I stepped into the hallway and called Emily.
She answered immediately.
“Jacob… the DNA report was fake.”
“I know.”
“But that’s not the worst part.”
My stomach tightened.
“What is it?”
“The lab found sedatives in my blood.”
I stopped breathing.
“What?”
“The doctor believes someone had been giving me medication without my knowledge.”
The hallway tilted beneath my feet.
Emily continued softly.
“Your mother kept making me herbal tea. She said it would help with anxiety.”
I closed my eyes.
My mother hadn’t only stolen money.
She had tried to destroy my wife’s mind.
That afternoon, Emily gave a statement to investigators.
She described the tea.
The threats.
The attempts to have her declared unstable.
The pressure to surrender Sophie.
The house also reverted to the family trust.
My grandparents had placed it under strict protections.
My parents only retained occupancy rights while they remained in compliance with trust terms.
Their crimes voided those rights.
I changed every lock before sunset.
