The photograph was dated twenty-three years earlier.
But there was something even more disturbing.
On the back, written in black ink, were six words:
ONE OF THEM IS STILL ALIVE.
Victoria looked at Ethan.
"Now, Officer Cole, tell me something."
He stared at her.
"Yes?"
"Have you ever wondered why your father died?"
Ethan felt the world shift beneath his feet.
His father had been a police officer.
He had died in a car accident when Ethan was only five years old.
At least, that was what his mother had always told him.
Victoria leaned closer.
"Because your father wasn't killed in an accident."
She lowered her voice.
"He was the first man who discovered what happened here."
Suddenly, every light in the station went out.
Someone screamed.
A gunshot echoed through the darkness.
And when the emergency lights finally flickered on, Victoria Morgan was gone.
So was the photograph.
But on Ethan's desk lay a small envelope.
His name was written across it.
And underneath it were four words:
YOUR FATHER IS ALIVE.
The emergency lights continued flashing across the police station.
Red.
Black.
Red.
Black.
Officers rushed through the corridors, shouting orders while searching for the missing woman. Someone had activated the emergency lockdown, sealing every exit in the building.
But Victoria Morgan was nowhere to be found.
Ethan stood beside his desk, staring at the envelope.
His hands were trembling.
YOUR FATHER IS ALIVE.
He read the words again, hoping they would somehow change.
They didn't.
"Officer Cole!"
He turned.
Sergeant Daniel Reeves was standing near the entrance to the interrogation rooms. His face looked pale, and his right hand was pressed against his chest.
"Come with me. Now."
Ethan didn't move.
"Who was that woman?"
"Forget about her."
"She knew my father."
Reeves looked away.
"Your father has been dead for twenty-three years."
"Then why did she say he's alive?"
"Because she's manipulating you."
Ethan tightened his grip on the envelope.
"You're lying."
For a moment, neither man spoke.
Then Reeves stepped closer.
"Listen to me, son. Whatever she told you, whatever she showed you, you need to forget it. Some things are better left buried."
Ethan looked directly into his eyes.
"Did you know my father?"
Reeves said nothing.
That silence was enough.
Before Ethan could ask another question, the station's internal communication system suddenly came alive.
"Attention, all personnel. This is Captain Miller. All officers are required to report to the main briefing room immediately."
Reeves looked toward the ceiling speaker.
"Stay here," he ordered.
But Ethan was already moving.
He waited until Reeves disappeared around the corner, then quickly opened the envelope.
Inside was a photograph.
It showed a middle-aged man standing outside a small house. He had dark hair, a narrow face, and a scar running from his left eyebrow toward his cheek.
Ethan recognized him immediately.
It was his father.
But the photograph had been taken only six months earlier.
His heart began beating faster.
There was also a folded piece of paper.
He opened it.
Ethan,
If you're reading this, then Victoria has finally reached you.
I know you have questions. I know you probably hate me for disappearing.
But there is something you must understand.
Your mother didn't tell you the truth.
She knew I was alive.
Ethan stopped breathing for a moment.
His mother?
He read the next sentence.
And the man you call Sergeant Reeves is not the person you think he is.
Suddenly, footsteps approached.
Ethan quickly folded the paper and slipped it into his pocket.
A young officer appeared at the end of the corridor.
"Hey, Cole. Captain wants everyone in the briefing room."
"Did you see Sergeant Reeves?"
"Yeah. He went downstairs."
"Downstairs?"
The officer nodded.
"Basement archives, I think."
Ethan frowned.
The basement archives had been closed for years. According to department records, the old evidence storage area had been condemned after a fire.
"What would he be doing down there?"
The officer shrugged.
"Not my problem."
He walked away.
Ethan waited until the corridor was empty.
Then he headed toward the basement.
The stairwell smelled of dust and damp concrete. The lights flickered overhead as he descended.
At the bottom, he found a metal door.
It was slightly open.
From inside, he heard voices.
"She's back," Reeves whispered.
Another man replied.
"That's impossible. We were told she was dead."
"Well, she's standing right in front of us now."
Ethan slowly approached the door.
Then he heard something that made his stomach tighten.
"What about the boy?" the second man asked.
Reeves sighed.
"He's beginning to ask questions."
"And?"
"If he discovers what happened to his father, everything we've built will collapse."
There was a pause.
Then the second man spoke again.
"Then we need to deal with him before she gets to him."
Ethan stepped backward.
His shoe hit a loose metal object.
CLANG!
The voices stopped.
"Who's there?"
Ethan turned and ran.
He reached the stairs just as the basement door swung open behind him.
"COLE!"
He didn't stop.
He rushed through the corridor, pushed open the main exit, and ran into the rain.
His phone vibrated.
An unknown number.
He answered.
"Hello?"
A woman's voice spoke.
"Ethan, don't go home."
He froze.
"Victoria?"
"Listen carefully. They know you've seen the photograph."
"Where are you?"
"That doesn't matter."
"Who was with Reeves?"
Silence.
Then she answered.
"Someone who should have been arrested twenty-three years ago."
Ethan looked behind him.
A black SUV had just pulled up outside the police station.
Two men stepped out.
One of them was holding a photograph.
Ethan's photograph.
Victoria spoke again.
"Get away from there. And whatever happens, don't trust your mother."
The call ended.
Ethan stared at his phone.
Then he noticed something strange.
The number that had called him belonged to his father's old phone.
The same number his mother had disconnected twenty-three years ago.
He slowly looked toward the black SUV.
The passenger door opened.
A familiar face appeared behind the glass.
It was Captain Miller.
And he was pointing directly at Ethan.
"Run," Ethan whispered to himself.
But before he could move, someone grabbed his arm from behind.