Chapter 12 - The Woman Without a FaceWe searched the entire house.
Every room.
Every hallway.
Every camera.
Nothing.
No woman.
No stranger.
No sign of anyone entering.
Marcus called security.
The footage was clean.
Too clean.
Every camera had recorded normally.
Except one.
The hallway outside Eleanor's room.
That camera had been offline for exactly nine minutes.
Marcus stared at the timestamp.
"Who disabled it?"
His security director shook his head.
"We don't know."
"Find out."
"Yes, sir."
Lily stood beside me.
She was unusually quiet.
Then she whispered:
"Mommy."
"Yes?"
"She's here."
My heart stopped.
"Where?"
Lily pointed toward the library.
Marcus heard her.
He immediately moved.
The library door was open.
Nobody was inside.
But a chair was pulled away from the desk.
On the desk sat a cup of tea.
Still warm.
Marcus touched it.
"Someone was here."
He looked at Lily.
"When did you see her?"
"Yesterday."
"Where?"
"Grandma's room."
"What did she look like?"
Lily frowned.
"Like Grandma."
Eleanor entered behind us.
She stopped.
"What did you say?"
Lily looked at her.
"The lady looked like you."
Eleanor's face went pale.
Marcus noticed.
"Mom?"
She didn't answer.
"Mom."
Eleanor finally whispered:
"Her name was Evelyn."
Marcus stared.
"Who is Evelyn?"
"My sister."
Silence.
I had never heard Eleanor mention a sister.
Marcus hadn't either.
"You had a sister?"
"Yes."
"Where is she?"
Eleanor looked toward the photograph.
"Dead."
Marcus stared at her.
"How?"
"Car accident."
"When?"
"Twenty-eight years ago."
Lily shook her head.
"No."
Everyone looked at her.
She pointed toward the library door.
"She's not dead."
Eleanor sat down.
Her hands were trembling.
Marcus knelt beside her.
"Mom, what aren't you telling me?"
Eleanor looked at him.
Then at me.
Then at Lily.
"I thought she would never come back."
Marcus's voice hardened.
"Why would she come back now?"
Eleanor whispered:
"Because Richard is gone."
Marcus froze.
"What does my father have to do with her?"
May you like
Eleanor closed her eyes.
"Everything."
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