Chapter 6 - WHAT THE NEIGHBOR HEARD
Derek’s fist dropped.
The officers entered.
“Everyone stay where you are.”
Melissa immediately transformed.
It was almost impressive.
Her shoulders softened.
Her voice became gentle.
“There’s been a misunderstanding.”
One officer looked at Mom’s red cheek.
“Ma’am, were you struck tonight?”
Mom froze.
Melissa answered for her.
“She fell.”
I snapped,
“She was slapped.”
The officer held up a hand.
“I need to hear from her.”
Mom looked around the room.
At Derek.
At Melissa.
At me.
Then toward Mrs. Patterson.
The neighbor’s eyes were wet.
“It’s okay, Dorothy.”
Mom looked down.
“I…”
My heart hammered.
If she lied now, I wouldn’t blame her.
Fear doesn’t disappear because help walks through the door.
Sometimes fear gets worse.
The officer spoke softly.
“Did someone hit you?”
Mom slowly touched her cheek.
“Yes.”
Melissa exploded.
“Oh my God!”
The officer turned.
“Ma’am, please be quiet.”
“She’s confused!”
Mom looked directly at Melissa.
“No, I’m not.”
That was the first real crack in Melissa’s control.
The officers separated everyone.
One took Mom into the living room.
The other questioned me.
I showed him the bruises.
The bank statements.
The credit card.
The forged property transfer.
His expression became increasingly serious.
“This may involve financial exploitation.”
Derek heard him.
“This is a family issue.”
The officer looked at him.
“Forgery and identity theft are not family issues.”
Melissa folded her arms.
“You have no proof I opened that card.”
I smiled.
“The store probably has cameras.”
Her confidence flickered.
Then Mrs. Patterson approached me.
“There’s something else.”
“What?”
She looked toward Mom.
“I didn’t know whether to interfere.”
My stomach tightened.
“What did you hear?”
“Arguments.”
“How often?”
“Almost every week.”
She swallowed.
“Sometimes your mother cried outside near the garage.”
Mom had never mentioned it.
“What else?”
Mrs. Patterson lowered her voice.
“Three months ago, I saw Derek grab her.”
I looked at my brother.
“Where?”
“Driveway.”
She demonstrated by gripping her own wrist.
“He pulled her toward the car.”
The bruises.
The shape.
Derek.
So Melissa wasn’t the only one.
I felt sick.
“Why?”
“I don’t know.”
Then Mrs. Patterson said,
“But I recorded part of it.”
My head snapped toward her.
“You did?”
“I was worried.”
She took out her phone.
The video was shaky, filmed through a window.
But the audio was clear.
Derek’s voice.
“You’re going to sign it.”
Mom:
“I don’t understand it.”
Derek:
“You don’t need to understand.”
Then Mom cried,
“You’re hurting me.”
The video ended.
I couldn’t breathe.
One officer watched it.
Then called his partner.
Derek saw what was happening.
His face collapsed.
“Mom, tell them I never hurt you.”
Mom stared at him.
He stepped toward her.
“Tell them.”
The officer moved between them.
“Sir, stay back.”
Derek became desperate.
“Mom!”
She flinched.
The officer noticed.
That was enough.
“Turn around.”
“What?”
“Turn around and place your hands behind your back.”
Melissa screamed.
“You can’t arrest him!”
The officer repeated the order.
Derek looked at me.
Hatred burned in his eyes.
“You did this.”
“No.”
I shook my head.
“You did.”
The handcuffs clicked.
Mom began crying.
Not because she wanted him free.
Because he was still her son.
As they led Derek out, he twisted toward me.
“You think this house makes you powerful?”
I said nothing.
He smiled.
An ugly, desperate smile.
“You have no idea what I signed.”
My blood ran cold.
“What does that mean?”
He laughed as the officer pushed him through the door.
Then Melissa suddenly stopped crying.
She looked at me.
Really looked at me.
And smiled.
That frightened me more than Derek’s threat.
May you like
“You should listen to your brother,” she whispered.
“Because by tomorrow morning, this house might not belong to you anymore.”
