But familiar.
A voice I had spent fifteen years imagining.
“Emma.”
My entire body went still.
Julian looked at me.
The color disappeared from his face.
Because he recognized the voice too.
The woman continued.
“I know you have questions.”
My hand moved toward the door.
My heart was pounding.
“Who are you?” I whispered.
A pause.
Then:
“I’m the woman who your father spent fifteen years trying to make you forget.”
My fingers touched the handle.
But before I opened it, Julian grabbed my arm gently.
Not controlling.
Not demanding.
Warning.
“Emma.”
I looked at him.
“What?”
His voice was barely a whisper.
“Don’t open that door until you know what you’re ready to hear.”
I looked between him and the door.
The past.
The present.
The secrets that connected all of us.
Then the woman outside spoke again.
And this time, her words changed everything.
