Chapter 10: The Key Beneath Our Childhood Home
"Emily, don't you dare go anywhere alone.""
Michael's voice came through the phone so loudly that I pulled it away from my ear.
I stared at the message on my screen.
The number belonged to my mother.
But someone else was using her phone.
"Michael, listen to me. Is Mom still in her hospital room?""
"Yes. I'm sitting right beside her.""
"Does she have her phone?""
Michael checked.
A moment later, he answered.
"No. It's gone.""
My stomach tightened.
"Someone took it.""
Michael immediately stood up.
"I'm calling hospital security.""
I looked at Daniel.
He had been watching me silently.
"What's happening?"" he asked.
"Someone has Mom's phone. They're trying to lure me to the old house.""
Daniel shook his head.
"Then we're not going.""
I picked up my handbag.
"I'm going.""
"Emily, you just heard what happened to your mother.""
"And someone may have my brother.""
Daniel stepped closer.
"Then we go together.""
I hesitated.
After everything he had hidden, trusting him felt almost impossible.
But I couldn't ignore the possibility that Ethan was alive and waiting for help.
Michael arrived twenty minutes later.
He had contacted the police, and two officers agreed to follow us at a distance.
Before leaving, Michael handed me the small envelope my mother had kept at the hospital.
Inside was an old brass key.
A handwritten note was folded around it.
My sweet Emily,
Your father thought he had destroyed everything Ethan discovered. He was wrong.
The key opens the metal box beneath the old oak tree behind our childhood house.
If you find it, don't let anyone take it from you.
I should have told you sooner. Forgive me.
I read the note twice.
Then I looked at Michael.
"Why didn't Mom tell us this earlier?""
"Because she was afraid Dad would find out.""
We drove toward the outskirts of Charleston.
Our childhood home stood at the end of a quiet street lined with enormous oak trees. It had been sold after my father's supposed death, but I still remembered every detail.
The white porch.
The blue shutters.
The small garden where Ethan used to hide my birthday presents.
A family lived there now.
A young couple with two children.
Daniel knocked on the door.
A woman answered.
"Can I help you?""
"My name is Emily Mitchell. I used to live here.""
She smiled politely.
"Oh, the previous owners. We bought the house two years ago.""
"I know this is unusual, but I need to retrieve something from the backyard.""
Her smile disappeared.
"Something?""
I showed her the old family photograph.
"My brother buried a small metal box beneath the oak tree. It's important.""
She looked uncertain.
Then a man's voice came from inside.
"Let them in.""
Her husband appeared.
He was in his forties, wearing a gray sweatshirt.
He examined the photograph.
"I remember finding something strange when we renovated the garden.""
My heart began racing.
"What?""
"A metal object beneath the tree. I thought it was an old toolbox.""
"Where is it?""
He disappeared into the house.
A minute later, he returned carrying a rectangular metal box.
Its surface was covered in rust.
But on the lid was a familiar engraving.
E.M.
Ethan Mitchell.
I nearly cried.
Michael placed a hand on my shoulder.
The homeowner handed me the box.
"Whatever's inside, I hope you find what you're looking for.""
I inserted the brass key.
It turned.
Inside were three USB drives, a small notebook, several photographs, and a sealed envelope.
The first photograph showed my father standing beside a man I didn't recognize.
The second showed Daniel entering an office building.
The third showed Vanessa.
I stared at it.
She was standing beside my father outside a restaurant.
The date printed in the corner was eight months before Ethan's supposed death.
"Vanessa knew Dad long before she became my maid of honor," I whispered.
Daniel took the photograph.
His expression darkened.
"Emily, look at this.""
He pointed to the back.
There was a handwritten note.
The person closest to Emily is not who she thinks.
Michael examined the USB drives.
"Let's get these somewhere safe.""
Just then, a car engine started behind us.
I turned.
A black SUV was parked across the street.
The driver's window was tinted.
Daniel immediately moved in front of me.
"Get inside!""
The SUV accelerated.
Michael shouted for the police.
The vehicle sped toward the intersection and disappeared around the corner.
One of the officers followed.
The other approached us.
"Are you all right?""
I nodded.
But my hands were shaking.
We returned to the hotel under police escort.
Inside our new bridal suite, Michael connected one of the USB drives to his laptop.
A folder appeared.
It contained dozens of documents.
Bank statements.
Property records.
Emails.
And one video file.
The filename was simple.
*WATCH_BEFORE_YOUR_WEDDING.mp4*
I pressed play.
The screen showed Ethan sitting in a dimly lit room.
His face was thinner, and his hair was longer.
But he was alive.
My brother looked directly into the camera.
"Emily, if you're watching this, it means Dad's plan has finally started falling apart.""
He paused.
Then he said something that made Daniel stand abruptly.
"There's one person you must never trust.""
Ethan leaned closer.
"Daniel Carter.""
The video ended.
Nobody spoke.
I slowly turned toward my fiancé.
May you like
And Daniel whispered:
"Emily, there's something about that recording you don't know.""
