beneath the seal, was a second message in a different handwriting.
My mother’s handwriting.
Anna, if you are reading this, Claire has finally found you. Trust her husband—but do not trust the person who gave him this letter.
For a moment, I heard nothing.
Not the fire. Not the wind pressing against the windows. Not Emma’s quiet humming in the living room.
Only my own heartbeat.
Daniel stared at the message.
“I didn’t know that was there,” he said.
I looked at him.
“Who gave you the letter?”
“No one.”
