Chapter 3 - The Page She Tore Out
Police officers arrived within minutes.
They sealed the house, photographed the broken window, and searched the surrounding gardens.
There was no sign of Vanessa or the intruder.
Detective Maya Cole took Daniel’s statement in the kitchen.
She was in her early forties, composed and observant, with the weary eyes of someone who had learned that frightened people rarely told the complete truth the first time.
“You saw one intruder?” she asked.
“I felt one. I couldn’t see clearly.”
“Male or female?”
“I don’t know.”
“Height?”
“Near mine, maybe.”
“What exactly was stolen?”
“A storage box containing evidence that my children had been abused.”
Detective Cole’s pen stopped.
“What kind of evidence?”
“Photographs, medicine, forged documents, personal belongings.”
“Who assembled it?”
Daniel looked at Lily.
She sat at the dining table with a female officer, drawing circles on a blank sheet of paper.
“My daughter may have.”
“A seven-year-old?”
“She said she recorded the bad days.”
Detective Cole studied him.
“Where is your sister?”
“I don’t know.”
“Could she have taken the box during the confusion?”
“She was in front of me when the smoke started.”
“Did you see her afterward?”
“No.”
“So she may have left with the intruder.”
“She may have been taken.”
“Which do you believe?”
Daniel did not answer.
At the hospital, Noah was being treated for severe dehydration, a respiratory infection, and possible medication poisoning.
The doctors had not yet determined what substance he had received.
Daniel wanted to be beside him, but Detective Cole insisted on completing the initial interview.
“Does your sister have access to your finances?” she asked.
“She manages household expenses.”
“Medical records?”
“Yes.”
“Your signature?”
“She has seen it thousands of times.”
“Passports?”
“They were kept in my office safe.”
“Who knew the combination?”
“Only me.”
“Were the passport copies taken from the safe?”
“I don’t know.”
“Then we need to examine it.”
They entered Daniel’s office.
The safe stood behind a framed architectural drawing.
It was locked.
Daniel entered the code.
The door opened.
His passport was there.
So were several company contracts and Rachel’s will.
At first glance, nothing appeared missing.
Detective Cole examined the shelves.
“Who cleans this room?”
“Vanessa hired a housekeeper.”
“What’s her name?”
“Maribel Santos.”
“Where is she?”
“She stopped coming three months ago. Vanessa said she returned to the Philippines.”
Detective Cole turned.
“Did you speak to her?”
“No.”
“Did you verify she left the country?”
“No.”
Daniel felt a growing pressure in his chest.
Every answer revealed another responsibility he had surrendered.
Meals.
Medicine.
School communication.
Household staff.
He had told himself he was providing for his children.
But he had not known what was happening inside their rooms.
Detective Cole noticed a small scratch near the safe’s hinge.
She put on gloves.
“This was opened with something other than the code.”
Daniel looked closer.
The scratch appeared fresh.
“Can someone force it without damaging the lock?”
“A professional could.”
She photographed it.
Behind them, Lily appeared in the doorway.
She held her notebook.
“Daddy?”
Daniel knelt.
“You should be with Officer Bennett.”
“She said I could come.”
Detective Cole crouched to Lily’s height.
“My name is Maya. May I ask about your notebook?”
Lily pressed it against her chest.
“Will you give it to Aunt Vanessa?”
“No.”
“Will Daddy get in trouble?”
“No one is in trouble for telling the truth.”
Lily looked uncertain.
Daniel held out his hand.
“You decide.”
After a long moment, she gave him the notebook.
The cover was pink, decorated with faded stars.
A small brass lock had been broken off.
Daniel opened it.
The first page was dated fourteen months earlier.
Aunt Vanessa told me Daddy does not want us anymore.
The second entry read:
She said Mommy died because Daddy made her drive in the rain.
Daniel stopped breathing.
“That’s not true,” he whispered.
Lily stared at the floor.
“She said you would lie.”
He continued reading.
The entries were short.
Some contained misspelled words.
Others included drawings.
Vanessa locking the pantry.
Noah crying beside an empty plate.
A tall man entering the house after midnight.
A white van outside the school.
Someone taking photographs through the garden fence.
Aunt Vanessa made me practice saying Daddy shouts at us.
Aunt Vanessa said the judge will ask questions.
Aunt Vanessa gave Noah drops so he would sleep when the man came.
Daniel’s hands began shaking.
Detective Cole read over his shoulder.
“Who is the man?”
Lily pointed to a drawing.
“He wears gray gloves.”
“Did he come often?”
“On Thursdays.”
“What did he do?”
“He went into Daddy’s office. Sometimes he carried boxes.”
“Did Aunt Vanessa know him?”
“She called him Mr. Vale.”
Detective Cole’s expression changed.
“You’re sure that was the name?”
Lily nodded.
Daniel noticed the detective’s reaction.
“You know him.”
“I know the name.”
“Who is he?”
Before she answered, Lily reached for the notebook.
“There’s a missing page.”
Daniel examined the binding.
A sheet had been carefully torn out near the center.
“What was on it?”
Lily’s face tightened.
“The night Mommy came home.”
Daniel stared at her.
“Mommy?”
May you like
Lily began to cry.
“She told me not to let Aunt Vanessa know I saw her.”
