Chương 7
“Months?”
“According to him, yes.”
“Why didn’t he return it?”
“He thought it was an old media unit.”
“That makes no sense.”
“It does if you don’t know what you’re looking at.”
“Why keep it?”
“He has a garage full of broken electronics.”
I rubbed my forehead.
“Can you access it?”
“Not tonight.”
“Why not?”
“Because I enjoy suspense.”
I closed my eyes.
“Ortega.”
“It’s encrypted.”
“Can it be recovered?”
“We’ll see.”
“What did Dean say about Taylor?”
“He says Taylor told him there was junk behind the seat and to throw out whatever he didn’t want.”
“That sounds deliberate.”
“It sounds like a sentence.”
“You are impossible.”
“So I’ve heard.”
“Did Taylor know Dean still had it?”
“No indication.”
“Does Taylor know you recovered it?”
“Not yet.”
“Good.”
He was quiet for a second.
“Colonel.”
“What?”
“Don’t get ahead of the evidence.”
“I’m trying not to.”
“No, you’re trying to reach a verdict before sunrise.”
“My daughter says she was locked in that freezer eleven times.”
“I know.”
“My ex-husband knew enough to tell me the lid didn’t latch.”
“I know.”
“He removed the recorder from the house.”
“I know.”
“What exactly would you like me to do with that?”
“Sleep.”
I laughed.
It came out bitter.
“I haven’t slept properly in six months.”
“Tonight would be a bad night to fix that.”
“Then don’t tell me to.”
“All right.”
His voice softened slightly.
“Just don’t make choices tonight that tomorrow can’t undo.”
I looked toward the bedroom.
“That advice apply to Taylor too?”
“It applies to everybody.”
The call ended.
I checked the locks twice.
Then a third time.
I dragged one of the kitchen chairs beneath the front doorknob even though I knew that was mostly theater.
At 3:18, I finally sat on the floor beside my bed.
Lily was asleep above me.
I could hear the refrigerator cycling in the kitchen.
The sound made my stomach turn.
I stood and unplugged it.
The apartment went quiet.
I had no idea how long I stayed awake after that.
At some point, my forehead rested against the mattress.
At some point, Lily’s hand found my hair.
When I opened my eyes again, pale morning light was coming through the blinds.
My neck hurt.
My phone showed 6:42.
There were eight missed calls.
Three from Taylor.
Two from an unknown number.
One from my attorney.
Two from my commanding officer.
There were also seventeen text messages.
The first one from Taylor read, You need to stop this before you destroy our daughter’s life.
The second said, Mom made a mistake.
The third said, She was trying to discipline Lily because you never do.
I sat up slowly.
The fourth message was longer.
You know how manipulative Lily can be when she wants attention, and you know my mom would never intentionally hurt her.
I read that sentence twice.
Then three times.
The words manipulative Lily looked monstrous on the screen.
My daughter was seven.
The next message said, If you turn this into some criminal thing, you’re going to regret it when the truth comes out.
I took screenshots of everything.
Then I opened the message from my attorney.
Call me immediately when you wake up.
I did.
Rachel Kim answered before the first ring finished.
“Tell me Lily is with you.”
“She is.”
“Good.”
Her voice was clipped and awake in a way that told me she had probably been working for hours.
“I have bad news.”
“Of course you do.”
“Taylor filed an emergency motion.”
“For what?”
“To prevent you from removing Lily from the state and to modify temporary custody.”
I stood.
“He did what?”
“He filed around five this morning.”
“On what basis?”
“He claims you abducted Lily from his residence during his parenting time.”
For several seconds, I could not speak.
Rachel continued.
“He also alleges you created a confrontation with his mother and manipulated Lily into making false accusations.”
I stared at the bedroom doorway.
“He filed that after she went to the hospital.”
“Yes.”
“After police questioned him.”
“Yes.”
“He’s insane.”
“Do not say that anywhere except to me.”
“I’m saying it to you.”
“Good.”
“What happens now?”
“We respond.”
“When?”
“Today.”
“Can he take her?”
“Not without an order.”
“Can a judge give him one?”
“A judge can do many things.”
My hand tightened around the phone.
“Rachel.”
“I’m not going to promise you an outcome.”
“Then tell me what matters.”
“The police report.”
“The medical records.”
“The child protection findings.”
“Any digital evidence.”
“Any prior disclosures from Lily.”
“Anything showing Taylor knew or should have known.”
I thought of the black recorder sitting in police custody.
Rachel heard my silence.
“What?”
“There may be video.”
“May?”
“The old security recorder was recovered.”
“Recovered from where?”
“A truck Taylor sold.”
Rachel stopped typing.
I could hear the change.
“Do the police have it?”
“Yes.”
“Then you do nothing with it.”
“I know.”
“You don’t ask to see it.”
“I know.”
“You don’t contact whoever had it.”
“I know.”
“You don’t post anything.”
“I would never.”
“Sarah, you are angry.”
“That does not make me stupid.”
“No.”
Rachel paused.
“It can make smart people careless.”
I sat on the edge of the couch.
“What do we do about his filing?”
“I’m requesting an immediate hearing and attaching the hospital documentation we have.”
“Can I keep her until then?”
“For now, yes.”
“For now.”
“I know.”
I looked into the bedroom.
Lily had awakened.
She stood in the doorway wearing one of my old Army T-shirts that reached almost to her knees.
Her hair was tangled on one side.
She was staring at my face.
I lowered the phone.
“What?”
She rubbed one eye.
“Daddy’s here.”
Every muscle in my body locked.
“What?”
She pointed toward the window.
I crossed the room and moved the blinds with one finger.
Taylor’s SUV was parked directly beneath my apartment.
He was standing beside it.
Looking up.
May you like
My phone buzzed.
A new message appeared from him.
