Piper dropped her backpack by the couch and looked up with curious hazel eyes. “Mom, you look pale. Are you sick?”
Regina crouched in front of her and took her hands. “Something happened, sweetheart. Your aunt took money from our accounts and left. I need you to know that we are safe, but things will be different for a while.”
Piper listened without interrupting, then tilted her head with an expression far older than her ten years. “I know,” she said quietly. “I was waiting for you to find out.”
Regina blinked. “What do you mean you know.”
Piper ran to her room and returned with an old tablet that Regina had given her for games. She unlocked a hidden folder and turned the screen toward her mother. On it were video files, dozens of them, each labeled with dates and times.
Piper explained that she had started recording after hearing Madison’s boyfriend whispering in the kitchen late at night about needing fast cash and having a plan. The videos showed a tall man with restless eyes pacing through the apartment, speaking in urgent tones. In one clip he said, “Your sister keeps her savings in three accounts. We move the money and leave before she notices.”