Chapter 6: The Enemy We Never Saw
Nobody spoke.
Mia stared at her phone like the words on the screen had frozen her in place.
You found Ethan. Good. But he was only the beginning.
The message wasn’t threatening in the way I expected.
There were no insults.
No angry words.
No explanation.
That almost made it worse.
Because whoever sent it wanted us to know one thing.
They were still watching.
Dad took the phone from Mia carefully.
“When did this come through?””
“Just now.””
“Who has this number?””
Mia shook her head.
“I don’t know.””
Dad looked at the screen again.
“Did Ethan ever mention anyone else?””
Mia hesitated.
That hesitation was enough.
“Mia.””
She looked away.
“I don’t know.””
Dad’s expression hardened.
“That means you do know something.””
She sighed.
“There was one person.””
My stomach tightened.
“Who?””
Mia looked at me.
“I don’t know if it matters.””
“Tell us.””
She swallowed.
“His name is Logan.””
The name meant nothing to me.
“Who is Logan?””
Mia rubbed her arm nervously.
“He’s one of Ethan’s friends.””
Dad looked confused.
“Why would Ethan’s friend be involved?””
“I don’t know.””
“You just said there was one person.””
Mia closed her eyes.
“He was the one who introduced me to Ethan.””
A cold feeling moved through me.
“Where?””
“At a coffee shop near campus.””
“When?””
“A month ago.””
Dad looked at me.
“Did you know him?””
I shook my head.
“No.””
But then I stopped.
Because maybe I did.
Maybe that was the scariest part.
I knew a lot of people from campus.
People I smiled at.
People I passed in hallways.
People whose names I might have forgotten.
Someone could know everything about me without me knowing anything about them.
Dad handed the phone back to Mia.
“Call him.””
Her eyes widened.
“What?””
“Call Logan.””
“Right now?””
“Yes.””
She looked nervous.
“What if he doesn’t answer?””
“Then we learn something.””
Mia stared at the screen.
Her thumb hovered over the contact.
Then she pressed call.
The phone rang.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Nobody breathed.
Then someone answered.
A male voice.
“Hello?””
Mia immediately looked at Dad.
He motioned for her to continue.
“Logan?””
A pause.
“Mia?””
His voice sounded surprised.
“Why are you calling me?””
She put the phone on speaker.
“Did you send me a message?””
Silence.
A little too long.
Then:
“What message?””
Dad stepped closer.
“The one about Ethan.””
Another pause.
Then Logan laughed.
A small laugh.
Not nervous.
Not confused.
Almost amused.
“Why are you with Aaliyah?””
My entire body went still.
Dad’s eyes narrowed.
“How do you know she’s there?””
The voice on the phone changed.
“Who is this?””
“Answer the question.””
No response.
Then the call ended.
Mia looked terrified.
“He knew.””
Dad nodded.
“Yes.””
I stared at the phone.
“How?””
Nobody answered.
Because there was only one possibility.
Someone had been watching.
The drive home was silent.
Even Mia didn’t argue.
That was how I knew she was scared.
Usually, she filled every quiet moment with complaints.
But now she sat in the back seat staring out the window.
I sat beside Dad.
He kept both hands on the steering wheel.
Finally, I asked:
“Dad?””
“Yeah?””
“What do we do?””
He didn’t answer immediately.
Then he said:
“We find out the truth.””
Simple.
But I knew my dad.
When he said something like that, he meant it.
Not with anger.
Not with revenge.
With patience.
When we got home, Dad went straight to his office.
Mia followed.
I stayed in the kitchen, staring at the remains of my graduation day.
A day that was supposed to be full of pictures.
Friends.
Celebration.
Instead, it had become a mystery.
A fight.
A warning.
I heard footsteps behind me.
Mia.
She stood there awkwardly.
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
Then she said:
“I’m sorry.””
I looked at her.
Not because I didn’t hear her.
Because I never expected to.
She looked down.
“I know I already said things were complicated.””
She swallowed.
“But I’m sorry.””
I leaned against the counter.
“Why now?””
She looked confused.
“What?””
“Why are you sorry now?””
She was quiet.
Then she answered honestly.
“Because I finally realized I wasn’t the only person being used.””
That hurt.
Because it was true.
But I wasn’t ready to forgive her.
Not completely.
“You still chose to do it.””
She nodded.
“I know.””
“You could have stopped.””
“I know.””
“You could have told me.””
“I know.””
Her eyes filled.
“I was jealous, Aaliyah.””
I didn’t say anything.
“I hated feeling invisible.””
Her voice cracked.
“But I never thought about what it would feel like for you.””
I looked away.
Because a part of me understood.
Not the action.
The feeling.
Wanting to matter.
Wanting to be seen.
But pain didn’t give someone permission to create pain.
“I don’t know if I can forgive you yet.””
She nodded.
“I understand.””
That answer surprised me.
Because the old Mia would have argued.
She would have blamed me.
But this Mia just accepted it.
Then Dad walked into the kitchen.
His face was serious.
“I found something.””
We both turned.
“What?””
He placed his laptop on the table.
On the screen was a folder.
My name was written on it.
I felt my stomach drop.
“What is that?””
Dad looked at me.
“I don’t know yet.””
Mia stepped closer.
“Where did you get it?””
“From Ethan’s messages.””
He opened the folder.
Inside were screenshots.
Photos.
Notes.
My life.
My graduation schedule.
My class times.
Even pictures from my social media.
I felt uncomfortable.
Someone had collected information about me.
Dad clicked another file.
A document appeared.
At the top was a title.
*Project Humble Aaliyah.*
I felt sick.
“What is that?””
Dad didn’t answer.
He kept scrolling.
The document contained comments.
Plans.
Ideas.
Some were from Ethan.
Some were from another account.
Someone named:
*L. Brooks*
Mia covered her mouth.
“Logan.””
Dad nodded.
“It wasn’t just Ethan.””
I stared at the screen.
There was a list of things they wanted to do.
Embarrass me at graduation.
Make people question me.
Destroy my confidence.
But then I saw the last entry.
The one that made my heart stop.
*Final step: Reveal the truth about Aaliyah Carter.*
I looked at Dad.
“What truth?””
He kept reading.
His expression changed.
Not anger.
Concern.
“What?””
He turned the laptop toward us.
Below the sentence was another line.
A date.
Tomorrow.
And underneath it:
*Everyone will finally know who she really is.*
I felt cold.
Because I had no idea what they were talking about.
I had no secret.
No hidden past.
Nothing to reveal.
Unless…
Someone had created one.
Dad closed the laptop.
“We’re not going to panic.””
Mia looked at him.
“How can we not panic?””
“Because panic is exactly what they want.””
He looked at both of us.
“They want us reacting without thinking.””
Then he looked at me.
“Aaliyah, tomorrow is still your graduation.””
I almost laughed.
“Dad, someone is planning something.””
“I know.””
“And you’re telling me to go?””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
His answer was simple.
“Because they don’t get to steal another moment from you.””
For the first time all day, I felt a small piece of strength return.
Maybe they wanted me afraid.
Maybe they wanted me hiding.
But I had already lost my dress.
I wasn’t going to lose myself.
That night, I checked my phone before sleeping.
One new notification appeared.
No number.
No name.
Just a message.
I opened it.
And my blood turned cold.
Because it wasn’t a threat.
It was a photograph.
A photograph taken inside my house.
A photograph of me and Mia standing in the kitchen.
Taken only minutes earlier.
May you like
Below it were four words:
*“I told you. Beginning.””*
