Chapter 2 - The Man at the Recorder
Daniel hit the basement light.
A man in a gray jacket stood beside the security rack with a hard drive in his hand.
For half a second nobody moved.
Then the man ran.
"Hey!"
Daniel lunged down the last steps and caught his sleeve. The hard drive fell, cracked against the concrete, and skidded under a metal shelf.
The stranger shoved him hard enough to send him into the wall.
Upstairs, Sophie screamed.
Daniel heard Claire shout, "Marcus!"
The man froze.
Daniel did too.
"You know him?"
Claire stood at the top of the stairs, one hand over her mouth.
Marcus looked at her with pure fury.
"You said he'd be gone until nine."
Daniel's stomach dropped.
He grabbed Marcus by the jacket.
"Who are you?"
Marcus twisted free and ran through the basement utility door into the yard.
Daniel started after him, then heard Sophie crying upstairs.
He chose his daughter.
Claire backed away when he came up.
"Daniel, I can explain."
"Start with his name."
She folded her arms around herself.
"Marcus Reed."
"Who is he?"
"My brother."
"Your brother?"
"Half brother. We don't talk."
"He was in my basement holding my security drive."
"I didn't invite him."
"You just yelled his name before I did."
He called the police.
Claire became furious.
"You are seriously calling police on my family?"
"A man broke into my house."
"He didn't break in."
Daniel stopped.
"What?"
Claire realized too late what she had said.
"I mean... he used to have a code."
"Why?"
"He helped me with the cameras."
"The cameras you said were broken?"
Silence.
"I didn't install that."
Daniel felt sick.
Claire had not disabled the cameras.
She had redirected them.
The officer opened the most recent file.
That morning, Claire appeared on screen holding Sophie's birthday plate.
Sophie reached for a slice of pizza.
Claire pulled it away.
"Say it first."
Sophie shook her head.
"No."
"Say Daddy scares you when he's angry."
Daniel stopped breathing.
On the recording, Sophie whispered, "But he doesn't."
Claire leaned closer.
"Then you don't eat."
The officer looked at Daniel.
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But Daniel was staring at the time stamp.
Because ten minutes after that clip, Marcus entered Sophie's bedroom carrying a camera and a folder labeled FAMILY COURT.
