“He didn’t know I was watching him from my tablet in the living room,” the raspy voice went on.

“I confronted him the next day right there in the study.”

“Grant didn’t deny it; he laughed in my face.”

The recording captured a heavy sigh, followed by the distant sound of rain against the window of the old house.

“He told me that if you didn’t make it back from your deployment, all of this would be his anyway, and there was nothing an old man could do to stop it.”

My breath hitched in my throat.

I looked down at Evelyn, who stirred slightly in her bassinet, her tiny fist pressing against her cheek.

“The digital files of the security footage are on a flash drive,” my father said, his voice growing weaker, trailed by another cough.

“It is hidden behind the loose baseboard behind my desk.”

“Take care of yourself, Tessa. Protect my granddaughter. I love you.”

The recording ended with a sharp click, followed by the low hum of empty static.

I stared at the black plastic casing in my hand, the silence in the hospital room suddenly deafening.