Chapter 6 - The Hospital Lobby Showdown
“Let me through! I am her mother! That man has no right to lock me out of my own home!”
Brenda’s shrill voice echoed up the stairwell before we even reached the second-floor elevator lobby.
When the doors opened, the scene below was straight out of a daytime soap opera, only with very real, terrifying stakes. Brenda stood in the center of the polished terrazzo lobby, her hair wild, her face flushed with frantic rage, waving a stack of legal papers in the air. Beside her stood Uncle Ray, wearing a stained denim jacket and glaring darkly at two security guards who had formed a human barricade in front of the elevators.
And standing slightly behind them was a sleazy-looking man in a wrinkled gray suit carrying a briefcase—evidently the bargain-bin attorney they had managed to pull out of bed on short notice.
“Brenda, shut your mouth!” Daniel’s voice boomed across the lobby, cutting through her tirade like a thunderclap.
Everyone froze. Dozens of patients, visitors, and nurses turned to look as Daniel strode out of the elevator, flanked by Detective Sanders and me in my hospital wheelchair, with Caleb walking closely behind my left shoulder.
Brenda’s eyes bulged when she saw me. For a split second, genuine panic flickered across her face—not because she was relieved I was alive, but because I was alive and talking.
“Emma!” Brenda recovered quickly, slapping on her best martyr expression and rushing forward. “Oh, thank God, you’re okay! These terrible people told me you were dying! Your stepfather has lost his mind—he locked us out of the house, he’s spreading disgusting lies—!”
Detective Sanders stepped smoothly into her path, flashing his gold shield right under her nose.
“Brenda Miller?” Sanders asked, his voice flat and unyielding.
Brenda stopped dead in her tracks, blinking at the badge. “Yes? Who are you? I demand to speak to my daughter!”
“I am Detective Sanders, Cedar Rapids Police Department,” he announced loudly enough for the entire lobby to hear. “You are being detained for questioning in connection with the attempted poisoning of Emma Miller. You do not have to say anything, but anything you do say can and will be used against you in a court of law.”
The attorney in the wrinkled gray suit stepped forward, holding up a palm. “Hold on, Detective! As Mrs. Miller’s legal counsel, I advise—!”
“Counselor, save your breath,” Sanders interrupted without even looking at him. “We have an eyewitness placing her at the scene with a toxic compound, we have medical verification of digitalis poisoning from the attending physician, and my officers are executing a search warrant at her residence right now where I guarantee they will find the dropper bottle in her purse. Step aside, or you’ll be joining her in the back of the cruiser for obstruction.”
The lawyer’s mouth snapped shut. He slowly lowered his briefcase, took two steps backward, and completely abandoned his clients.
Uncle Ray’s face turned the color of curdled milk. He took a nervous step toward the glass exit doors. “Hey now, I didn't have nothing to do with this! That was all Brenda! She’s the one who cooked the food!”
Brenda whipped around, staring at her brother with absolute betrayal. “You lying coward! You helped me plan it! You said if she was gone, we’d split the trust payout by next month!”
“Shut up, you crazy bitch!” Ray roared, lunging toward her.
The two hospital security guards didn't hesitate. They tackled Ray instantly, slamming him against a marble pillar while Detective Sanders grabbed Brenda’s wrists and slapped a pair of heavy steel handcuffs around them with a sharp, metallic click.
The heavy clack of the cuffs echoed through the lobby like a gunshot.
Brenda shrieked, kicking her heels against the floor as Sanders spun her around and began marching her toward the exit. “Daniel! You can’t let them do this! I’m your wife! Think of our family! Daniel!”
May you like
Daniel didn't even flinch. He stood tall, his hands steady in his pockets, watching the woman who had tried to murder his stepdaughter get dragged out into the pouring rain.
“You’re not my family, Brenda,” Daniel said quietly to the empty air after the glass doors swung shut. “You never were.”
