Chapter 11 - The Shadow Returns
Five years passed in a blink.
Emma was fifteen now.
A teenager with bright eyes, a fierce independent streak, and a heart of gold.
We had settled into a comfortable, happy rhythm in our Dallas home.
Mark was a distant memory.
He had served his probation, moved out of state, and rarely sent even a birthday card.
Linda had vanished into obscurity, living quietly in a smaller house after liquidating her assets to pay her legal fees.
We thought the ghosts of the past were finally laid to rest.
But peace is a fragile thing.
It started on a Tuesday afternoon.
Emma came home from high school looking pale and distracted.
She dropped her backpack by the door and went straight to her room, claiming she had a headache.
I thought it was just teenage stress, maybe a difficult exam or a falling out with a friend.
But over the next few weeks, her behavior changed.
She became secretive, constantly checking her phone and locking her bedroom door.
The bright, talkative girl I knew was retreating into a shell.
One evening, while doing laundry, I found a burner phone hidden in the pocket of her jeans.
My heart pounded as I turned it on.
There were only a few messages, all from an unsaved number.
"I miss you." "Can we meet again?" "Don't tell Claire." The words sent a chill down my spine.
I recognized the manipulative tone, the demand for secrecy.
It couldn't be.
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But deep down, I knew.
Jessica was back.
