Chapter 6 - The Abandoned Car
The blood did not belong to Elias.
It belonged to Lauren Pike.
Police found her unconscious in the back seat, two streets from our house.
She had been struck on the head after officers briefly released her to retrieve her identification from her vehicle.
Elias had apparently been hiding beneath a tarp in the rear cargo compartment.
He used Lauren’s keys, forced her into the car, and drove away.
Then he abandoned the vehicle near the hospital.
He was close.
Detective Torres ordered security to lock down the building.
Mom was placed in an interview room.
She had not been arrested yet.
The forged documents and recordings established abuse and fraud, but Torres wanted enough evidence to connect her directly to Dad’s death.
Daniel refused sedation.
Instead, Dr. Shah lowered the lights and allowed him to keep his headphones.
I sat beside his bed.
For the first time in months, we were alone.
“I’m sorry I stayed away.”
Daniel typed slowly.
“Mom said you hated the noises.”
My throat tightened.
“What noises?”
“Me.”
“She said you did not want me calling.”
“I never said that.”
His eyes remained on the tablet.
“She deleted messages.”
“How many?”
“All.”
Daniel opened a hidden folder.
There were forty-six unsent messages addressed to me.
Some were only a few words.
Claire, Dad’s pills wrong.
Claire, Evan knows house codes.
Claire, Mom says you are busy.
Claire, please answer.
The final message had been written three days earlier.
I think they will make me disappear.
I covered my mouth.
Daniel watched me carefully.
Then he typed.
“Not your fault.”
It was exactly like him to comfort me while bruises still covered his arms.
“It was my responsibility to check.”
He shook his head.
“Mom is good at voices.”
“What does that mean?”
“She uses the voice people trust.”
I remembered every calm phone call.
Every weary sigh.
Every statement about sacrifice.
Mom never demanded that I abandon Daniel.
She made me believe leaving was the kindest thing I could do.
Daniel opened another file.
It contained a spreadsheet tracking Dad’s medication.
Dates.
Pill colors.
Dosages.
Changes in symptoms.
Daniel had recorded everything because numbers helped him organize fear.
One column was labeled E.G.
“What is E.G.?”
“Elias Grant.”
“You knew his name?”
Daniel nodded.
“Dad told me.”
“Why didn’t you tell the police?”
“Mom said police arrest people who lie.”
“You weren’t lying.”
“She said they would decide I was lying.”
His answer was painfully logical.
That was how they had controlled him.
They had not convinced Daniel that he was confused.
They had convinced him that everyone else would assume he was.
A hospital alarm sounded.
Then the lights went out.
The emergency generators activated three seconds later.
When the hallway lights returned, Dr. Shah ran into the room.
“Daniel’s mother is gone.”
May you like
Detective Torres appeared behind her.
“So is the original toxicology report.”
