Chapter 12 - THE LAST MOVE
Two patrol officers entered the house five minutes later.
Eleanor followed behind them.
She had left her suitcase in the driveway.
Her expression was calm again.
Controlled.
That frightened Sarah more than the shouting.
Officer Grant looked between everyone.
“We received a report regarding possible custodial interference.”
Sarah stepped forward.
“I’m Olivia’s mother.”
The officer nodded.
“And you consent to her being here?”
“Yes.”
“Then there is no kidnapping.”
Eleanor interrupted.
“My daughter is emotionally compromised.”
Sarah turned.
“Stop.”
Officer Grant lifted a hand.
“Ma’am.”
Eleanor continued anyway.
“That man has been manipulating everyone for hours.”
She pointed at Stallone.
“He is unstable.”
Stallone said nothing.
Eleanor’s strategy was obvious now.
Create doubt.
Make emotion look irrational.
Make confidence look like truth.
It had worked in the family for decades.
It didn’t work as well with strangers.
Officer Grant asked, “Was there an incident involving the child?”
Sarah nodded.
“Yes.”
Eleanor said, “A discipline issue.”
Sarah looked at Marcus.
“Show them.”
Marcus opened the laptop.
Eleanor’s confidence vanished.
“Those recordings are private.”
Officer Grant looked at her.
“Ma’am, did you lock this child in a basement room?”
“I did not harm her.”
“That wasn’t my question.”
Eleanor’s lips tightened.
Michael whispered, “Here we go.”
Officer Grant watched several minutes of footage.
His expression changed.
He called his partner over.
The two officers spoke quietly.
Then Grant turned toward Sarah.
“Would you like to make a formal report?”
Sarah looked at her mother.
For thirty-seven years, Sarah had been trained to protect Eleanor from consequences.
Don’t embarrass the family.
Don’t tell outsiders.
Don’t make trouble.
Don’t be dramatic.
She looked at Olivia.
Her daughter’s future sat on the other side of one sentence.
Sarah took a breath.
“Yes.”
Eleanor’s face collapsed.
“Sarah.”
Sarah cried as she answered.
“Yes. I want to make a report.”
“You would do this to your own mother?”
Sarah’s voice shook.
“You did this to your own granddaughter.”
Eleanor looked at Stallone.
“Stop this.”
He shook his head.
“No.”
“Stallone.”
“No.”
For the first time, the word sounded different.
Not angry.
Free.
Eleanor turned to Michael.
He held Ethan close.
“Don’t look at me.”
Claire stood beside Sophie.
“You need help, Mom.”
Eleanor looked around the room.
Her family had stopped moving when she commanded.
Stopped apologizing when she became angry.
Stopped changing reality to protect her.
Officer Grant approached.
“We need you to come with us so we can take a statement.”
“Am I under arrest?”
“At this time, we’re investigating.”
Eleanor laughed bitterly.
“Over discipline.”
Officer Grant looked at the frozen image on the laptop.
A crying child outside a locked basement door.
“No, ma’am.”
He closed the screen.
“Over what happened to a child.”
Eleanor walked toward the front door.
Before leaving, she looked back at Stallone.
“You’ll regret choosing them over me.”
Stallone looked at Olivia.
“No.”
He shook his head.
“I regret waiting this long.”
The door closed.
Olivia crawled onto the sofa.
She looked exhausted.
“Grandpa?”
“Yes?”
“Is Grandma going to jail?”
Stallone sat beside her.
“I don’t know.”
“Is she bad?”
He thought carefully.
“No person is only one thing.”
Olivia frowned.
“She did bad things.”
“Yes.”
“And she has to stop.”
“Yes.”
Olivia leaned against him.
“Okay.”
Then Sarah’s phone buzzed.
She looked at the screen.
A message from an unknown number.
She read it.
Her face went white.
“What?” Stallone asked.
Sarah turned the phone around.
The message contained one sentence.
YOU THINK YOUR MOTHER WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO KNEW?
Attached was a photograph.
Taken through the living room window.
May you like
From outside the house.
Only minutes earlier.
