Chapter 5: The Person Behind the Messages
Marcus moved before anyone could react.
He walked straight to the front door and checked the lock.
Still locked.
Then he checked the windows.
Closed.
Every corner of the room suddenly felt different.
The same living room where Nia had come home smiling now felt like a place filled with hidden eyes.
“Everyone stay here,” Marcus said.
Vanessa immediately shook her head.
“Stay here? Someone was inside this house.””
“I know.””
“Then why are you acting like this is normal?””
Marcus turned.
“Because panicking is exactly what whoever sent that message wants.””
Nobody answered.
Nia stood frozen, staring at the watch.
The screen had gone dark again.
But the message remained in her mind.
*You should have listened to your mother.*
She looked at Danielle.
“Does Rachel know about the watch?””
Danielle hesitated.
That hesitation was enough.
Nia’s heart sank.
“She does, doesn’t she?””
Danielle looked away.
“I don’t know.””
“You do.””
Danielle closed her eyes.
“Nia…”
“No.””
Her voice shook.
“You keep saying you’re protecting me, but every time I ask a question, you look scared.””
Danielle looked at her daughter.
“I’m scared because I know what Rachel is capable of.””
“But I don’t.””
The words were quiet.
And somehow, that made them hurt more.
“I don’t know why everyone is afraid,” Nia continued.
“I don’t know why my own watch is getting messages from someone who knows things they shouldn’t know.””
Marcus walked back into the room.
He had checked the hallway.
Nothing.
“Nia.””
She looked at him.
“I need you to trust us.””
Her expression changed.
“I want to.””
Marcus stopped.
That sentence hurt him.
Because he heard what she didn’t say.
I want to trust you.
I just don’t know if I can.
Danielle sat beside Nia.
“I owe you the truth.””
Nia looked at her.
“Then tell me.””
Danielle nodded.
“Rachel doesn’t just know about the watch.””
She paused.
“She knows about you.””
Nia frowned.
“What does that mean?””
“It means she has been following my life.””
Marcus’s face tightened.
“For how long?””
Danielle looked down.
“Years.””
The answer shocked everyone.
Vanessa stepped back.
“Years?””
Danielle nodded.
“I started noticing little things. Messages from unknown numbers. Someone leaving things near my apartment. People asking questions about me.””
“Why didn’t you report it?”” Marcus asked.
“Because I didn’t have proof.””
“You had enough reason.””
Danielle looked at him.
“I was afraid that if I made a mistake, Rachel would disappear again.””
“And?””
“And she would come back when I least expected it.””
Nia looked between them.
“Why does she care so much?””
Nobody answered.
Then Danielle said:
“Because Rachel believes I ruined her life.””
Marcus frowned.
“How?””
Danielle laughed quietly.
Not because it was funny.
Because it was painful.
“Rachel always believed she deserved more than me.””
Nia listened carefully.
“She thought I had everything. A family. A child. A person who loved me.””
Danielle looked at Marcus.
“And she hated that.””
Marcus’s jaw tightened.
“She was jealous?””
“Not just jealous.””
Danielle’s voice dropped.
“She wanted to prove that everything I had could be taken away.””
The room went silent.
Nia felt a chill.
“Me?””
Danielle looked at her.
“Yes.””
The answer hurt.
Because it was honest.
Nia looked down.
“She wants to hurt me?””
Danielle immediately reached for her hand.
“No.””
Her voice was firm.
“She wants to hurt me by hurting you.””
Nia pulled her hand back slightly.
The movement was small.
But Danielle noticed.
And it broke something in her expression.
“I’m sorry.””
Nia looked away.
“I don’t know what I’m supposed to feel.””
“You don’t have to forgive me today.””
That surprised Nia.
Danielle continued.
“I know I missed years. I know I wasn’t there.””
Her eyes filled.
“But I need you to know one thing.””
Nia looked at her.
“I never stopped loving you.””
For a moment, nobody spoke.
Then Vanessa’s phone rang.
Everyone turned.
Vanessa looked at the screen.
Her face changed.
Marcus noticed.
“Who is it?””
She didn’t answer.
“Vanessa.””
Slowly, she held up the phone.
The caller ID was hidden.
Marcus frowned.
“Don’t answer.””
But Vanessa already had.
“Hello?””
No one spoke.
Then a voice came through.
A woman’s voice.
Calm.
Almost friendly.
Vanessa’s face drained of color.
“Who is this?””
Danielle stepped closer.
She already knew.
Rachel.
“Put it on speaker,” Marcus said.
Vanessa hesitated.
Then she did.
A soft laugh came from the phone.
“Still making everyone stand together, Danielle?””
Danielle froze.
“Rachel.””
Nia felt her stomach drop.
The woman she had never met.
The woman who had been watching them.
She was finally speaking.
“You always did that,” Rachel continued.
“You gathered people around you and made them believe you were the victim.””
Danielle’s voice became cold.
“You sent that picture.””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
“Because I wanted them to know you were back.””
Marcus stepped forward.
“You’re talking to me now.””
A pause.
Then Rachel laughed.
“Marcus.””
The way she said his name made Nia uncomfortable.
“You sound exactly the same.””
Marcus’s expression hardened.
“You stay away from my family.””
Rachel replied immediately.
“Your family?””
A pause.
“Interesting choice of words.””
Nia looked at Marcus.
He looked angry.
But also confused.
Rachel continued.
“Do you know what Danielle never told you?””
Danielle stepped forward.
“Don’t.””
“What?””
Rachel sounded amused.
“The truth?””
Marcus looked at Danielle.
“What is she talking about?””
Danielle didn’t answer.
That scared Nia more than anything.
Rachel spoke again.
“Ask her where she was the night she left.””
Marcus’s face changed.
“What?””
Danielle whispered:
“Rachel.””
But the call continued.
“Ask her why she really disappeared.””
Marcus stared at Danielle.
“I thought you said you left because of Rachel.””
“I did.””
“Then what is she talking about?””
Danielle looked devastated.
“I was going to tell you.””
“When?””
Her eyes filled.
“Today.””
The silence was painful.
Rachel laughed softly.
“Always too late.””
Then the call ended.
Nobody moved.
Nia watched Marcus.
The trust between him and Danielle seemed to be breaking apart in real time.
“What happened that night?”” Nia asked.
Nobody answered.
“Nobody leaves until someone tells me.””
Marcus looked at her.
“Nia.””
“No.””
Her voice shook.
“I’m tired of being the person everyone protects by lying.””
Danielle looked at Marcus.
Then slowly reached into her bag.
She pulled out an old photograph.
A photograph worn around the edges.
She placed it on the table.
“This is what happened that night.””
Marcus looked down.
Then his face changed.
Because the photograph showed Danielle.
Marcus.
A baby Nia.
And someone else standing beside them.
Someone Nia had never seen.
A woman with the same eyes as Danielle.
Rachel.
But that wasn’t what shocked Marcus.
It was the date written on the back.
The date was three years before Danielle disappeared.
Marcus turned the photo over.
And read the message written beneath it.
His hands started shaking.
Because the handwriting was Danielle’s.
May you like
And the words said:
*If anything happens to me, it was not an accident.*
