Chapter 4 - The Witness
It took us three days to track Sarah to a small town two states over. She was terrified. She hadn't left because she wanted to; she had left because Claire had threatened to frame her for theft if she ever spoke about the way she treated the children.
When we finally met in a quiet diner, Sarah started crying before she even touched her coffee.
"She’s a monster," Sarah whispered, looking over her shoulder. "She would lock them in the pantry when they cried. She’d drink until she couldn't stand and then force Valerie to help her undress. She told Valerie that if she told you, she’d throw Mateo out the window. That’s why your daughter stayed quiet, John. She was protecting her baby brother from a woman who didn't deserve to be a mother."
I held my head in my hands. The thought of my little girl, carrying the secret of that horror for months, was a physical pain.
"Will you testify?" I asked.
May you like
Sarah took a deep breath, her eyes hardening. "Yes. I’ll testify. I’ve lived with the guilt long enough."
With Sarah as our star witness, the defense’s narrative began to crumble. But the closer we got to the trial, the more dangerous Claire became. Tires were slashed at night. Private investigators were seen parked at the end of the street. She was trying to break me—not just legally, but mentally.
