Chapter 5
I wanted to throw the folder at her.
Instead, I stood there staring.
“You notarized my signature?”
Rachel was crying again.
“I didn’t know what it was at first.”
“That doesn’t even make sense.”
“I know.”
“You watched him sign my name?”
“No.”
“Then what did you notarize?”
Rachel wiped her face.
“Michael brought me the paperwork already signed.”
“And you certified that I signed it in front of you.”
“Yes.”
My voice rose.
“You had never even met me!”
“I know.”
People were staring again.
I didn’t care.
“You helped him steal one hundred twenty thousand dollars against my house.”
“Yes.”
“You helped him steal Sophie’s money.”
“I didn’t know about the trust until later.”
“But when you found out, you stayed.”
Rachel looked down.
“Yes.”
I turned away.
Jenna stepped between us.
“You need to leave before my sister forgets we’re in public.”
Morgan remained calm.
“Ms. Hayes is potentially a witness in several investigations.”
“She’s also part of it.”
“Yes.”
Rachel nodded.
“I am.”
Her willingness to admit it somehow made me angrier.
“You don’t get credit for confessing after helping him ruin my life.”
“I’m not asking for credit.”
“Why now?”
That silenced her.
I stepped closer.
“Why did you suddenly grow a conscience?”
Rachel looked at Morgan.
Then at Jenna.
Then at me.
“Because Michael hit me too.”
The anger left my face.
Not the betrayal.
But the surprise stopped me.
“When?”
“Two weeks ago.”
She pulled back the sleeve of her sweater.
There was a fading bruise near her wrist.
“He found out I copied the files.”
“Why were you copying them?”
“Because I was scared.”
“Of Michael?”
“Of both of them.”
She looked toward the window.
Diane’s car was gone.
“Diane knew about our relationship almost from the beginning. She didn’t care. She told me Michael deserved someone who supported him.”
I almost laughed.
Supported him.
Of course she did.
“Then Michael started moving more money. He kept telling me he would leave you after everything was settled.”
“And you believed him.”
“For a while.”
Rachel’s voice cracked.
“Then I saw the custody emails.”
She looked at me.
“That changed things.”
“Why?”
“Because of Sophie.”
I said nothing.
“I have a daughter.”
That surprised me.
“She lives with her father in Ohio. She’s nine.”
Rachel looked ashamed.
“I imagined someone doing this to her mother. I imagined helping them do it.”
Her hands shook.
“I couldn’t.”
Morgan closed the folder.
“We should continue this somewhere private.”
We moved to the police station.
By that afternoon, I had an attorney.
Her name was Ava Patel.
Jenna found her through a friend.
Ava walked into the conference room wearing a navy suit and an expression that suggested she had already decided Michael would regret meeting her.
She shook my hand.
“I’ve read the initial police report.”
Then she looked at the financial documents.
“Your husband is in serious trouble.”
“Can he take Sophie?”
“Not if I can help it.”
For the first time all day, I almost smiled.
Ava sat.
“Tomorrow morning, we’re filing for emergency temporary custody and restrictions on Sophie’s travel documents.”
“Can we find out if a passport exists?”
“We can make the appropriate requests through the legal process. More importantly, we can ask the court to prohibit either parent from removing Sophie from the state without written consent.”
I nodded.
“What about the house?”
“Do not sign anything.”
“I won’t.”
“Do not agree to sell.”
“I won’t.”
“Do not move money from joint accounts unless we discuss it first, except reasonable living expenses.”
I nearly laughed.
“There’s barely anything in our joint account.”
Ava’s eyes narrowed.
“How barely?”
“Michael told me we had about twelve thousand.”
Morgan checked one of the files.
“As of three weeks ago, the household checking account had $1,940.”
I stared at her.
“That can’t be right.”
Rachel looked miserable.
“He moved it.”
“Where?”
“Mostly into the business.”
Ava leaned back.
“Then we’re asking for an asset freeze.”
My phone rang.
Diane.
I ignored it.
She called again.
Then again.
Finally a voicemail appeared.
I played it on speaker.
Her voice was calm.
“Claire, this has gone far enough. Michael is willing to forgive what happened if you tell police emotions got out of control on both sides. He’s also willing to overlook you stealing documents from his office.”
Ava actually smiled.
“Keep that.”
The voicemail continued.
“You need to think about Sophie. Children need fathers. They also need stable mothers.”
My stomach tightened.
Then Diane said,
“If you force this into court, your private problems become public problems. Is that really what you want?”
The message ended.
Ava held out her hand.
“Send that to me.”
I did.
“What does she mean by private problems?”
“I don’t know.”
Rachel looked toward the floor.
Ava noticed.
“You know something.”
Rachel shook her head quickly.
“No.”
“You reacted.”
Rachel swallowed.
“Michael has videos.”
“Of what?” I asked.
“Arguments.”
I thought about the timeline.
“Arguments he started?”
“Sometimes.”
My anger returned.
“What did he do?”
“He would text Diane beforehand.”
Rachel pulled out her phone.
“She told him what subjects to bring up.”
I felt sick.
“What subjects?”
“Money. Your father. Your sister.”
Jenna’s face changed.
Rachel continued.
“Sometimes he would accuse you of neglecting Sophie.”
“That’s insane.”
“I know.”
“Why?”
“To make you angry.”
Ava asked, “Were the recordings edited?”
“I think some were.”
I stared.
“What do you mean, edited?”
“He sent me one once. It started with Claire yelling. But I had seen a longer version on his laptop where Michael had been insulting her for almost ten minutes first.”
Jenna muttered something under her breath.
Ava remained focused.
“Do you have copies?”
“No.”
“Can they be recovered?”
“Maybe from his cloud backups.”
Morgan made a note.
Then Rachel hesitated.
“There’s another video.”
I stared at her.
“What?”
“The tea.”
Every hair on my arms rose.
“You saw it?”
“Michael showed me.”
“What happened?”
Rachel took a breath.
“You looked disoriented. You were trying to stand up and couldn’t.”
“Did he say why?”
“He called it proof that you abused medication.”
“I don’t take medication.”
“I know that now.”
“What did Diane put in my tea?”
“I don’t know.”
Morgan interrupted.
“We cannot assume anything without evidence.”
Ava nodded.
“But the context matters.”
Rachel looked at me.
“There was a bottle.”
Silence.
“What bottle?”
“I saw Diane give Michael a small prescription bottle a few days before the video.”
“What was on it?”
“I couldn’t read the label.”
Morgan asked, “Do you know where it is now?”
Rachel shook her head.
Then her phone rang.
She looked at the screen.
“No.”
“What?” Morgan asked.
Rachel turned the phone toward us.
Michael.
Ava said, “Don’t answer.”
It stopped.
Then another call came.
Unknown number.
Rachel ignored it.
A text appeared.
YOU SHOULD HAVE KEPT YOUR MOUTH SHUT.
Rachel went white.
Morgan took the phone.
Another message.
YOU THINK CLAIRE WILL PROTECT YOU?
Then another.
SHE HATES YOU.
Rachel whispered, “He knows.”
Morgan stood.
“We need to determine where Michael is.”
An officer left.
Five minutes later, he returned.
Michael had been released three hours earlier.
His attorney had arranged it.
My heart started pounding.
“Where is he?”
“They don’t know yet.”
I immediately called Jenna’s husband.
No answer.
Again.
No answer.
“Daniel.”
Jenna was already calling.
My hands began shaking.
Finally he answered.
“Hey.”
Jenna nearly screamed.
“Where are you?”
“At home.”
“Sophie?”
“Right here.”
I exhaled.
“Lock everything.”
“What happened?”
Before Jenna could answer, Daniel said,
“Wait.”
Silence.
Then his voice changed.
“There’s a car outside.”
“What car?” I asked.
“Black SUV.”
Michael drove a black SUV.
“Daniel, do not open the door.”
“I’m not.”
Sophie’s voice came faintly through the phone.
“Is Daddy here?”
My stomach dropped.
Then someone knocked.
Three slow knocks.
Daniel whispered, “It’s him.”
I looked at Morgan.
She was already calling officers.
Another knock.
Harder.
Then Michael shouted from outside.
“Daniel! I’m here to pick up my daughter!”
Sophie started crying.
Jenna grabbed the phone.
“Take her upstairs.”
Michael hit the door.
“CLAIRE HAS NO RIGHT TO KEEP HER FROM ME!”
Daniel answered through the door.
“You need to leave.”
“She’s my daughter!”
Police were on the way.
Every second stretched.
Then a second voice came from outside.
Female.
Diane.
“Sophie!”
My daughter screamed from somewhere inside the house.
“Grandma!”
Diane called through the door.
“Sweetheart, come outside! Daddy just wants to talk!”
I stood so fast my chair fell backward.
“She’s trying to lure her out.”
Morgan pointed at the phone.
“Tell Daniel not to engage.”
Jenna did.
Then we heard glass break.
Sophie screamed.
I stopped breathing.
“Daniel!”
“I’m okay!”
His voice was farther away.
“They broke the side window.”
Morgan ran for the door.
“Officers are almost there.”
Through the phone, Michael shouted.
“This is my child!”
Then sirens exploded in the background.
Diane started yelling.
Michael cursed.
Daniel said, “Police are here.”
My legs gave out.
I sat.
Thirty seconds later, Daniel said the words I needed.
“They have him.”
I covered my face and cried.
But the relief lasted less than a minute.
Then Daniel became quiet.
“Claire?”
“What?”
“I found something.”
My stomach tightened.
“What?”
“Michael threw an envelope through the broken window before police grabbed him.”
“What envelope?”
Daniel opened it.
I heard paper unfolding.
Then silence.
“Daniel?”
His voice came out strange.
“It’s a custody petition.”
I stared at Ava.
Daniel continued.
“He filed it this morning.”
My mouth went dry.
“What does it say?”
May you like
Another pause.
“It says you’re an immediate danger to Sophie.”
