there was no mistaking her eyes.<\/p>\n They were our mother’s eyes.<\/p>\n And beneath the photograph were five words:<\/p>\n ASK BRENDA WHO SHE REALLY IS.<\/strong><\/p>\n I looked at Chloe.<\/p>\n She looked at me.<\/p>\n Neither of us spoke.<\/p>\n Because suddenly the question wasn’t just what happened the night our father died.<\/p>\n It was something much bigger.<\/p>\n Something far more terrifying.<\/p>\n
\nNeither of us spoke.
\nFor several seconds, the only sound inside the house was the soft ticking of the clock above the kitchen door.
\nThen Chloe whispered,
\n\u201cFaye\u2026\u201d
\nI looked at her.
\n\u201cWhat?\u201d
\nShe turned the phone toward me again.
\nThe photograph showed our father, David Morgan, standing beside three men.
\nVictor Hale.
\nEdric Kaine.
\nAnd another man.
\nA man neither of us had ever seen before.
\nExcept according to the note written on the back of the photograph, we had.
\nHe was supposedly our mother’s first husband.
\nThe man Brenda had always said died before we were born.
\nThe man whose name she had refused to speak.
\nAnd underneath the photograph, someone had written four words.
\nHE NEVER DIED.
\n<\/strong>I swallowed.
\n\u201cWho sent this?\u201d
\n\u201cI don’t know.\u201d
\n\u201cWhere did it come from?\u201d
\nChloe shook her head.
\n\u201cIt was sent from a blocked number.\u201d
\n\u201cCan you trace it?\u201d
\n\u201cI tried.\u201d
\n\u201cAnd?\u201d
\n\u201cNothing.\u201d
\nShe looked at me.
\n\u201cBut that’s not the worst part.\u201d
\nI already knew.
\n\u201cWhat is?\u201d<\/p>\n
\n