Chapter 3 - A House Full of Witnesses
Two officers arrived first, followed by an investigator who introduced herself as Detective Marisol Grant. She separated the guests and asked everyone what they had seen. Daniel gave her his phone. Jake repeated his account, carefully explaining where he had stood and what he had witnessed through the patio door.
Vanessa insisted the entire scene was a family misunderstanding. She said Jake had been angry for months because she had asked him to follow house rules. She claimed the object in her hand was a flavoring dropper she kept for cooking.
The detective didn't argue. She asked another officer to preserve the security footage and arranged for the shattered glass and remaining tea to be collected as evidence. Daniel was taken to the hospital for evaluation. He protested that he felt fine, but the paramedic reminded him that feeling fine wasn't the same as being safe.
Jake rode with his aunt Rachel. He stared out the window, hands locked together in his lap. “What if Dad thinks I'm lying?” he asked.
At the hospital, Daniel asked the doctor whether he had been exposed to anything dangerous. The doctor said the lab would need to examine the sample and that they should not jump to conclusions before results came back. Daniel hated the uncertainty. He hated even more that his son had been forced to shout to keep him safe.
Detective Grant called that evening. The camera had captured Vanessa's movements clearly, but it could not identify what she had put in the glass. The lab would need time.
“There's another issue,” she added. “Your wife says the camera system was installed by a contractor who works for your company. Do you know who has access to the recordings?”
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Daniel thought of the security app, the passwords he had shared with Vanessa, and the service technician who came every few months.
The detective paused. “Then we'd better find out who else can see inside your home.”
