Chapter 7 - The Boy With the Charger.
Ethan's interview happened that afternoon in a room designed to look nothing like an interrogation room.
There were soft chairs, a box of colored pencils, and a camera mounted high in one corner.
Claire was not allowed inside.
She understood why.
Still, waiting outside felt unbearable.
Ruiz came out forty minutes later.
Her expression was careful.
"He did well."
Claire stood.
"What did he see?"
"I can't share every detail while the investigation is active."
Claire's frustration flashed.
"That's my daughter."
"I know."
Ruiz lowered her voice.
"But I can tell you this much."
Claire waited.
"Ethan saw Robert holding Lily's phone in the upstairs hallway."
Claire's stomach tightened.
"When?"
"Before you found her."
That single sentence destroyed Robert's original story.
He had claimed he never saw Lily upstairs until after the 911 call.
Yet he had been holding her phone before Claire even entered the guest room.
"Did Ethan see Patricia?"
Ruiz nodded.
"Near the guest-room door."
Claire pressed a hand to her forehead.
"Anything else?"
Ruiz hesitated.
"Ethan heard Lily crying."
Claire closed her eyes.
She could not bear the image her mind tried to create.
Ruiz stopped her gently.
"We are not going to speculate beyond what witnesses actually say."
Claire nodded.
That helped.
Facts were enough.
Facts were already terrible.
Back in Lily's room, a social worker named Maya sat with Claire.
She explained the next steps slowly.
Lily would not be pushed to recount events over and over.
Specialists would speak with her only when appropriate.
Claire appreciated that more than she could express.
"I don't want her to feel responsible for proving anything."
"She isn't responsible."
Maya's answer was immediate.
"Adults are responsible for keeping children safe."
Claire looked down.
"I should have listened sooner."
Maya did not argue with her feelings.
She simply said, "What matters now is what you do with what you know."
The words stayed with Claire.
That evening, Lily was alert enough to ask for apple juice.
Claire helped her drink slowly.
Lily held the rabbit under her chin.
"Are we going home?"
"Yes, when the doctor says you're ready."
"Not Grandma's house?"
"No."
"Ever?"
Claire paused.
"You never have to go somewhere that makes you feel unsafe."
Lily nodded and closed her eyes.
A few minutes later, Detective Ruiz entered with a strange expression.
"We found another inconsistency."
Claire almost laughed from exhaustion.
"How many are there now?"
"Robert says he took Lily's phone because she was using it without permission."
"So now he admits he had it."
"Yes."
"What does Patricia say?"
"She says Robert never touched the phone."
Claire stared at her.
The two stories were no longer slightly different.
They were colliding.
Ruiz placed a printed photograph on the table.
It showed the upstairs hallway from the night of the party.
Claire recognized the angle immediately.
"Where did this come from?"
"A motion-activated camera on the landing."
Claire stared at the timestamp.
The image showed Robert walking toward the guest room.
In his right hand was a small pink-edged phone.
May you like
Behind him was Patricia.
And between them, barely visible through the open doorway, was Lily.
