CHAPTER 2: THE MAN WHO WAS SUPPOSED TO BE DEAD
The words stayed in my head long after Nathaniel Graves said them.
“Your mother was trying to protect you from me.”
I stared at him.
The man everyone feared.
The man who could buy buildings, companies, and entire neighborhoods.
The man who had just locked down his own tower because of me.
I wanted to believe he was wrong.
Because if he was right…
Then everything my mother had ever told me was a lie.
“My mother doesn’t protect me from bad people,” I whispered.
“She protects me from the world.”
Nathaniel’s expression changed.
For a second, the powerful businessman disappeared.
And I saw something else.
A man carrying twelve years of pain.
“You sound exactly like her.”
I frowned.
“Like who?”
He looked away.
“Your mother.”
The way he said those words made my chest tighten.
Not with fear.
With confusion.
A man like Nathaniel Graves didn’t say my mother’s name like she was a stranger.
He said it like she was the person who had broken his heart.
The security guards stood around us, waiting for instructions.
The receptionist looked terrified.
Nobody knew what was happening.
Neither did I.
“Mr. Graves,” one guard finally said, “should we call the police?”
Nathaniel turned sharply.
“No.”
The guard hesitated.
“But sir—”
“I said no.”
His voice was calm.
But everyone immediately obeyed.
That was when I realized something.
Nathaniel Graves wasn’t powerful because people respected him.
He was powerful because people were afraid of what happened when they didn’t listen.
He looked back at me.
“Ruby, I need you to come with me.”
I immediately shook my head.
“No.”
His eyebrows lifted.
“No?”
“My mom told me never to go anywhere with strangers.”
A strange emotion crossed his face.
Almost sadness.
“She was right.”
He looked down.
“She was always right.”
I held the wallet tighter.
“I only came here to return this.”
I placed it in his hand.
For a moment, he didn’t move.
He stared at the wallet like it was more than leather and money.
Like it was a piece of his past.
“Where was this found?”
“Under a bus bench.”
“Which one?”
“Aldridge Street.”
His fingers tightened.
“Exactly where?”
I told him.
The old bench near the closed bakery.
The cracked sidewalk.
The broken streetlight.
The spot where I found it.
Nathaniel listened carefully.
Then he whispered:
“She was there.”
I blinked.
“Who?”
“My daughter.”
The room went silent.
I looked around.
Nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
Then I looked back at him.
“Your daughter?”
Nathaniel nodded slowly.
“She disappeared twelve years ago.”
My heart started beating faster.
“But you said my mom’s name.”
His eyes met mine.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
He looked at the floor.
Because the answer hurt.
“Because Emily Carter was the last person who saw my daughter alive.”
I didn’t know what to say.
My mother?
The woman who packed my lunch every morning?
The woman who sang when she cooked?
The woman who cried quietly because she couldn’t afford rent?
She was connected to a missing girl?
“No,” I whispered.
Nathaniel looked at me.
“Ruby.”
“My mom would never hurt someone.”
“I didn’t say she did.”
“Then why are you looking at me like that?”
His face softened.
“Because I spent twelve years believing the wrong story.”
A cold feeling moved through me.
“What story?”
He took a breath.
“One night, my daughter vanished.”
He walked toward the massive windows overlooking the city.
“She was six years old.”
Outside, thousands of people moved through the streets.
Cars passed.
Buildings stood tall.
The city kept living.
But Nathaniel looked like he was still trapped in that night.
“She was supposed to meet me after school.”
He paused.
“She never came.”
I listened quietly.
“Police searched for months.”
His voice became colder.
“They found evidence.”
“What evidence?”
His jaw tightened.
“They found a message.”
“What did it say?”
Nathaniel looked at me.
“Emily Carter took my daughter.”
My eyes widened.
“No.”
“Yes.”
“But my mom would never…”
“I know.”
His answer surprised me.
“You believe her?”
He looked at me.
“I spent twelve years trying not to.”
A sound came from the entrance.
The doors opened.
A man in a dark suit walked quickly toward us.
“Mr. Graves.”
Nathaniel turned.
“What?”
The man looked at me.
Then lowered his voice.
“We found something.”
Nathaniel’s expression changed.
“What?”
The man handed him a small envelope.
My stomach tightened.
“What is it?”
Nathaniel didn’t answer.
He opened it slowly.
Inside was a photograph.
He looked at it.
And the color disappeared from his face.
I couldn’t see the picture clearly.
But I saw one thing.
A tiny corner of the photo.
A little girl.
Standing beside a woman.
Nathaniel’s hands started shaking.
“Impossible…”
The man beside him whispered:
“Sir, there’s more.”
Nathaniel looked up.
“What?”
The man swallowed.
“The person who left this envelope…”
He looked at me.
“Asked for Ruby Carter.”
My blood went cold.
“Me?”
Nathaniel stared at the envelope.
Then at me.
For the first time, he didn’t look powerful.
He looked terrified.
“Who left it?”
The man answered quietly.
“A woman.”
Nathaniel froze.
“What woman?”
The man took a breath.
“Emily Carter.”
I felt like the ground disappeared beneath me.
My mother.
Here?
After twelve years?
Nathaniel grabbed his coat.
“Take us there.”
I stepped forward.
“Where?”
He looked at me.
“Home.”
“No.”
“Ruby—”
“I need to talk to my mom first.”
Nathaniel stared at me.
Then he nodded.
“You’re right.”
He turned to his guards.
“Prepare the car.”
I didn’t understand why.
But I knew something.
Whatever secret my mother had hidden…
It was finally coming back.
And when we reached our apartment…
My entire world was about to fall apart.
The car stopped in front of our old building.
I jumped out before anyone could open the door.
“Mom!”
I ran upstairs.
“Mom!”
No answer.
My heart started racing.
The door was slightly open.
That wasn’t normal.
My mother always locked it.
Always.
I pushed it open.
“Mom?”
The apartment was silent.
Too silent.
The small kitchen table was empty.
Her coat was gone.
Her phone was lying on the counter.
And sitting in the middle of the table…
Was a single piece of paper.
With my name written on it.
Ruby.
My hands started shaking.
I opened it.
Only one sentence was written inside.
And the moment I read it…
I knew my mother hadn’t disappeared.
She had run.
Because she knew Nathaniel Graves was coming.
The note said:
“Ruby, if Nathaniel found you, you are no longer safe.”
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TO BE CONTINUED…
CHAPTER 3: THE SECRET HIDDEN UNDER THE FLOORBOARDS
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