The photograph fell out of the notebook like it had been waiting for me.
I hadn’t even meant to open it again.
That was the worst part.
I told myself I wouldn’t.
After what Adrian said… after the way he shut down, the way his voice changed when I mentioned my parents’ investigation—I knew I should leave it alone for one night.
Just one night.
But sleep didn’t come.
It never did anymore.
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw rain.
Headlights.
The moment everything ended.
So sometime past midnight, I got out of bed.
Again.
The house was silent.
No footsteps.
No voices.
Just the quiet hum of something distant—air vents, maybe.
Or the house breathing.
I sat at the desk and pulled the box toward me.
The cardboard scraped softly against the wood.
For a few seconds, I didn’t open
