Chapter 4
For most of my childhood, my father’s disappointment had been enough to change my mind.
It was why I had gone to Sunday dinners when Vanessa spent the evening mocking me. It was why I had said nothing when Mom gave away the baby blanket Grandma made for me, claiming Vanessa liked it better.
That night, I listened to his message again.
I heard the threat beneath the familiar voice.
I sent it to the investigator.
The next morning, a woman named Detective Alvarez came to my hospital room. She asked Daniel to stay because I wanted him there. She went through the day of the assault from the beginning.
I told her about the argument inside the house, Vanessa following me out, the kick, my parents’ reactions, and Mom taking the folder.
Then I told her about the tea.
“She usually made it at our house,” I said. “She brought the packet with her.”
“Did she ever leave it there?”
“Last week. She said I could make it myself if I got tired.”
“Did you?”
“No. I didn’t like the taste.”
Detective Alvarez wrote that down.
I also told her what Ruby had overheard and showed her Vanessa’s message. When I played Dad’s voice recording, she didn’t react. She listened to every word.
“Has your father contacted you again?”
“No.”
“If he does, keep the messages. You can decide whether to answer. I recommend you speak with us first.”
After she left, my mother arrived at the hospital.
She had flowers in one hand and a small paper bag in the other. Daniel stood between her and my bed.
“I need to see my daughter,” she said.
“You are,” I answered.
Her eyes filled. “Claire, I’ve been so worried.”
“You could have asked how I was yesterday.”
“I was in shock.”
She put the flowers on a table, then reached toward my belly. I pulled away.
“Don’t,” I said.
Her hand fell.
“I don’t know what they’ve told you,” she said, “but I would never hurt you or the baby.”
“Then tell me what was in the tea.”
“An herbal mix from a shop.”
“Which shop?”
“I don’t remember.”
“You bought it three weeks ago.”
“Vanessa picked it up for me.” Mom’s words came too quickly.
Daniel took out his phone. “We can tell Detective Alvarez.”
Mom shook her head. “I only meant Vanessa might remember the name.”
I looked at the paper bag. “What’s that?”
“Your favorite muffins.”
“I don’t want them.”
She seemed wounded. “You think I put something in those too?”
I wanted to say no.
I couldn’t.
A nurse came in to check my monitor. Mom smiled at her and called the whole situation a misunderstanding.
I watched the nurse’s expression close. She asked Mom to step outside until she had finished.
Mom turned to me at the door.
“Your father made mistakes with the money,” she said quietly. “But no one deserves to go to prison over paperwork.”
The door clicked shut behind her.
Daniel and I looked at each other.
She had said more in that one sentence than she meant to.
That afternoon, Mr. Bell called. He had received account records from a bank after raising concerns with the trust’s other administrator. Several transfers to Mom’s business had been labeled as payments for property maintenance.
“What property?” I asked.
“There is no matching invoice,” he said. “I’m asking the court to order a full accounting.”
“Dad knew?”
“He signed the approvals.”
I thought of him trying to take Ruby’s phone while I was being carried to the ambulance. I had kept looking for a reason other than money.
The doctors discharged me two days later with strict instructions to rest and return for frequent monitoring. They explained the warning signs to Daniel and me. Our daughter’s scans were reassuring, but they wanted to watch her growth.
Walking out of the hospital frightened me more than I expected.
At home, my brother-in-law had already changed the locks at our request. Daniel checked every window while I sat on the couch.
“I hate that you have to do that,” I said.
“So do I.”
I tried to sleep that night. Each time I drifted off, I felt the kick again.
Around midnight, I woke and reached for my belly. Our daughter moved under my hand.
I lay there listening to Daniel breathe until sunrise.
The next day, Detective Alvarez called with preliminary results from the tea packet and flask. The same substance found in my blood was present in both.
“Did you find out who put it there?” I asked.
“That’s what we’re working on.”
I told Daniel. He sat beside me and covered his face with his hands.
Before we could say anything else, someone knocked at the front door.
It was Vanessa.
She stood on the porch with swollen eyes and no coat.
“I need to talk to Claire,” she said.
Daniel kept the door partly closed. “Call the detective.”
May you like
Vanessa shook her head.
“If I tell the police everything,” she said, “Mom says Dad will blame me for all of it.”
