Chapter 6: The Voice That Wasn’t Mine
Nobody breathed.
The parrot sat completely still.
Its eyes moved between us.
Like it was waiting for someone to understand.
I looked at Daniel.
“You recorded my voice?””
Daniel shook his head.
“No.””
For the first time, he looked genuinely confused.
“I never met you before tonight.””
Officer Reed stepped closer.
“Then how did the bird copy her voice?””
Nobody answered.
The question hung in the room.
I looked at Laura.
“Did Daniel ever have access to police records?””
She hesitated.
“Yes.””
My stomach dropped.
“How?””
“He paid people.””
Daniel glared at her.
“Careful.””
Laura ignored him.
“He collected information on anyone who could threaten him.””
Reed looked at Daniel.
“Did you know Officer Carter before tonight?””
Daniel said nothing.
Silence became his answer.
I walked closer.
“You knew who I was.””
Daniel looked at me.
“I knew your name.””
“How?””
He looked away.
“I did research.””
“Why?””
Again, silence.
Then Megan spoke.
“Because of me.””
Everyone turned.
She looked at me.
“Daniel knew you.””
I stared.
“What?””
“He knew your father.””
The room changed.
My father.
A name I had not heard in years.
I swallowed.
“My father died when I was sixteen.””
Megan nodded slowly.
“I know.””
“How?””
She looked toward the bird.
“Because Daniel was there.””
I felt like the floor disappeared.
“What are you saying?””
Daniel suddenly shouted.
“Enough!””
The anger in his voice was different.
Desperate.
Reed moved toward him.
But Daniel continued.
“Your father was investigating the company.””
I stared at him.
“What company?””
“My company.””
The pieces started connecting.
My father had always told me he worked on something dangerous.
Then one day, he was gone.
An accident.
That was what everyone said.
Daniel looked at me.
“He got too close.””
My hands shook.
“What happened to him?””
Daniel didn’t answer.
But Laura did.
“He was murdered.””
The room went silent.
I couldn’t move.
“No.””
Laura looked at me sadly.
“I’m sorry.””
Daniel shook his head.
“She’s lying.””
But nobody believed him anymore.
I looked at the parrot.
The bird suddenly began repeating.
A voice.
My father’s voice.
A voice I had not heard since childhood.
“Meggie.””
My knees almost gave out.
That was the nickname only he used.
The parrot continued.
“Never trust a man who smiles when he lies.””
I covered my mouth.
“How…”
Daniel looked terrified.
Not because of us.
Because of the bird.
“What did you do?”” he whispered.
The parrot flapped its wings.
“I remember.””
Daniel stepped backward.
“No.””
The bird continued.
“Garage.””
Everyone froze.
“What’s in the garage?”” Reed asked.
Daniel didn’t answer.
Megan looked at him.
“You kept something there.””
Daniel’s face changed.
The confidence disappeared completely.
I walked toward the garage door.
“Open it.””
Nobody moved.
Then Daniel whispered:
“You don’t want to see what’s inside.””
Officer Reed unlocked the door.
The garage was dark.
Dust covered everything.
Old boxes lined the walls.
Then my flashlight landed on something in the corner.
A wooden box.
With a name carved into it.
My father’s name.
I walked closer.
My hands trembled as I opened it.
Inside was a photograph.
A newspaper clipping.
And a small audio recorder.
I pressed play.
Static.
Then my father’s voice.
“If you’re hearing this, it means Daniel found me before I could expose him.””
I looked at Daniel.
His face had gone completely white.
The recording continued.
“But there is one person I never suspected.””
A pause.
Then my father whispered:
“The person who helped Daniel hide everything…”
The audio cut out.
Everyone waited.
Then the recorder clicked back on.
A final sentence played.
A sentence that made Megan scream.
“My own daughter knew the truth.””
I dropped the recorder.
Because everyone looked at me.
Not Daniel.
Not Megan.
Me.
And I realized the biggest secret in that house…
May you like
wasn’t what Daniel had done.
It was what my father thought I had done.
