Chapter 3 - Daniel Never Went to Chicago
Emma called Daniel.
Straight to voicemail.
She called his hotel.
No reservation existed under his name.
Rachel sat at the kitchen table while Karen documented the condition of
the home and requested that nobody delete photographs or messages.
“Tell me where he is,” Emma said.
Rachel stared at her hands.
“Mom said he was staying at the lake house.”
Emma felt cold.
The Carter family lake house was two hours away.
Daniel had told her he was attending meetings in Chicago.
“Why?”
Rachel shook her head.
“I don’t know everything.”
Margaret laughed bitterly.
“That’s convenient.”
Rachel turned on her.
“You told me he agreed.”
Emma looked between them.
“Agreed to what?”
Silence.
Noah carried Lily’s stuffed rabbit into the room.
Emma lowered her voice.
“Rachel.”
Rachel finally answered.
“To temporary guardianship.”
Emma stared.
Margaret had been building a record showing Emma as overwhelmed and
neglectful.
Daniel was supposedly prepared to sign papers giving Margaret temporary
authority over Noah and Lily.
Emma’s chest tightened.
“My husband agreed to take my children from me?”
“I thought he did.”
“You thought?”
Rachel pulled out her phone.
Margaret had sent her screenshots of messages allegedly from Daniel.
The messages said Emma was “spiraling,” that the children needed a
stable home, and that Daniel wanted evidence collected before
confronting her.
Emma read them twice.
Something felt wrong.
Daniel never called Noah “the boy.”
He never signed messages with “D.”
And one screenshot showed a message timestamped during a FaceTime call
Emma had with Daniel.
He had been speaking to her at that exact minute.
“These are fake.”
Rachel went pale.
Margaret interrupted.
“You don’t know that.”
Emma looked at her.
“Yes, I do.”
Karen advised everyone not to destroy the devices.
Then Noah spoke.
“Grandma has another phone.”
Margaret’s face changed.
Emma turned.
“What other phone?”
Noah pointed toward Margaret’s purse.
Margaret grabbed it.
Karen calmly said, “Please don’t remove or alter anything.”
Margaret stopped.
Emma opened the purse with Margaret’s reluctant permission after warning
that police could be called if evidence was being concealed.
Inside was a cheap prepaid phone.
Its recent messages were addressed to one contact:
DANIEL.
But the number was not Daniel’s.
Emma recognized it anyway.
It belonged to someone she had not spoken to in almost four years.
Her ex-husband.
May you like
Noah’s biological father.
Michael Reed.
