CHAPTER 3 — The Woman Who Called Me at Midnight
CHAPTER 3 — The Woman Who Called Me at Midnight
I didn't sleep.
Not after Carla's warning.
"You're not the first pregnant woman."
Those six words repeated in my head until sunrise.
Owen insisted we call the number back.
It went straight to voicemail.
Again.
And again.
Nothing.
By morning, I started wondering if I'd imagined the whole conversation.
Maybe it was some internet troll.
Maybe one of Lydia's friends trying to scare me.
Then my phone buzzed.
Unknown Number.
This time it was a text.
Meet me. Alone if possible.
11:00 a.m.
Maple Street Café.
Bring no one from your family.
I'll explain everything.
Attached was a photograph.
It showed Lydia.
Much younger.
Standing beside a heavily pregnant woman.
Her hands rested possessively on the woman's stomach.
The woman wasn't smiling.
She looked...
Uncomfortable.
Very uncomfortable.
Owen refused to let me go alone.
"I'm sitting across the room," he said. "She doesn't have to know we're together."
I agreed.
At thirty-nine weeks pregnant, I wasn't taking chances.
Maple Street Café was nearly empty when we arrived.
A woman in her early forties stood the moment she saw me.
"You must be Lena."
Her voice shook.
"I'm Carla."
She looked exhausted.
Not physically.
Emotionally.
Like she'd carried something heavy for years.
She kept glancing toward the windows.
"Is Lydia following you?"
"No."
"Good."
She didn't order coffee.
Didn't even sit comfortably.
Instead she slid a thick manila envelope across the table.
"I've wanted to mail this to you for years."
Inside were photographs.
Emails.
Printed text messages.
Hospital visitor stickers.
Everything was carefully organized.
The first photo made my stomach twist.
Lydia stood beside another pregnant woman—same smile, same excitement, same possessive arm wrapped around her shoulders.
"This is Erin."
Carla pointed to the picture.
"We all lived together after college."
"What happened?"
Carla closed her eyes.
"Lydia became obsessed."
I frowned.
"Obsessed how?"
"At first it looked sweet."
She gave a sad laugh.
"She bought baby clothes."
"Decorated the nursery."
"Attended every doctor's appointment."
"Answered questions that weren't directed at her."
I felt sick.
It sounded...
Familiar.
"Then she started introducing herself as the baby's second mother."
"What?"
"She wasn't joking."
Carla swallowed hard.
"She actually believed she deserved equal rights because she'd 'been there through the pregnancy.'"
Goosebumps spread across my arms.
That was exactly how Lydia had behaved with Juniper.
Carla continued.
"When Erin asked for space, Lydia completely snapped."
"Did she hurt her?"
Carla hesitated.
"No."
The pause lasted too long.
"What aren't you telling me?"
She looked down.
"She tried to get into Erin's house while they were asleep."
My pulse pounded.
"With a key."
I couldn't breathe.
Just like our house.
"Erin changed the locks."
"Then Lydia began showing up unannounced."
"Leaving gifts."
"Leaving notes."
"Talking about how the baby needed two mothers."
The café suddenly felt too small.
Too warm.
Too loud.
Carla pushed another document toward me.
It was a police report.
The address had been blacked out.
The names were partially redacted.
But one sentence remained visible.
Subject attempted to remove infant from bassinet while parents slept.
I stared.
Then stared harder.
"No..."
Carla nodded.
"The baby was three weeks old."
My coffee cup slipped from my fingers.
It shattered across the floor.
Every customer turned to look.
"I wish I were lying."
Carla's eyes filled with tears.
"The family refused to press charges."
"They said Lydia was mentally overwhelmed."
"They moved across the country instead."
"And everyone pretended it never happened."
I whispered,
"My parents know."
"They absolutely know."
The realization crashed into me.
Every excuse.
Every defense.
Every demand that I "understand Lydia."
They weren't protecting her feelings.
They were hiding her history.
They knew exactly what she was capable of.
My phone vibrated.
One new message.
From Mom.
Don't listen to strangers trying to poison you against your sister.
I slowly looked around the café.
"How does she know where I am?"
Carla's face drained of color.
"I never told anyone."
Neither had I.
Then Owen appeared beside us.
His own expression had gone white.
"Lena..."
He held up his phone.
"Our Ring camera detected motion."
I opened the live feed.
My blood froze.
Lydia stood on our front porch.
Smiling.
Holding something pink.
She looked directly into the camera.
Then she lifted it higher.
It was Juniper's personalized baby blanket.
May you like
The one folded inside our nursery.
The blanket no one outside our house should have been able to touch.
