Chapter 15 - The Clock
Inside the brass clock was a hidden camera.
The memory card held eleven months of recordings.
Some were harmless.
Sarah feeding Leo.
Maria folding laundry.
Ethan pacing with a crying newborn at three in the morning.
Others were not.
Collins entering the nursery while everyone slept.
Dr. Lang photographing medication labels.
Victoria searching drawers.
And one video changed everything.
Caroline appeared three days before her death.
She was arguing with Collins.
"You altered the safety archive."
Collins whispered, "Keep your voice down."
"I have copies."
"You have a baby."
"Is that a threat?"
"It's advice."
Caroline stepped closer to him.
"If anything happens to me, Ethan gets everything."
Collins smiled.
"Then perhaps Ethan needs to become unreliable too."
The recording ended.
Detective Chen immediately added it to the case.
Sarah sat in the nursery holding Leo.
Ethan stood by the window.
"I should have seen him."
"Mr. Ethan--"
"Don't."
He turned.
"Please stop calling me Mr. Ethan when we're alone."
Sarah looked surprised.
"All right."
"I trusted Collins more than I trusted my own wife."
"You trusted someone who had been in your life for years."
"And Caroline paid for it."
Sarah did not give him easy comfort.
"Then make sure Leo doesn't."
He nodded.
That was what he needed.
Not forgiveness.
Direction.
A week later, the mansion was quieter.
Victoria remained in custody.
Daniel entered a cooperation agreement.
Collins was denied bail.
Margaret's lawyers stopped returning calls.
Then Ethan found Sarah packing.
"What are you doing?"
She folded her uniform.
"Leaving."
His face fell.
"Why?"
"Because this house became a battlefield, and I need to decide whether I want my whole life to be somebody else's emergency."
He understood.
"I don't want to lose you."
Sarah looked toward Leo.
"You won't. I'll stay until you hire someone he trusts."
Ethan nodded, though it hurt more than he expected.
Then Leo toddled across the rug and held up a block.
"Sa."
Sarah smiled.
It was the closest he had come to saying her name.
Ethan's phone rang.
Nathan.
"We have a problem."
"What now?"
"Victoria's attorney filed a motion."
"For what?"
"To suppress the baby-monitor recording."
Ethan went still.
"On what grounds?"
May you like
Nathan answered:
"She claims Sarah planted the camera and staged the entire incident."
