The recording continued.
“You drug Garrett,” Vanessa said. “Keep him away. Make sure the wife calls. Make sure he misses every one.”
“And the boy?”
A pause.
Then Vanessa said softly, “I’ll handle the hospital.”
The room was silent after the recording ended.
Not empty.
Loaded.
Detective Klein looked at Garrett. “You just became the most important witness in a murder investigation.”
Garrett nodded, but his eyes stayed on me.
“I’ll testify,” he said. “Against anyone. I’ll give up everything.”
My father’s expression was hard. “You already did.”
That night, I returned home for the first time without Ethan.
His shoes were by the door.
His cereal bowl was still in the sink.
His dinosaur pajamas lay folded on the dryer.
I walked into his room and collapsed beside his bed.
For hours, I did not move.
Then, near midnight, a sound came from the hallway.
A soft click.
I lifted my head.
“Dad?” I called.
No answer.
The bedroom door opened slowly.
A woman stood there in the dark.
Auburn hair.
Pale eyes.
A gentle smile.
“Hello, Claire,” Vanessa Hale whispered. “I’m sorry about your son.”
Part 6 — The Night Grief Picked Up a Knife
I did not scream.
Grief had burned the scream out of me.
Instead, I reached for the small baseball bat Ethan kept beside his bed because he once believed monsters could be chased away if you were brave enough.
Vanessa saw it and smiled.
