My mother-in-law suddenly spoke from behind us.
“She told me that this morning.”
My wife turned.
“Mom, stop.”
Her mother shook her head.
“No. I kept stopping.”
The officer looked at her.
“What did she tell you?”
My mother-in-law took a shaky breath.
“She said he was going to try to take the baby.”
My stomach dropped.
The officer glanced at me.
“When?”
“This morning,” she said. “Before I came here.”
My wife stepped forward.
“That doesn’t prove anything.”
“No,” her mother said. “But the voicemail does.”
My wife went completely still.
The officer already had the phone.
He looked at the screen, then asked my mother-in-law, “Are you certain you want us to preserve this recording?”
She nodded.
“Yes.”
My wife’s expression changed again.
“Mom, you don’t understand what you’re doing.”
Her mother looked directly at her.
“I understand now.”
The officer moved them farther apart before the argument could escalate. Another officer remained with my wife while the first continued documenting what had happened.
