Chapter 4 - LOCKED IN
The lights went out.
My daughter wasn't with me.
For one horrible second, I thought Daniel had taken her.
Then I heard her crying upstairs.
My heart shattered.
"Daniel!"
No answer.
Claire grabbed my arm.
"Don't panic."
"He's upstairs with my baby!"
Mara pulled out her phone.
No signal.
The basement had become a trap.
Claire rushed toward the door.
Locked.
She slammed her shoulder against it.
Nothing.
I began pounding.
"Give me my daughter!"
Daniel's voice came through a speaker.
"You should have listened."
I froze.
His voice sounded strangely distant.
"You were always emotional."
Mara shouted.
"Open this door!"
Daniel laughed.
"You've made a mistake, Mara."
"No."
"You came here without understanding what you're involved in."
Mara looked at me.
"He's trying to scare us."
Daniel continued.
"The police are already on their way."
Mara's face changed.
"What?"
"I called them before you arrived."
I realized what he was doing.
He was preparing another story.
He would tell them I had locked myself in the basement.
That I had become violent.
That I had endangered the baby.
Mara understood too.
"He's reversing it."
Claire nodded.
"He always does."
I stared at the door.
Then I noticed something.
A small ventilation opening.
Too narrow for a person.
But perhaps large enough for a phone.
I took mine from my pocket.
No signal.
But the monitor system might still have power.
I looked at Mara.
"Can your phone connect to the house network?"
She tried.
Nothing.
Claire whispered:
"The cameras."
"What about them?"
"They're connected to a separate system."
I looked at the black monitors.
"If we restart them..."
Mara understood.
We searched the room.
Behind the computer was a backup power switch.
Claire flipped it.
One monitor flickered.
Then another.
The basement camera appeared.
The system was recording.
Mara smiled.
"He's been recording himself."
I stared at the screen.
Daniel was standing upstairs.
He was holding my daughter.
He looked directly into the nursery camera.
Then he said:
"She'll be better off without you."
My blood froze.
Mara whispered:
"Keep watching."
Daniel walked out of view.
Claire suddenly pointed.
"Look."
The nursery camera changed angles.
Another person entered.
A woman.
I didn't recognize her.
She was carrying a folder.
Daniel spoke to her.
"Everything is ready."
The woman nodded.
"Does she know?"
"No."
"What about the sister?"
"She's handled."
Claire gasped.
"He's talking about me."
The woman looked toward the camera.
For a moment, her face was visible.
Mara's eyes widened.
"You know her?"
I shook my head.
"No."
Mara stared at the screen.
"I do."
"Who is she?"
Mara didn't answer immediately.
Then she said:
"She's the attorney who represented Daniel during the emergency petition."
My stomach dropped.
"His attorney is here?"
Mara nodded.
"She shouldn't be."
We watched.
The attorney placed a document on the table.
Daniel signed it.
Then he handed her my daughter's birth certificate.
I felt sick.
"What is that?"
Mara moved closer to the monitor.
"A guardianship transfer."
I shook my head.
"He can't do that."
"He can't legally do it without proper authorization."
"Then why is he signing it?"
Mara stared at the screen.
"Because he thinks the authorization already exists."
Claire whispered:
"Who signed it?"
Mara zoomed in.
The signature appeared.
My name.
I stared at it.
It looked like mine.
Almost perfect.
But not quite.
I remembered something.
The hospital.
After delivery.
Daniel had asked me to sign several forms because I was exhausted.
I had trusted him.
Mara looked at me.
"Did you sign anything that night?"
"I don't know."
She stared at the document.
"Then we need to find out."
Suddenly, the basement door opened.
Daniel stood there.
He wasn't alone.
Two police officers stood behind him.
He pointed at me.
"That's her."
His voice trembled convincingly.
"She's been threatening everyone."
I looked at Mara.
Then at Claire.
And finally at the officers.
Daniel smiled.
"She needs help."
I almost believed him.
Until one officer looked at the monitor.
His expression changed.
"Sir."
Daniel turned.
The officer pointed at the screen.
"We need to talk about what we're seeing."
May you like
Daniel's smile disappeared.
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