The wrench slipped and smashed Richard's thumb.
"Ow!" He stuck his finger in his mouth and tasted blood. The old blue Honda he was fixing seemed to laugh at him. This was the third time today he had hurt himself working on cars.
His mind wasn't on engines and oil changes. It was on the news story playing on his tiny TV in the corner of the garage.
"Pop star Liya faces serious questions about a shocking video..." the reporter was saying.
Richard tried to ignore it. Celebrity drama wasn't his problem. He had real troubles to worry about. Like paying his mom's medical bills and keeping his small garage open.
But every time he looked up, there was her face on the screen. Those same green eyes he remembered from fifteen years ago. The same smile that used to make him feel like he could fly.
Amy Grant. That was her real name back then. Before she became "Liya" and forgot about small towns and old friends.
The TV got louder. "The victim in the video has been identified as rising star Selene Matthews, age nineteen..."
Richard dropped his wrench completely. It clanged on the concrete floor like a bell.
Selene Matthews. He knew that name too. But from where?
His phone rang, cutting through his confused thoughts. The caller ID said "Mercy Hospital." His heart jumped into his throat. That's where his mom was getting treatment.
"Hello?" he answered quickly.
"Mr. Richard? This is Nurse Janet. Your mother is asking for you. She seems upset about something."
"I'll be right there."
Richard threw his tools into their box and locked up the garage. The ten-minute drive to the hospital felt like an hour. His mom had been sick for two years now. Some days were good. Others were terrible. He never knew which kind of day he would find.
Room 204 was quiet when he walked in. His mom, Sarah, sat up in bed watching the same news story on her hospital TV.
"Richard, honey, come sit down," she said. Her voice sounded weak but worried.
"How are you feeling today, Mom?"
"Never mind that. Look at this poor girl on TV. That Liya person. They're saying she did awful things."
Richard sat in the plastic chair next to her bed. "It's just celebrity gossip, Mom. Nothing to worry about."
"But I recognize her face. Don't you?"
Richard's stomach tightened. "What do you mean?"
"She looks just like that sweet girl who used to come to our house. Amy something. The one who sang with you in the garage."
Richard felt like someone had punched him. His mom's memory wasn't always clear because of her medication. But sometimes she remembered things perfectly.
"Mom, that was a long time ago."
"She had the prettiest voice. And you two wrote such beautiful songs together." His mom smiled at the memory. "Whatever happened to her?"
Before Richard could answer, the news changed to a commercial. But when it came back, the reporter had breaking news.
"We've just learned that police have searched Liya's home. They removed several items as evidence. Sources say this investigation is bigger than anyone first thought."
Richard's mom grabbed his hand. "That girl is in trouble, isn't she?"
"Looks like it."
"Do you think she really did those mean things they're saying?"
Richard stared at the TV screen. The video played again. It showed a young woman who looked like Amy yelling at another singer. But something felt wrong about it. The movements looked strange. The voice didn't sound quite right.
"I don't know, Mom."
But deep down, he did know. The Amy he remembered was kind and gentle. She cried when they found a hurt bird in his garage. She gave her lunch money to kids who forgot theirs at school. She would never hurt anyone on purpose.
His mom squeezed his hand tighter. "I remember something else about her."
"What's that?"
"She was running from something. Or someone. She never talked about it, but I could tell. That girl was scared of something back then."
Richard's mind started racing. Amy had always been secretive about her family. She never wanted him to walk her home. She always left before it got dark. He thought she was just being careful.
"Mom, are you sure you remember correctly?"
"Some things you never forget, honey. That girl was in danger. And I think she still is."
The news showed more footage from outside Amy's house. Reporters pushed against police barriers. Camera crews filmed everything. It looked like a war zone.
Richard's phone buzzed with a text message. Unknown number: "Stop digging into the past. Some secrets should stay buried."
His blood turned cold. "Mom, did you tell anyone we were talking about Amy?"
"Just the nice nurse. Why?"
Richard showed her the text message. His mom's face went pale.
"Someone is watching us," she whispered.
Another text came in: "Richard Stevens, 26 years old. Owns Stevens Auto Repair. Mother Sarah Stevens, patient at Mercy Hospital room 204. We know everything about you."
Richard jumped up from his chair. "We need to tell the nurse to call security."
"Wait." His mom grabbed his arm. "There's something else I remember about Amy. Something important."
"What?"
"She had a notebook. Full of songs and poems. She was always writing in it. But there were other things too. Names. Dates. Like she was keeping track of something."
"What kind of names?"
"Music people. Record company folks. She was planning something big. Or maybe she was trying to solve something big."
Richard felt pieces of a puzzle clicking together in his mind. Amy hadn't just disappeared from their small town to become famous. She had been investigating something. Something that might have gotten her into trouble.
The TV showed breaking news again: "Liya's former friends speak out - 'She was always secretive about her past.'"
His mom pointed at the screen. "That's not the Amy I knew. She told me everything. Well, almost everything."
"What didn't she tell you?"
"Why she was really here. She said she was visiting family, but we never met any relatives. She was hiding, Richard. From someone dangerous."
Richard's phone rang. This time, the caller ID was blocked.
He answered it carefully. "Hello?"
"Richard Stevens?" The voice was disguised, electronic sounding.
"Who is this?"
"Someone who knows you used to be friends with Amy Grant. Someone who knows she trusted you with secrets."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Meet me tonight at midnight. The old bridge outside town. Come alone, or your mother's medical treatments might suddenly become very expensive."
The line went dead.
Richard stared at his phone. His hands were shaking.
His mom looked at him with worried eyes. "What did they say?"
"Someone wants to meet me. They know about Amy. They know about you."
"It's a trap, honey. Don't go."
Richard looked at his sick mother lying in that hospital bed. She needed those treatments to survive. If someone cut off their insurance or made the bills too high to pay...
"I have to go, Mom. I have to find out what this is about."
"What if they hurt you?"
Richard kissed his mom's forehead. "Then at least I'll know Amy was telling the truth about being in danger."
As he walked out of the hospital, one thought kept spinning in his head:
If Amy was in danger fifteen years ago, and she was still in danger now, what had she discovered that was worth destroying her life over?
And what would they do to him for remembering?