Chapter 2 - The Setup
Thomas surveyed the chaotic kitchen with cold, calculating eyes.
He looked at my twisted, swollen leg on the hardwood floor with absolute indifference.
David stumbled out of the living room, clutching his bruised ribs and breathing heavily.
"She went crazy, Tommy," David gasped, playing the role of the battered victim perfectly.
"She found out I moved the money to a safe account, and she just attacked me like a wild animal."
Thomas nodded slowly, pulling out his official notebook to record the fabricated statement.
"It was terrifying, officer," Margaret added, dabbing her dry eyes with a silk handkerchief.
"Sarah threw herself backward into the island to make it look like David pushed her."
I gritted my teeth, fighting back a wave of nausea from the excruciating pain.
"They are lying," I choked out, my voice trembling but defiant.
"My daughter saw everything, Emma knows what happened!" I pleaded, gesturing toward the stairs.
But when I looked up, the staircase was completely empty.
Margaret had quietly slipped away and dragged my traumatized four-year-old out of sight.
"Where is my daughter?" I screamed, trying to force myself up onto my good knee.
Thomas stepped forward and forcefully shoved me back down onto the floor by my shoulder.
"Stay down, Sarah, you are under arrest for domestic battery," Thomas declared in a booming voice.
"You cannot do this, he broke my leg!" I cried out as the other officers approached me with handcuffs.
"We have two witnesses stating you were the aggressor, and my brother has physical injuries," Thomas replied coldly.
The paramedics arrived a moment later, rushing into the kitchen with a stretcher.
They carefully loaded me onto the gurney, splinting my shattered leg while I sobbed for Emma.
David stood near the refrigerator, offering me a tiny, victorious wave as they rolled me past him.
They strapped me tightly into the back of the ambulance, and one of Thomas's deputies climbed in with me.
The ambulance doors slammed shut, plunging me into a sterile, terrifying new reality.
The deputy crossed his arms, staring at me with a look of pure contempt.
The paramedic leaned over me to check my vitals, his face completely hidden behind a surgical mask.
As he adjusted the blood pressure cuff, I felt a heavy, cold object slide stealthily into my palm.
May you like
The paramedic leaned close to my ear, his voice barely a whisper over the wailing siren.
"Your father sends his regards, but you need to get out of this hospital before midnight."
