LOGINThe Girl at My Desk By Monday morning, I had almost convinced myself that everything was normal. Almost. I stood outside Raphael's office building with a paper cup of coffee warming my palm, staring at the glass doors. Work. A desk. Emails. Deadlines. Things that belonged to ordinary people with ordinary problems. I wanted that. After everything I'd learned about my family, I needed something that didn't involve photographs, buried memories, secret conversations, or people who had spent years deciding what I was allowed to know. I pushed through the doors. The familiar hum of the office greeted me. Phones ringing. Keyboards clicking. People moving between desks with files tucked beneath their arms. Nobody looked like they'd spent the weekend uncovering pieces of a life that had been hidden from them. I almost smiled. Then I remembered Raphael's words. My past just found me. The smile disappeared. I hadn't seen him since yesterday. He had refused to explain the p
The Night I ForgotThe house was too quiet.Not peaceful.Quiet in the way a room became quiet after someone said something that could not be taken back.I sat across from my mother at the kitchen table, staring at the photograph between us.The same photograph I had carried from one house to another.My father.My mother.Me.And the man standing behind us.For years, I had looked at that picture and wondered why I couldn't remember him.Tonight, my mother had finally admitted she knew."Tell me what happened," I said.She lowered her eyes."Nicole....""No."My voice came out sharper than I expected.I pushed the photograph toward her."Not another half-truth. Not another warning that I'm better off not knowing. I've spent my entire life feeling like there's a door inside my own head that everyone else has the key to."Her fingers curled around the edge of the photograph."I'm sorry.""Then tell me."She looked at me for a long moment.Then she whispered,"You were seventeen."Somet
The Questions I Couldn't KeepNicole's POVThe drive to my mother's house felt longer than it should have.Maybe because every mile carried another question.Maybe because I wasn't sure I wanted the answers anymore.Rain tapped softly against the windshield.Streetlights blurred into gold smears across the glass.Raphael drove.I sat beside him.Neither of us spoke.The silence wasn't comfortable.It wasn't awkward either.It was heavy.The kind of silence that sat between people who knew too much and said too little.My phone rested in my lap.The message from the unknown number still glowed in my memory.You should have left the past buried, Nicole.Now they know you're looking.I stared out the window."You knew."Raphael's hands tightened slightly on the steering wheel."Knew what?""That my mother was involved."A muscle jumped in his jaw."I knew she had answers."I laughed softly."That's not the same thing.""No."His voice was quiet."It isn't."The rain grew heavier.For sev
The Photograph She HidNicole's POVThe message stayed on my screen.Now they know you're looking.I read it again.Then again.My fingers had gone cold."Nicole."Raphael's voice came from behind me.I didn't answer.He stepped closer."Show me."I turned the phone toward him.His eyes moved over the message.His expression changed immediately."Who sent this?""I don't know.""When did you get it?""Just now."He took my phone from my hand and examined the number."Have you received anything from this number before?""Yes."His jaw tightened."How many times?""Twice.""Why didn't you tell me?"I pulled the phone from his hand."Because I didn't know you'd do anything except tell me to stay somewhere safe.""That's exactly what I'm going to tell you now.""I'm not going anywhere.""Nicole....""No."I turned toward Clara.She was still standing beside the cabinet.Her eyes were fixed on me.She looked frightened.Or at least, she looked like she was."Someone broke into your house,"
Someone UpstairsNicole's POVClara's fingers tightened around mine."Don't move."I stared at her.The footsteps came again.Slow.Measured.Someone was walking across the floor above us.My heart slammed against my ribs.Raphael appeared at the bottom of the stairs.His eyes moved from Clara to me.Then toward the ceiling.He didn't ask what happened.He already knew."Stay behind me."I almost laughed."That's getting old."His eyes flicked toward mine."This isn't the time."Another footstep sounded above us.Closer to the staircase.Clara's hand slipped from mine."There's no one supposed to be here."Raphael's expression hardened."Apparently someone didn't get that message."He reached beneath his jacket.The sight of his hand disappearing inside it made my stomach tighten.I followed him up the first step.He turned."Nicole.""I'm coming.""Stay downstairs.""No."His jaw tightened.I stepped around him."You don't get to decide what I see anymore."His eyes held mine for a
The Woman Who Knew Nicole's POV "My mother?" The word barely left my mouth. Raphael didn't answer. He stood across from me, his face unreadable, while Joy stared at the floor as though the answer had been carved into it. I waited. Nothing. My chest tightened. "You said the last person who opened that box disappeared." Raphael's jaw shifted. "Yes." "My mother is alive." "I know." The answer came quietly. Too quietly. I stepped closer. "Then don't say things like that." "I wasn't talking about your mother." I stopped. "Then who?" Raphael looked at Joy. She shook her head. "Not tonight." I laughed once. It came out empty. "Of course." I bent down and picked up the note from the floor. My father's handwriting stared back at me. If Nicole ever finds the key, don't let her open the box alone. I folded the paper. My fingers wouldn't stop shaking. "I want to go home." Raphael's expression hardened. "No." I looked at him. "That wasn't a question." "Someone
Nicole pov I stared at the floor unable to look at him.I should really learn to control y tongue if I don't wanna lose my job.I waited for him to speak,but he didn't..the silence was making me more uneasy.I slowly glanced up and our eyes met.He was staring at me ,but I couldn't read his facial
Nicole pov I'm still in a state of panic and intense anxiety.Why!Why am I so out of luck?!I still can't believe he's going to be my new boss.I thought about what transpired between us earlier today.I thought about what I said to him.Ahhh…. I'm finished!Why did I say the things I said to him
Nicole pov I didn't look back nor did I stop running…If he was behind me…I know I'm definitely no match for him …but ..still,I kept running.When I dared to look back,I realized that he wasn't running after me.That makes me look stupid to myself.I slowed down and started to walk briskly out of
Nicole pov “This thing called love ,I'm never gonna involve myself again” I said to myself as I drank the last vodka I was holding.I shouldn't be drinking.I know I shouldn't be drinking.What went wrong? What could have changed?I don't even have head for alcohol,but I just want to try and forge







