Chapter 1 - The Crescent Moon
Jack stared at the crescent moon birthmark on the little girl's left ankle.
His heart hammered against his ribs like a trapped bird desperately trying to escape.
It was exactly the same mark his missing daughter Callie had.
Lena looked at him with those intense, familiar blue eyes.
"Are you crying, Jack?" she asked softly.
Jack wiped a stray tear from his cheek and forced a trembling smile.
"It is just a beautiful mark, Lena," he whispered.
He desperately needed to ask her more questions about where she lived and who her mother was.
Before he could speak, the bakery door chimed violently.
A pale, frantic woman in a worn gray coat rushed into the shop.
She scanned the room wildly until her eyes locked onto Lena.
"I told you never to wander off!" the woman hissed, grabbing the child's small arm.
Lena dropped her fork, her eyes wide with sudden, paralyzing fear.
"Mommy, I just wanted some cake," she whimpered.
Jack stood up quickly, his chair scraping loudly against the wooden floor.
"Excuse me, is this your daughter?" Jack demanded, his voice thick with authority.
The woman looked at Jack, and all the color instantly drained from her face.
It was not just surprise in her eyes, but absolute, unmistakable terror.
She did not answer him.
Instead, she yanked Lena toward the exit, practically dragging the crying child.
"Wait!" Jack yelled, abandoning his coffee and sprinting after them.
He pushed through the bakery doors just as the woman shoved Lena into the back of a rusted black sedan.
Jack lunged for the door handle, but the car's engine roared to life.
The tires squealed against the icy asphalt as the vehicle sped recklessly down the street.
Jack stood in the freezing wind, his chest heaving as he memorized the license plate number.
He looked down at the empty parking space and noticed something glittering on the pavement.
It was a heavy silver locket that had fallen from the woman's torn coat pocket during the struggle.
Jack picked it up with trembling hands and pried the delicate clasp open.
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Inside was a crumpled, faded photograph of Jack and his late wife holding a newborn baby.
Someone had violently scratched out Jack's face with a sharp knife.
