Chapter 3 - The Hospital Examination**
The harsh fluorescent lights of St. Jude Children's Hospital hummed softly as Ethan held Maya on the examination table.
Dr. Aris Thorne gently examined the purple bruising spreading across seven-year-old Maya’s right cheek.
"How long has this been going on, Mr. Miller?" Dr. Thorne asked quietly, setting his otoscope down on the tray.
Ethan kept his hand resting on Maya’s knee, his jaw tight as he struggled to keep his emotion from overflowing.
"I thought they were playground accidents... until today when I caught her red-handed," Ethan confessed, his voice choking up.
The doctor pulled up a series of previous digital X-rays on the wall monitor, pointing to a healed hairline fracture in Maya's left wrist.
"This fracture occurred four months ago, Ethan," the doctor noted gravely. "It was never properly documented in her pediatric file."
Maya looked up at her father with wide, terrified eyes, her small hands clutching the edge of her yellow hoodie.
"She told me Daddy would go to jail if I cried," Maya whispered, her lower lip trembling uncontrollably.
Ethan closed his eyes, feeling a tear slide down his cheek as the full weight of his past blindness crushed his heart.
May you like
Before he could answer, the door swung open, and two officers from the Suburban Precinct stepped into the room.
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