The heart attack was staged with the help of a trusted doctor. The coffin in the ground today is empty. By the time you read this, I will already be miles away under a new name, but I could not leave without giving you the truth and the evidence you need to protect yourself.

Look in the bottom drawer of the file cabinet. Take what is inside and do not return home tonight. Your mother is not who you think she is.

A chill ran down my spine, far colder than the winter wind outside. Before I could process the words on the page, the faint sound of tires crunching on gravel echoed from outside the storage unit. A pair of headlights swept across the lower opening of the metal door, illuminating the dust particles in the air.

I froze, holding my breath as a car engine cut off just outside Unit 17. A car door slammed shut, followed by the steady sound of footsteps approaching through the rain.