Chapter 6 - The Counselor's Name
Daniel called Melissa back six times.
Her purse was inside.
Her phone was gone.
By midnight, the guardianship case had become something larger than Daniel could understand from his kitchen.
"Because judges act fast when children look unsafe. If enough documents point the same direction, even bad evidence can create temporary orders before anyone has time to challenge it."
Daniel looked at Sophie asleep on the couch.
"What happened?"
Sophie immediately hid her arm.
"Claire grabbed me when I wouldn't drink the blue juice."
Daniel's stomach dropped.
"What blue juice?"
"At bedtime."
"Every night?"
She nodded.
"It made my head fuzzy."
Daniel had to sit down.
The unlabeled bottle from the bedroom was still with police.
Dr. Shah ordered toxicology.
Hours later, the result came back.
A sedating antihistamine was present in Sophie's system at a level inconsistent with a normal occasional children's dose.
Laura immediately understood.
"If Claire wanted to claim Sophie wandered at night, drugging her could make her confused on camera."
Daniel felt physically sick.
Then Detective Mara Ortiz arrived with new footage recovered from the damaged drive.
The clip showed Claire waking Sophie at 2:13 a.m.
Sophie stumbled down the hallway half asleep.
Claire filmed from behind.
"See?" Claire whispered to someone off camera. "This is what we need."
A man's voice answered.
Marcus.
"We need one fall. Nothing serious. Enough for an ER record."
Daniel stopped the video.
"No."
Ortiz's jaw tightened.
"There's another clip."
Daniel did not want to watch.
He made himself.
Marcus stood beside the staircase measuring the distance between two steps.
Then he said, "If she bruises, the report writes itself."
Sophie had been sleeping upstairs while they planned it.
Daniel whispered, "Find him."
Ortiz nodded.
Then Laura's phone rang.
It was Melissa Grant.
This time she was crying.
"I'm safe."
"Where are you?"
"I can't say."
"Melissa, police are looking for you."
"Tell them Brightwood has other children."
Laura froze.
"What?"
Melissa whispered, "Sophie wasn't the first file they built."
Then she sent one photograph.
Seven children's names.
Seven trust balances.
May you like
And beside three names, one word:
TRANSFERRED.
