Daniel had gone pale. His lawyer froze with a pen in his hand. The judge’s expression hardened into something sharp and unreadable.
I turned to Emma. My voice cracked when I spoke.
“When did you find this?”
Her eyes filled, but she stood firm. “The second Thursday in September. Dad told me to wait in my room because he had a work call. But I forgot my math book downstairs. I heard voices, so I hid my tablet on the shelf and recorded it.”
My hand flew to my mouth.
She had seen this. Alone.
She had carried it for weeks.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked.
“Because…” Her chin trembled. “Because every time I tried, you looked so tired. And I thought if Dad was lying to you, maybe the judge should know before he got to keep pretending.”
The judge leaned forward, eyes on Daniel.
“Mr. Bennett,” he said slowly, “you will explain this to the court.”
Daniel stood halfway, then sat again. For the first time since I had known him, he looked truly cornered.
“It’s… it’s not what it looks like.”
