The Shadows Of Susan

The search

It started with footsteps.

Not loud ones — soft. Sneaky.

Susan was in the kitchen, rinsing a plate, when she heard it. A quiet thump. Then another. It was coming from her bedroom.

She dried her hands and moved toward the hallway slowly, her breath catching as she turned the corner.

Her door was open.

Inside, Anita stood by her dresser, rummaging through the drawers.

Vanessa sat on the bed, legs crossed, scrolling on her phone like she wasn’t an accomplice in the crime.

“What are you doing in my room?” Susan asked, trying to keep her voice steady.

Anita looked up with a sickly-sweet smile. “Oh sweetheart, you left your window open. Thought we’d close it for you.”

Susan walked in slowly. “The window isn’t even open.”

Vanessa rolled her eyes. “You act like you’re hiding something. Are you, Susan?”

“No,” she said sharply. “But even if I was, it’s not your business.”

Anita slammed the drawer shut. “You’re a child living under this roof. And we both know you’ve been sneaking around.”

Her eyes flicked to the corner of the room — where Susan’s schoolbag lay.

She moved toward it, but Susan stepped in front.

“You’re not touching that,” she said, her heart pounding.

“Oh really?” Anita said, her voice cold now. “And what will you do if I do?”

Before anyone could move further, her mother’s voice called faintly from the bedroom. “Susan…?”

Susan broke away and ran toward her mom’s room.

Behind her, she could still hear Vanessa whispering, “She’s hiding it. I know it.”

⸻

Her mother’s hands were shaking when she helped her sip water.

“They went through my room,” Susan whispered.

Her mother’s lips barely moved. “You have to protect it. Promise me, Susan.”

“I did. I will.”

Her mother nodded weakly. “And if anything happens to me… don’t let them win.”

Tears stung Susan’s eyes, but she blinked them away.

She couldn’t break.

Not now.

⸻

That evening, just before sunset, there was a knock at the back gate.

Susan slipped out quietly and found Kelvin standing there, holding a small notebook and a worried look.

“They searched my room today,” she said, voice low.

He frowned. “Did they find it?”

“No. But they’re close.”

Kelvin nodded, then handed her the notebook.

“What’s this?”

He glanced around. “It’s everything I’ve started to gather. Property records. Your mom’s shop papers. Evidence that your stepmom’s been trying to change the will through back channels.”

Susan stared at him in disbelief.

“You did all this?”

Kelvin shrugged. “Told you. I’m not leaving.”