Their Forgotten Daughter

Chapter 5

Mom’s grip on Dad’s arm tightened, her nails sinking into his skin as if she already sensed the horror before the words were spoken.

"The deceased is your daughter, Evelyn."

Mom’s knees buckled, her voice trembling. "Evelyn? No... it can’t be her."

Dad held her upright, his own hands shaking, but his voice was firm. "We need to see for ourselves."

A detective stepped closer, lowering his voice. "Captain Carter, there’s an abandoned house near the crime scene. It’s been used by squatters—some with fake identities."

Dad’s jaw clenched. "Let’s go. The lab must have made a mistake."

In the car, Mom dialed my number over and over, her breath ragged.

Dad kept his eyes on the road, his tone steady but hollow. "She’s probably at the station, playing some prank with the lab techs."

But deep down, he knew. No one faked something like this.

As a ghost, I could still feel the phantom pain—the suffocating terror, the agony that had been my last moments.

The abandoned development was infamous, a haven for criminals who didn’t fear the law.

When they arrived, yellow tape already cordoned off the house.

The moment the door creaked open, the stench of death hit them.

Blood soaked the mattress, splattered across the walls, pooled on the floor.

Even now, I shuddered at the memory of what had been done to me.

The day I was taken, Isabella had called.

She claimed she’d twisted her ankle—that it might ruin her match tomorrow.

I didn’t trust her, but I didn’t want to upset our parents.

When I reached the alley she’d mentioned, something struck me from behind.

When the blindfold was ripped away, I saw Isabella—and a man with a cruel smirk.

I didn’t recognize him.

But Isabella’s words turned my blood to ice. "I brought her, just like you asked. Now let me go. I have to deal with Mom and Dad."

The man’s lips curled. "Keep quiet, or you’ll regret it."

As she turned to leave, she shot me a vicious smile. "Don’t worry, Evelyn. I’ve been waiting for this day."

Then she was gone.

The man studied my terror with amusement before his knife flashed.

I screamed as he gouged out my eyes, stuffing a rag into my mouth to muffle my cries.

"Don’t recognize me?" His voice was a whisper of venom. "Your parents got my brother executed. He only killed his cheating wife, but they made sure he paid with his life."

The blade traced my skin, and I trembled violently.

His next words shattered me. "I waited so long... and I almost got the wrong one."

"If your precious sister hadn’t told me you were adopted to protect you, I wouldn’t even know you existed."

He kept me alive for a full day, cutting, taunting, relishing my pain.

Blind and broken, I only knew the warmth of my own blood and the unending torment.

Then, the next day, his phone rang.

He chuckled. "It’s your dad. How touching."

Dad’s furious voice crackled through. "Evelyn! You dare skip Isabella’s match? Do you know how much this means to her?"

Mom’s voice cut in, sharp with disdain. "She’s always been selfish. Isabella lost focus because of her."

I tried to scream, but without a tongue, all that came out was a choked whimper.

Before the call ended, Dad’s final words struck like a blade. "If she’s going to act like she’s dead, maybe we should have left her where we found her."

At that moment, Mom staggered into the room where I’d died.

She collapsed to her knees, sobs wracking her body. Tears splashed onto the bloodstained floor.

I stared, bewildered.

Whenever Isabella so much as scraped her knee, Mom would weep. But this was the first time I’d ever seen her cry for me.

Dad’s hands, usually steady, shook as he pulled on gloves and picked up the journal on the table.

His breath hitched as he flipped it open.

Inside were photos of Isabella, notes on her routines—but it wasn’t her who had died.

Realization dawned on his face, horror twisting his features. His shoulders sagged, his proud posture crumbling.

His anguished cries mingled with Mom’s wails.

Mom, Dad... you always said you wished I’d never come home.

Now, as you wished, I never will.

So why aren’t you happy?