Chapter 3
It started the next day.
An email from my boss.
Summoning me to his office immediately.
When I got there, he was furious.
"There are allegations against you, Brooke," he said. "Serious allegations. Child abduction. Kidnapping. Your sister has been talking to everyone. Including some of our biggest clients. She says you kidnapped her daughter from the airport. That you're mentally unstable. That you're a danger to children."
I stared at him.
"That's not true," I said. "She abandoned Lily. She left her alone at the airport with a sticky note. I have proof. The FBI is involved. Child protective services. Jessica is facing charges."
My boss didn't look convinced.
"Jessica showed the police the sticky note too," he said. "She says you wrote it. That you forced her and your parents to leave. That you threatened to hurt Lily if they didn't get on the plane. And she has witnesses. Your parents. They're backing up her story."
I felt sick.
She was framing me.
She was turning everything around.
Making me the villain.
And my parents were helping her.
"I have the original sticky note," I said. "I have Lily's statement. I have Mark Davidson on my side. He's Lily's father. He's the one who called the FBI."
"Mark Davidson," my boss said. "The logistics executive? Jessica says he's manipulating you. That he's been trying to take her daughter for years. That he's paying you to lie."
I couldn't believe it.
She'd thought of everything.
Every angle.
Every lie.
She was going to destroy me.
"Take a leave of absence," my boss said. "Paid. While we investigate. We can't have this kind of scandal at the agency. Not with our clients. I'm sorry, Brooke. I really am. I hope you can prove your innocence."
I walked out of his office.
Numb.
My career.
Everything I'd worked for.
Everything I'd built.
Jessica was trying to take it all.
Just because I hadn't played her game.
Just because I'd protected her daughter.
I called Mark.
I told him everything.
He was furious.
"She won't get away with this," he said. "My lawyers will contact your employer. We'll provide them with all the evidence. The police reports. The FBI case numbers. Lily's statement. Everything. And we'll sue Jessica for defamation. For everything she's worth. She's not going to destroy your career, Brooke. I won't let her."
True to his word, Mark's lawyers acted fast.
They sent my employer a package of evidence.
Thick.
Convincing.
And they filed a defamation lawsuit against Jessica.
And against my parents.
For everything they'd said.
For everything they'd done.
My boss called me back a week later.
Apologizing.
Asking me to come back.
With a promotion.
And a raise.
To make up for everything.
I accepted.
But I knew it wasn't over.
Jessica wasn't going to stop.
The custody hearing was scheduled for two weeks later.
And she was going to fight dirty.
Mark's lawyers prepared us thoroughly.
We had evidence.
Witnesses.
The sticky note.
Lily's statement.
My testimony.
The police reports.
The FBI investigation.
Everything.
But Jessica had her own evidence.
Fabricated.
Lies.
And she had my parents.
Who were willing to say anything to protect their golden child.
The day of the hearing, I was nervous.
Scared.
But I was also ready.
I held Lily's hand as we walked into the courthouse.
She squeezed my fingers.
"It's okay, Aunt Brooke," she said. "Daddy says everything will be okay."
Mark walked on the other side of Lily.
He looked strong.
Confident.
Ready.
He squeezed my shoulder.
"We've got this," he said.
Inside the courtroom, Jessica was already there.
She looked beautiful.
Perfect.
Like she was going to a photo shoot.
Not a custody hearing.
She was wearing a modest dress.
Her hair was pulled back.
She had fake tears in her eyes.
She looked like the perfect grieving mother.
My parents were beside her.
Looking righteous.
Angry.
Like they were the victims.
When Jessica saw me, her face twisted with rage.
But quickly smoothed back into the grieving mother mask.
The judge entered.
The hearing began.
Jessica's lawyer went first.
He painted a picture of a loving, exhausted single mother.
Overwhelmed.
Desperate for a break.
Who'd made a terrible mistake.
But who loved her daughter more than anything.
And of me.
The selfish, childless aunt.
Who was bitter.
Who resented her sister.
Who'd manipulated the situation.
Who'd conspired with Mark to steal a child.
And of Mark.
The wealthy, cold ex-husband.
Who'd been trying to take his daughter from her loving mother for years.
Who'd paid me to help him.
It was all lies.
But it was convincing lies.
And Jessica played her part perfectly.
She cried.
She trembled.
She talked about how much she loved Lily.
How hard single motherhood was.
How she'd just needed a few days to recharge.
How she'd thought I'd be happy to help.
How she'd never imagined I'd react this way.
How devastated she was.
My parents testified too.
They backed up every lie.
Said Jessica was a wonderful mother.
Said I was selfish and bitter.
Said I'd always been jealous of Jessica.
Said I'd probably written the sticky note myself.
It was disgusting.
But I could see the judge was listening.
Considering.
This was going to be closer than I'd thought.
Then it was our turn.
Mark's lawyer was brilliant.
He methodically tore apart every lie.
He presented the sticky note.
He showed that the handwriting was Jessica's.
Proven by handwriting analysis.
He presented the phone records.
Showing that Jessica and my parents had turned off their phones immediately after boarding their flight.
That they hadn't tried to call once.
Not to check on Lily.
Not to explain.
Nothing.
He presented Lily's statement.
To the child psychologist.
About Disney World.
About being left alone.
About being scared.
And then he called me to the stand.
I told the truth.
Everything.
From the beginning.
I told them about saving for two years.
About the breakfast.
About Jessica's hints.
About going to the bathroom.
About coming back to find Lily alone.
About the sticky note.
About calling Jessica and my parents and getting nothing but voicemail.
About calling Mark.
About everything.
I told the truth.
And I think the judge believed me.
But Jessica's lawyer wasn't done.
He cross-examined me.
Tried to make me look bitter.
Selfish.
Jealous.
"Isn't it true, Ms. Carter, that you've never been married? That you have no children of your own? That you resent your sister for having what you don't?"
"I'm not resentful," I said. "I'm angry. Angry that she abandoned her six-year-old daughter at an airport. Angry that she tried to ruin my vacation. Angry that she tried to frame me. Angry that she's lying to all of you right now."
"Isn't it true that you and Mr. Davidson have become very close recently?" he asked. "That you're staying at his house? That you're developing a relationship? Could this all be part of a plan to build a new family for yourself? At the expense of your sister's parental rights?"
I stared at him.
"I'm staying at his house because I had nowhere else to go," I said. "Because my sister and my parents abandoned me and my niece at an airport. And yes, Mark and I have become close. Because we both love Lily. Because we both want what's best for her. And because we've been through hell together, thanks to your client."
The judge nodded slightly.
I thought I'd done well.
But then Jessica's lawyer had one more surprise.
"Your Honor," he said. "I have one more witness. Someone who can testify to Ms. Carter's true character. And to her history of mental instability."
My blood ran cold.
Who could he possibly be talking about?
The door to the courtroom opened.
And a woman walked in.
I knew her.
I'd known her for years.
She was my former best friend.
The one I'd had a falling out with five years ago.
The one Jessica had been friends with ever since.
She was going to lie for Jessica.
May you like
She was going to destroy me.
And from the look on her face, she was going to enjoy it.
