CHAPTER 1 – THE PACKAGE IN THE SNOW
Snow fell quietly over the city, covering the sidewalks in a blanket of white.
Most people hurried past without looking at anyone.
But one little girl stood perfectly still beside an old wooden bench.
She couldn't have been older than seven.
A knitted white hat covered her golden hair, and oversized gloves nearly swallowed her tiny hands. Clutched tightly against her chest was a small brown paper package, tied carefully with faded string.
She wasn't waiting for her parents.
She was waiting for him.
Across the street, Ethan Cole walked with heavy steps.
At thirty-eight, Ethan had everything most people dreamed of—a successful career, a luxury apartment, expensive watches...
Yet every morning felt emptier than the last.
Ten years earlier, his wife, Emily, had disappeared without leaving a single trace.
The police searched for months.
Friends slowly stopped calling.
Everyone eventually told him the same painful sentence.
"You have to move on."
But Ethan never did.
Every winter, on the anniversary of her disappearance, he returned to the same park where he'd proposed to her years before.
No one knew why.
Not even Ethan himself.
As he approached the bench, he noticed the little girl staring directly at him.
Not smiling.
Not afraid.
Just... waiting.
"You came," she whispered.
Ethan frowned.
"I'm sorry... do I know you?"
Instead of answering, the girl stepped closer and lifted the tiny package toward him.
"My mommy told me to give you this."
His heartbeat stopped.
"What... did you say?"
"My mommy said if I ever saw a man wearing that blue scarf..."
She pointed at the scarf around Ethan's neck.
"...I had to give him this."
Ethan felt the blood drain from his face.
Only one person had ever given him that scarf.
Emily.
His hands trembled as he accepted the package.
The paper looked old.
Very old.
The corners were worn, as though it had been hidden somewhere for years.
"Where is your mother?" he asked desperately.
The little girl lowered her eyes.
"I don't know."
"What do you mean you don't know?"
"She left after giving me the package."
"When?"
The girl looked up again.
"Last night."
Impossible.
Emily had been missing for ten years.
Ethan quickly untied the faded string.
Inside wasn't money.
It wasn't jewelry.
It wasn't a letter.
Instead...
There was a small silver key.
And beneath it...
A faded photograph.
The photo showed Ethan smiling beside Emily.
But something made his heart nearly stop.
Standing in the background—
Almost hidden behind a snow-covered tree—
Was the same little girl.
Wearing the exact same white hat.
The exact same blue scarf.
Looking exactly the same.
The date printed on the bottom of the photo read:
December 18... Ten Years Ago.
Ethan stared at the child standing in front of him.
She hadn't aged.
Not even a single day.
Before he could ask another question...
A deep voice echoed from behind.
"Sir..."
Ethan turned around.
A tall man in a black coat stood only a few feet away.
His face was pale.
His expression frozen in fear.
"You need to leave."
"Now."
"Because someone has been watching both of you..."
He slowly pointed across the street.
Ethan followed his finger.
On the rooftop of the building opposite the park...
A shadowy figure was standing perfectly still.
Holding a camera.
Watching every second.
May you like
And the moment Ethan looked up...
The mysterious stranger smiled.
