Chapter 1 - The Hidden Audio
I stared at Daniel, feeling the cold fury burning inside my chest.
He stood firmly in the hallway, blocking the front door with his broad shoulders.
His smug expression made my stomach churn with absolute disgust.
"You are not leaving with my wife," he sneered, crossing his arms.
I didn't flinch, refusing to give him the satisfaction of seeing my fear.
I had spent twenty long years working as a court reporter.
I had stared down serial killers, corporate embezzlers, and violent abusers.
A pathetic, controlling bully in a suburban hallway was never going to intimidate me.
"Move out of the way right now, Daniel," I said in a perfectly calm, icy tone.
Emily was trembling violently behind me, clutching the fabric of my coat for dear life.
Patricia stepped out of the dining room, casually holding a crystal glass of red wine.
"Call the police, Daniel," she suggested with a wicked, arrogant smirk on her face.
"Let them arrest this crazy woman for trespassing and breaking into our home."
I reached confidently for the brass door handle, keeping my eyes locked on his.
"Go ahead and call them," I challenged him without a single ounce of hesitation.
"Tell the police dispatcher that you are legally holding the rightful homeowner hostage."
Daniel laughed loudly, his voice echoing off the hardwood floors.
"I pay all the utility bills here, Rebecca," he snapped aggressively.
"You might pay the electric bill, but the house was bought with pure cash," I corrected him.
"The Lawson Family Trust purchased this property long before you even met her."
The arrogant color instantly drained from his pale, shocked face.
"Emily is the sole beneficiary on the deed, which means you are technically just a guest," I added.
I aggressively pushed past his frozen body, dragging my terrified daughter out into the freezing January snow.
We practically sprinted to my warm SUV parked in the icy driveway.
I locked the heavy car doors the exact second we were safely inside the vehicle.
Daniel ran out onto the front porch, screaming furious obscenities as I backed out into the dark street.
My hands were visibly shaking against the leather steering wheel as I drove us away from that nightmare.
Emily sat curled up in the passenger seat, sobbing quietly and uncontrollably into her cold hands.
"It is going to be okay, sweetheart," I whispered, reaching over to gently squeeze her trembling knee.
"He is never going to hurt you or control you ever again."
When we finally reached a red stoplight, my mind suddenly flashed back to the dining room.
I remembered my cell phone.
I had left it recording on their dining room table, but I remembered grabbing it right before we walked out.
I pulled it out of my purse and immediately pressed play on the saved audio file.
I needed to hear exactly what they had said during the chaotic moments I was focused on Emily.
The digital recording picked up Patricia's chilling, calculated voice loud and clear.
"Don't worry, Daniel, because by Friday, the house will finally be ours."
My blood ran cold, but there was something else on the audio that I hadn't heard in person.
May you like
Daniel's voice whispered back to his mother in a sinister, deadly tone.
"As long as the arsenic keeps doing its job, she won't even make it to the court hearing."
