Jake reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small flash drive. «I took photos of everything I could. The wires, the papers, the pill bottle. If we take this to the police, they’ll have enough to investigate.»
I stared at him. «You did all that in under an hour?»
He shrugged, focused on the road. «You know how I work.» I smiled, despite everything. But it was a fragile smile, the kind you wear when the pieces haven’t fallen apart yet.
Just then, my phone buzzed. A text from an unknown number. «Why did you leave?»
I froze. Jake glanced at it. Then he locked his jaw and said, «We’re going straight to the station.» I didn’t argue. Because suddenly, this wasn’t just about protecting Grandma. It was about stopping something before it got worse.
The road stretched out in front of us, silent and endless. Jake drove like a man with a mission: focused, steady, eyes checking the mirrors every few seconds. I kept staring at the message on my phone. «Why did you leave?» No name, no context. Just those five words.
«I didn’t reply,» I told Jake.
«Good,» he said firmly. «Whoever it was, they wanted to rattle you. Make you second-guess leaving.»
«Well, it worked,» I muttered, hugging my arms around my chest. «Jake, what if we were wrong? What if we just overreacted?»
Jake didn’t take his eyes off the road. «Then let the police tell us that.» I fell silent. I wanted to believe this was all some terrible misunderstanding. That maybe the pills were innocent. That maybe the men standing around were just awkward family friends. That maybe my sister hadn’t spent months planning something dark behind Grandma’s back.
But then Jake pulled the flash drive from his pocket and handed it to me. «Open the files,» he said. «See for yourself.»
I plugged it into my phone, using a small adapter he always kept in the glove box. The drive was full of photos. Grainy, fast shots, but clear enough. The first few were of the wires Jake mentioned: tiny cables snaking under the porch, taped to the underside of the walls, hidden behind decorative paneling. The next showed the medicine bottle, tucked behind the cutlery. Crushed residue on the inside of the cap. No label.
But it was the last few that made my stomach turn. Papers. Forms. A close-up shot of a document with a forged signature. My grandmother’s name, scrawled in sloppy handwriting that didn’t even match hers.
Jake pointed. «That one is a declaration of incapacity. It’s a legal form used to start a conservatorship.»
I looked at him, horrified. «You’re saying they were going to take legal control of her? All her assets?»
«Looks that way.» I closed my eyes. «They wouldn’t have done this today, though, right? Not during the party?»
Jake was quiet. «What?» I asked. He hesitated. «Then… There was a man near the basement door, dressed in medical scrubs. I thought he was just helping out until I saw him with a duffel bag. Could have been equipment. Or worse.»
«No,» I said, shaking my head. «Grandma’s not sick enough for home care. She’s never mentioned a nurse.»
«I think that was the point,» Jake said. «They were counting on no one noticing. Just sedate her. Get the signatures. Move her to some facility while she’s too disoriented to fight it.»
I covered my mouth. «We were the only ones who saw it, weren’t we?»
He nodded. «That’s why I got you out.» I stared at the photos again. The timestamp on them was just an hour ago. My hands started to tremble.
Jake reached for my phone, opened the contact list, and tapped a number I hadn’t called in years. «Who are you dialing?» I asked.
He held the phone to his ear. «County police.»
My heart skipped. «Are you sure?»
«Completely.»
The line rang three times before a woman picked up. «County Sheriff’s Department. What’s your emergency?»
Jake spoke clearly, calmly. «I need to report suspected elder abuse and fraud. We have evidence. It’s urgent.» He gave our names, Grandma’s name, the address of the house, and a brief summary of what we found. The woman on the other end asked him to pull over if possible and wait for officers to meet us.
Jake agreed. We pulled into a small gas station off the highway and parked near a side fence where the car couldn’t be easily seen from the road. As we waited, I stared at the steering wheel, my mind spinning. «She always trusted them,» I whispered. «She thought Dad and Sierra had changed.»
Jake took my hand. «They haven’t. But you saw it. That’s what matters.»
Twenty minutes later, two police cars pulled up beside us. Jake handed over the flash drive and calmly explained everything. I chimed in, shaky but steady. The officers didn’t dismiss us. They listened, took notes, made calls. Then one of them said, «We’re heading to the property now. You two should come with us if you’re up for it.»
I looked at Jake. He gave me a nod. And just like that, we were heading back to the house I’d just escaped. Only this time, we weren’t going alone.
By the time we pulled back into the driveway with the police escort behind us, the sun was sinking fast. The house that once looked like a cheerful party scene now felt eerily quiet. The music was off. The guests were gone. Only a few cars remained.
My stomach twisted into a knot. Jake parked near the curb and squeezed my hand. «Ready?»
I wasn’t, not really. But I nodded anyway. The officers approached the front door, one knocking firmly, while the other positioned himself near the porch steps. Jake and I stood just behind them, my heart pounding like it might leap out of my chest. After a few seconds, the door opened.
Sierra stood there, still in her party dress, her makeup slightly smudged. She smiled brightly, too brightly. «Officers, is something wrong?»
«We’re here following a report of suspected elder abuse and fraud,» the taller officer said. «Is your mother home?»
Sierra blinked, but her smile didn’t budge. «I think you have the wrong house.»
Jake stepped forward. «No, they don’t.»
Her eyes flicked to me, then to him. «You called the police?» Before I could respond, the second officer spoke. «Ma’am, we’re going to need to come inside. Now.»
Sierra hesitated, then stepped aside, her hands trembling slightly. «Of course. Please.»
The living room looked just as we’d left it, only now it was darker, shadows stretching across the floor. And in the center of it all, still in her armchair, was Grandma Rose. She was asleep, or unconscious. The older officer stepped forward and gently tapped her arm. «Ma’am?»
Her eyes fluttered open slowly. She blinked up at him, dazed. «Yes?»
«Do you know where you are?» he asked softly.
She looked around. «At home.»
«Do you know what day it is?»
She paused. «My birthday?»
Jake leaned into me. «She’s still under something.» The other officer radioed for paramedics, then turned to Sierra. «Where is her medication?»
«In her bathroom,» Sierra said quickly. «Why?»
«Can you show me?» Sierra hesitated again. «It’s just in the drawer. You’re welcome to check.» The officer nodded and disappeared down the hallway.
At that moment, my father walked into the room. «What’s all this?» he said loudly. «Officers, I don’t know what my daughter told you, but this is a misunderstanding.»
Jake stepped forward. «Then you won’t mind explaining the hidden surveillance equipment, the sedatives, and the forged documents I found in the house.» Dad’s face went pale. «Excuse me?» Jake pulled out his phone and held up one of the photos. «This is your signature on a legal declaration stating Grandma Rose is mentally unfit, filed without her knowledge.»
The lead officer looked at it, then turned to my father. «Sir, we’ll need you to come with us. You too, ma’am.»
Sierra’s voice cracked. «We were just trying to protect her. She’s getting worse. We were going to move her into care. She needs it.»
«No, I don’t,» Grandma said suddenly, her voice a bit stronger. Everyone turned to her. She sat up, slowly but firmly, blinking against the light. «I’m not confused. I’m not crazy. And I didn’t ask to be locked in this chair all day while you planned to take my house.»
