Jamie stepped forward.
“No.”
Evelyn froze.
He stood beside me, trembling.
“But his voice was firm.”
“It’s my story.”
I looked at him.
“Jamie, you don’t have to watch anything that upsets you.”
He nodded.
“I know.”
Then he said something that filled me with pride and dread at the same time.
“But people keep talking about me like I’m not here. I want to know.”
Evelyn began to cry again.
I told her I would not conceal anything from Jamie simply because she found the truth uncomfortable.
She nodded, as if she knew she had no right to argue.
Martin stayed with us.
I took the USB drive to my laptop.
But before opening it, I hesitated.
The messages.
The camera.
The missing Claire.
The childhood secret.
Everything seemed connected.
I called the investigator again and told him about the drive.
He asked me to preserve the original and arrange to provide it as evidence.
