Chapter 7 - The Witness Brooke Never Expected
The photographs changed everything.
Brooke claimed she'd collected them because she had suspected me of manipulating Caleb.
But there were too many.
Different locations.
Different months.
Different angles.
Then Daniel found the witness.
Her name was Lauren Reed.
She had worked with Brooke.
The same coworker Brooke supposedly fought with on my birthday.
When Daniel asked Lauren about that night, she frowned.
“We didn't fight.”
“Did Brooke call Caleb crying because of an argument with you?”
Lauren laughed once.
Then realized Daniel wasn't joking.
“No.”
“Were you working together that evening?”
“Yes.”
“Did anything happen?”
“No.”
My birthday crisis had been manufactured.
Lauren hesitated before adding something else.
“Brooke talked about Hannah constantly.”
Daniel leaned forward.
“What did she say?”
“That Hannah was taking Caleb away.”
Lauren described conversations stretching back more than a year.
Brooke had complained that Caleb was changing.
That he spent less time with her.
That if he married me, their friendship would disappear.
Then Lauren remembered one sentence.
“She said Hannah would eventually force Caleb to choose.”
My ultimatum hadn't created Brooke's fear.
Brooke had predicted it.
Maybe even engineered it.
Lauren became our most important witness.
But twenty-four hours before the final hearing, she called Daniel.
She wanted out.
Brooke had contacted her.
Not directly.
Through Eric.
Daniel documented it.
Lauren became angry.
And angry people sometimes become brave.
“I'll testify,” she said.
The courtroom was packed on the final morning.
Brooke looked different.
Less confident.
Caleb sat separately.
I didn't look at him.
Lauren testified for nearly forty minutes.
She described Brooke's obsession with Caleb's relationships.
The birthday lie.
The comments about forcing me out.
Then Daniel asked the question that silenced the room.
“Did Ms. Ellis ever discuss creating evidence against Hannah Pierce?”
Brooke's attorney objected.
The judge ruled.
Lauren answered.
“Yes.”
Brooke's face went white.
“When?”
“A few weeks after Hannah moved out.”
“What did she say?”
Lauren looked directly at Brooke.
“She said, ‘If Hannah wants everyone to think I'm the problem, I'll make sure everyone sees what she's really like.’”
Daniel paused.
“Did she explain how?”
Lauren swallowed.
May you like
“She said people believe patterns.”
The courtroom became completely still.
