Chapter 2 - THE CAMERA THAT STOPPED RECORDING
Claire woke beneath white lights.
A monitor beeped beside her. Something tightened around her arm, then released.
For a moment, she remembered nothing.
Then her hands flew to her stomach.
A nurse hurried forward.
“The babies still have heartbeats,” she said. “Please don’t move.”
Claire closed her eyes as relief and terror crashed through her at once.
“Ethan?”
“He’s outside speaking with the doctor.”
“Did they arrest her?”
The nurse hesitated.
Claire opened her eyes.
“Did they arrest Margaret?”
“I don’t know.”
The door opened.
Ethan entered wearing a borrowed hospital shirt. Claire’s blood still marked the cuffs of his trousers.
He crossed the room and took her hand.
“The doctors stopped the bleeding,” he said. “They’re monitoring the twins. There are signs of early contractions, but they’re doing everything they can.”
Claire studied his face.
“What happened to your mother?”
“The police questioned her.”
“Questioned?”
“She said you fell.”
Claire almost laughed, but the movement sent pain through her side.
“The bat?”
“They found it.”
“Then why isn’t she in jail?”
Ethan’s jaw tightened.
“Because Luke changed his statement.”
The monitor seemed suddenly louder.
Claire remembered Luke standing near the stairs with his phone raised.
“He recorded it.”
“He says he started recording after you were already on the floor.”
“That’s not true.”
“I know.”
“Where is the video?”
“Deleted.”
Claire looked toward the window.
Rain streamed down the dark glass.
“Luke was afraid.”
“Or paid.”
“Your mother attacked me and our children.”
Ethan’s eyes filled with shame.
“I should have listened to you.”
Claire withdrew her hand.
For months, she had told him that Margaret was becoming dangerous.
She told him about the anonymous messages accusing her of trapping him.
She told him about medication disappearing from her bathroom cabinet.
She told him that Margaret had entered their bedroom while Claire slept and stood beside the crib they had assembled.
Each time, Ethan had confronted his mother.
Each time, Margaret cried.
Each time, he returned home asking Claire to be patient.
“I don’t need an apology tonight,” Claire said. “I need the truth.”
He nodded.
“The police received a call before I reached the house. The caller said a pregnant woman was being attacked.”
“Luke?”
“No. The call came from a prepaid phone.”
“Who else was there?”
“No one we know of.”
Claire remembered the ringing phone as she lost consciousness.
“Someone else was in the house.”
Ethan looked at her sharply.
“What?”
“I heard another phone ringing near the staircase.”
“It could have been Luke’s.”
“His phone was in his hand.”
Before Ethan could respond, the door opened again.
Detective Nora Vance entered with a leather notebook tucked beneath her arm. She was in her early forties, with tired eyes and a direct manner that made politeness feel unnecessary.
“Mrs. Hale, I need to ask several questions.”
Ethan stood.
“She needs rest.”
“She also needs evidence before your mother’s attorneys erase the rest of it.”
Claire looked at the detective.
“Ask.”
Nora placed a clear plastic evidence bag on the bedside table.
Inside was a tiny black memory card.
“We found this beneath the dining table.”
Claire stared at it.
Nora continued.
“It did not come from Mr. Luke Hale’s phone.”
“Then what was it?”
“We don’t know yet. The card is damaged.”
Ethan leaned closer.
“Was there another camera?”
“Possibly.”
“Who called the police?”
“We’re tracing it.”
Nora looked directly at Claire.
“Your mother-in-law claims you entered the estate in an unstable condition, threatened her, then slipped while attempting to take the bat from the wall.”
Claire felt anger cut through the medication clouding her thoughts.
“She hit me.”
“I believe you.”
“Then arrest her.”
“I need enough evidence to keep her arrested.”
Nora picked up the evidence bag.
“Margaret Hale spent thirty years married to a judge. She knows exactly where the line is.”
Claire’s voice hardened.
“She crossed it.”
“Yes,” Nora said. “But someone may be helping her redraw it.”
The detective walked toward the door, then paused.
“One more thing. The blue folder recovered from the dining room contained guardianship documents.”
Ethan’s face changed.
“I never authorized those.”
“I assumed you didn’t.”
Nora opened her notebook.
“One page was missing. According to the document list, it was a financial schedule identifying assets held in trust for your unborn children.”
Claire looked at Ethan.
“What assets?”
He did not answer immediately.
“Ethan?”
May you like
He lowered his eyes.
“There’s something about my family’s money I never told you.”
