Chapter 4 - The Predator in the Bedroom
On the screen of my phone, the feed was crystal clear.
The camera, perched in the USB charger across from the bed, captured the entirety of the room in high-definition color.
Jason stepped into the frame. The moment he crossed the threshold, the jovial, caring expression slid off his face like melted wax. His features hardened into something cold, calculating, and predatory.
He didn't walk to the bedside with gentle steps. He walked directly to Mom’s closet, opened the door, and began rummaging through the upper shelf where she kept her old hatboxes and personal lockboxes.
On the bed, Mom lay perfectly still, her eyes closed, her chest rising and falling in slow, shallow breaths. She was playing her part brilliantly, though I could see the pulse jumping wildly in the hollow of her throat.
Jason cursed under his breath. Finding nothing in the closet, he turned toward the nightstand.
He leaned over Mom, his face just inches from hers.
"Mom?" he whispered, his voice low, sharp, devoid of any warmth. "Mom, wake up."
Evelyn didn't move. She let out a soft, rattling snore.
Jason reached out, grabbed her shoulder, and shook her roughly. "Hey! Evelyn! Wake the hell up for a second."
My fingers dug into the frame of my phone so hard the screen creaked. Every instinct screamed at me to kick down the door, grab the kitchen knife, and drive it through his chest. But I forced myself to watch. *Evidence. I need evidence.*
Mom slowly stirred, letting her eyes roll back slightly, groaning in simulated confusion. "Jason...? What... what is it...?"
"Where’s the safety deposit box key?" Jason hissed, leaning down until his lips were near her ear. "The key to the lockbox at First National Bank. You told me it was in your jewelry box, but it's not there. Where is it?"
"I... I don't know..." Mom mumbled, slurring her words convincingly. "Sarah... Sarah has my keys..."
Jason’s jaw clenched so hard the muscles jumped under his skin. "Listen to me, you old fool," he snarled, his voice a venomous whisper that picked up clearly on the camera’s sensitive microphone. "The deed transfer is being filed at the clerk's office at noon today. Marcus is handling the equity cash-out by three. But the bank lockbox has Dad’s bearer bonds. I need that key, or those guys won't just take the house—they'll come after me, and if I go down, I'm making sure Sarah and that little brat of hers lose everything too. Do you hear me?"
Mom whimpered, turning her face away from him into the pillow. "Please, Jason... no more..."
"Where is the key?!" he hissed, grabbing her wrist—the same wrist that was bruised from the intravenous lines—and twisting it sharply.
"Stop!" I didn't realize I had spoken out loud until I heard my own voice echoing through the bedroom door.
On the monitor, Jason froze.
He immediately dropped Mom’s wrist, stepped back, and smoothed his shirt.
I shoved my phone into my pocket, tore my bedroom door open, and marched down the hall. I didn't enter Mom's room with screaming fury; I entered with cold, calculated deceit.
"Jason?" I asked, appearing in the doorway, towel wrapped around my shoulders as if I had just dried off from the sink. "Did I hear you shouting?"
Jason spun around, instantly transforming his face back into the concerned brother. "Oh! Hey, Sarah. No, no, Mom just had a little coughing fit, and I was trying to get her to drink some water, but she’s so out of it she almost knocked the glass over."
I looked at Mom. She was trembling beneath the covers, her face white as chalk.
Then I looked at Jason. His eyes were darting around the room, full of frantic, desperate adrenaline.
"Well, the home health nurse is scheduled to come by at ten," I said casually, leaning against the doorframe. "She’s going to do a full blood panel and review her medications. So we should probably let her sleep until then."
Jason’s body went rigid. "A nurse? You didn't mention a nurse coming today."
"Doctor's orders," I replied smoothly. "They want to make sure her heart isn't retaining fluid. In fact, Jason, could you do me a huge favor? Since Tyler’s out and you're here, could you run down to the medical supply store on 4th Street? Mom needs more sterile gauze and alcohol swabs before the nurse gets here."
Jason hesitated. His mind was clearly racing, calculating the clock. It was 7:15 a.m. The county recorder's office opened at 8:00 a.m.
"Can't it wait until this afternoon?" he asked, trying to sound casual. "I have a couple of client meetings downtown around nine."
"Client meetings?" I looked at him, arching an eyebrow. "Jason, she’s out of sterile dressing. Her incision is weeping. If it gets infected, she goes back into the ICU. Are your client meetings more important than Mom’s incision?"
I laid the guilt on thick, knowing his narcissistic ego couldn't openly reject the request without looking suspicious.
He ground his teeth, his charming facade fraying at the edges. "Fine. Fine, yeah. 4th Street. I’ll go right now. Be back in forty-five minutes."
"Thank you, Jason," I said softly. "You really are the best son."
He gave a tight, strained nod, shoved his hands into his pockets, and brushed past me down the hallway.
I stood in the entryway and watched through the window as he climbed into his SUV and sped down the gravel driveway, kicking up a cloud of dust.
The second his taillights disappeared around the bend, I pulled out my phone.
I didn't call the police yet. Police reports took hours, statements took days, and a corrupt notary with a forged deed could easily slip through bureaucratic cracks before anyone froze the transfer.
Instead, I called Detective Marcus Miller—my late husband’s former partner at the county sheriff’s department, and the one man in this town who knew how the dark underbelly of the city's illegal gambling rings operated.
The phone rang twice.
"Sarah?" Miller’s gruff voice answered. "Everything okay? How’s your mom?"
May you like
"Marcus," I said, my voice shaking now that the adrenaline was beginning to crash. "I need you to come to my house right now. Bring a crime scene tech, and bring your badge. My brother is trying to kill my mother for her estate, and I have it all on video."
***
