Chapter 3: The Woman in the Rain
The woman collapsed into the nearest chair.
Emily rushed over with a towel.
Nobody spoke.
Nobody knew what to say.
Except Maya.
She was signing so quickly that I could barely follow.
She pointed at the woman.
Then herself.
Then the parking lot.
Then made a motion like someone falling.
I knelt beside her.
“Maya, slow down.””
She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to control herself.
The woman watched her with tears running down her face.
“She’s trying to tell you what happened,” she said.
I looked up.
“Who are you?””
The woman hesitated.
“My name is Rachel.””
Her eyes moved to Maya.
“I’m her aunt.””
Maya looked away.
That bothered me.
A child who had just escaped danger should have run into a familiar person’s arms.
Instead, she looked trapped between two fears.
“Why didn’t she come to you?”” I asked.
Rachel’s face broke.
“Because she doesn’t know if she can trust anyone anymore.””
Carl scoffed.
“This is getting ridiculous.””
Everyone turned.
He stood near the counter, arms crossed.
Rachel stared at him.
“You.””
Carl’s expression changed.
“What?””
“You work with Thomas.””
Carl said nothing.
That silence was enough.
I stood.
“Carl.””
He looked at me.
“Daniel, don’t listen to them.””
“Then explain.””
He opened his mouth.
Closed it.
Outside, distant sirens finally became audible.
Relief spread through the room.
But Rachel suddenly grabbed my arm.
“No.””
Her voice was barely a whisper.
“No police.””
I frowned.
“Why?””
She looked terrified.
“Because the police officer who answered the call was Thomas’s brother-in-law.””
The room went cold.
Emily lowered her phone.
“You’re saying someone inside law enforcement is helping him?””
Rachel nodded.
“I’m saying Maya saw something she was never supposed to see.””
She reached into her coat pocket.
Her hands were shaking.
She pulled out a small flash drive.
“This is why they’re chasing her.””
I stared at it.
“What’s on it?””
“Proof.””
“Proof of what?””
Rachel looked at Maya.
Then whispered:
“Thomas Reed didn’t just hurt someone.””
The diner went silent.
“He’s been covering up crimes for years.””
Carl suddenly moved.
Fast.
Too fast.
He grabbed the flash drive from Rachel’s hand.
I reacted immediately.
I stepped forward and shoved him back.
“What are you doing?””
Carl’s face twisted.
For the first time, he didn’t look annoyed.
He looked desperate.
“You have no idea what you’re involved in.””
“That’s what you’re worried about?””
He looked toward the door.
The sirens were getting closer.
Then he smiled.
A cold, empty smile.
“You think those officers coming here are going to save you?””
Nobody answered.
Because we all knew.
Maybe they weren’t.
The front doors opened.
Two police officers entered.
One of them was Officer Mason.
I knew him.
He had eaten breakfast at my diner every Sunday for years.
“Daniel,” he said.
“What happened?””
Before I could answer, Carl walked toward him.
“They’re causing a scene,” Carl said.
I stared.
He was actually trying to control the story.
Right in front of us.
Officer Mason looked confused.
Then his eyes landed on Maya.
The expression on his face changed.
Not surprise.
Recognition.
Maya saw it too.
She immediately hid behind me.
I looked at Officer Mason.
“You know her?””
He didn’t answer.
“Mason.””
Finally, he sighed.
“I’ve been looking for that girl.””
Rachel stepped forward.
“Why?””
Mason looked at her.
Then at the flash drive in my hand.
His face hardened.
“Because she stole something that belongs to very dangerous people.””
Maya shook her head violently.
She signed something.
I watched her hands.
Then my stomach dropped.
“She didn’t steal it,” I said.
Everyone looked at me.
I translated her message.
“She found it.””
Officer Mason reached for his radio.
“Everyone needs to stay calm.””
But Maya was already crying.
She grabbed my hand and signed one more thing.
A message she had been trying to tell me from the beginning.
Something she was too afraid to explain.
I stared at her hands.
And slowly realized the truth.
The person Thomas Reed hurt wasn’t a stranger.
It was someone Maya loved.
Someone who had been trying to expose him.
Someone who disappeared because of that flash drive.
I looked at Rachel.
“Who was it?””
Rachel closed her eyes.
A tear fell down her cheek.
Then she said the name.
A name I never expected.
“Your brother.””
I stopped breathing.
May you like
Because my brother had been missing for six months.
And everyone in town thought he was dead.
