Chapter 6 - Not Family, EvidenceThe doorbell rang.
Adrian shoved back his chair. “You stupid woman. Do you know what you’ve done?”
“Yes,” I said. “I protected my son.”
Detective Ramos entered with two officers and a forensic technician. The syringe had been recovered from Vivienne’s purse after Maya distracted her long enough for me to photograph it. The lab rush confirmed a sedative powerful enough to hospitalize a child.
Vivienne screamed when they cuffed her.
Adrian tried to bargain. “Clara, we’re family.”
I looked at him, really looked at him—the brother who had called me fragile while planning to strip me bare.
“No. You’re evidence.”
The second folder on the table was mine. Court filings. Emergency protection orders. A freeze on the trust. A civil fraud complaint. Hart Therapeutics board resolutions removing Adrian from advisory control. Every document had been prepared before dinner.
My mother began crying. “I didn’t know about the syringe.”
“But you knew about the petition,” I said. “You knew they were going to declare me unfit.”
May you like
She lowered her eyes.
That hurt more than Adrian’s rage.
