Their Forgotten Daughter

Chapter 8

My parents rushed back to the police station, their faces etched with exhaustion and grief. The killer was still at large, and my father clenched his fists, his voice trembling with barely contained fury. "I swear, I'll hunt down that monster and make him pay for what he did to my little girl."

Just when the police were about to call off the search, my brother Daniel stumbled upon a lead. Maybe it was his reporter's instincts, but he had been sensing something—someone—lingering near our house. He pulled up the security footage and there it was: a milkman, lingering too long, watching too closely.

Killers always return to the scene of the crime. Nathan Black was no different. He wanted to see my parents' suffering up close, to feed off their pain like some twisted spectator. But his arrogance would be his undoing.

Nathan didn’t flinch when the cuffs snapped around his wrists. He smirked, tilting his head as my brother helped our parents inside. "Got a cigarette?" he drawled, rattling the chains like they were nothing.

My father slammed his palm against the table, his voice a roar. "You think this is a joke? You murdered my daughter!"

Nathan only grinned wider, his eyes locking onto my mother’s tear-streaked face. "Captain Carter, Dr. Carter—the perfect power couple. Did you ever imagine this would happen when you put my brother away?"

My mother’s scream was raw, guttural. "Your brother was a murderer! He deserved what he got! What did Evelyn ever do to you?"

Nathan leaned forward, relishing every word. "Her mistake was being your daughter. The last thing she heard from you was that she was faking her death. You shouldn’t have welcomed her back."

A sickening pause. Then, softer, crueler: "She probably died full of regrets. Too bad I can’t ask her—I carved out her eyes before she could tell me."

Daniel lunged, his fist connecting with Nathan’s jaw. Blood sprayed, but Nathan just laughed, wiping his mouth. "She was tough, just like you. I sliced up her face, hoping she’d scream, curse you—but nothing. She kept saying her parents were her heroes. Got annoying, so I cut out her tongue too."

"You’re not human!" my mother shrieked, her entire body shaking with rage.

Nathan’s laughter was a blade twisting deeper. My mother trembled, biting back sobs. "We failed her. We weren’t there when she needed us."

My father pulled her close, his voice breaking. "She died because of us."

As they turned to leave, broken and hollow, Nathan’s voice slithered after them like poison.

"Want to know why I let your other daughter live?"