Chapter 5 - The Phantom Retaliation
The house felt hollow and bruised after the police cruisers pulled away. Mark spent the remainder of the evening double-checking every window lock and deadbolt. Lily sat wrapped in a heavy quilt on the living room sofa, sipping warm broth from a mug, her eyes glued to her father as if he might disappear if she blinked. Every creak of the floorboards made her jump. ""She won't come back, right, Daddy?"" Lily whispered, her voice fragile. Mark sat down beside her, pulling her close into the crook of his arm. ""She’s in custody, sweetheart. The police have the video. She can't ever hurt you again.""
Yet late into the night, after Lily finally drifted into an exhausted sleep in Mark’s bed, his phone buzzed on the nightstand. The screen lit up with an unknown number. Mark slid the bar to answer, pressing the receiver to his ear without speaking. A man's voice, smooth and chillingly composed, came through the line. ""Mr. Mercer. My name is Julian Vance. I am representing your wife."" Mark exhaled a slow, cold breath. ""Tell your client that my lawyer will see her at the arraignment.""
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""I wouldn't be so confident, Mark,"" the lawyer replied, his tone laced with patronizing pity. ""The footage you obtained was captured without two-party consent inside a private domestic dwelling where Ashley holds legal tenancy. It will be suppressed under state wiretapping statutes before it ever reaches a grand jury."" Mark felt a knot of ice tighten in his stomach. ""She forged my signature on institutional surrender papers. She assaulted my daughter. I have the medical examiner's report scheduled for tomorrow.""
Vance gave a soft, dismissive chuckle. ""Ashley is currently being evaluated at St. Jude’s Memorial. She has severe contusions on her wrists and collarbone—injuries consistent with defensive posturing against domestic battery. When the bail hearing convenes at nine tomorrow morning, you will be served with an emergency protection order. You have six hours to vacate the house, Mark. If you are there when the sun rises, you will be the one in handcuffs."" The line went dead.
