Chapter 2: The Camera That Went Dark
The police arrived twelve minutes later.
Those twelve minutes felt like twelve hours.
Sophie sat in my lap in the daycare office, wrapped in my jacket.
She hadn't let go of my hand once.
Every time someone opened the door, she flinched.
That hurt more than anything.
My daughter used to run toward strangers and tell them about her favorite cartoon.
Now she was afraid of footsteps.
Officer Ramirez entered first.
He was a tall man with a calm expression and a notebook in his hand.
"Mr. Bennett?""
I stood.
"Yes.""
"Can you tell me what happened?""
Before I answered, Mrs. Parker interrupted.
"I can explain.""
Officer Ramirez looked at her.
"Actually, I asked him.""
She immediately went quiet.
I took a breath.
"I arrived early to surprise my daughter. I heard her screaming from the hallway.""
I pointed toward the classroom.
"When I looked through the window, Mrs. Parker had covered the camera and was striking my daughter's hands with a ruler.""
Officer Ramirez looked at Sophie.
"Is that true, sweetheart?""
Sophie looked down.
Her fingers grabbed my sleeve.
After a few seconds, she nodded.
"She told me not to tell Daddy.""
The room became silent.
I turned toward Mrs. Parker.
Her face changed.
"I never said that.""
Sophie looked even smaller.
"She said if I told, I would get in bigger trouble.""
Officer Ramirez wrote something down.
Mrs. Parker immediately shook her head.
"She's a child. Children misunderstand things.""
I stepped forward.
"She's five years old.""
"And that's exactly why she can be confused," Mrs. Parker replied.
Officer Ramirez held up his hand.
"Everyone needs to stay calm.""
Then he looked toward the classroom.
"Is there a recording system?""
Mrs. Collins answered quickly.
"The camera wasn't working.""
Too quickly.
Officer Ramirez looked at her.
"Not working?""
She nodded.
"Yes. Technical issue.""
I looked at the blue towel still hanging from the camera.
"A technical issue that needed a towel?""
Mrs. Collins said nothing.
The officer walked into the classroom.
A few minutes later, he returned.
"The camera appears to be functioning.""
Mrs. Parker's face went pale.
"What?""
Officer Ramirez looked at her.
"The indicator light is on.""
Mrs. Collins immediately stepped forward.
"We can explain.""
But the officer raised his hand.
"No. You can explain after I finish documenting everything.""
I felt a small amount of relief.
Not because everything was fixed.
It wasn't.
But because someone was finally listening.
Then another officer entered the office.
He was holding a tablet.
"Officer Ramirez.""
Something about his expression made everyone turn.
"What is it?""
The second officer looked at Mrs. Collins.
"We checked the security system.""
Mrs. Collins swallowed.
"And?""
The officer tapped the screen.
"The camera wasn't turned off.""
Mrs. Parker frowned.
"Then what?""
He looked directly at me.
"The footage was manually deleted.""
My chest tightened.
Mrs. Parker immediately started crying.
"I don't know anything about that!""
Officer Ramirez looked at her.
"Nobody accused you yet.""
She stopped talking.
That was the first time I saw fear replace confidence on her face.
Then the second officer continued.
"But there is something else.""
He looked down at the tablet.
"The system shows someone accessed the camera records three times this month.""
Mrs. Collins slowly stepped backward.
"Who?""
The officer looked at the screen.
Then at the director.
"The account used to delete the footage belongs to...""
He paused.
Everyone waited.
Then he said the name.
"Mrs. Collins.""
The room went completely silent.
Mrs. Parker looked at the director.
"You said you would handle it.""
My eyes narrowed.
Handle it?
Those words echoed in my head.
Officer Ramirez turned.
"Handle what?""
Mrs. Parker immediately covered her mouth.
Too late.
The damage was done.
Mrs. Collins stared at her employee with anger.
"You weren't supposed to say anything.""
My heart dropped.
Because those seven words revealed the truth.
They weren't protecting a teacher.
They were protecting each other.
Officer Ramirez stepped closer.
"Mrs. Collins, I need you to explain exactly what you meant.""
The director didn't answer.
Instead, she looked at Sophie.
Then at me.
And for the first time since I entered that classroom, she looked genuinely afraid.
Because whatever secret they were hiding...
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It was much bigger than one wooden ruler.
And the next thing the officer discovered inside the daycare office would change everything.
