Chapter 2 – The Impossible Promise
The reception was forgotten.
No one cared about the music.
No one touched the wedding cake.
Instead, everyone gathered in the family sitting room of the historic chapel.
Sarah continued reading.
"Your little sister, Grace, disappeared when she was only three years old."
The room became perfectly still.
Sarah looked at her father.
His face had turned completely white.
"You told me I was an only child."
He couldn't answer.
The letter continued.
"Your father believed Grace died during the flood that destroyed our cabin."
"I never believed it."
"Someone took her."
Sarah's breathing became uneven.
David gently squeezed her hand.
The final paragraph was even more shocking.
"If the locket returns to you, trust the person who brings it."
Sarah looked at Lily.
"Honey... where did you meet that old man?"
Lily pointed toward the church garden.
"He was sitting by the fountain."
"He said he couldn't come inside."
"He cried when he gave me the necklace."
Sarah and David rushed outside.
The garden was empty.
Only an old wooden bench remained.
Resting on it...
Was a small leather journal.
Inside the cover was a handwritten name.
Thomas Hale.
May you like
Sarah recognized it instantly.
He had been her mother's closest friend decades earlier.
