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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nSlowly, she set the knife aside and started digging through the stuffing with her hands. Her fingers touched something firm, hidden deep inside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This wasn\u2019t random.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Someone had placed it there deliberately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And Lina had no doubt who.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Her hands trembled as she pulled out a tightly wrapped bundle. It was covered in old fabric and tied carefully, as if it had been hidden\u2026 but also protected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She hesitated for a moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then she untied the knot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The fabric fell open.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And everything changed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Inside \u2014 money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A lot of money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Stacks of bills, neatly arranged. But that wasn\u2019t what truly shocked her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Beneath them were photographs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Old, faded, yet clear enough to make out faces she had never seen before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And among them\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n
her own face.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Or rather, someone who looked exactly like her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On the back of each photograph were dates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lina turned one over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And froze.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Her name was written there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But the date was from years before she was even born.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Her breath caught.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She grabbed another photo \u2014 the same handwriting, the same strange markings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then she noticed an envelope.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Old, fragile, almost falling apart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On the front, a short message:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOpen when you are alone.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A chill ran down her spine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She was alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Slowly, she opened it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Inside was a letter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Her grandmother\u2019s handwriting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She began to read.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With every line, her heart pounded harder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With every word, the reality she knew began to crack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Everything she believed about her family\u2026 was not the full truth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The people she trusted had been hiding something for years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And she herself\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n
was not who she thought she was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The last lines made her legs go weak:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf you\u2019re reading this, it means they are already close. Trust no one. Not even those you love.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At that exact moment\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n
a sound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Soft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Almost unnoticeable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A creak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lina lifted her head sharply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Someone was standing behind the door.<\/p>\n\n\n\n