Chapter 6 - THE AIRPORT TICKET
The accusation sounded absurd until Mara showed me the attachment.
Two airline tickets.
Chicago to Toronto.
My name.
Lily's name.
Departure: 7:10 a.m. the next morning.
I had never bought them.
"Can he fake this?" I asked.
"He can try," Mara said. "But fraud usually leaves fingerprints."
The ticket confirmation listed a credit card ending in 4421.
Not mine.
Not Jason's joint card.
Brooke's.
The email address on the reservation was a variation of mine with one extra letter.
The phone number belonged to a prepaid line.
By midnight, Mara had enough to show the judge that someone connected to Jason's family had created travel records designed to make me look like a flight risk.
The emergency hearing began at nine the next morning by video.
Jason sat beside his attorney with a solemn expression and a clean white shirt.
Diane was not allowed to participate because of the no-contact order, but I could see her shadow move behind a doorway in Jason's camera frame.
He was at her condo.
Mara noticed too.
The judge asked Jason whether he had evidence I purchased the tickets.
His lawyer said the confirmation spoke for itself.
Mara shared her screen.
"The card used to purchase both tickets belongs to Brooke Bennett."
Jason blinked.
His attorney stopped writing.
Mara continued.
"The reservation was created two hours before Mr. Bennett filed his emergency petition."
The judge's voice turned cold.
"Counsel, did your client know this?"
Jason leaned toward his lawyer and whispered frantically.
The petition was denied.
The judge ordered Jason not to interfere with my residence, finances, electronic accounts, or travel documents.
He also ordered temporary supervised parenting time once Lily's therapist considered it appropriate.
I thought the worst part of the morning was over.
Then the judge addressed me.
"Mrs. Bennett, your response to the incident at the birthday dinner also concerns the court. You struck your husband three times."
I swallowed.
"Yes, Your Honor. I did."
"Do you understand that protecting your child does not give you permission to assault another adult?"
"Yes."
I did not excuse it.
I did not call it justice.
I told the truth.
"I was furious, and I crossed a line. I wish I had picked up my daughter and left without touching him."
The judge watched me for a moment.
"That answer matters."
Jason looked disappointed.
He had expected me to lie.
After the hearing, Mara told me accountability would help us more than pretending I had done nothing wrong.
Then Elena called.
She had interviewed the Bennett family's longtime housekeeper, Rosa.
"Emily," Elena said, "Rosa says she saw Diane hit Lily before. More than once."
I closed my eyes.
"Will she testify?"
Elena hesitated.
May you like
"She was going to. Then someone threatened her son."
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