Chapter 3 - The Forensic Interview
The next morning, the apartment was filled with a quiet, tense energy. Marcus arrived not with flashing lights and uniforms, but in plain clothes, accompanied by Dr. Elena Ramos, a gentle woman with warm eyes who specialized in child psychology and forensic interviews.
Harper felt a lump in her throat as Dr. Ramos sat on the living room rug, leveling herself with Lila. She didn't bring out clipboards or legal forms; instead, she produced a box of crayons and a drawing pad.
"Hi Lila," Dr. Ramos said softly. "My name is Elena. Your mom tells me you’re really good at drawing. Can you show me what your favorite game to play at home is?"
Harper watched from the doorway, her knuckles white as she gripped Marcus’s arm. Over the next hour, through drawings and carefully calibrated, non-leading questions, the truth began to unfold. It wasn't physical abuse in the way Harper had initially feared, but it was deeply psychological and highly illegal.
David hadn't been hurting Lila physically; he was using her. He had been forcing Lila to hide in a cramped, pitch-black crawlspace behind the closet in his luxury apartment whenever "the loud men" came over. He told her it was a game of hide-and-seek, but if she made a sound, "the monsters would take Mommy away."
May you like
As Lila drew a picture of a dark room with a tiny box, she muttered, "Daddy puts his heavy bags in the box with me. They smell like chemicals. He told me if the police ever came, I had to sit on the bags and stay perfectly still."
Marcus looked at Harper, his expression turning to stone. David wasn't just a bad father; he was using his own daughter as a shield to hide illicit contraband—likely narcotics—knowing the police would need specific warrants to search a child’s private space.
