Chapter 3 - The Smallest Heartbeat
"Turn her onto her left side," Dr. Shah ordered. "Now."
Daniel moved back while nurses surrounded the bed. A long minute passed, then another. The baby's heartbeat recovered, but Emily was shaking so hard her teeth clicked together.
"What happened?" she asked.
"A temporary deceleration," Dr. Shah said. "We're keeping you here for observation. If something changes, we act quickly."
When the room finally grew quiet, Daniel pulled up a chair. "Tell me about the blue folder."
Emily looked at the closed door. "Not until you promise something."
"Anything."
"Don't choose me just because she's hurt me. Choose what's right when doing it costs you something."
That hurt more than anger would have. Daniel had spent thirty-four years obeying the woman who could turn a compliment into a debt. His father, Arthur, had founded the housing trust to keep working families in safe apartments. After Arthur died, Margaret ran the board while Daniel handled the business expansion. He'd trusted her. He'd made trusting her a habit.
"I promise," he said, and knew promises were cheap until they were tested.
A detective named Dana Ruiz arrived to take a statement. Emily described the tray, the slap, the shove, and Margaret taking her phone. Daniel confirmed what he'd seen: his mother standing above Emily, a phone bulging in her pocket, plates spread across the floor.
Ruiz didn't offer easy reassurance. She asked who else had been in the house and whether any cameras covered the kitchen.
"There was one," Daniel said. "My mother said it broke last week."
"Who manages security?"
"Graham's department."
Emily laughed once without humor. "Of course it does."
Rosa Delgado stood in the doorway, still wearing her housekeeper's cardigan. Her eyes were red.
"Mrs. Emily, I'm sorry. I wasn't supposed to leave you alone."
"You didn't do this, Rosa."
Rosa handed Daniel a folded slip of paper. "I found this in the trash after Mrs. Whitmore sent me away. She didn't know I came back through the service door."
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On the paper was a printed work order: DISABLE KITCHEN CAMERA. AUTHORIZED BY M. WHITMORE. TIME: 2:45 P.M.
Rosa swallowed. "There is something else. She told Mr. Pike to bring the car around before your wife fell."
