Library

Home / My Detective Dad Didn't Believe I Was Kidnapped Until He Dug Up My Bones / Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

All Chapters of My Detective Dad Didn't Believe I Was Kidnapped Until He Dug Up My Bones: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

12 Chapters

Chapter 1

"Grace, you'd better actually be kidnapped." Dad's voice on the other end was ice cold.I was pinned down in the back of a van. A knife pressed against the side of my neck, and the slightest movement sent pain shuddering through me."Dad, I'm not lying to you." I fought to swallow back my sobs.The man slapped me across the face. He hissed through clenched teeth, "I told you to ask for money, not have a family reunion!"The phone fell onto the seat cushion, still on speaker.Dad's side was noisy. Someone was singing. "Happy birthday, dear Annie!"I heard the cake knife clink against the plate, heard Annie's sweet, coaxing voice. "Daddy, come make a wish!"Something tightened in my throat.Today was my birthday too.Annie and I were born on the same day. The only difference was she had a cake, candles, and a diamond necklace Dad had picked out for her himself.I had a knife at my throat."Grace." Dad finally spoke. "Are you done making a scene?"I shook my head desperately, but he could

Chapter 2

I didn't expect dying to happen so fast. And I didn't expect to still be able to see myself afterward.My body was stuffed into the cold storage room behind the factory. The power had been cut long ago. Water pooled on the floor, and rotting woven bags were piled in the corners.The man snapped my SIM card in half and tossed it into a gutter. The other one asked, "She's really dead?""What, leave her alive for her daddy to come get us?""Didn't her old man say he didn't care?""You actually believe a detective?"I hovered in midair, watching them pile cement bags against the iron door.Strangely, the pain was gone. There was only a cold so deep I couldn't even cry.They left eventually. I was alone in the factory.I wanted to go home. The moment the thought formed, the scene in front of me shifted.Dad was unwrapping presents with Annie. The living room lights were bright, and a three-tiered cake sat on the table.Annie wore a little crown, a smear of frosting still on her cheek.She s

Chapter 3

When Grandma arrived at the house, Annie was trying on a dress. White, with a billowing skirt. Like a princess.Dad sat on the couch, taking pictures of her. "Beautiful.""Really?""When has Daddy ever lied to you?"The doorbell rang for a long time. The housekeeper opened the door, and Grandma came in leaning on her cane, her face white as paper. "Where's Gracie?"Dad set down his phone. "Mom, what are you doing here?""I asked you where Gracie is.""I don't know." Grandma raised her hand and slapped him across the face, the sound so sharp the whole living room went silent.Annie shrank behind Dad. He didn't flinch. He only frowned. "Mom, please. Not in front of Annie.""Annie?" Grandma pointed at her. "She's a kid, but Gracie isn't?"Annie's tears fell in big drops. "Grandma, I know you don't like me, but Grace really did push me."She peeled back the bandage on her knee. A small scrape, a tiny patch of red. Grandma didn't even glance at it."All Gracie sent me last night was a singl

Chapter 4

On the seventh day after my death, Dad received a call from the kidnappers.They used a voice changer. "Detective Harper, if you want your daughter alive, bring us a hundred and fifty thousand dollars."Dad was in a meeting. On the projector screen were photos from another missing child case.He put it on speaker. The whole conference room heard.Someone immediately sat up straight. "Captain?"Dad raised his hand, signaling them to stay quiet. "Grace is with you?""Cut the crap. Tomorrow night, midnight. South Harbor pier.""I want to hear her voice."There was a pause on the other end. Then, quickly, my scream came through. "Dad, save me!"Just those words, recorded in the van that night.Something shifted in Dad's eyes. I hovered beside him, seized by a ridiculous surge of hope.Did he catch it? In my voice, there was wind, the sound of tires grinding over gravel, and the fading tail end of the kidnapper's cursing. All of it was evidence. He was the best detective there was. He shoul

Chapter 5

The night they went to South Harbor pier, Dad brought two officers. They waited until two in the morning and only caught a scrap collector who couldn't speak.Meanwhile, the men who had killed me were at the west-side factory, turning my backpack inside out. "This girl's dirt poor. Not even a dollar in her account.""Isn't her old man a police captain?""With that 'whatever' attitude of his? Even a stepfather would care more."They tossed my student ID into a rusted burn barrel, swearing under their breath. I watched my photo curl at the edges and burn black.In the photo, I was wearing my school uniform, grinning like an idiot.It was my freshman year school photo. I hadn't wanted to smile, but the photographer told me to look happier, so I did.Because that day, Dad had promised to pick me up after school.I waited until dark. Finally he called. "Annie has a fever. Come home on your own."That was the day I learned something. Don't wait. Some things never come.After Dad returned fro

Chapter 6

The lieutenant's name was Derek Shaw. I had met him before. When Dad used to bring me to the station to do my homework, Derek would sneak me candy.That was back when Annie had just come to live with us. She was scared of the station, so Dad never brought me again.Derek pulled the surveillance footage from the intersections on the west side. Three cameras were broken. The remaining one only caught half a van, its license plate smeared with mud.He stayed up all night, isolating the audio from the recording. "Captain, this isn't a prank."Dad stared at the computer screen, his face grim. "Who authorized this investigation? Has a case even been filed?""It can be filed right now."Dad closed the file. "Stand down."Derek stared at him. "Why?""It's not by the book.""The book?" Derek let out a hollow laugh. "Years ago, you stayed awake for three days and combed half a mountain for a trafficked child. You told me then that a life matters more than procedure."Dad's eye twitched. "Derek,

Chapter 7

Derek took a team to the slaughterhouse, but the rear cold-storage entrance was blocked by a collapsed wall.The police dog barked at the iron door. The young officer leading the team said, "Lieutenant, we can't get in this way."Derek kept his flashlight trained on the gap. "Smash it.""But there's no search warrant."Derek fell silent.I hovered behind the iron door, screaming with everything I had. "I'm right here!"Nobody heard me. The police dog clawed at the gap beneath the door, scraping its paws raw. Maybe it had heard me. Or smelled me.Derek was about to order his team to smash it when Dad called. "Derek, pull the team out."Derek's face changed. "Captain, she might be in there.""I said pull out.""Give me ten minutes.""You're overstepping your authority."Derek gritted his teeth. "What if Grace is in there?"Silence. Then Dad said, "You're chasing a hunch. She won't be."Derek laughed. "Is it that you don't believe it, or that you're too afraid to find out?"Dad's voice we

Chapter 8

Three months after I disappeared, the slaughterhouse was marked for demolition. When an excavator tore through the back wall, the cold-storage door collapsed halfway open. The workers smelled it first. Then they saw a hand beneath the cement bags.The call came in to the station. Dad wasn't supposed to be on scene, but Derek had been suspended and the squad was shorthanded. As he put on his uniform, Annie sat at the kitchen table. "Daddy, are you still coming with me to my follow-up today?"His fingers paused on a button. "There's a case."Annie lowered her head, biting her spoon. "Grace still hasn't come back. Do you blame me?"Dad glanced at her. "Don't overthink it."He reached the door and suddenly stopped. He didn't turn around. "That text message. It really wasn't you?"Annie's face went ashen. Dad didn't wait for her answer. He spoke to himself more than to her. "I hope it really wasn't."He didn't ask again. He walked straight out the door to the scene.I followed him. Police t

Chapter 9

My identity was confirmed quickly. Dental records, bone structure, the red cord, and an old comb Grandma had brought in, still carrying strands of my hair.When the results came back, Dad was standing outside the forensics lab. The report was handed to him. He glanced at it once, then doubled over and retched. Nothing came up but bile.Derek was called back to assist with the investigation. When he saw Dad, he didn't throw another punch. He only said, "Do you believe it now?"Dad braced himself against the wall. "Before she died... was she in pain?"The medical examiner took off his glasses. "There were signs of struggle."Dad closed his eyes. "What else?"The examiner said nothing. Dad opened his eyes and looked at him. "Tell me.""A sharp-force wound to the neck. Two fractured ribs. Binding marks on the wrists."The office was so quiet you could hear every breath. Dad asked, "Time of death?""The night she went missing."He swayed. Derek's voice was cold. "Shortly after you hung up."

Chapter 10

For the first time, Annie couldn't produce tears. She looked at Dad, gauging whether she could still win him over. "Daddy, you're scaring me."Dad stepped closer. "The night Grace disappeared, what did you say to her?"Annie's lips trembled. "I... I thought she was putting on an act.""What did you say?" Dad's voice was so low it was terrifying.Annie finally cried. "I was just so scared. I was scared she'd come back and you wouldn't want me anymore. I didn't want her to die."Dad looked at her as if seeing a stranger. "You sent that text?"Annie sank to the floor, clinging to his legs. "Daddy, I'm sorry.""That post too?""I just wanted everyone to know what she used to do to me.""Did she push you?"Annie didn't speak. Dad gripped her shoulders. "Answer me.""No." The word was barely a whisper.Dad let go. He stepped back. Annie crawled after him, crying. "Daddy, I really know I was wrong. Grace is already gone. You can't throw me away too."Dad laughed once. It was uglier than cryin

PREV

NEXT

SCAN CODE TO READ ON APP

DMCA.com Protection Status