Chapter 2The Parasite in My Daughter’s Veins

When I saw Michelle, it was like seeing a lifeline. “Michelle,” I pleaded, my voice cracking, “Look at this girl! She’s not Daisy, is she?”

Michelle’s face registered a flicker of surprise, then an awkward glance at the girl.

“Sarah, are you… are you seeing things? This is Daisy.”

She even pulled out her phone, showing me photos of Daisy taken years ago, comparing them.

It was strange. I remembered Daisy looking differently three years ago, but all the photos Michelle showed me now featured this girl’s face. A cold dread seeped into my bones, a chilling sense of unease spreading through me.

David, holding the girl’s hand, looked at me with a mocking glint in his eyes. Just as I was about to speak, the front door opened.

My mom had returned from her small town. I felt a surge of desperate hope, clutching her hand tightly.

“Mom, you see it, don’t you? She’s not Daisy.”

My mom pulled out her phone, carefully comparing the photos. Then, she shook her head slowly. I saw her reaction. Mother knows best, I thought. She must feel it too.

But then, she sighed, her gaze filled with a weary sadness. “Sarah, honey, have you been worrying too much about Daisy lately? Are you starting to imagine things?”

“This is your daughter, Daisy. You can’t even recognize her. I think you’re really sick, dear. It worries me, you’re still so young…”

Her comforting words continued, but my mind was a maelstrom of frantic thoughts.

“I’m not sick! She’s not my daughter!”

But no matter what I said, everyone stared at me with startled eyes, as if mocking me, the madwoman.

A memory flashed in my mind. Daisy had a small, heart-shaped birthmark on her lower back. I refused to believe this girl had it too. I grabbed her, pulling her shirt up.

She struggled, resisting frantically, and her shirt accidentally tore. She began to cry, small, helpless whimpers.

David instantly scooped her into his arms, then slapped me. My mother, horrified, stepped forward. “Sarah Miller, when did you become so unreasonable? This is your own flesh and blood!”

David carried the girl away. I stood there, stunned. I had seen it. The birthmark was there. How? Had I misremembered? Was my daughter’s mark not what I thought?

They looked similar, but the eyes, the eyebrows, the chin… they were all wrong. My Daisy had a round face, but this girl’s face was slightly longer.

I frantically searched for photos, but every picture I remembered, every image of Daisy in my mind, had been replaced by this girl’s face.

Then I remembered. Daisy and Michelle’s daughter, Chloe, were very close. They were together that day when Daisy mysteriously disappeared.

I turned to ask Michelle, but she wasn’t there. I tried to call her, but my call wouldn’t go through. My messages on the chat app came back with a red exclamation mark.

Why? She had just been here a moment ago.