Gemotions

A cold sweat slicked down Clara's spine as she stared at the photographs. The family lore spoke of her grandmother's idyllic childhood, full of sunshine and laughter. But the pictures showed something else entirely. Her grandmother's face, usually so warm in memory, was pinched, wary.

Clara kept looking over her shoulder, convinced she wasn't alone. Every rustle of leaves outside her window felt like a whispered threat. She reread the caption on the back of one photo: “Happy Birthday, my darling. Remember our secret.” A secret? What secret?

She slammed the album shut. Her palms were clammy. She needed to know everything, but the thought of digging deeper brought a knot to her stomach. She locked the photo album in her desk drawer, but she could still hear it, the echo of that whispered secret.