Chapter 2
“Julian,” Audrey gasped through her tears, her breath hitching wildly. “You have to get Clara and the baby out of there right now. Eleanor did this to me when I had my first daughter… she convinced me I was crazy, that I was a terrible mother. I almost lost my mind because of her.”
“I know,” I said, my voice steady as iron. “And she is never going to hurt anyone in this family again. I need you to back me up.”
“Whatever you need,” Audrey promised. “I’m calling an attorney right now.”
I started my car and pulled up to the driveway. I didn’t rush through the front door like a madman. I walked in with clinical, terrifying calm.
In the hallway, Eleanor was still holding little Leo near the nursery door, stepping back every time Clara reached out with her trembling, blood-stained hands. Clara was weeping on her knees, desperately trying to pick up the shattered glass of her prescription bottle so she wouldn’t step on it.
“Mom,” I said quietly, stepping into the frame.
Eleanor turned around instantly, her face shifting in a fraction of a second from sadistic delight to a warm, maternal pout.
“Oh! Julian, darling!” Eleanor gasped sweetly. “Thank goodness you’re home early! Clara had a terrible dizzy spell and dropped her medication all over the floor. I told her to rest, but she’s being so hysterical, and poor little Leo is terrified of her crying—”
“Quiet,” I said.
Eleanor blinked, her smile faltering. “Excuse me?”
I walked past her without another word, knelt beside Clara, and wrapped my arm around her waist. I carefully lifted my wife into my arms, keeping her away from the sharp shards on the floor, and set her gently onto the armchair.
“Julian… the baby…” Clara sobbed into my chest, her hands shaking uncontrollably. “She won’t give me Leo…”
“I have him,” I whispered, kissing her forehead.
I turned back to Eleanor and held out my hand. “Give me my son.”
“Julian, really, you’re being utterly dramatic,” Eleanor scoffed, tightening her grip on the infant. “I am his grandmother! Clara is clearly in no state to hold a newborn right now. She needs medical evaluation. I was just keeping him safe—”
I pulled out my phone and tapped the screen once. The speaker blasted the exact audio from fifteen minutes ago:
“Leo is crying because his mother is weak and completely incompetent. Get down on your hands and knees and clean up this glass. Only then will I let you hold him.”
Eleanor froze as if struck by lightning. The blood drained from her face so fast she looked like a ghost.
“Where… where did you get that?” she stammered, her voice losing its polished tone.
“You disconnected the router,” I said coldly, stepping forward and firmly taking Leo from her arms, placing him safely into Clara’s waiting lap. “You didn’t check for a standalone cellular-backed security lens. I saw every second, Mom. And so did Audrey.”
“Audrey?!” Eleanor’s eyes flashed with sudden rage. “You sent this to your sister?! It was a joke! I was trying to motivate her! Clara is lazy, Julian! She’s taking advantage of you!”
“Pack your bags,” I said.
May you like
“This is my son’s house!” she shrieked, dropping the sweet matriarch persona completely. “You can’t kick me out! I am your mother! I gave up everything for you!”
“You have ten minutes,” I replied, checking my watch. “Because if you are still on my property in eleven minutes, the police will arrest you for trespassing, domestic abuse, and endangerment of a vulnerable adult.”
