Chapter 4 - Four Years Later
Four years can pass in a blur of sleepless nights and quiet triumphs.
By the autumn of 2029, Lily was four years old. She had grown from a fragile, wire-tangled NICU warrior into a fierce, vibrant little girl who loved painting with water colors, talking to stray dogs, and asking endless questions about the stars.
“Mommy, does Daddy live on a star?” she asked one evening as we sat on our front porch steps, watching the amber light of sunset bleed across the Carolina sky.
My breath hitched, a familiar pang tightening in my chest, but I smiled, pulling her small, warm body into my lap.
“He lives on the brightest star in the sky, baby,” I told her softly, brushing a curl from her forehead. “And he watches you every single day, making sure you’re the bravest girl in the world.”
“Just like me,” Lily declared proudly, flexing her tiny bicep.
I laughed, burying my face in her hair, inhaling the sweet scent of shampoo and sunshine.
We had built a good life. It wasn't the life I had planned when Nate and I sat on our wedding day dreaming of a big house and a noisy brood of kids. But it was authentic. Every bill was paid. Every doctor’s visit was covered. I had finished my degree online, securing a stable job as an administrative coordinator at a local architectural firm.
The ghost of my parents had faded into a distant, painless memory. I hadn't thought about Scottsdale, or country clubs, or trust funds in years.
Until a rainy Tuesday afternoon in November.
I was at my desk at the office, organizing project timelines, when my cell phone buzzed on the blotter.
The caller ID displayed an unfamiliar number with an Arizona area code.
I let it go to voicemail, assuming it was a telemarketer or a collections agency misdialing. But a minute later, my phone buzzed again with a text message from the same number:
“Is this Melissa Hurley? This is Attorney Arthur Vance calling from Phoenix regarding the estate of Roger and Susan Clayton. Please call me back urgently.”
My fingers froze over the keyboard.
Clayton.
My parents' surname.
May you like
A cold prickle of adrenaline washed over me. I stared at the screen, my mind racing through a dozen confusing scenarios. Had they gotten into financial trouble? Had their investments collapsed? Did they need something?
Slowly, deliberately, I picked up the phone, stepped out into the quiet hallway by the office windows, and dialed the number back.
