Chapter 12: The Voice From The Past
Daniel couldn’t move.
The phone trembled in his hand.
Nobody spoke.
Nobody even breathed.
Because the impossible had happened.
Nora Brooks was alive.
And she had just warned them about Natalie.
Lucas stared at the phone.
“Mommy?””
A soft sound came through the speaker.
“Lucas?””
The boy’s eyes filled instantly.
“Mommy?””
Natalie watched him.
Her heart broke.
For three years, he had waited for this moment.
A moment she never wanted to take from him.
But the next words destroyed everything.
“Lucas, listen to me.””
Nora’s voice shook.
“Do not trust anyone.””
Daniel grabbed the phone.
“Where are you?””
A pause.
Then:
“Daniel.””
The way she said his name carried years of pain.
“Why didn’t you tell me?””
Daniel closed his eyes.
“Tell you what?””
“The truth.””
The room went silent.
Natalie felt everyone looking at her.
Nora continued.
“Is Natalie there?””
Nobody answered.
Then the phone crackled.
“I know she is.””
Daniel looked at Natalie.
“Nora…”
“Keep Lucas away from her.””
Lucas immediately grabbed Natalie’s hand tighter.
“No.””
Everyone looked down.
The little boy shook his head.
“She saved me.””
Silence.
Even Nora stopped speaking.
Natalie looked at Lucas.
The child who once attacked her because he was afraid she would leave.
Now he was defending her.
Daniel looked at the phone.
“She protected him.””
Nora’s voice became desperate.
“You don’t understand.””
“Then explain.””
A long pause.
Then Nora whispered:
“She wasn’t supposed to remember.””
Natalie froze.
“What?””
Daniel looked at her.
Nora continued.
“The memories were dangerous.””
Natalie stepped closer.
“Why?””
No answer.
“Nora!””
Finally, the voice returned.
“Because Natalie wasn’t only protecting Lucas.””
The room became still.
“She was protecting the truth about his birth.””
The stranger smiled.
Claire looked terrified.
Daniel asked:
“What truth?””
Nora’s voice became quieter.
“The truth that Lucas was never the reason they came after us.””
Everyone waited.
“Then what was?””
A pause.
Then:
“Natalie.””
Natalie felt cold.
Nora continued.
“They weren’t hunting my son.””
“They were hunting her.””
Daniel looked at Natalie.
“Why?””
Another pause.
Then Nora said:
“Because Natalie was the only person who knew who ordered the attack.””
Natalie’s face went pale.
The memory.
The hospital.
The man.
The warning.
Everything returned.
But one piece was missing.
A name.
She covered her mouth.
“I saw him.””
Daniel turned.
“Who?””
Natalie looked at the stranger.
Then at Claire.
Then slowly toward the phone.
“I saw who gave the order.””
Everyone froze.
Nora whispered:
“Say it.””
Natalie closed her eyes.
The memory came back completely.
A voice.
A face.
A command.
And the person who destroyed their family.
Natalie opened her eyes.
“It was…”
Before she could finish, the basement door slammed shut.
The lights went dark.
A gunshot echoed above them.
Lucas screamed.
Daniel grabbed him.
May you like
And from the darkness, someone whispered:
“You should have forgotten forever, Natalie.””
