Chapter 2 - The Setup
"That is impossible," Marcus said, stepping toward the officer with his hands raised in surrender.
"I keep my sleep medication locked in the glove compartment of my truck because of my night shifts."
The officer placed his hand firmly on his duty belt.
"Sir, I am going to need you to step outside and show me your vehicle right now," the officer commanded.
I grabbed Marcus's arm, panic rising in my throat like bile.
"Marcus didn't do this," I pleaded with the officer.
"He was upstairs with me the entire time."
My mother shook her head with a pitiful, patronizing look on her face.
"Camille, you cannot blindly protect a man who just endangered your child," my mother whispered loudly.
I wanted to slap the fake sympathy right off her face.
Marcus squeezed my hand and followed the officer out the front door into the crisp morning air.
I ran after them, ignoring the sharp pain in my bare feet as they hit the concrete driveway.
Marcus unlocked his truck and pulled down the glove compartment.
It was completely empty.
"I swear to you, I left the bottle right here yesterday afternoon," Marcus said, his voice laced with genuine panic.
The officer pulled a pair of silver handcuffs from his belt.
"Turn around and place your hands behind your back," the officer ordered.
"You are arresting him?" I screamed, tears finally spilling over my eyelashes.
"He is a suspect in the poisoning of a minor, ma'am," the officer replied coldly.
As the officer clicked the handcuffs around Marcus's wrists, I looked back at the house.
Vanessa was standing on the front porch, smiling down at us.
She held up her phone and snapped a photo of Marcus being shoved into the back of the police cruiser.
"I told you he was white trash," Vanessa mouthed to me from the porch.
I suddenly realized this was never about ruining Lily's birthday.
This was a meticulously planned frame-up designed to get rid of my fiancé and destroy my engagement.
My phone vibrated in my pocket, pulling me away from the terrifying realization.
It was a call from the local hospital.
"Is this the mother of Lily Vance?" a stern female voice asked.
"Yes, how is my daughter?" I gasped, praying for good news.
"She is stable, but we found something extremely concerning in her blood work," the doctor said.
May you like
"It wasn't just sleeping pills, ma'am."
"Someone also gave her a lethal dose of liquid antifreeze."
