Maya couldn’t breathe.

She stood in the middle of the dark room, staring at the photograph in her trembling hands.

The photograph was old.

The edges were burned.

The colors had faded into shades of gray.

But one thing was perfectly clear.

Her name.

MAYA STERLING.

Written in black ink on the back.

Twenty-two years ago.

The same night Nadia disappeared.

Maya slowly looked at Adrian.

“Tell me this is fake.”

Adrian didn’t answer.

“Tell me.”

His silence was worse than any answer.

Maya stepped closer.

“Why is my name on a photograph from twenty-two years ago?”

Adrian’s eyes remained fixed on the picture.

“I don’t know.”

Maya laughed nervously.

“You don’t know?”

“No.”

“You’re a detective.”

“That doesn’t mean I know everything.”

“You knew about Nadia.”

“Yes.”

“You knew about the five people.”

“Yes.”

“You knew you were connected to them.”

“Yes.”

“And now you’re telling me you don’t know why my name is in this photograph?”

Adrian looked at her.

“I didn’t know your name was there.”

Maya’s anger disappeared.

“Then whose handwriting is this?”

Adrian took the photograph from her.

He examined it.

His expression changed.

“What?”

Maya noticed.

“What is it?”

Adrian turned the photograph over.

He stared at the writing.

“Adrian?”

His voice was barely a whisper.

“I’ve seen this handwriting before.”

“Where?”

Adrian looked at Maya.

“On Nadia’s diary.”

A cold silence filled the room.

Maya’s heart began pounding.

“You said Nadia disappeared twenty-two years ago.”

“She did.”

“Then how could she have written my name?”

Adrian shook his head.

“I don’t know.”

Maya took a step backward.

“Stop saying that.”

“Maya—”

“No.”

She pointed toward the door.

“I want to leave.”

“We can’t.”

“Why?”

Adrian looked at the shattered window.

“Because whoever shot at us is still out there.”

“Then call the police.”

“I am the police.”

“Call someone else!”

Adrian didn’t answer.

Maya stared at him.

“You’re hiding something.”

“I told you everything.”

“No.”

She held up the photograph.

“You told me enough to make me trust you.”

Adrian’s jaw tightened.

“And now?”

“Now I don’t know what to believe.”

Before Adrian could respond…

A loud sound came from downstairs.

Something heavy had fallen.

Both of them froze.

Adrian reached for his gun.

Maya whispered:

“Was that Mrs. Hart?”

Adrian shook his head.

“She’s dead.”

“Then what was that?”

Another sound.

A slow dragging noise.

Like something heavy being pulled across the floor.

Adrian raised his gun.

“Stay behind me.”

Maya almost laughed.

“That’s becoming your favorite sentence.”

“Tonight, I mean it.”

They slowly walked toward the stairs.

The hallway was dark.

The only light came from the moon outside.

Maya’s eyes adjusted.

Then she saw it.

A trail of blood.

It began at the bottom of the stairs.

And continued toward the front door.

Adrian crouched.

He touched the blood.

“Still warm.”

Maya’s stomach turned.

“Someone is alive.”

Adrian stood.

“Maybe.”

They followed the trail.

The front door was open.

Rain had begun again.

The blood trail disappeared into the darkness.

Maya looked outside.

“Where did it go?”

Adrian stepped into the rain.

“Maya, stay inside.”

She followed.

“I’ve had enough of staying behind.”

Adrian turned.

“You don’t understand.”

“No.”

Maya pointed toward the street.

“You don’t understand.”

A figure stood beneath the streetlight.

A man.

He was wearing a dark coat.

His back was toward them.

Adrian raised his gun.

“Police!”

The man didn’t move.

Adrian took another step.

“Turn around!”

The man slowly turned.

Maya’s heart stopped.

It was Edward Vale.

The dead man.

The first victim.

Maya screamed.

Adrian froze.

Edward’s face was covered in blood.

His eyes were open.

But they were completely black.

He smiled.

Then his body collapsed.

Maya ran forward.

Adrian grabbed her.

“Don’t!”

“But he’s alive!”

“No.”

Adrian pointed his gun at the body.

“He’s not.”

Maya stared.

“Then what did I just see?”

Adrian didn’t answer.

They approached the body carefully.

The rain washed away the blood.

But when Maya looked down…

There was no body.

Nothing.

Only a black rose lying in the middle of the road.

Maya slowly picked it up.

Adrian shouted:

“Don’t touch it!”

Too late.

The moment her fingers touched the rose…

Maya saw something.

A house.

Fire.

A little girl crying.

A woman screaming.

A man holding a knife.

Then…

A girl in a white dress.

Nadia.

She was standing in front of a burning house.

Someone was behind her.

A man.

Maya couldn’t see his face.

Nadia turned toward him.

She was crying.

“Please…”

The man grabbed her.

Maya tried to scream.

But no sound came out.

The vision changed.

Nadia was lying on the floor.

Blood covered her white dress.

Five people stood around her.

Edward Vale.

Marcus Hale.

William Crane.

Thomas Reed.

And Adrian.

Maya’s heart broke.

Adrian was there.

Nadia looked at him.

“Please help me.”

Young Adrian stood frozen.

He looked terrified.

Then…

Someone else entered the room.

A sixth person.

Maya couldn’t see his face.

But Nadia looked at him.

Her eyes filled with fear.

“Not you.”

The man smiled.

Then the vision disappeared.

Maya collapsed.

Adrian caught her.

“Maya!”

She opened her eyes.

She was lying in the rain.

Adrian was holding her.

His face was terrified.

“What happened?”

Maya stared at him.

“You were there.”

Adrian went silent.

“That night.”

“Maya…”

“You were there when Nadia died.”

He looked away.

“You saw her.”

“Yes.”

“You watched her die.”

Adrian closed his eyes.

“Yes.”

Maya pushed him away.

“Why didn’t you save her?”

“I tried.”

“No.”

“You didn’t.”

“Maya—”

“You stood there.”

“I was seventeen!”

“She was nineteen!”

“I was a child!”

“You were old enough to help her!”

Adrian’s voice broke.

“I couldn’t!”

The words echoed through the empty street.

Silence.

Maya stared at him.

Adrian looked down.

“I couldn’t save her.”

“Why?”

“Because I was afraid.”

“Of who?”

Adrian looked toward the darkness.

“The sixth man.”

Maya remembered the vision.

“Who was he?”

“I don’t know.”

“You’re lying.”

“I swear.”

“Then why does Nadia think you know?”

Adrian looked at her.

“Because I do.”

Maya froze.

Adrian slowly stood.

“I know who he was.”

“Who?”

Adrian’s voice became quiet.

“My father.”

---

The police station was empty.

Every officer had been sent to investigate the shooting at the inn.

Maya sat across from Adrian.

Neither had spoken for several minutes.

Finally Maya asked:

“Your father was involved?”

Adrian nodded.

“His name was Richard Cross.”

“Was he one of the five?”

“No.”

“Then who was he?”

Adrian looked at the old files on the desk.

“He was the man behind them.”

Maya stared.

“What?”

“Edward Vale was rich.”

“Marcus Hale was a doctor.”

“William Crane was a judge.”

“Thomas Reed was the police chief.”

“They all had power.”

“But my father controlled them.”

“Why?”

“Money.”

“Power.”

“Fear.”

Maya looked at the files.

“What did they do to Nadia?”

Adrian didn’t answer.

Maya’s voice became colder.

“Tell me.”

“They thought she knew something.”

“What?”

Adrian looked at her.

“The truth about a murder.”

Maya’s heart stopped.

“Whose murder?”

“My mother’s.”

Silence.

Maya stared.

“Your mother?”

“Her name was Elena Cross.”

“What happened to her?”

“My father said she died in a car accident.”

“But?”

Adrian looked at Maya.

“I found out later that she didn’t.”

“She was murdered.”

“By my father?”

“I don’t know.”

“Then why did you say he was behind it?”

“Because he confessed.”

Maya leaned forward.

“To you?”

Adrian nodded.

“Before he died.”

“What did he say?”

Adrian looked away.

“He said Elena discovered what the five men were doing.”

“What were they doing?”

“Blackmail.”

“Extortion.”

“Illegal experiments.”

Maya’s expression changed.

“Experiments?”

Adrian nodded.

“On people.”

Maya felt sick.

“Why?”

“My father believed fear could be controlled.”

“What does that mean?”

“He studied trauma.”

“Memories.”

“Death.”

“He believed that people could be manipulated if you knew their greatest fear.”

Maya remembered the woman in the white dress.

Nadia.

“Was Nadia one of his experiments?”

Adrian’s silence answered.

Maya stood.

“She was.”

“Yes.”

Maya walked away.

“Then the murders…”

“Are revenge.”

“Yes.”

“By Nadia?”

Adrian looked at her.

“I don’t know.”

Maya turned.

“What do you mean?”

Adrian stood.

“Because Nadia isn’t the only person who wants revenge.”

The lights flickered.

Maya froze.

A sound came from the hallway.

A woman’s voice.

“Adrian…”

Adrian reached for his gun.

Maya whispered:

“Nadia?”

The voice came again.

“Adrian…”

Then…

“Come to me.”

Adrian slowly walked toward the hallway.

Maya grabbed his arm.

“Don’t.”

He looked at her.

“Why?”

“Because Mrs. Hart said not to answer.”

Adrian stared.

“What?”

Maya remembered.

If you hear someone calling your name…

Don’t answer.

Because she isn’t calling you.

She’s calling whoever is standing behind you.

Maya slowly looked behind Adrian.

Nothing.

Then the lights went out.

A scream echoed through the station.

Adrian grabbed Maya.

They both ran toward the sound.

The emergency lights turned on.

A police officer was lying on the floor.

Dead.

Blood covered his uniform.

Maya stopped.

Adrian checked his pulse.

Nothing.

On his chest…

A black rose.

Maya whispered:

“Another one.”

Adrian stood.

Then Maya noticed something.

The dead officer’s hand was clenched.

She carefully opened it.

Inside was a small piece of paper.

Three words.

SHE REMEMBERS EVERYTHING.

Maya’s heart began pounding.

“Who?”

Adrian looked at her.

“I don’t know.”

Maya shook her head.

“No.”

She looked at the dead officer.

Then at the black rose.

“She’s not killing randomly.”

Adrian stared.

“What?”

Maya pointed toward the rose.

“Every victim was connected to Nadia.”

“Edward Vale.”

“Dr. Hale.”

“Judge Crane.”

“Chief Reed.”

“And now this officer.”

Adrian frowned.

“His name was Officer Daniel Moore.”

“Was he involved?”

“Not that I know.”

Maya looked at the paper.

“Then why was he killed?”

Adrian didn’t answer.

Maya slowly turned.

“Maybe he knew something.”

“About Nadia?”

“Or about the sixth man.”

Adrian’s eyes darkened.

Before he could respond…

A phone rang.

Both of them froze.

The sound came from the dead officer’s pocket.

Adrian slowly removed the phone.

The screen showed:

UNKNOWN CALLER.

He answered.

“Hello?”

Silence.

Then…

A woman’s voice.

“Adrian.”

He froze.

Maya watched his face.

The voice continued:

“You promised me.”

Adrian’s breathing stopped.

“Who is this?”

A soft laugh.

“You really don’t remember?”

Adrian looked at Maya.

The voice whispered:

“She does.”

Then the call ended.

Maya stared at him.

“Who was that?”

Adrian didn’t answer.

“Adrian.”

He put the phone down.

Maya stepped closer.

“Who was it?”

He whispered:

“Nadia.”

---

They returned to the inn before sunrise.

The police had removed Mrs. Hart’s body.

The building felt colder than before.

Maya entered her room.

Something immediately felt wrong.

Her suitcase was open.

Her clothes were scattered across the floor.

Someone had searched her belongings.

Maya checked her laptop.

Nothing.

Her passport.

Still there.

Her phone.

Still there.

Then she noticed something.

The old photograph.

The one with her name on it.

It was gone.

Maya turned.

Adrian stood in the doorway.

“Someone was here.”

He looked around.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

Adrian examined the room.

Then he stopped.

“What?”

Maya looked at him.

He pointed toward the mirror.

A message had been written across the glass.

Maya’s blood ran cold.

MAYA STERLING.

YOU WERE THERE TOO.

She stepped backward.

“No.”

Adrian stared at the message.

“What does that mean?”

“I don’t know.”

“Think.”

“I was a baby.”

“You were alive.”

“I was six months old.”

Adrian looked at her.

Maya shook her head.

“That’s impossible.”

Then…

Something moved behind the mirror.

Maya screamed.

Adrian pulled his gun.

The mirror cracked.

Once.

Twice.

Then shattered.

Behind it was a hidden space.

A small room.

Maya stared.

“There was a room behind the mirror?”

Adrian stepped forward.

The room was covered in photographs.

Dozens.

Hundreds.

Maya’s heart stopped.

Every photograph showed people from Blackwood.

Edward Vale.

Marcus Hale.

William Crane.

Thomas Reed.

Nadia.

Adrian.

And then…

Maya.

There were photographs of Maya as a baby.

Maya as a child.

Maya at school.

Maya at university.

Maya in her first newspaper article.

Someone had been watching her.

For years.

Adrian stared at the photographs.

“Someone has been following you.”

Maya walked closer.

“Why?”

Adrian didn’t answer.

Then Maya saw one final photograph.

It showed her mother.

Standing beside Nadia.

Maya’s breath caught.

Her mother was holding a baby.

Maya.

And Nadia was smiling.

On the back…

A date.

Twenty-two years ago.

And one sentence.

THE CHILD MUST NEVER KNOW.

Maya’s hands trembled.

“My mother knew Nadia.”

Adrian stared.

“Yes.”

Maya turned toward him.

“She lied to me.”

“Maybe she was protecting you.”

“From what?”

Before Adrian could answer…

A sound came from the hidden room.

A soft whisper.

Maya slowly turned.

Nadia was standing in the corner.

Her white dress was covered in blood.

Her eyes were fixed on Maya.

Maya couldn’t move.

Nadia raised her hand.

She pointed toward the floor.

Maya looked down.

There was a trapdoor.

Adrian pulled it open.

A staircase led underground.

Maya looked at Nadia.

“What’s down there?”

Nadia whispered:

“The truth.”

Then she disappeared.

Adrian looked at Maya.

“We’re going down.”

Maya shook her head.

“Are you insane?”

“Probably.”

“There’s a ghost.”

“Yes.”

“People are dying.”

“Yes.”

“And you want to go into a secret underground room?”

Adrian looked at her.

“Do you have a better idea?”

Maya thought for a moment.

“No.”

Adrian smiled slightly.

“Then let’s go.”

They descended the stairs.

The darkness swallowed them.

At the bottom was a long corridor.

The walls were covered with black roses.

Real ones.

Fresh.

Their petals were wet with blood.

Maya covered her mouth.

At the end of the corridor was a door.

A black door.

Adrian reached for the handle.

Maya grabbed his hand.

“Wait.”

He looked at her.

“Listen.”

They heard something.

Someone was crying behind the door.

A woman.

Maya whispered:

“Nadia?”

The crying stopped.

Then a voice answered.

“No.”

Maya’s heart stopped.

It was her mother’s voice.

“Help me, Maya.”

Maya froze.

“Mom?”

Adrian grabbed her arm.

“Don’t open it.”

“But that’s my mother!”

“Maya, listen to me.”

The voice came again.

“Maya…”

“Please.”

“Help me.”

Maya reached for the door.

Adrian pulled her back.

“Don’t!”

The door suddenly opened by itself.

Inside was a small room.

An old chair.

A table.

And a tape recorder.

Maya stared.

“Where’s my mother?”

Adrian stepped inside.

“She’s not here.”

The tape recorder turned on.

Static filled the room.

Then…

A man’s voice.

Old.

Cold.

Familiar.

Maya had never heard it before.

But Adrian immediately recognized it.

“My father.”

The recording continued.

“If you’re hearing this…”

“Then Nadia has already returned.”

Maya looked at Adrian.

The voice continued.

“She will come for all of us.”

“But there is one person she will never hurt.”

A pause.

Then…

“The girl.”

Maya’s heart stopped.

The voice continued.

“Maya Sterling.”

Adrian looked at her.

Maya couldn’t speak.

The tape played on.

“She was the only one who survived.”

Silence.

Maya whispered:

“Survived what?”

The tape crackled.

Then her father’s voice said:

“The fire.”

The room suddenly became freezing cold.

The door slammed shut.

Maya screamed.

A woman’s voice whispered directly into her ear.

“You were there, Maya.”

Maya turned.

Nadia was standing behind her.

But this time…

She wasn’t angry.

She was crying.

And for the first time…

Maya understood.

Nadia wasn’t looking at her like an enemy.

She was looking at her like a mother.

Nadia whispered:

“You were the baby I saved.”

Maya’s world stopped.

The lights went out.

And somewhere in the darkness…

A man laughed.