Chapter 5: The Woman in the Photograph
I must have stared at that photograph for a full minute.
Elena was alive.
Her hair was shorter than I remembered. Her face looked thinner. But it was unmistakably her.
She was standing outside a convenience store, wearing a dark coat and holding a newspaper.
The date printed on the photograph was three weeks earlier.
Three weeks.
While I had been working, paying bills, and pretending my daughter had a normal family, Elena had been somewhere nearby.
Alive.
I turned the photograph over again.
I'm alive. Don't trust Vanessa.
My hands started shaking.
“Daddy?””
Sofia watched me carefully.
“Where did you get this picture?””
“Mommy put it in my box.””
“When?””
She looked down.
“I don't remember exactly.””
I crouched beside her.
“Sweetheart, did you see Mommy after she disappeared?””
Sofia nodded.
My heart nearly stopped.
“When?””
“Sometimes.””
“Sometimes?””
She pointed toward the window.
“I saw her outside.””
I looked at the curtains.
“How many times?””
“Three.””
I felt dizzy.
“Why didn't you tell me?””
Sofia's eyes filled with tears.
“Vanessa said Mommy would get hurt if I told.””
I pulled her into my arms.
“Oh, sweetheart.””
“She said Mommy was hiding because she was a bad person.””
I closed my eyes.
For eleven months, my daughter had been carrying this fear alone.
Every time she asked about Elena, Vanessa had made her feel guilty.
Every time she tried to explain what she had seen, someone had told her she was imagining things.
I had been so determined to believe my wife that I hadn't noticed my own child was afraid of her.
I kissed Sofia's hair.
“You didn't do anything wrong.””
She started crying.
“I tried to tell you.””
“I know.””
“I really tried, Daddy.””
“I know, baby.””
A knock sounded behind us.
Rachel entered.
“Marcus, the detective wants to speak with you.””
I showed her the photograph.
Her hand flew to her mouth.
“Oh my God.””
“She was here three weeks ago.””
Rachel sat beside us.
“Then she's close.””
I nodded.
“And Sofia saw her.””
Rachel looked at my daughter.
“Sweetheart, do you remember where?””
Sofia pointed toward the backyard.
“By the big tree.””
I knew immediately which one she meant.
The old oak at the edge of the garden.
Elena used to sit beneath it with Sofia on warm evenings.
I looked through the bedroom window.
The tree stood motionless in the afternoon breeze.
“Did Mommy say anything?””
Sofia nodded.
“She told me to remember the stars.””
The drawing.
Look where the stars sleep.
I returned downstairs with the photograph.
Detective Harris was waiting in the living room.
When I showed him, his expression changed immediately.
“Where did you find this?””
“In my daughter's room.””
“Who placed it there?””
“Elena.””
He examined the date.
“Three weeks ago?””
“Yes.””
He turned the photograph over.
“Did your daughter see her mother?””
“She says she saw her outside the house three times.””
Harris immediately called another officer.
“We need to establish whether Elena Cole has been using any local services, public transportation, or nearby businesses. Start with the area around this address.””
Then he looked at me.
“Mr. Cole, I need to ask something. Has Elena ever mentioned being afraid of anyone besides your current wife?””
I thought about it.
Then I remembered a conversation from months before her disappearance.
Elena had been sitting at our kitchen table, sorting through bank statements.
She had looked up and asked me whether I trusted Vanessa.
I had laughed.
“Of course. She's been our friend for years.””
Elena hadn't laughed.
She had simply said, “Sometimes the people who know where you keep your spare keys are the people you should worry about most.””
At the time, I thought she was being dramatic.
Now I told Harris.
He wrote it down.
“Did she explain what she meant?””
“No.””
“Did you notice anything unusual before she disappeared?””
I hesitated.
“There was one thing.””
“What?””
“A phone call. About a week before she vanished, I came home early. Elena was in the garage, speaking to someone.””
“What did you hear?””
“She said, 'I won't give it to you. Not while Sofia is still in this house.''”
Harris looked up.
“Did you ask her about it?””
“Yes. She said it was a work problem.””
“Did you believe her?””
“I didn't think much about it.””
The detective closed his notebook.
“Mr. Cole, I think your wife may have been protecting something. And I suspect your daughter was caught in the middle.””
Before I could respond, his phone rang.
He listened.
Then he looked at me.
“Daniel Mercer has been located.””
“Where?””
“An apartment outside town.””
“Have you arrested him?””
“Not yet. Officers are approaching the property.””
I gripped the photograph.
“Is Elena there?””
“We don't know.””
Then his expression tightened.
“There's something else. Mercer's vehicle was seen outside your house yesterday.””
I looked toward the front window.
Yesterday.
I had been home all evening.
I'd watched television with Sofia.
I'd cooked dinner.
I'd tucked her into bed.
Someone had been outside watching us.
“Why didn't anyone tell me?””
“We just confirmed it.””
Rachel stood.
“Then Sofia cannot stay here.””
Harris nodded.
“We're arranging secure accommodation.””
But before anyone could move, my phone vibrated.
Unknown number.
I answered.
“Hello?””
For several seconds, there was only breathing.
Then a woman's voice whispered my name.
“Marcus?””
My knees nearly gave way.
“Elena?””
A quiet sob came through the speaker.
“Listen carefully. You need to get Sofia out of that house.””
“Where are you? Are you safe?””
“I don't have much time.””
“Where have you been? Why didn't you come home?””
“Marcus, please. Not now.””
I pressed the phone against my ear.
“I'm looking at your photograph. I know you're alive.””
“I know.””
“Then tell me where you are.””
A pause.
Then Elena said something that made my blood run cold.
“Vanessa wasn't working alone.””
I looked at Detective Harris.
He immediately signaled for me to keep her talking.
“Who was helping her?””
Elena took a shaky breath.
“Someone you see every day.””
My mind raced.
“Who?””
“I can't say it on the phone.””
“Why?””
“Because he's listening.””
I turned toward the window.
A dark car was parked across the street.
Its headlights were off.
“Elena, where are you?””
“Marcus, there's something you need to know about Sofia's birth.””
I frowned.
“What about it?””
“She wasn't supposed to be born at that hospital.””
I gripped the phone harder.
“What are you talking about?””
Then the call ended.
I stared at the screen.
A second later, a message appeared.
Ask your sister Rachel what happened the night Sofia was born.
I slowly turned around.
May you like
Rachel was standing behind me.
And she had gone completely pale.
