Why Did My Daughter Do That?

I'd always thought that once Hannah finished the college entrance exam, our whole family would finally be able to relax.

Until then, preparing for the test had practically become a family project.

Hannah's only job was to study and do her best.

The rest of us handled everything else.

I worked to support the family.

My mother-in-law, Margaret, got up at five every morning to make Hannah a healthy, filling breakfast.

My husband, Ethan Clove, drove her to school every single day, rain or shine.

Even our son, who was still in elementary school, had been repeatedly warned not to bother his sister while she was studying.

We'd spent twelve years doing everything we could to give her the best possible future.

All of us were holding out for the same thing.

Once the college entrance exam was over, we could finally let go of all that pressure, take a family trip, and enjoy ourselves.

But I never could've imagined that on the very night the test ended, my sweet, sensible daughter would suddenly become a completely different person.

And murder our entire family in the most brutal way possible.

“You were all too good to me. That's why you had to die!”

Those words seemed carved into my bones.

Even after being reborn, I could still hear them over and over in my head.

I couldn't understand it.

How had the daughter I'd raised to be kind and well-behaved turned into a murderer overnight?

So that very afternoon, I ordered a tiny hidden camera with same-day installation.

While no one else was home, I had the installer conceal it in an inconspicuous corner of Hannah's bedroom.

Before dinner, I told Ethan and my mother-in-law everything.

The second I finished, my mother-in-law frowned in disapproval.

“Hannah's almost eighteen. She's at an age where privacy matters more than anything. If she finds out you put a camera in her room, she's going to be furious.”

Ethan immediately agreed.

“Exactly. And her college entrance exam is only a week away. This is the worst possible time to upset her. What if she finds the camera, gets distracted, and it affects her score?”

I dug my nails into my palm and told them exactly what had happened in my previous life.

But my mother-in-law didn't believe a word of it.

“I raised Hannah myself. I know that girl better than anyone. She can't even bring herself to step on an ant. How could she possibly stab me to death?”

She looked at me with concern.

“Claire, haven't you just been under too much stress lately? Maybe you had a nightmare and it felt real.”

Then she turned to Ethan.

“Go give your wife a shoulder rub and help her relax. Hannah still has seven days until the college entrance exam. We've all got to hang in there a little longer.”

Ethan obediently came over and started massaging my shoulders.

I cut him off, growing desperate.

“I'm telling you, it really happened...”

Before I could finish, the sound of a key turning in the front door made me freeze.

Hannah was home from school.

She was dressed simply, and exhaustion from senior year was written all over her face.

But when she saw Ethan massaging my shoulders, she immediately came over with the same sweet, thoughtful expression I'd always known.

“Mom, are you not feeling well?”

She reached for my shoulders.

“Let me help too.”