Chapter 2 - The Unblinking Eyes
I lay on the hardwood floor for a long minute.
My jaw throbbed with a fiery pain.
I tasted copper in my mouth.
Slowly, I pushed myself up.
I walked over to the entryway mirror.
A dark bruise was already forming on my cheek.
My lip was split and bleeding.
But I wasn't crying.
I was furious.
And I was ready.
Mark thought he was smart.
He thought he could strike an older woman in her own home and walk away.
He had always underestimated me.
I walked straight back into my study.
I didn't call the police. Not yet.
I picked up the phone and dialed a private number.
It rang twice before a gruff voice answered.
"Arthur," I said. "I need you."
Arthur wasn't just my attorney; he was an old family friend.
"It's 2:30 in the morning, Helen," he grumbled. "Are you alright?"
"Mark just assaulted me," I replied calmly.
I heard him sit up straight on the other end of the line.
"I'm on my way. Have you called the police?"
"Not yet. I need you to look at something first."
While I waited for Arthur, I booted up my desktop computer.
I clicked on a hidden folder on my desktop.
A grid of security camera feeds popped up.
I had installed them six months ago.
Discreet. High definition. Audio enabled.
Mark didn't know about them.
Chloe didn't know about them.
I scrubbed the timeline back to 2:05 AM.
There it was.
The entire confrontation on the porch.
The audio was crystal clear.
“Good luck proving that, old lady.”
I watched his fist connect with my face in perfect 4K resolution.
I saved the file to three different hard drives.
When Arthur arrived twenty minutes later, he took one look at my face and swore.
Then I showed him the footage.
A cold smile crept onto his face.
May you like
"He's going to jail for this," Arthur said.
"Assault is just the beginning," I replied. "I want you to look into their house sale."
