PART 2
By sunset, the investigation had already outgrown Peter's worst fears.
A detective named Melissa Grant arrived at the hospital carrying a thin brown evidence folder that somehow looked much heavier than paper should.
"We executed an emergency welfare search," she said quietly. "Your nephew wasn't exaggerating."
Peter looked up.
"What did you find?"
Melissa hesitated before answering.
"There was a steel deadbolt installed on the outside of the basement door."
Peter stared.
"Outside?"
She nodded.
"Meaning the children couldn't unlock it from inside."
Peter closed his eyes.
Aaron had built that basement himself.
He remembered helping install drywall there years ago, laughing because Aaron insisted it would become the perfect playroom.
Now someone had turned it into a prison.
Melissa continued.
"There was almost no furniture."
"Just an old mattress."
"A bucket."
"And a plastic bottle filled with water."
Peter felt his stomach twist.
"What about food?"
The detective looked away.
"There wasn't any."
Child Protective Services interviewed Drew the following morning.
The boy answered every question politely.
Too politely.
As though he'd practiced not upsetting adults.
"When did she lock you downstairs?" the caseworker asked.
"When she went to work."
"When she had company."
"When she said we were being bad."
"Sometimes all day."
"Sometimes all night."
Peter watched through the observation window.
Drew never once called Reena "Mom."
Only "she."
Then came the question no one wanted to ask.
"Did anyone ever hurt you?"
Drew looked at Lily sleeping beside Peter.
Then nodded.
"Only if Lily cried."
Peter felt his knees weaken.
"What happened?" the interviewer asked gently.
Drew swallowed.
"She said if Lily cried because she was hungry..."
"...then I wasn't taking care of her."
Silence filled the room.
"So she punished me."
The detective quietly stopped writing.
No one spoke for nearly twenty seconds.
Later that afternoon, another officer arrived carrying a small black plastic box.
"We recovered this from the basement."
Peter frowned.
"What is it?"
"A security camera."
His heart skipped.
"It was hidden behind a ventilation grate."
Peter's face hardened.
"It recorded everything?"
The officer nodded slowly.
"Months of footage."
Nobody in the room spoke.
Because suddenly everyone understood.
This wasn't neglect.
It was documented torture.
The forensic team reviewed the recordings that night.
None of the officers finished watching every video.
One clip showed Drew trying to entertain Lily by making shadow puppets on the wall while they waited for food.
Another showed him carefully dividing a single slice of bread into tiny pieces so his sister could believe there was more.
One recording lasted nearly sixteen hours.
No meals.
No bathroom breaks.
Only darkness.
At one point Lily cried herself to sleep.
Drew wrapped his tiny body around hers to keep her warm.
The detective quietly turned the monitor off.
"I've seen homicide scenes easier to watch."
Then came another discovery.
Reena's phone.
Inside were hundreds of deleted text messages.
Most had been recovered.
One message sent to an unknown number read:
"They're finally learning obedience."
Another:
"If the boy wasn't around, the girl would be easier."
Then investigators found something even worse.
Messages to Aaron...
...sent while he was still alive.
Peter recognized his brother's name immediately.
Aaron:
"Can I talk to Drew before work?"
Reena:
"He's asleep."
Aaron:
"Can you send me a picture of the kids?"
Reena:
"Maybe later."
Day after day.
Week after week.
Excuse after excuse.
Until Aaron died believing his children were happy.
Peter quietly placed both hands over his face.
"He never knew..."
Detective Grant shook her head.
"No."
"He died thinking they were safe."
That evening Peter walked into Drew's hospital room carrying two small stuffed bears from the gift shop.
Lily hugged hers immediately.
Drew looked uncertain.
"Are these really ours?"
Peter smiled gently.
"They're yours forever."
The little boy studied the bear for several seconds before whispering,
"Forever is a long time."
Peter's eyes filled.
"So am I."
Drew finally smiled.
It was small.
Fragile.
But it was the first genuine smile anyone had seen from him.
May you like
Peter silently promised himself...
It would never disappear again.
