Chapter 10 - BEFORE THE BABY IS BORN
Detective Brooks arranged to meet them the next morning at the financial crimes office.
Hannah barely slept.
Ethan barely tried.
At 7:30 a.m., they sat in a small interview room with David beside them and a monitor mounted on the wall.
Detective Brooks entered carrying a folder and a flash drive.
"Before I play this, I need to be clear."
Ethan nodded.
"The video is incomplete."
"How incomplete?"
"The recovered file is fifty-eight seconds."
"That is all?"
"For this date, yes."
Hannah gripped Ethan's hand.
"Play it."
Brooks inserted the drive.
The screen showed the nursery from the camera above the closet.
The timestamp read nine days earlier.
Lorraine entered first.
Madison followed.
Hannah was nowhere in sight.
Lorraine closed the nursery door.
Madison picked up the framed ultrasound picture from the changing table.
"You are sure the bank got the letter?"
Lorraine's voice was clear.
"They confirmed receipt."
Madison turned the frame over in her hands.
"And Ethan still does not know?"
"He is too busy to notice anything right now."
Ethan's jaw tightened.
Madison lowered her voice.
"What if Hannah tells him?"
Lorraine laughed softly.
"She will not."
"How do you know?"
"Because every time she starts to complain, I remind her how stressed he is."
Hannah closed her eyes.
On screen, Madison placed the ultrasound picture back.
"I still think the loan was too much."
Lorraine turned sharply.
"Trevor needed the money."
"Trevor always needs money."
"This is not about Trevor."
"Then what is it about?"
Lorraine stepped closer to the crib.
"It is about making sure nothing changes before the baby is born."
Madison stared at her.
"You cannot stop the baby from being born."
Lorraine's answer was almost too quiet to hear.
"No."
Then she looked directly toward the crib.
"But I can make sure Ethan is not in control when it happens."
The video ended.
Nobody in the interview room spoke for several seconds.
Hannah's hand was trembling inside Ethan's.
"Play the last part again."
Detective Brooks did.
But I can make sure Ethan is not in control when it happens.
The screen went black.
Ethan looked at Brooks.
"What does that mean?"
"I don't know yet."
"She wanted control of the trust."
"Possibly."
"She forged documents."
"We are investigating."
"She stole medical information."
"We have evidence that information from Mrs. Cole's file was used."
"So what are we waiting for?"
David touched Ethan's arm.
"We are waiting for evidence that ties each act to a person."
Ethan looked at him.
"That video ties Mom to the loan."
"It ties her to knowledge of the loan."
"She said Trevor needed the money."
"Correct."
"What more do you need?"
Detective Brooks answered.
"Where the application came from."
"Who completed it."
"Who participated in the identity verification call."
"Who moved the disbursed funds."
"Who forged the signatures."
Each sentence felt like another locked door.
Hannah spoke quietly.
"Do you think Madison made the verification call?"
Brooks looked at her.
"Why do you ask?"
"People say our voices sound similar on the phone."
Ethan turned toward her.
He had never thought of that.
Hannah continued.
"When she first started staying with us, she answered my phone twice when I was in the shower."
"Did she know your personal information?"
"Some."
"Date of birth?"
"Yes."
"Mother's maiden name?"
"Maybe."
"Social Security number?"
"Not unless she saw my file."
Brooks made a note.
"We will request the verification recording."
Ethan looked at David.
"Can we stop Mom from touching the trust?"
"I filed for temporary restrictions this morning."
"How long?"
"A judge may review it today."
"And the house?"
"The twenty-five percent claim appears unsupported so far."
"So they have no right to be there."
"Not that I can see."
"Then I'm changing the locks."
David nodded.
"Do it with proper notice and an inventory of their belongings."
Hannah looked at Ethan.
"I want to be there."
"No."
"Ethan."
"Your doctor told you to rest."
"I can sit in the car."
"Why do you need to go?"
"Because I need to see that house become ours again."
He did not argue after that.
At noon, they returned with a locksmith, David, and a civil standby officer.
Lorraine and Madison were not there.
Trevor's van was gone.
The front door was unlocked.
Inside, the house looked as though someone had tried to erase Hannah from it.
Her shoes were boxed.
Her coat was boxed.
Her cookbooks were boxed.
Even framed wedding photos had been removed from the hallway.
Ethan found them facedown in a cardboard carton beneath the stairs.
Hannah sat in a chair near the foyer while he walked through each room.
He did not let her climb the stairs.
The locksmith changed the exterior locks.
David photographed every box belonging to Lorraine and Madison.
The civil officer watched as they placed those boxes in the garage for scheduled pickup.
Then Ethan entered the kitchen.
The pile of dishes was gone.
For one second, the clean counters made the room look peaceful.
Then he saw the note taped above the sink.
It was written in Lorraine's handwriting.
A WOMAN WHO CANNOT CARE FOR A HOME SHOULD THINK CAREFULLY ABOUT WHETHER SHE CAN CARE FOR A CHILD.
Ethan ripped the note down.
"Don't."
Hannah's voice came from the doorway.
He stopped.
"We need it."
David was already behind her.
"She's right."
Ethan placed the note carefully into a plastic sleeve.
Hannah stared at it.
"She used to say things like that when you were at work."
"About the baby?"
"Sometimes."
"What else?"
"That I was too sensitive."
"That motherhood would be harder than pregnancy."
"That you would eventually get tired of coming home to someone exhausted."
Ethan's face tightened.
Hannah continued.
"She said men like you need peace when they come home."
"Men like me?"
"Successful men."
"And you believed her?"
"Not at first."
"Then?"
Hannah looked around the kitchen.
"Then you started coming home later."
Ethan closed his eyes.
The merger.
The board meetings.
The dinners.
Every extra hour had given Lorraine more room.
"I am sorry."
"I know."
"I should have seen it."
"We both should have seen parts of it."
She took a careful breath.
"But seeing it now matters."
A car door slammed outside.
Madison had arrived.
She walked into the house using her old key.
The key did not turn.
She tried again.
Then pounded on the door.
"Ethan!"
He opened it but did not step aside.
Madison's eyes moved past him toward the locksmith.
"You changed the locks?"
"Yes."
"Where is my stuff?"
"Garage."
"You put my things in the garage?"
"They are inventoried and protected."
"You are unbelievable."
"Do you want them now?"
"I want to come inside."
"No."
She stared at him.
Then she saw Hannah sitting in the foyer.
Her expression hardened.
"Happy?"
Hannah looked at her.
"No."
"You got what you wanted."
"I wanted to rest in my own home without being treated like a servant."
Madison laughed.
"There it is."
"What?"
"The victim speech."
Ethan stepped between them.
"Stop."
Madison pointed at Hannah.
"She has you completely fooled."
"I saw the video."
Madison froze.
"What video?"
"Nursery. Nine days ago."
Her face changed.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"You and Mom."
Madison took one step backward.
"That camera wasn't supposed to be on."
The words escaped before she could stop them.
Ethan stared at her.
David stared at her.
The civil officer stared at her.
Madison's face went white.
"I mean... Mom said the system had been disconnected."
Ethan's voice became very quiet.
"Why did Mom need the camera off?"
"She didn't."
"Then why did you care?"
"I don't."
"Why were you discussing a loan in Hannah's name?"
"I never said it was in her name."
"You said the loan was too much."
Madison looked toward the driveway.
"I need to go."
Ethan did not block her.
"Take your things."
She walked toward the garage.
Then stopped.
"You really want to know what Mom meant about you not being in control?"
Ethan turned.
Madison's eyes were wet now.
For the first time, she looked frightened rather than angry.
"Yes."
She swallowed.
"Ask her what she filed with the court yesterday morning."
David's face changed.
"What court?"
Madison shook her head.
"I shouldn't have said anything."
"Madison."
She backed away.
"She told me it was only in case Hannah became unstable."
Hannah stood despite Ethan reaching for her.
"What did she file?"
Madison's voice dropped to a whisper.
"Something about the baby."
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PART TWO - THE FAMILY SECRET
