Chapter 6 - The Federal Charge
The heavy steel handcuffs bit violently into my wrists as the officer forced my arms behind my back.
I stared at my father in utter disbelief while Derek and Patricia feigned absolute shock for the police.
"You have the wrong person," my father shouted, stepping between me and the arresting officer.
"Sir, step back or you will be charged with obstruction," the officer warned, pushing my father aside.
"She stole eighty thousand dollars' worth of OxyContin from the corporate pharmacy vault," another agent stated coldly.
"We have video evidence of her logging in and removing the inventory."
Derek wiped a fake tear from his eye, leaning against the kitchen counter.
"I tried to get her help for her addiction, officers, but she just wouldn't listen," Derek lied smoothly.
I thrashed against the officer's grip, pure hatred burning in my veins.
"He stole my badge!" I screamed. "He's trying to kill me for the insurance money!"
The officers ignored me entirely, dragging me out of the house and into the freezing rain.
I saw Lily standing at the top of the stairs, clutching her rabbit and crying for her mother.
That image shattered my heart into a million pieces as they shoved me into the back of a squad car.
The next forty-eight hours were a nightmare of gray concrete walls, aggressive interrogations, and terrifying isolation.
They showed me the security footage from the pharmacy vault.
The person on the tape was wearing my exact uniform, a surgical mask, and my distinctive red jacket.
The figure used my badge, typed in my secure PIN, and emptied the narcotics safe into a duffel bag.
It looked exactly like me, and I realized how meticulously Derek had planned my destruction.
On Wednesday morning, my father’s attorney, Denise, finally walked into the visitation room.
She looked exhausted, dropping a massive stack of legal files onto the metal table.
"The bail is set at half a million dollars, and your father just mortgaged his house to pay it," Denise said grimly.
"I didn't do this, Denise," I pleaded, tears streaming down my face.
Denise sighed, rubbing her temples.
May you like
"I know you didn't, Claire, but Derek just filed an emergency order for full custody of Lily."
"And the judge just granted it."
