The Only Victim

Mom and Dad arrived at the police station quickly.

"I'm telling you, if that necklace turns out to be something Danica stole, I'll break her legs and throw her out of the house!"

Mom still refused to believe that the body could be mine.

At the station, the police first showed the necklace to the engraving shop owner. With just one look, the owner immediately recognized his own work.

"I remember this necklace. A young girl came in—quiet, well-mannered, with a ponytail. She came twice. The first time, she just asked about the price. A month later, she returned with the money.

"I warned her that the engraving on the pendant would be permanent, but she was very firm. She said this date was the most important day of her life."

When the surveillance footage played, Mom and Dad fell completely silent.

Mom stared at the screen and swallowed. "That girl looks a bit like Danica."

The audio from the footage was clear, and the girl's voice carried a slight accent. "This is the most important day of my life. I found my family again. This is my day of rebirth. I want to remember it forever."

I had a strong accent—one of the many reasons Mom looked down on me. She had tried to correct it countless times before eventually telling me to speak as little as possible in public.

"Danica? I think that was the name she gave when filling out the order form," the engraver recalled.

Dad's face darkened. He took a deep breath, trying to stay calm.

"Are you in on this with Danica? Are you trying to play us? She just wants to see us panic and worry about her. This is a police station—you'd better not be pulling any tricks!"

The engraver quickly shook his head at the officers, but Dad was growing more convinced that this was some elaborate setup.

The room descended into chaos.

Fortunately, the officer in charge of the missing persons case walked in just then.

"Enough. The DNA test results are in."