The Truth Behind St. Mary’s
The house was silent after the stranger’s voice disappeared from the front door.
Lily stood beside her mother, still holding the small key they’d found in the envelope.
“Mom,” she whispered. “Who was that?”
Her mother locked the door.
“I don’t know.”
“You’re lying again.”
Her mother closed her eyes.
“Lily, you need to listen to me. Whatever happens, don’t go looking for St. Mary’s.”
Lily stared at her.
“That’s exactly where I’m going.”
Her mother’s expression changed.
“Lily!”
But Lily was already walking upstairs.
She grabbed her jacket, the old photographs and the key.
Amara was waiting outside.
“You’re sure about this?” Amara asked.
Lily nodded.
“I need to know what happened.”
They drove toward the abandoned St. Mary’s Home.
By the time they arrived, the sun was beginning to disappear behind the trees.
The building looked even more frightening than it had in the photographs.
Broken windows.
Peeling walls.
A rusted sign hanging above the entrance.
ST. MARY’S HOME.
Lily held the key tightly.
“Let’s find the records room.”
They entered through a side door.
Inside, everything was covered in dust.
They searched room after room until they found a narrow hallway.
At the end was a metal door.
A faded label read:
RECORDS.
Lily inserted the key.
Click.
The door opened.
Shelves filled the room.
Boxes were stacked from the floor to the ceiling.
Amara picked up an old file.
“Look at this.”
Lily opened it.
It contained records of children who had stayed at St. Mary’s.
She turned page after page.
Then she saw it.
EMILY COLE — AGE 16.
Underneath her name was another record.
LILY — AGE 6.
Lily froze.
“Why was my name here?”
Amara pointed to the next line.
Transferred: August 14.
Lily remembered the date on the photograph.
August 14.
The missing year.
She opened another file.
Inside was a report about the night Emily disappeared.
Most of the information had been crossed out.
But one sentence remained visible:
Emily left the building with Lily.
Lily’s heart began pounding.
“I was with her.”
Amara nodded.
“But where did you go?”
Lily turned another page.
A handwritten note was attached to the report.
Ask Sarah Cole. She knows what happened.
Lily stepped backward.
“My mother.”
Suddenly, they heard a noise outside the records room.
Footsteps.
Amara quickly closed the file.
“Someone’s here.”
They switched off the flashlight and stayed silent.
The footsteps came closer.
Then stopped outside the door.
Lily held her breath.
A shadow appeared beneath the door.
Someone was standing there.
After several seconds, the shadow moved away.
Amara waited.
Then she whispered, “We need to go.”
Lily looked at the files.
She couldn’t leave them behind.
She quickly took photographs of the important pages.
Then they slipped out through a back entrance.
—
When Lily returned home, her mother was waiting.
She was sitting at the kitchen table.
“You went to St. Mary’s.”
It wasn’t a question.
Lily placed the photographs on the table.
“Yes.”
Her mother’s eyes filled with tears.
“I told you not to go.”
“I needed the truth.”
Her mother stared at the photographs.
Then she finally whispered:
“Emily didn’t disappear.”
Lily’s heart stopped.
“What?”
“She ran away.”
“Why?”
“Because someone was trying to take you.”
Lily couldn’t speak.
Her mother continued.
“Emily found out that someone wanted to use you to cover up what had happened at St. Mary’s.”
“Who?”
“I don’t know.”
“You always say you don’t know!”
Her mother looked at her.
“I know more than I have told you.”
“Then tell me!”
Silence.
Finally, her mother reached into her bag and pulled out an old letter.
“Emily left this for you.”
Lily took it.
Her hands trembled as she opened it.
The letter was short.
Lily,
If you’re reading this, it means you finally found St. Mary’s.
I’m sorry I couldn’t stay.
Your mother will tell you that I left because I was afraid. That’s only part of the truth.
There was someone inside St. Mary’s who couldn’t be trusted.
And that person knew about you.
Lily looked at her mother.
“Who?”
Her mother shook her head.
“I don’t know.”
Lily looked back at the letter.
There was one final sentence.
Don’t trust the person who says they remember everything.
Lily’s blood ran cold.
She remembered the message from the stranger.
Someone who remembers what happened.
Was Emily warning her about that person?
Before Lily could say anything, her phone vibrated.
Unknown number.
A photograph appeared on the screen.
It showed Lily and Amara leaving St. Mary’s that evening.
Someone had been watching them.
Then another message appeared.
You found the records.
A second message followed.
Now you know why they were hidden.
Lily stared at the screen.
Then came the final message.
But you still don’t know what happened to Emily.
Lily looked at her mother.
For the first time, her mother didn’t look afraid.
She looked determined.
“It’s time,” she whispered.
“Time for what?”
“To tell you where Emily went.”
END OF EPISODE 8
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