Chapter 6: The Woman Who Came Back
I couldn’t move.
The figure standing at the basement door remained hidden in the darkness.
But I knew that voice.
I knew it before my mind accepted it.
“Finnley…”
My fingers loosened around the recorder.
“No.””
The word escaped my mouth.
The person stepped forward.
The light touched her face.
And my entire world changed.
“Mom?””
She looked older.
Of course she did.
Fifteen years had passed.
Her hair was darker in some places and gray in others. Her face carried the weight of years I had never seen.
But her eyes were the same.
The same eyes I remembered from childhood.
The same eyes that used to watch over me when I was sick.
My knees almost gave out.
“You’re dead.””
She swallowed.
“I know.””
“You’re dead.””
I repeated it because my brain couldn’t understand anything else.
She walked closer.
“I wanted to come back.””
I stepped away.
“Then why didn’t you?””
Her face broke.
“Because they told me you would die if I did.””
The room became silent.
“Who?””
She looked upstairs.
“Reagan.””
My chest tightened.
“No.””
“Yes.””
I shook my head.
“No. My father said you died.””
“He believed that.””
The pain in her voice was real.
“Because I needed him to.””
I stared at her.
“What happened?””
She took a deep breath.
“Your father discovered Reagan and Victor were stealing from the company.””
I looked at the files.
“The theft.””
She nodded.
“They needed someone to blame.””
“And they chose me.””
“They chose you because Camden loved you.””
My eyes burned.
“That doesn’t make sense.””
“It does.””
She stepped closer.
“Your father would fight for you. He would investigate. He would never stop searching.””
She looked at the recorder.
“So they removed the biggest obstacle.””
“My father.””
She nodded.
The word felt impossible.
“My father was killed.””
“Yes.””
I closed my eyes.
Three years.
Three years I spent hating myself.
Thinking I had failed him.
Thinking he died believing I was guilty.
But he knew.
He knew the truth.
“Why didn’t you tell me?””
My mother looked down.
“Because I was trapped.””
“Where?””
“Somewhere Reagan controlled.””
I looked at her.
“How did you escape?””
Before she could answer, a loud crash came from upstairs.
We both froze.
My mother’s face changed.
Fear.
“They found us.””
The basement door slammed shut.
A lock turned.
Someone had locked us inside.
Then Reagan’s voice came from the other side.
“Finnley.””
My blood turned cold.
“You should have listened when I told you to leave.””
I looked at my mother.
She whispered:
“There’s another way out.””
“Where?””
She pointed toward the hidden room.
“Your father built it.””
Another crash came from the door.
Reagan continued.
“You spent three years trying to prove you were innocent.””
A pause.
“Now you’re going to spend the rest of your life trying to prove you’re alive.””
The lock began to break.
My mother grabbed my hand.
“Finnley, whatever happens…”
She looked directly into my eyes.
“Do not let them find your father’s final message.””
I looked at the recorder.
Then at the hidden passage.
The door shook violently.
May you like
And from inside the darkness behind the wall…
I heard something move.
