Chapter 6: The Woman Who Wanted My Daughter
At two in the morning, I sat on the edge of Nia's bed and watched her sleep.
She had finally stopped crying after Marcus promised to stay in the room beside hers. Every few minutes, though, she stirred and reached for the stuffed rabbit she had slept with since preschool.
I brushed a curl away from her forehead.
"I'm sorry, baby," I whispered.
She didn't wake.
I had spent years telling myself that working nights was a sacrifice I made for her future. I paid the mortgage, kept food in the refrigerator, and put money into a savings account for college.
I had believed those things made her safe.
I hadn't understood that safety also meant knowing who was feeding her dinner when I wasn't home.
When I returned downstairs, Marcus was sitting at the kitchen table with his laptop open.
A spreadsheet filled the screen.
He had begun comparing our bank statements against the deposits we remembered making.
"How bad is it?"" I asked.
He turned the laptop toward me.
"Eight thousand dollars is missing from the emergency fund. But there's something else.""
He pointed to a series of small withdrawals from our joint checking account.
Thirty dollars.
Seventy-five.
One hundred and twenty.
The transactions had occurred over several weeks, always on days when Vanessa had been home alone.
"I thought those were groceries," I whispered.
"So did I.""
"Why didn't we notice?""
Marcus rubbed his face.
"Because we trusted her.""
That answer hurt more than I expected.
At 7:15 the next morning, Officer Reynolds called.
The police had located Darren's vehicle near a motel several miles away, but he wasn't there. The motel clerk confirmed that a woman had visited him several times during the previous month.
The woman's name was Patricia Cole.
The same name printed on the forged guardianship document.
"Did they find out who she is?"" I asked.
"Not yet," Marcus said after ending the call.
"But the officer wants copies of our financial records and anything else Vanessa left behind.""
We spent the morning gathering documents.
In the guest room, Ava sat on the bed with her knees pulled against her chest while Caleb packed their clothes into two duffel bags.
They were going to stay temporarily with Vanessa's sister, Denise, who had agreed to take them while the investigation continued.
I hated that those children were suffering because of their mother's choices.
Caleb came downstairs carrying a shoebox.
"Uncle Marcus?""
Marcus turned.
"What's that, buddy?""
"Something I found under Mom's bed.""
He placed the box on the table.
Inside were receipts, folded letters, and several photographs.
Marcus looked through them carefully.
One receipt showed a payment of $1,500 to Darren Cole.
Another showed a withdrawal of $2,000 from a cash machine near our neighborhood.
Then I found a photograph of a woman standing outside a school.
She was perhaps in her late forties, with shoulder-length blond hair and a cream-colored coat. She held a shopping bag in one hand and watched a group of children walking through the school gates.
I turned the photograph over.
Someone had written a date on the back.
It was the date of Nia's school open house.
"Why would Vanessa have this?"" I asked.
Caleb shifted uncomfortably.
"Mom said the lady wanted to meet Nia.""
My throat tightened.
"Did she?""
"No. Mom told me not to let Nia go anywhere alone that day.""
Marcus picked up the photograph.
"Did your mother tell you who the woman was?""
Caleb shook his head.
"She said the woman could give us a better life.""
He paused.
"She said Nia was the reason we could get the money.""
I felt a wave of nausea.
"Caleb, did you know what she meant?""
"No."" His eyes filled with tears.
"I thought she meant Mom would get a better job or something.""
Marcus put an arm around the boy.
"You didn't do anything wrong.""
Caleb wiped his face.
"Mom told me to stop asking questions. She said if I told anyone, she'd send me to live with my dad, and he doesn't want me.""
I looked away, fighting tears.
Vanessa hadn't only used our daughter.
She had frightened her own children into silence.
Later that afternoon, Denise arrived to collect Ava and Caleb. Before leaving, Caleb approached Nia, who had been sitting on the living room sofa beside me.
"I'm sorry," he said.
Nia looked at him.
"For what?""
"For not telling your dad sooner.""
Nia shook her head.
"You told him.""
"Not soon enough.""
She considered that for a moment, then held out her stuffed rabbit.
"You can hold Mr. Buttons until you feel better.""
Caleb laughed through his tears.
"Thanks, Nia.""
When they left, the house felt strangely empty.
Marcus sat beside me.
"We need to find out who Patricia is.""
"I know.""
"And we need to know why Vanessa thought our daughter was worth twenty thousand dollars.""
I stared at the photograph.
There was something about the woman's face that bothered me. Not because I recognized her, but because she looked familiar in a way I couldn't explain.
Then I remembered the blue box.
The marriage certificate.
The forged signature.
The note telling someone to approach Marcus if I refused.
Someone had been planning for us to resist.
That evening, I called my father.
He and Vanessa had been divorced for nearly ten years, but he still occasionally spoke to her about family matters.
"Dad, I need to ask you something about Vanessa.""
His voice changed immediately.
"What's happened?""
I told him enough to explain why the police were involved. I didn't mention every detail, but I told him about the money, Darren, and the forged guardianship agreement.
He remained silent for a long time.
Then he asked, "Did you say the woman's name was Patricia Cole?""
My fingers tightened around the phone.
"Yes. Do you know her?""
My father exhaled shakily.
"Sarah, I need you to listen to me. Patricia was Vanessa's closest friend before she married me.""
"What does she have to do with Nia?""
"Years ago, Patricia lost custody of her own daughter. She never recovered from it. She used to tell Vanessa that she would do anything to have another chance at raising a little girl.""
I stood up.
"Are you saying she wants Nia?""
"I don't know. But I remember Vanessa telling me Patricia had started asking about your family.""
"When?""
"Several months ago.""
My heart began pounding.
"Why didn't you tell me?""
"Because I didn't think it was serious. Vanessa said Patricia was lonely and wanted to reconnect with people.""
I pressed a hand against my forehead.
"Did Patricia know about our savings?""
"I couldn't tell you that.""
"Did she know where we lived?""
My father hesitated.
"Yes. Vanessa gave her your address.""
I felt the room tilt.
Then he said something else.
"Sarah, there's one more thing. Patricia didn't lose custody because she was poor or because of a divorce.""
I gripped the edge of the counter.
"Why did she lose it?""
My father lowered his voice.
"Her daughter disappeared for three days when she was ten years old. Patricia claimed the girl had run away. But when the police investigated, they discovered she'd been keeping her daughter locked inside a storage room whenever she was angry.""
I stopped breathing for a moment.
"What happened to the girl?""
"She was placed with relatives. Patricia was forbidden from having unsupervised contact with her.""
I looked toward the stairs, where my daughter was drawing pictures in her bedroom.
A woman who had once lost the right to raise her own child had somehow become involved in a plan to take mine.
And Vanessa had helped her.
Before I could ask another question, my phone buzzed.
A message from an unknown number appeared on the screen.
There was no greeting.
No explanation.
Just a photograph of Nia walking into her school that morning, holding Marcus's hand.
May you like
Beneath it were nine words.
*You should have let Vanessa finish the agreement. Now it's personal.*
