Cruel, maybe.
But the notebook revealed something colder.
Method.
She had not snapped.
She had not made one terrible mistake.
She had observed.
Adjusted.
Recorded.
My daughter had been studied like a problem to solve.
And then came the second discovery.
In Diane’s room, under a stack of folded cardigans, police found printed articles.
Custody law.
Grandparents’ rights.
Signs of maternal instability.
How to report neglect anonymously.
I stared at Detective Kim.
“What does that mean?”
Detective Kim did not soften the truth.
“It suggests she may have been building a case to challenge your care of Emma.”
My body went numb.
“She wanted to take my daughter?”
“We’re investigating motive.”
Motive.
Another clean word.
