Chapter 6: The Call From the Police Station

As soon as my mother answered the phone, she launched into a tirade. "You little brat, can you stop goading your grandmother into getting mad at me?"

The voice on the other end was somber. "Hello, is this Whitney Patterson's family?"

Hearing a man's voice made my mother frown. "What's going on? Why do you have Whitney's phone?"

"We found Whitney's ID and her phone in a rental apartment. Can you please come to the police station to verify some information?"

My mother's furrowed brow relaxed slightly, as if she had finally found an explanation for my silence.

"What kind of information?" she asked impatiently.

"We'd prefer to discuss it in person. Please bring a recent photograph of Whitney and any identification documents you have."

My mother's expression darkened. "Is this really necessary? She's an adult. If she wanted to disappear for a while, that's her choice."

"Ma'am, we found her belongings abandoned, and the apartment has been vacant for nearly two months. Given the circumstances, we need to confirm her identity and establish when she was last seen."

The word "abandoned" finally made my father look up.

"What did you say?" he asked.

My mother put the call on speaker.

The officer repeated everything calmly.

My father frowned. "Maybe she moved somewhere else. She has always been stubborn. Could she have simply left her things behind?"

"That's possible," the officer replied. "But we also have a report concerning an unidentified body discovered in Wild Valley two months ago."

The room fell silent.

Even Flynn stopped watching the television.

My mother's fingers tightened around the phone.

"A body?" she whispered.

"Yes. The remains were badly decomposed, so identification has been difficult. We recently found information connecting the case to your daughter's rental address."

My mother's face turned pale.

For the first time since my death, I saw genuine fear flash across her eyes.

"Are you saying... that body could be Whitney?"

"We don't know yet. That's why we need your cooperation."

My father immediately stood up and grabbed his coat.

"We'll come," he said firmly.

Flynn swallowed hard. "Dad, there's no way it could be her, right?"

My father didn't answer.

Scarlett sat frozen on the couch, her face drained of color.

I drifted closer to her.

For the first time, she didn't look smug or confident.

She looked terrified.

My mother suddenly remembered the last time she had seen me.

Her hand had struck my cheek.

Her voice had been full of rage.

Get out of my sight. If you don't know how to behave, then stay in those woods and think about what you've done.

I remembered every word.

I remembered begging her to believe me.

I remembered calling her phone after I had been separated from everyone in the forest.

Three times.

She had rejected every call.

My mother pressed her lips together, as if trying to push the memory away.

"It's probably not her," she said quickly. "Whitney is stubborn. She probably found somewhere else to stay."

My father nodded, but his expression remained tense.

They left for the police station together.

I followed silently.

At the station, an officer placed my identification card and phone on the desk.

My mother's eyes locked onto the familiar items.

She reached for my phone but stopped before touching it.

"Where did you find these?"

"Inside the rental apartment your daughter had been living in."

The officer opened a file.

"The landlord said she hadn't paid rent for the past two months. He also said she left several personal belongings behind."

My mother stared at the photographs of the room.

Then the officer placed another photograph on the table.

It showed the entrance to Wild Valley.

"Your family visited this area two months ago, correct?"

My father's expression changed.

"Yes."

"And Whitney was with you?"

No one answered immediately.

Finally, my mother said, "Yes. But she left before us."

The officer studied her carefully.

"Are you certain?"

My mother nodded.

"Of course."

I almost laughed.

She was still lying.

But this time, her lie wouldn't protect her.

The officer closed the file.

"We need all of you to provide DNA samples. The remains recovered from Wild Valley may belong to your daughter."

My mother's face went completely white.

And for the first time, she finally seemed to understand that I might never be coming home.