The message stayed on my screen for only a few seconds before my fingers went numb.

*Maya, if your father finds out what happened the night your mother died, everything will fall apart.*

I read it again.

Then again.

The words blurred.

My mother.

The night she died.

Something I had spent six years trying not to think about.

“Who sent that?”” Dad asked.

I quickly locked my phone.

“No one.””

The moment the words left my mouth, I regretted them.

Because my father knew me.

At least, he used to.

“Maya.””

His voice wasn’t angry.

It was hurt.

I looked down.

“I don’t know.””

Nicole watched me carefully.

And then I saw it.

A tiny smile.

She knew.

She knew exactly what that message meant.

“You should tell him,” Nicole said quietly.

My head snapped toward her.

“Tell him what?””

Dad looked between us.

“Nicole?””

She shrugged.

“Maybe it’s time Richard stopped pretending everything about that night was simple.””

My heart started pounding.

“Stop.””

Dad’s face changed.

“What happened that night?””

I looked away.

Six years earlier, my mother, Emily, had died in a car accident.

That was the story I had always been told.

A rainy road.

A lost control of the vehicle.

A phone call in the middle of the night.

A funeral where I was too young to understand why everyone looked at me with pity.

But there had always been one thing I remembered.

My father and I were supposed to pick my mom up that night.

But he never showed.

He told me he was stuck at work.

Nicole had repeated that story many times.

“Your father did everything he could,” she used to tell me.

But now I wondered.

Why was she bringing it up?

Dad stepped closer.

“Maya, what does she mean?””

I shook my head.

“I don’t know.””

Nicole laughed softly.

“You do.””

“I said I don’t!””

My voice echoed through the room.

Mrs. Parker looked uncomfortable.

Dad looked devastated.

Because he thought I was hiding something from him.

But I wasn’t.

I was terrified.

Nicole walked toward the coffee table.

“Richard, maybe you should see what I found.””

“You’ve found enough.””

“No.””

She reached into a drawer beside the table and pulled out a small envelope.

My chest tightened.

Because I recognized the handwriting.

My mother’s handwriting.

Dad froze.

“Where did you get that?””

Nicole held it up.

“Emily wrote this.””

The room went silent.

My father stared at the envelope.

“Where?””

“Among Maya’s things.””

I felt sick.

“My things?””

Nicole looked at me.

“You kept it hidden.””

“I’ve never seen that.””

Dad slowly took the envelope.

His hands were shaking.

He opened it carefully.

Inside was a folded piece of paper.

He read silently.

Then his face changed.

“What?””

He looked at me.

“Maya…”

I stepped forward.

“What does it say?””

Dad didn’t answer.

Nicole did.

“It says your mother was afraid.””

My breathing stopped.

“Afraid of what?””

Nicole looked directly at me.

“Your father.””

“No.””

The word came out before I could stop it.

Because that was impossible.

My father was many things.

Distant.

Confused.

Broken.

But not someone my mother would fear.

Dad looked furious.

“That’s a lie.””

“Is it?””

Nicole pointed at the letter.

“Read it.””

He did.

His eyes moved across the page.

Then he whispered:

“She wrote this three days before she died.””

I looked at him.

“And?””

He didn’t respond.

That scared me.

“Dad.””

He looked up.

“She said she needed to talk to me about something.””

Nicole leaned against the wall.

“Something she never got to tell you.””

I felt tears building.

“Why are you doing this?””

Nicole’s expression hardened.

“Because everyone thinks I’m the villain.””

“You are.””

Dad looked at me.

I didn’t care.

For the first time, I didn’t care who heard.

“She stole my phone. She ruined my relationship with you. She lied to Grandma. She tried to take my inheritance.””

My voice broke.

“And now she’s using Mom?””

Nicole’s face went cold.

“You don’t know the truth about your mother.””

“Neither do you.””

Dad suddenly slammed the letter onto the table.

“Enough.””

Everyone stopped.

He looked at Nicole.

“You knew about this?””

She didn’t answer.

“You had this letter?””

Silence.

That was enough.

Dad stepped back.

“How long?””

Nicole crossed her arms.

“Since before we got married.””

The room went completely still.

My father stared at her.

“You had my wife’s letter for years?””

“I was protecting you.””

“No.””

His voice dropped.

“You were hiding something.””

Nicole looked away.

Then my phone buzzed again.

Another message.

This time with an attachment.

A photo.

I opened it.

And my blood turned cold.

It was a picture of my mother’s handwriting.

But underneath it was a sentence I had never seen before.

*If anything happens to me, ask Richard about the night he left me alone.*

I looked at my father.

He looked at the screen.

And for the first time in my life…

My dad looked afraid.