Nowhere Is Safe

Tricia gripped the strap of her bag tightly as she stepped out of the motel and into the cold night air. The letters were tucked safely inside, along with Maya's journal. She finally had a lead.

The oak tree. That's where Maya had hidden the truth.

She pulled her hood over her head and kept her head down as she walked. The motel was on the outskirts of town, a good distance from where she needed to go. Taking a taxi was too risky. If they were tracking her, she couldn't make it easy for them.

Her eyes darted around. Every streetlight felt like a spotlight. Every shadow felt like it was watching.

She knew now, someone wanted her gone.

And she wasn't sure how much time she had left.

The Feeling of Being Watched

She stuck to the backstreets, walking fast, resisting the urge to check over her shoulder. Don't look paranoid. Don't let them know you're afraid.

But then she felt it.

That prickling sensation on the back of her neck.

She wasn't alone.

Her heart pounded as she crossed the street, pretending not to notice. But in the reflection of a darkened store window, she caught a glimpse of a man following her. Dark hoodie. Hands in his pockets. Face obscured.

It was him.

The same man who had attacked her in the alley.

Tricia forced herself to stay calm. Think, think.

If she ran now, she'd make herself a target. If she stopped, he'd know she had spotted him. She had to be smart.

She turned the next corner and ducked into an abandoned construction site. If she could lose him here, she'd have a chance of getting to the oak tree unnoticed.

She pressed herself against the cold concrete wall, listening. Footsteps approached, slow and deliberate.

Then they stopped.

Silence.

Tricia held her breath.

A voice, low, menacing, cut through the quiet.

"You can't run forever, Tricia."

Her blood ran cold.

Who was he? How did he know her name?

She turned and sprinted through the site, weaving between stacks of wood and metal beams. Behind her, the footsteps followed, closer, faster.

She reached the fence, grabbed onto the metal bars, and climbed.

The second she dropped to the other side, she bolted into the night.

She needed to get to that tree.

Because now, there was no doubt, someone was hunting her.

And if she didn't find the truth first, they would make sure she never found it at all.

A Friend or a Foe

Tricia ran. Her lungs burned, her legs ached, but she didn't stop. She couldn't stop.

The oak tree was still miles away, hidden in the old neighborhood park where she and Maya had spent their childhood. But after what had just happened, she knew she couldn't go there yet. Not until she was sure she wasn't being followed.

She ducked into a small gas station, pushing through the glass door. The fluorescent lights made her squint as she moved to the back of the store, pretending to browse the shelves. Her heartbeat was still wild in her chest.

She needed a plan. She needed help.

Daniel.

Her fingers hovered over her phone. Could she trust him?

Maya's letter said Daniel had been part of the secret. That he had been talking to her parents, keeping her in the dark. But Daniel had also warned her to run. He had seemed genuinely afraid for her.

What if he was her only chance?

Her hands shook as she typed out a message.

MEET ME. ALONE. I NEED ANSWERS.

She sent it before she could second-guess herself.

Within minutes, her phone vibrated.

DANIEL: Where?

Tricia hesitated. Then she texted the address of a small diner a few blocks away. Somewhere public, where he couldn't try anything.

And then she waited.

The Meeting

The diner was nearly empty when she walked in. She chose a booth in the back, away from the windows.

Fifteen minutes later, Daniel walked through the door. He looked… tense. His eyes scanned the room before he spotted her.

"Tricia," he said, sliding into the booth across from her. "Are you okay?"

She didn't answer. She placed Maya's letter on the table between them. "Read it."

Daniel's face paled as his eyes moved over the words.

"You've always trusted your family. But Tricia, they aren't who they say they are. Neither is Daniel."

He exhaled sharply and placed the letter down. "Tricia, listen,"

"No." Her voice was steady, but inside, she was unraveling. "You knew. You knew my past was a lie, and you kept it from me."

Daniel's jaw tightened. "It wasn't my secret to tell."

She laughed bitterly. "But it was okay to lie to me? To watch me search for answers while knowing the truth?"

His fingers tapped anxiously against the table. "I was trying to protect you."

"Protect me?" She leaned forward. "Maya is dead, Daniel. Someone attacked me tonight. And you're telling me you kept quiet to protect me?"

Guilt flickered across his face. "I didn't think it would go this far."

Tricia's stomach churned. "Then tell me the truth now. Who's after me?"

Daniel hesitated. And that was the moment she knew.

He wasn't on her side.

Her breath caught as a realization slammed into her. He had led her attacker here. To an empty diner. Where she was vulnerable.

She glanced at the entrance just as the door opened again.

A man walked in.

The same man who had attacked her in the alley.

Tricia's blood ran cold.

She turned back to Daniel, her voice barely a whisper. "You set me up."

Daniel didn't deny it.

Instead, he whispered, "I told you to stop digging, Tricia. I begged you."

Her heart pounded. She slid her hand under the table, gripping the knife from the diner's cutlery set.

She wasn't going down without a fight.