"She was alive."
"For a while."
The words were devastating.
Evelyn leaned against the wall.
"What happened to her?"
Sarah hesitated.
"They found her."
"Who?"
"The same people who found me."
Evelyn's voice shook.
"Is she dead?"
Silence.
Then:
"Yes."
Evelyn closed her eyes.
She had spent years believing her mother had died in an accident.
Now she finally knew.
It had been murder.
But Sarah's next words were even worse.
"Your father didn't die naturally either."
Evelyn's eyes opened.
"What?"
"They killed him."
Harrison stepped closer.
"Sarah, why?"
"Because he refused to cooperate."
Evelyn felt tears gathering in her eyes.
"My father knew?"
"He knew everything."
"About Mom?"
"Yes."
"About you?"
"Yes."
"Why didn't he tell me?"
"Because he was trying to keep you alive."
Evelyn's voice broke.
"He let me believe you were dead."
"I know."
"He let me believe Mom died in an accident."
"I know."
"How could he do that?"
"Because every time he told you the truth, someone close to us disappeared."
Evelyn stared into the darkness.
"Who?"
Sarah answered softly.
"Everyone who knew."
A sudden sound came from the hallway.
Footsteps.
Sarah immediately whispered:
"Someone is coming."
Evelyn stood.
"Sarah, wait."
"You have to leave."
"No."
"Evelyn, listen to me."
"Where are you?"
"Not here."
"Then where?"
Sarah hesitated.
"Under the courthouse."
Evelyn frowned.
"What?"
"There's another level."
Harrison looked confused.
"That's impossible."
Sarah laughed bitterly.
"That's what they want you to believe."
Evelyn looked at the floor.
"How do we get there?"
"Find the old judge's chamber."
Harrison immediately shook his head.
"No."
Evelyn looked at him.
"Why?"
"That chamber was sealed years ago."
"Why?"
"I don't know."
Sarah's voice returned.
"You do know."
Harrison remained silent.
Evelyn turned toward him.
"What isn't he telling me?"
Sarah answered.
"The chamber is where they kept the witnesses."
Evelyn's stomach tightened.
"Before they disappeared."
"Yes."
"How many?"
"I don't know."
"Sarah..."
A noise interrupted them.
Someone was approaching.
This time, the footsteps were unmistakable.
Fast.
Heavy.
Getting closer.
Sarah whispered:
"They're here."
The speaker went silent.
Evelyn grabbed Harrison's arm.
"We're leaving."
They rushed toward the storage room entrance.
The basement door was still locked.
Harrison tried his phone.
No signal.
Evelyn looked at the security panel.
"Give me your ID."
"Why?"
"Now."
He handed it over.
She inserted it into the access slot.
The system beeped.
ACCESS DENIED.
She tried again.
Nothing.
"Try yours," Harrison said.
Evelyn shook her head.
"They disabled employee credentials."
"Then we're trapped."
Evelyn looked around.
"No."
She noticed an old maintenance hatch behind a row of shelves.
She pulled the shelves aside.
A narrow metal door was hidden behind them.
Harrison stared.
"Where does that go?"
"Maintenance tunnel."
"Does it connect outside?"
"No."
"Then where?"
Evelyn opened the hatch.
A dark passage disappeared beneath the courthouse.
"Underneath."
Harrison looked at her.
"Sarah said there's another level."
"Exactly."
They entered the tunnel.
Behind them, the storage room door suddenly opened.
A man's voice echoed through the basement.
"Search everything."
Evelyn and Harrison froze.
More footsteps followed.
Someone entered the room they had just left.
Evelyn whispered:
"Keep moving."
They crawled through the narrow passage.
The tunnel smelled of dust, rust, and damp concrete.
Harrison struggled to move.
"How do you know where we're going?"
"I don't."
"That's reassuring."
"I've never been here."
"Then why are you so calm?"
Evelyn stopped.
"I'm not."
She turned toward him.
"I'm terrified."
Harrison looked at her.
"But if Sarah is alive, I can't stop."
He nodded.
They continued.
After several minutes, the tunnel widened.
They emerged into a hidden corridor.
On the wall was an old brass plaque.
JUDICIAL WITNESS HOLDING — LEVEL B
Harrison stared.
"I've never seen this."
Evelyn looked at him.
"How is that possible?"
"I was told this level was demolished."
"It wasn't."
They moved forward.
Several old doors lined the corridor.
Most were open.
Some were chained shut.
Then Evelyn saw a name scratched into one of the doors.
S. MERCER
She stopped.
Her heart pounded.
"Sarah."
She grabbed the handle.
Locked.
Harrison examined it.
"There must be another way."
Evelyn searched the wall.
Then she noticed a small keypad.
She entered Sarah's birthday.
Nothing.
She tried their mother's birthday.
Nothing.
Then she remembered something.
A phrase Sarah used when they were children.
She entered the numbers corresponding to the letters.
The lock clicked.
The door opened.
Inside was a small room.
A bed.
A desk.
A chair.
And photographs covering the walls.
Photographs of Evelyn.
Hundreds of them.
At work.
Walking home.
Entering stores.
Sleeping in her apartment.
Talking to friends.
Evelyn stared in horror.
"They've been watching me for years."
Harrison looked at the photographs.
"No."
"What?"
"Some of these were taken before you became a janitor."
Evelyn walked closer.
The oldest photograph was dated thirteen years ago.
One year before Sarah disappeared.
She turned.
"Why would they monitor me before Sarah disappeared?"
Harrison didn't answer.
Then Evelyn saw another photograph.
Her father.
Standing beside a man she recognized.
Victor Dalton.
But the photograph was old.
Very old.
On the back was a handwritten note:
THE MERCER FAMILY WAS NEVER THE TARGET.
Evelyn read the next line.
EVELYN WAS.
Her heart sank.
"Why me?"
Harrison stared at the photographs.
"I think Sarah discovered something about you."
"Something about me?"
"Yes."
"Before she disappeared."
Evelyn looked toward the desk.
There was a sealed envelope.
Her name was written on it.
She opened it.
Inside was a single document.
A birth certificate.
Evelyn looked at the name.
Then stopped breathing.
The certificate did not list Daniel Mercer as her father.
It listed another man.
Thomas Avery.
Evelyn's face went pale.
Thomas Avery.