Chapter 10 - The Empty Room
Police traced the other address through a receipt hidden in the garage box. It led to a narrow house at the edge of a small industrial town. I was not allowed near the search, and for once I didn't argue.
I sat with Elena in a hospital waiting room while Lily completed a gentle, specialist-led interview. Through the glass, I could see her arranging toy animals in a row. I had spent so long assuming she was fine that even watching her play felt like a privilege I had nearly lost.
"I should have listened to you," I told Elena.
"Yes," she said.
I waited for something softer.
"I was angry at you," she continued. "But anger doesn't protect her. Doing the work does."
"I'll do it."
"Then stop promising and start showing up."
Park called two hours later. At the second property, investigators had found an upstairs room with a child-sized mattress, a camera aimed at the door, and a lock installed on the outside. A folder described Lily as a child requiring isolation for behavioral treatment. The supposed doctor's credentials were invented.
The house was empty. But someone had left in a hurry. A coffee cup was still warm when the first officers arrived.
Elena's hands tightened around her phone. "They're still close."
"We're expanding the search," Park said. "The evidence suggests an attempted unlawful transfer, not any legitimate treatment arrangement."
Lily emerged from her interview carrying a paper star. She handed it to me.
"Ms. Nora said I can tell the truth even if somebody gets mad," she said.
"You can always tell me the truth."
She touched the star's crooked points.
"Then you need to know something else, Daddy."
May you like
Her voice dropped.
"Vanessa said you were next."
