Daniel came back into Lily’s room.
His face was pale.
“What did she mean?” I asked.
He sat down.
“I don’t know.”
“Daniel.”
He looked at me.
“My mother says Lily wasn’t supposed to be here.”
I frowned.
“What?”
“She wanted us to send Lily to her house.”
“Why?”
“She said she was worried you weren’t handling motherhood well.”
I stared at him.
“She thought I was unstable?”
“Yes.”
“Because Lily cried?”
“She said you were overwhelmed.”
I shook my head.
“That’s why she hit me?”
“No.”
Daniel looked ashamed.
“There is more.”
“What?”
“My mother had been telling people you were dangerous around Lily.”
I couldn’t speak.
“She wanted me to take the baby away from you.”
My heart sank.
“Why?”
“She said you weren’t fit to be a mother.”
I looked toward Lily’s bed.
“So this wasn’t about the crying.”
Daniel shook his head.
“No.”
“What was it about?”
He looked at me.
“My mother wanted custody.”
Part 8 — The Evidence
The police searched Patricia’s house.
They found copies of messages.
Printed emails.
Notes about Lily’s feeding schedule.
Photographs of my exhaustion.
A notebook documenting every time Lily cried.
Every time I missed a meal.
Every time I looked tired.
She had been building a story.
A story that I was an unfit mother.
Then detectives found something else.
An email Patricia had sent to Daniel two weeks earlier.
You need to make Emily understand that Lily would be better off with me.
Daniel had replied:
She’s her mother.
Patricia answered:
Then make her prove she’s capable of being one.
The final message was chilling.
If she breaks, you’ll see that I was right.
The detective showed me the messages.
I stared at the screen.
“She planned this.”
The detective nodded.
“We believe she was creating evidence against you.”
I looked at Daniel.
He was crying.
“I should have protected you.”
I shook my head.
“You should have listened.”
He nodded.
“I know.”
Part 9 — Lily Wakes Up
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