Chapter 2: Cracks in the Perfect Image
Hospital security arrived within minutes.
Marissa tried to leave.
“Ma’am, we need you to stay,” one of the guards said politely but firmly.
“I’ve done nothing wrong,” she snapped, her composure returning in flashes. “This is ridiculous.”
Daniel finally stood.
“No,” he said quietly. “What’s ridiculous is that my son begged for help, and you convinced me he was lying.”
Marissa’s eyes flickered. “I was trying to keep him from obsessing—”
“You dismissed him,” Daniel cut in. “Every time. You told me he was dramatic. That he wanted attention.”
She opened her mouth.
Closed it.
The silence this time wasn’t defensive.
It was calculating.
Evelyn watched her closely.
“There’s only one way something like that gets inside a cast,” she said. “It doesn’t crawl in after. It goes in before the cast sets.”
Daniel’s stomach dropped.
“You’re saying—”
“I’m saying someone put it there.”
Noah whimpered.
Daniel turned to Marissa again — and now the anger was there.
“Why?” he asked.
This time, she didn’t deny it.
“I didn’t think it would survive that long,” she said softly.
The room went dead silent.
Daniel stared at her like he didn’t recognize her.
“You what?”
Her voice trembled, but not with regret.
“With frustration.”
“He needed to learn,” she said. “He’s always been… difficult. Attention-seeking. Weak.”
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Noah buried his face into Daniel’s chest.
And something inside Daniel broke.
