After a messy and painful divorce from her ex-husband, Madeline decided to shift her focus entirely to her career. Her passion for medicine and her patients became her primary motivation-until she crossed paths with a blue-eyed detective who disrupt...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"This is the one incident we know about," Hailey said, placing a photograph in front of Michelle. Her voice was calm, but firm, as she slid the image across the table. "But there have been others, haven't there? Ones you were too afraid to report."
Michelle's eyes darted to the picture, her shoulders tensing. Hailey didn't stop. One by one, she began placing more photos on the table—images of bruises, fractures, and swelling—each more damning than the last.
Jay sat silently behind Michelle, watching her reaction. His expression was softer, empathetic, but his eyes remained locked on the pictures. The weight of the evidence was undeniable.
"Ones that you were ashamed of," Hailey continued, her voice gentler now as if she were pulling Michelle from a fog. "I know how hard it is to leave him. I really do. You built a life with him. You love him. But deep down, you know you have to get out."
Michelle's lip trembled, but she lifted her chin slightly as if trying to convince herself of the lie. "Shane's not perfect, but he's not what you think he is," she said, her voice unsteady but defensive.
Jay stood up from behind her, moving into her line of sight. "He's a violent criminal who beats women," he said softly, crouching just enough to meet her eye level. "What are we missing here, Michelle? Help us understand."
Michelle hesitated. Her hands fidgeted nervously on her lap, and her voice dropped almost to a whisper. "Shane's a good guy. He's a great father. He's just been under a lot of stress lately."
Hailey watched her closely before sliding the final picture forward—a single image that compiled all of Michelle's past injuries into one stark collage. Michelle's eyes landed on it for only a moment before she quickly looked away, her face crumpling as she let out a shaky breath.
"And you know what happens when he's stressed, don't you?" Hailey said, closing the now-empty file. "Or when he's in a bad mood. Thinking he saw you looking at another man. Maybe you left the dishes in the sink."
The room fell silent except for Michelle's uneven breathing.
Jay moved to sit next to Hailey, leaning forward slightly. His tone softened, almost pleading. "This is your chance, Michelle. Your chance to get out. To save yourself from going to prison. To get out of a really bad marriage before it's too late."
Tears began slipping down Michelle's cheeks, her shoulders trembling as she tried to hold herself together. She wiped at her face with the sleeve of her sweater before her words finally spilled out.
"Why were you at the check-cashing store, Michelle?" Hailey pressed gently.
Michelle's voice broke as she spoke. "I... I overheard Shane talking on the phone," she admitted, nodding as if to convince herself it was okay to speak. "He said something about a job at the Gordon Gardens strip. I knew what that meant. I knew he was planning something."
