My fingers trembled so violently I could barely hold the scrap of paper under the bedside lamp. The glowing numbers of the clock read 3:14 AM, but time felt suspended. Sophie was still staring at me, her young eyes wide with a mixture of fear and desperate hope.
I smoothed the crumpled edges flat against my knee and forced myself to read the words written in Grant’s familiar, precise handwriting:
If you’re reading this, I didn’t make it back. Miles lied. It wasn’t the storm. He forced us off the road. Check the cabin floorboards under the master bed.
The room seemed to spin. Miles lied.
Officer Miles Carter—the man who had held me while I wept, the man who had brought groceries to our doorstep, the man who had slowly become my anchor over the past five years. The very same man who had been first on the scene, who had written the official report, and who had assured me it was all a tragic, unavoidable accident.
A cold sweat broke out across my skin. My mind raced back through the years, replaying every comforting word, every gentle touch, and every time Miles had subtly steered conversations away from the police investigation.
“Mom?” Sophie’s voice snapped me back to reality. “What does it say? What did Dad write?”
I quickly folded the paper and pressed it against my chest, pulling her into a tight, protective hug. I couldn’t let her see the full terror twisting my stomach.
“It’s… it’s just a note from your dad about the cabin, sweetheart,” I lied, my voice shaking despite my best efforts to keep it steady. “You did so well bringing this to me. But you need to go back to sleep now. Everything is going to be okay.”
She looked skeptical, but exhaustion finally won out, and she let me tuck her back into bed. As soon as her breathing slowed and she drifted off, I sat on the edge of my own bed in the dark, my heart hammering against my ribs.
If Grant’s note was true, Miles hadn’t just comforted a grieving widow—he had been hiding in plain sight, watching over us, making sure no one ever dug any deeper. And if Miles knew we were starting to uncover the truth, how long before he realized the secret in the teddy bear was gone?
I glanced at the window. The moon was high, casting long shadows across the yard. The old family cabin was two hours away, deep in the mountains, tucked away where cell service vanished and nobody went anymore.