Chapter 3 — The Child Who Saw Everything
Michael couldn't stop thinking about one thing.
His daughter had known.
Long before anyone else.
Children notice what adults ignore.
She heard footsteps beneath the floor.
She saw shadows moving behind furniture.
She noticed food disappearing from the kitchen.
At night...
Daniel quietly left the hidden compartment after everyone slept.
The little girl saw him once.
He placed a finger over his lips.
"Don't tell anyone."
She tried.
Again.
And again.
Her mother scolded her.
Teachers believed she had an overactive imagination.
Even Michael...
Though he loved her deeply...
Had gently told her monsters weren't real.
The guilt nearly crushed him.
One evening, he knelt beside her bed.
"I'm sorry."
She looked up.
"For what, Daddy?"
"For not believing you."
She wrapped her little arms around his neck.
May you like
"I knew you'd find him someday."
Michael cried for the first time in years.
