Chapter 8: The Person Who Knew Too Much
They left the gas station thirty minutes later.
Not because they had answers.
Because they had none.
Bear rode ahead.
Cole followed behind with Eli in the passenger seat of his truck.
The boy sat quietly.
Too quietly.
Cole glanced over.
“You okay?””
Eli nodded.
But he wasn’t.
Children didn’t sit like that unless they had learned to make themselves invisible.
Cole tightened his grip on the steering wheel.
“Eli.””
The boy looked over.
“You can ask me anything.””
A pause.
“Anything?””
“Yes.””
Eli looked down.
“Why does everyone know Nia?””
Cole didn’t answer immediately.
Because he didn’t know how to explain a person who was everywhere and nowhere.
“She helped people.””
“Like us?””
“Yes.””
Eli thought about that.
“Then why is everyone scared?””
Cole looked out at the road.
“Because sometimes helping people creates enemies.””
The boy was quiet again.
Then:
“Was she scared?””
Cole looked at him.
“What?””
“Nia.””
The question hit differently.
Because Cole had spent years imagining everything about her disappearance.
Anger.
Sadness.
Betrayal.
But he never imagined fear.
“I don’t know.””
Eli stared out the window.
“My mom said Nia was brave because she was scared all the time.””
Cole felt something tighten in his chest.
That sounded exactly like her.
They reached an old roadside building where Bear had stopped.
It was not abandoned.
But it looked forgotten.
Bear stood outside waiting.
Cole parked.
“What is this?””
“A place Marcus mentioned before he left.””
Cole frowned.
“Marcus never mentioned this.””
Bear looked at him.
“No.””
A pause.
“He mentioned it without saying the name.””
Cole didn’t like that answer.
Inside, the building contained old furniture, dusty shelves, and a small table.
Nothing dangerous.
Nothing obvious.
Until Bear opened a drawer.
Inside was a stack of photographs.
Cole picked them up.
The first picture made him stop.
Eli.
Younger.
Maybe five years old.
Standing beside a woman.
And beside them…
Nia.
Cole stared.
The air left his lungs.
“She knew him.””
Bear nodded.
“How?””
Cole flipped through more pictures.
Nia.
Eli.
Eli’s mother.
Different places.
Different years.
But always together.
“She lied to me.””
Bear looked at him.
“Maybe she was protecting you.””
Cole slammed the pictures down.
“By disappearing?””
His voice echoed through the room.
Bear didn’t respond.
Because there was no easy answer.
A noise came from outside.
Both men stopped.
Cole moved toward the window.
A vehicle had pulled up.
A black SUV.
Two people stepped out.
One of them was Marcus.
The other was someone Cole recognized.
Someone he never expected to see.
The woman from the ambulance.
Eli’s mother.
Standing.
Walking.
Alive.
Cole froze.
Bear looked at him.
“She wasn’t unconscious.””
Cole stared through the window.
The woman entered the building slowly.
Her eyes found Cole immediately.
“I knew you would come here.””
Cole stepped forward.
“You were never sick.””
Her face showed regret.
“I was.””
“Then why did you leave with them?””
She looked toward Eli.
“Because I had no choice.””
Eli stood behind Cole.
“Mom?””
The woman’s expression broke.
“Eli…”
The boy moved forward.
But Cole stopped him.
“Wait.””
The woman looked at him.
“You think I’m the enemy.””
Cole said nothing.
Because he didn’t know anymore.
She reached into her pocket.
Pulled out a phone.
Placed it on the table.
“The truth is on this.””
Bear looked at the device.
“What is it?””
The woman’s voice became quiet.
“It’s the last recording Nia ever made.””
Cole stared.
“Why would you have it?””
The woman looked at Eli.
“Because Nia gave it to me.””
A pause.
“And because she knew she might not survive.””
Cole stepped toward the phone.
His hand hovered above it.
Then stopped.
“What did she say?””
The woman looked directly at him.
“She said if you ever heard the recording…”
Her voice shook.
“…it meant I failed to keep Eli safe.””
Cole pressed the play button.
Static filled the room.
Then a voice.
A voice he had waited years to hear.
Nia.
“Dad…”
Cole closed his eyes.
The recording continued.
“If you’re listening to this, I need you to understand one thing.””
A pause.
Then Nia whispered:
“I never disappeared.””
Everyone froze.
The recording continued.
“I was taken.””
Cole opened his eyes.
And then Nia said the words that changed everything.
May you like
“The person who took me is someone you trust.””
The recording cut off.
