Chapter 6: The Voice From the Past
Nobody spoke.
The old phone sat in Principal Harris’s hand like it was something dangerous.
Maybe it was.
Because hearing my mother’s voice wasn’t supposed to be possible.
Not after twenty years.
Not after everyone told me she was gone.
Not after I spent my entire childhood trying to remember someone I barely knew.
My knees felt weak.
I stepped closer.
“Let me hear her.””
Principal Harris looked at me.
His expression was full of conflict.
Like he wanted to give me the phone.
Like he was terrified of what would happen if he did.
“Daniel.””
The voice came again.
Older.
Softer.
But unmistakable.
“Is Malik there?””
My entire body froze.
She knew.
She knew I was there.
I reached for the receiver.
Principal Harris slowly handed it to me.
My fingers touched the cold plastic.
For a moment, I couldn’t speak.
Then:
“Hello?””
Nothing.
Only breathing.
A shaky breath.
Like the person on the other end was crying.
“Malik?””
My heart stopped.
Nobody had ever said my name like that.
Not with that kind of love.
Not with that kind of pain.
“Who is this?””
A pause.
Then:
“It’s me.””
I closed my eyes.
I wanted to believe it.
I wanted to reject it.
Both feelings existed at the same time.
“My mother is dead.””
The silence on the phone hurt.
“I know.””
Her voice cracked.
“I’m sorry.””
I looked at Principal Harris.
At Victoria.
At the empty hallway.
Everyone was watching me.
Everyone was waiting.
“How do I know you’re real?””
Another pause.
Then she whispered:
“When you were three years old, you hated thunderstorms.””
I stopped.
My grandmother had told me that.
Only my grandmother.
“You would hide under the kitchen table and hold my hand,” the voice continued.
My breathing became uneven.
“You had a little blue blanket with a torn corner because you refused to let anyone throw it away.””
I couldn’t speak.
That blanket was still in my closet.
I had it my whole life.
“I called you my little phoenix,” she said.
A tear slipped down my face before I could stop it.
Because nobody knew that.
Nobody.
“Mom?””
The word left my mouth before I realized I had said it.
The line went silent.
Then I heard her cry.
Not loudly.
Not dramatically.
Just a broken sound from someone who had waited too long.
“Oh, Malik.””
I gripped the phone.
“Where are you?””
“I can’t tell you.””
My chest tightened.
“Why?””
“Because if you know, they will know.””
“Who?””
The answer came immediately.
“Marcus.””
Victoria looked away.
Principal Harris closed his eyes.
I felt anger rise.
“You’re still running?””
“I’m protecting you.””
“That’s what everyone says.””
My voice became sharper.
“You protected me by leaving me?””
The silence that followed felt worse than anything else.
When she answered, her voice was barely there.
“I protected you by letting you hate me instead of letting them bury you.””
I didn’t understand.
“Who wanted me dead?””
No answer.
“Mom.””
A long breath.
“Your father knows part of the story.””
I looked at Adrian’s photograph still in my pocket.
“He told me.””
“He told you what he believes.””
The words bothered me.
“What does that mean?””
“It means Adrian was not the only person who made mistakes.””
I looked at Principal Harris.
Then Victoria.
Everyone had secrets.
Even her.
“What happened after the fire?””
The line went quiet.
Then my mother said:
“Your father and I discovered Marcus wasn’t working alone.””
The hallway seemed colder.
“Who was helping him?””
“I don’t know.””
“You don’t know?””
“No.””
Her voice became serious.
“But I know they had access to everything.””
“To the foundation?””
“To the police records. The financial records. The people who were supposed to protect us.””
I swallowed.
“Then why leave me?””
A long pause.
“Because someone inside our own circle tried to take you.””
The words hit me.
“What?””
“I had proof that someone wanted to use you to control Adrian.””
My grip tightened around the phone.
“What does that mean?””
“It means you weren’t just my son.””
I waited.
“You were the person who could expose everything.””
The phone went silent.
Not disconnected.
Silent.
“Mom?””
No response.
“Mom?””
Then a different sound.
A click.
Someone else had picked up another line.
A man’s voice came through.
Calm.
Cold.
“Hello, Malik.””
I froze.
I knew that voice.
Not personally.
But from the photograph.
Adrian.
No.
Not Adrian.
Marcus.
The man who had caused the fire.
The man Victoria’s brother.
“How did you get this number?””
He laughed softly.
“You still think phones are private.””
I looked at Principal Harris.
His face had gone pale.
“Where is my mother?””
Marcus ignored the question.
“I have to admit, Elena always underestimated how much you would resemble her.””
My stomach turned.
“Don’t talk about her.””
“Oh, I’ll do more than talk.””
His voice became colder.
“I’ll explain everything she refused to.””
Victoria stepped closer.
“Hang up.””
Marcus heard her.
“Victoria.””
She froze.
“You sound older.””
Her face changed.
The voice on the phone continued.
“I always wondered if guilt aged people.””
Victoria grabbed the receiver.
“Where are you?””
Marcus laughed.
“Still protecting the boy?””
“Where is Elena?””
A pause.
Then:
“You’re asking the wrong question.””
Victoria’s hand tightened.
“What question should I ask?””
Marcus replied:
“Why did Elena never tell Malik who his real enemy was?””
My eyes narrowed.
“What does that mean?””
Marcus ignored me.
“Your mother built the Phoenix Foundation because she believed people could change.””
His tone became bitter.
“But she forgot one thing.””
“What?””
“That some people only pretend to be good when they need something.””
The line went silent again.
Then Marcus said:
“Malik, your mother didn’t disappear because of the fire.””
I held my breath.
“She disappeared because after the fire, she discovered the truth.””
“What truth?””
His answer came slowly.
“She discovered Adrian wasn’t trying to save the foundation.””
My heart sank.
“He was trying to take control of it.””
I looked at the photograph in my hand.
The one of my mother standing beside Adrian.
“Liar.””
Marcus chuckled.
“You really are Elena’s son.””
“What does that mean?””
“It means you trust the people who hurt you.””
The line clicked.
He was gone.
Nobody spoke for a long time.
Finally, Victoria whispered:
“He’s manipulating you.””
I looked at her.
“Is he?””
She stopped.
That hesitation hurt.
“Victoria.””
She looked down.
“There are things Adrian never told you.””
I felt my anger rise again.
“Of course there are.””
I turned toward Principal Harris.
“And you?””
He looked at me.
“I made mistakes.””
“That’s not an answer.””
“No.””
His voice broke.
“It isn’t.””
He walked to the desk near the security room.
Then opened a drawer.
Inside was a small wooden box.
He carried it back.
“I kept this for twenty years.””
My heart raced.
“What is it?””
He opened the box.
Inside was another photograph.
But this one was different.
It showed my mother.
My father.
Principal Harris.
Victoria.
And another person.
Someone standing in the background.
Someone I didn’t recognize.
A woman.
Wearing a necklace.
A phoenix necklace.
I picked up the photo.
“Who is she?””
Principal Harris looked terrified.
“I don’t know.””
I turned it over.
There was writing on the back.
Not my mother’s handwriting.
Someone else’s.
*The fifth person knows why Elena ran.*
My eyes moved across the faces.
Five people.
Five secrets.
Five pieces of a story nobody wanted me to hear.
Then my phone buzzed.
A message.
From an unknown number.
I opened it.
It was a picture.
A live picture.
Someone had taken it seconds ago.
It showed us standing in the security room.
Me.
Principal Harris.
Victoria.
The caption underneath was only six words.
*Stop looking, or she dies.*
My blood ran cold.
I looked at the phone.
Then at the others.
“My mother…”
Victoria stepped closer.
“What?””
I showed her the screen.
Her face changed.
Because she recognized something in the picture.
Something I didn’t.
“The background.””
I looked again.
Behind the message was a blurry image.
A room.
A chair.
A person sitting in it.
Victoria whispered:
“That’s where Elena is.””
I looked at her.
“You know that place?””
She nodded slowly.
And when she spoke, her voice was filled with fear.
“Yes.””
A pause.
“Because that’s the building where the Phoenix Fire started.””
My phone buzzed again.
Another message.
This time, only one sentence.
*Come alone, Malik.*
May you like
Then another appeared.
*Or you’ll lose your mother twice.*
