Lily sat on the cold floor, holding her little wooden box.
Daniel tried to remain calm.
“Sweetheart, tell me what happened to your mommy.”
The little girl lowered her head.
“She was tired. She told me to wait for you.”
“How long have you been waiting?”
Lily thought for a moment.
“Since the lights went out.”
Daniel looked around the house. The electricity had been disconnected long ago, yet a faint golden light glowed beneath the bedroom door.
He opened it.
Inside stood an old mirror surrounded by photographs of Emily.
Daniel recognized every picture except one.
In it, Emily was holding Lily’s hand while standing beside a tall man whose face had been scratched away.
At the bottom, Emily had written a message:
“If Daniel ever finds our daughter, tell him the truth.”
Daniel turned to Lily.
“What truth, sweetheart?”
She pointed toward the mirror.
“Mommy said you would remember when you saw him.”
Daniel stared at the photograph again.
The man’s face was missing, but something about his clothes felt familiar.
Then he heard footsteps behind him.
A cold hand touched his shoulder.
He turned.
Emily stood in the doorway, looking exactly as she had the last time he saw her.
“Daniel,” she whispered. “You shouldn’t have brought our daughter here.”
Her eyes filled with tears.
“Because now he knows you’re alive.”
