Jake's POV
Emma Chen was dead.
I watched them pull her body from the lake seven years ago. I went to her funeral. I watched them lower her casket into the ground.
But she was standing right there in front of me.
Alive.
"This isn't possible," I whispered.
Maya was lying on the ground where she'd fainted. I knelt beside her, checking her pulse. Still breathing. Just shocked.
We were all shocked.
Derek had stopped struggling against Marcus. His face had gone white. "You're dead. I saw you—"
"You saw what I wanted you to see," Emma said calmly. She walked toward us slowly, limping slightly. "You chased me to that lake. You threatened to kill Maya if I didn't stop trying to help her. You pushed me into the water."
"The police said it was an accident!" Derek's voice was panicked now.
"Because I faked my own death." Emma's voice was cold. "You thought I drowned, but I managed to swim to the other side of the lake. I hid in the woods until you left. Then I disappeared."
Lily was crying. "Emma? Is it really you?"
Emma looked at her younger sister and her expression softened. "Hi, Lily. I'm sorry I put you through that. I'm sorry I let everyone think I was dead."
"But why?" I demanded. "Why fake your death? Why hide for seven years?"
"Because Derek had connections. Money. Power. If I'd stayed alive and testified against him, I would have ended up really dead." Emma turned her attention to Derek. "But I've been watching. Waiting. Collecting evidence. And when I found out he'd tracked Maya to Pine Valley, I knew it was time to come back."
My mind was spinning. "You sent the postcards."
"Some of them. Lily sent the others. We've been working together for the past year." Emma looked at Maya, who was starting to wake up. "I'm sorry I scared you, Maya. But I needed to get your attention without Derek knowing I was alive."
Maya's eyes fluttered open. She looked up at Emma and started crying. "You're real. You're really real."
Emma knelt down and hugged her best friend. "I'm real. And I'm here to finish what I started seven years ago."
Police cars screeched into the parking lot. Officers jumped out with guns drawn.
"Nobody move!" one officer shouted.
Marcus still had Derek pinned to the ground. "This man started the fire! He tried to shoot Jake Sullivan! He's been threatening Maya Rodriguez!"
"That's not true!" Derek shouted. "I'm the victim here! These people are crazy—"
"Actually," Emma said, standing up and pulling something from her pocket. "I have seven years of evidence that says otherwise."
She held up a small recording device.
"I've been following Derek for months. Recording his conversations. His threats. His plans." Emma pressed play.
Derek's voice came through clear and loud: "Emma Chen. Your annoying best friend who couldn't mind her own business. Of course I caught her. We had a little chat..."
The recording continued. Everything Derek had said in the parking lot. His confession about Emma. His threats about Lucy. His admission that he'd started the fire.
All of it recorded.
Derek's face went from white to gray. "That's... that's not admissible in court. You can't—"
"Actually, I can," Emma said. "Because I'm a licensed private investigator now. And I've been investigating you for attempted murder, harassment, and stalking." She handed the recording device to a police officer. "You'll also want to check his car. I'm pretty sure you'll find evidence connecting him to the school fire."
The officers moved in and arrested Derek. He screamed and fought, but it was over.
He was finally caught.
Maya stood on shaky legs, holding Lucy tight. The little girl was crying, scared by all the chaos.
"It's okay, baby," Maya whispered. "You're safe now. Mommy's got you."
I walked over to them. "How is she?"
"Some smoke inhalation. Minor burns on her hands. But she'll be okay." Maya looked at me with tears in her eyes. "You saved her life."
"I almost got her killed," I said quietly. "If I hadn't started that fire seven years ago—"
"Stop." Emma appeared beside us. "Jake, what happened seven years ago wasn't your fault. I asked you to help me. I made the choice to break into Derek's apartment."
"But you died—or we thought you died—because of that choice."
"No. I almost died because Derek Martinez is a monster." Emma looked at Maya. "And neither of you should blame yourselves for his actions."
The paramedics were loading Derek into a police car. He looked at Maya one last time, his eyes full of rage and hate.
"This isn't over!" he screamed. "You're mine, Maya! You'll always be mine!"
"Actually," a new voice said, "she's not."
We all turned.
A woman in an expensive suit walked toward us, carrying a briefcase. She looked like a lawyer.
"My name is Catherine Price," she said. "I'm a family law attorney. And I've been hired to represent Maya Rodriguez in a custody case."
Maya went pale. "Custody case? But Derek doesn't have custody—"
"Not Derek." Catherine opened her briefcase and pulled out papers. "Derek's mother, Patricia Martinez, has filed for emergency custody of Lucy Rodriguez. She claims you're an unfit mother who put her granddaughter in danger."
"What? No! That's insane!"
"She has witnesses," Catherine continued. "People who saw you living with an abusive man. People who say you've been unstable, paranoid, seeing ghosts of dead friends. She's arguing that Lucy should be removed from your custody immediately for her own safety."
"But Derek started the fire! He's the dangerous one!"
"Derek is in jail. His mother is not." Catherine's face was sympathetic but firm. "And regardless of what Derek did, the court will look at your history. The abuse you suffered. The fact that you fled and hid for years. They'll question your judgment."
"This isn't fair!" I shouted. "Maya's a good mother! She's been protecting Lucy!"
"I believe you," Catherine said. "But we have a custody hearing scheduled for December 26th. That's three days from now. And if we can't prove Maya is a fit parent, Patricia Martinez will take Lucy."
Maya's legs gave out. I caught her before she fell.
"They can't take my daughter," she whispered. "They can't. She's all I have."
Emma squeezed Maya's hand. "We won't let that happen. We'll fight this."
But Catherine looked worried. "There's something else you should know. Patricia Martinez hired a very expensive legal team. They've been investigating Maya for months. They know about everything—the abuse, the running, the hiding. They even know about Jake's involvement in the fire seven years ago."
My stomach dropped. "What?"
"They're planning to argue that Maya has poor judgment in choosing men. That she's repeatedly put Lucy in danger by associating with violent people." Catherine looked at me. "And Jake, they're planning to call you as a witness. They want to prove you're another dangerous man in Maya's life."
"But I'm trying to help her!"
"I know. But starting that fire, even to help Emma, was illegal. If they bring that up in court, it makes you look reckless. Which makes Maya look reckless for trusting you."
Emma stepped forward. "Then I'll testify. I'll explain everything—"
"You faked your own death for seven years," Catherine interrupted. "The defense will tear you apart on the stand. They'll say you're unstable. That you're a bad influence on Maya."
We all stood there in silence, surrounded by smoke and ash and police cars, realizing the same terrible truth.
Derek might be in jail.
But the fight wasn't over.
And we were about to lose everything that mattered.
Lucy started crying again, clinging to her mother.
"I want to go home, Mommy," she sobbed. "I'm scared."
Maya held her daughter tight, tears streaming down her face.
And I stood there helpless, watching the woman I loved break apart, knowing that I might lose her all over again.
This time forever.
Catherine closed her briefcase. "The hearing is in three days. I suggest you spend that time preparing. Because Patricia Martinez plays to win. And she's very, very good at taking children away from their mothers."
She walked away, leaving us in the ruins of what should have been a victory.
Emma put her arm around Maya. "We'll figure this out. I promise."
But I could see the fear in Maya's eyes.
The same fear I felt in my chest.
Because even though Derek was caught, even though Emma was alive, even though the truth was finally out—
We might still lose everything.
My phone buzzed.
Unknown number. Again.
I opened the text message and my blood turned to ice.
"Congratulations on catching Derek. But he was never the real threat. Patricia Martinez has been pulling the strings all along. And in three days, she's going to destroy you all. Sleep well. —A Friend"
I showed the message to Emma and Maya.
Maya read it and whispered, "Who sent this?"
"I don't know. But whoever it is—" I looked at the burning school, at the police cars, at everything we'd just been through. "They know something we don't."
"What could be worse than what we already know?" Emma asked.
The answer came twenty minutes later.
A police officer approached us, looking grim. "Ms. Rodriguez? We need to ask you some questions."
"About what?" Maya asked nervously.
"About the fire at Pine Valley Elementary. We found evidence at the scene." The officer paused. "Evidence that suggests you might have been involved."
"WHAT?" I shouted. "That's impossible! Maya was with me the whole time!"
"Not the whole time," the officer said quietly. "Security cameras show Ms. Rodriguez entering the school building thirty minutes before the fire started. Witnesses say they saw her arguing with someone in the hallway near the location where the fire originated."
Maya went white. "No. I wasn't there. I was at the diner. I was working—"
"Your boss says you left early. Said you were acting strange. Said you seemed upset about something." The officer looked genuinely sorry. "Ms. Rodriguez, I need you to come with me to the station for questioning."
"She's not going anywhere without a lawyer!" I stepped between them.
"Jake, it's okay." Maya's voice was hollow. Defeated. "I'll go. I have nothing to hide."
"Maya—"
"Take care of Lucy." She kissed her daughter's forehead and handed her to Emma. "Don't let anyone take her. Promise me."
"I promise," Emma whispered.
They put handcuffs on Maya.
And I watched them take her away, knowing with horrible certainty that someone was setting her up.
Someone wanted Maya to lose custody of Lucy.
Someone wanted to destroy everything we'd fought for.
And they were winning.