Is That Mom

Part 9 of Chapter 8

Chapter 8:

Unraveling the Lies

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Part 9:

A Moment of Doubt

Ethan sat on the edge of the bed, the room around him blurred and unfocused, like a scene from a dream. The documents he had meticulously gathered lay scattered across the floor, the corners curling up, as if they were trying to shrink away from the light. His bag was packed, leaning against the wall, ready for the journey ahead, but Ethan’s hands were still, resting on his knees. The adrenaline that had kept him going through the night was gone, leaving behind an emptiness that gnawed at his insides.

He had always thought that finding out the truth would be liberating, that once he uncovered the secrets, he would finally understand. But now, on the brink of discovering everything, he was suffocating under the weight of it all. He thought back to the mansion, to the hidden room filled with damning evidence, and to the stranger who had warned him to walk away. For the first time, Ethan wondered if he should have listened.

The room was silent, save for the faint hum of the refrigerator in the corner, and it was in that silence that the doubts crept in. Ethan stared at the floor, his vision blurring as he tried to hold back the emotions threatening to spill over. His mind replayed everything he had found—the experiments, the photographs, the letters—and he felt sick to his stomach. His mother’s face flashed in his mind, not the woman in the research photos, but the warm, smiling figure he remembered from his childhood. How could she be the same person? How could someone he had loved so deeply be a part of something so dark?

Ethan’s heart ached with the questions that had no answers, the contradictions that had no resolution. He felt like he was losing her all over again, and this time, it was even worse because he was losing the memory of her, the one thing that had kept him going. The version of his mother he had clung to was slipping away, and what was left in its place was a stranger—a scientist entangled in something sinister.

He felt a sharp pain in his chest, a tightening that made it hard to breathe. It was fear, but also grief, the kind of grief that came when you realized you might never find what you were looking for. Ethan rubbed his hands over his face, trying to push the feeling away, but it clung to him, stubborn and relentless. The idea of walking away, of abandoning this search, felt like a betrayal, but continuing felt like it was tearing him apart.

Ethan reached for his phone, opening it to the screen where he had saved the coordinates for the Argon Facility. He had planned to leave within the hour, to follow the lead, but now, his resolve was wavering. What if there was nothing there? What if all he found were more lies, more confusion, and more pain? What if, by continuing, he was only pushing himself deeper into a labyrinth he would never escape?

The questions swirled in his mind, each one louder than the last, and for a moment, he let himself consider it—giving up. He imagined packing everything away, leaving this town, this mess, and returning to some semblance of a normal life. He could forget about the experiments, the documents, the facility, and just let the past stay buried where it belonged. He could start fresh, find peace in ignorance, and let go of the woman who had become a ghost haunting his every step.

But even as the thought crossed his mind, Ethan knew it wasn’t possible. He could feel the lie in it, the way it hollowed out his chest. Ignorance wasn’t peace; it was a wound that never healed, a question that would gnaw at him until there was nothing left. He had spent so long trying to find the truth, and now that he was so close, he couldn’t turn away.

Ethan’s hands clenched into fists, his nails digging into his palms. He was exhausted, drained, and yet, somewhere deep inside, a small flame still burned. It was the same stubborn part of him that had pushed him to keep searching, even when everyone else had given up, even when he knew how much it would hurt. That part of him wouldn’t let go, not now, not when he was finally on the verge of understanding what had happened to his mother.

He took a deep, shaky breath, and slowly, the doubts began to recede, replaced by a grim, steely determination. Ethan knew there would be no peace until he saw this through, until he had answers. It didn’t matter if those answers were painful, if they shattered everything he thought he knew. He needed to know the truth, even if it meant confronting the darkest parts of his past, even if it meant losing the last, fragile pieces of his mother he had left.

The room felt colder, the shadows longer, but Ethan stood, his legs unsteady but resolute. He grabbed his bag, slinging it over his shoulder, and took one last look at the documents on the floor. They were a mess, just like everything else, but there was clarity in the chaos, a sense of purpose that had been missing for so long. Ethan picked up the photograph of his mother, the one he had found in the mansion, and stared at it for a long moment. Her eyes, so familiar yet distant, seemed to be looking right through him, as if she was daring him to find her, to understand.

“I’m not giving up,” Ethan whispered, his voice rough, barely audible. “Not until I know the truth.”

He slipped the photograph into his bag, along with the rest of the documents, and headed for the door. The doubts were still there, lurking in the corners of his mind, but they were quieter now, drowned out by the resolve that had taken their place. Ethan knew the road ahead would be hard, that he would have to face things he wasn’t ready for, but he was done running.

As he stepped out into the cool night air, the sky still dark with the promise of dawn, Ethan felt a strange sense of calm wash over him. It wasn’t the calm of certainty, but the calm of acceptance, of knowing that he was doing the only thing he could, the only thing that mattered. And for the first time in a long time, he felt like he was moving forward, instead of being trapped in a cycle of endless questions and fears.

The road stretched out before him, long and winding, but Ethan didn’t look back. He tightened his grip on the bag, his footsteps steady, and headed toward the unknown, ready to face whatever came next.