Chapter 2: The Video He Couldn't Explain Away
For several seconds, nobody moved.
The television continued playing a cooking show in the background. A woman on the screen cheerfully explained how to make lemon cake, completely unaware that our family was coming apart in the living room.
Dad held out his hand.
“Give me the phone.””
Malik handed it over.
Dad replayed the video once. Then again.
Vanessa stood perfectly still, but I noticed her right hand curling into a fist beside her hip.
“That proves nothing,” she said.
Malik folded his arms.
“It proves you bought two tests.””
“People buy pregnancy tests for all sorts of reasons.””
“Then why did you have one that was already positive?””
Vanessa laughed, but the sound came out too quickly.
“I was helping a friend.””
“What friend?””
“That is none of your business.””
Malik looked at Dad.
“Do you hear yourself defending her?””
“I'm not defending anyone,” Dad replied.
“I'm trying to understand what's happening.””
“Then ask her why she went into Maya's room.””
Vanessa's head snapped toward him.
“I never went into her room.””
Malik stared at her.
“Really?””
“Don't you dare accuse me of something like that.””
“Then why was Maya's backpack sitting on the kitchen counter when I got home from school yesterday?””
My heart began pounding.
Yesterday?
I remembered leaving my backpack beside my bed before going downstairs for dinner. When I returned, the zipper had been open.
I'd assumed I'd forgotten to close it.
Now I understood why Malik was asking.
He had noticed something I hadn't.
Dad turned toward Vanessa.
“Did you go into Maya's bedroom?””
Vanessa's eyes filled with tears.
“I can't believe you're asking me that.””
“Just answer the question.””
“I went in to collect laundry. I'm her stepmother, Daniel. Am I supposed to ask permission before I enter a bedroom in my own house?””
“That isn't what I asked.””
She stared at him as if he'd betrayed her.
Then she turned to Malik.
“You've always hated me. Ever since your father married me, you've looked for ways to make my life miserable.””
Malik's jaw tightened.
“You told me last month that Maya was going to ruin this family.””
“I said she needed discipline.””
“You said she was a parasite.””
Dad's head jerked up.
“What?””
Malik looked at him.
“You were at work. Vanessa was in the kitchen, and Maya had asked if she could keep Mom's old jewelry box in her room. Vanessa told her that dead people shouldn't take up space in a living house.””
My throat tightened.
I remembered that afternoon. I had cried in the bathroom afterward, sitting on the closed toilet lid while the shower ran so nobody would hear me.
Dad looked at Vanessa.
“Did you say that?””
She pressed her lips together.
“I was frustrated.””
“With a twelve-year-old?””
“She refuses to move on, Daniel! Every room in this house has something belonging to your first wife. Every decision revolves around a woman who isn't even here anymore!””
The room went silent.
Dad's face changed.
“My wife was Maya's mother.””
“And I'm your wife now!””
Vanessa's voice cracked through the room.
For a moment, she seemed to forget the tears she had been manufacturing.
“I married you because I loved you. I have tried to build a family here, but every time I turn around, I'm reminded that I'll never be enough.””
Dad stared at her.
“This isn't about you being enough.””
“Of course it is! You always take Maya's side.””
“I haven't taken anyone's side.””
“You just threw your daughter out of the house because I showed you a pregnancy test!””
The words hung in the air.
I gripped the stair railing.
She had just admitted that he had thrown me out because of the test she claimed to have found.
And somehow, she was still blaming him.
Malik pointed toward the phone.
“Then explain the video.””
Vanessa's eyes flicked toward the screen.
“I already explained it.””
“No,” Malik said.
“You invented an excuse.””
Dad placed the phone on the table.
“Vanessa, I need you to tell me exactly what happened.””
She stared at him for a long moment.
Then her shoulders sagged.
“I made a mistake.””
My heart lurched.
Was she finally going to admit it?
“I bought the tests because I thought I might be pregnant,” she continued.
“I was frightened. I didn't know how to tell you.””
Dad's expression softened slightly.
“Then why did you put one in Maya's bag?””
“I didn't!””
“Then how did it get there?”” Malik demanded.
Vanessa spun toward him.
“You have no idea what you're talking about!””
“Then call the police,” Malik said.
She froze.
“If you're so certain Maya is lying, call them. Let them investigate. Let them ask where the test came from.””
Vanessa's mouth opened, but no words came out.
Dad noticed.
So did I.
“Vanessa?”” he asked.
She looked at him, then at Malik, then at the staircase where I was standing.
Her expression changed again.
The tears disappeared.
“You want the truth?”” she asked.
Malik didn't move.
“Fine. The truth is that Maya has been destroying this family since the day I married her father.””
Dad took a step backward.
“What are you talking about?””
“Everything has to be about her! Her dead mother, her sad little memories, her special meals, her school projects. You spend money on her without asking me. You rearrange your schedule whenever she cries.””
“She's my daughter,” Dad said.
“And I'm your wife!””
“Those things are not mutually exclusive.””
Vanessa laughed bitterly.
“That's easy for you to say.””
I started down the stairs.
“I never asked you to replace my mom.””
Both adults turned.
Vanessa looked almost offended by my appearance.
“Go upstairs, Maya.””
“No.””
Dad stared at me.
I wiped my cheeks with the back of my hand.
“You keep saying I ruin everything. But I never asked Dad to buy me things. I never asked him to change his schedule. I just wanted you to stop throwing away Mom's stuff.””
Vanessa's face reddened.
“I have never thrown anything away.””
“You threw away her recipe cards.””
“They were old pieces of paper!””
“And her blue mug.””
“It was chipped!””
“And the little box of seashells she gave me!””
“Enough!”” Vanessa shouted.
Her voice echoed through the room.
She snatched the pregnancy test from the coffee table and pointed it at me.
“You think you're innocent because you cry? You think everyone should feel sorry for you because your mother died?””
Dad moved between us.
“Don't talk to her like that.””
Vanessa stared at him.
“What did you say?””
“I said don't talk to my daughter like that.””
For the first time, I saw genuine uncertainty in her eyes.
She had expected him to protect her.
Instead, he turned toward me.
“Maya, go sit down.””
I remained on the last stair.
“Are you still sending me away?””
Dad looked at the suitcase beside the hallway.
Then he looked at the test.
“No,” he said slowly.
“Not until we know the truth.””
It wasn't an apology.
But it was the first time he'd given me something to hold on to.
Malik stepped closer to Dad.
“There's something else.””
Vanessa's head snapped around.
“No, there isn't.””
Malik ignored her.
“I checked the time stamp on my video. She bought those tests at 2:14 p.m. But the receipt in the bag was printed at 2:16.””
Dad frowned.
“What bag?””
“The pharmacy bag I saw in Vanessa's car.””
Vanessa went completely still.
Malik continued.
“She came home before me. I saw her car parked outside when I walked past the house. But when I came inside, the bag was gone.””
Dad's voice lowered.
“Why didn't you tell me this earlier?””
“Because I didn't know what she was planning.””
Vanessa grabbed her purse from the sofa.
“I'm leaving.””
Dad blocked the doorway.
“Not until we finish this conversation.””
“Move.””
“Where are you going?””
“Somewhere I can breathe without being treated like a criminal!””
She tried to push past him, but Dad didn't move.
Then Malik said the one thing that made her stop.
“Dad, I checked the security camera from the hallway.””
Vanessa slowly turned.
Malik held up his phone again.
“I wasn't looking for you. I was trying to find Maya's missing sketchbook.””
My stomach twisted.
He tapped the screen and turned the phone toward Dad.
The footage showed Vanessa walking into my bedroom at 1:47 p.m.
She was carrying a small white pharmacy bag.
She closed the door behind her.
Seven minutes later, she walked out without the bag.
Dad watched the clip without blinking.
Then he looked at his wife.
“What's in the bag, Vanessa?””
She didn't answer.
Instead, she looked toward me.
And the expression on her face made one thing clear.
May you like
She wasn't afraid of being caught.
She was afraid of what would happen if Dad discovered why she'd chosen me.
