Chapter 3 - Thirty-Seven Seconds
Marcus watched the recording inside the hospital consultation room.
His son was being examined nearby.
The doctor had assured him that the baby was stable.
Marcus should have felt relief.
Instead, his hands were shaking.
David had sent a thirty-seven-second clip.
The video had no sound.
It did not need any.
The first frame showed the swimming pool.
Elena was arranging towels near a lounge chair.
The stroller stood several yards away.
Victoria walked into view.
She looked around.
Once toward the glass doors.
Once toward the hedge.
Then she placed both hands on the stroller.
Marcus stopped breathing.
Victoria pushed it.
Not accidentally.
Not carelessly.
She pushed hard.
The stroller rolled across the patio.
Elena turned too late.
The front wheels struck the edge.
The stroller tipped forward.
The baby disappeared into the water.
Marcus felt something inside him collapse.
The video continued.
Elena dropped the towels.
She ran.
She jumped into the pool without removing her shoes.
Victoria did not move.
For three full seconds, she simply watched.
Then she looked toward the house.
She began screaming.
Elena surfaced with the baby.
She struggled toward the steps.
Victoria rushed forward only when voices came from inside.
The final seconds showed Marcus arriving.
Victoria pointed at Elena.
The clip ended.
Marcus sat motionless.
He replayed it.
Then again.
His breathing became shallow.
He had known Victoria for six years.
She had been introduced to him through business friends after the death of his wife, Natalie.
Victoria had become part of his social circle.
Then part of his home.
She had been patient.
Helpful.
Understanding.
When Marcus struggled after becoming a widowed father, Victoria had stepped in.
She organized meals.
She helped with household staff.
She volunteered to attend pediatric appointments.
She spoke constantly about protecting the baby.
Marcus had trusted her.
He had even begun considering whether their friendship could become something more.
Now he stared at a video of her trying to kill his son.
His phone rang.
David.
Marcus answered.
“Is there more?”
“Yes.”
“How much?”
“A lot.”
Marcus stood.
“What does that mean?”
David hesitated.
“The camera records motion.”
Marcus waited.
“It has stored clips going back several months.”
Marcus’s throat tightened.
“And Victoria appears in them?”
“Yes.”
“How many?”
“I haven’t counted yet.”
“Start.”
David remained silent.
Marcus pressed the phone harder against his ear.
“David.”
“There’s something else.”
“What?”
“She appears near the stroller in other recordings.”
Marcus closed his eyes.
“Doing what?”
“I think you should watch them yourself.”
Marcus looked through the glass toward his baby.
A nurse adjusted the blanket around the child.
His son slept peacefully.
Marcus remembered Victoria telling him only three days earlier that Elena was becoming unstable.
She had said Elena seemed jealous.
Possessive.
Dangerous.
At the time, Marcus had dismissed it as unnecessary drama.
But Victoria had continued.
Small comments.
Carefully planted doubts.
A broken bottle blamed on Elena.
Medication supposedly misplaced.
A loose wheel on the stroller.
Marcus suddenly remembered something.
Two weeks earlier, the baby monitor had stopped working during Elena’s shift.
Victoria had been the one who discovered it.
She had looked at Marcus and said, “I’m worried about who you trust around your son.”
Marcus had believed she meant Elena.
Now he wondered whether she had been preparing him.
Building a story.
Creating a villain.
The hospital door opened.
A police officer entered.
“Mr. Hale?”
Marcus turned.
“Yes.”
“We received a report of a possible child endangerment incident at your residence.”
Marcus looked at the phone in his hand.
The recording was still paused on the frame of Victoria pushing the stroller.
May you like
He turned the screen toward the officer.
“You’re going to want to see this.”
