Chapter 7 - Everything on the Tablet
The forensic examination of Lily’s tablet lasted nearly two weeks.
What investigators found was more extensive than anyone expected.
The audio application had activated whenever voices reached a certain volume. Because the tablet remained connected to a charger in Daniel’s office, it recorded conversations across several days.
Daniel and Vanessa discussed the custody plan repeatedly.
They described how Daniel had influenced Emily’s doctor by attending appointments and exaggerating ordinary pregnancy symptoms.
They discussed the school counselor and the relatives Daniel had contacted.
Vanessa suggested that Emily’s emotional reaction to discovering the affair could be presented as a breakdown.
Daniel laughed.
“She’ll give us exactly what we need.”
They also discussed money.
Daniel planned to transfer Emily’s remaining investments into a company account before filing for divorce. He intended to claim the money had been used to cover business debts.
Vanessa would receive the penthouse through a private agreement once Daniel gained control.
“Why not sell it?” Vanessa asked in one recording.
“Because she loves it,” Daniel replied. “Watching us live there will hurt more.”
When Emily heard those words, she finally stopped mourning the man she thought she had married.
The husband she missed had never existed.
There had been moments of kindness and affection, but Daniel had treated them like investments. He gave love when it increased loyalty.
He withdrew love when he wanted obedience.
Marcus discovered that Vanessa had received more than six hundred thousand dollars through false consulting contracts over eighteen months.
Some of that money had paid for an apartment Daniel kept in another part of the city.
The apartment contained clothing, photographs, and documents showing the affair had begun much earlier than Emily believed.
Investigators also recovered draft statements Daniel planned to submit during the custody dispute.
One claimed Emily had left the stove burning while the children were home.
Another claimed she had driven dangerously with Lily in the car.
Neither event had occurred.
Daniel had invented incidents and added dates, locations, and witnesses he expected Vanessa to support.
Sarah placed the documents across a conference room table.
“He was creating an entire fictional life for you.”
Emily examined the pages.
In Daniel’s version of events, she was careless, jealous, confused, and incapable of protecting her children.
“Will people believe me now?”
Sarah looked at her.
“The evidence is overwhelming.”
“That isn’t what I asked.”
Sarah understood.
Daniel’s campaign had reached people Emily loved. Some relatives had stopped calling because they thought she needed rest. A neighbor had mentioned Daniel’s concern about her mental health.
Even her doctor had initially viewed Emily through Daniel’s description.
Evidence could correct legal records.
It could not immediately repair every relationship.
“Some people will apologize,” Sarah said. “Some will make excuses. Others may never admit how easily they believed him.”
Emily folded the false statement.
“What do I do with that?”
“You decide whose apology is worth accepting.”
The first apology came from Daniel’s younger sister, Claire.
She visited Emily carrying a box of old company records.
“I should have said something years ago,” Claire admitted. “Daniel did this to our mother after our father died. He convinced everyone she was confused so he could control part of her estate.”
Emily stared at her.
“Why didn’t you warn me?”
“I wanted to believe he had changed.”
Claire placed the box on the table.
“These records show how he learned to move money without attracting attention. I’ll testify.”
Emily felt anger rise, but underneath it was something else.
Recognition.
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She was not Daniel’s first target.
She was simply the first one who had enough evidence to stop him.
