Elise nodded.

“Yes. Carefully.”

Andre knelt beside his father and supported his shoulders.

Samuel’s breathing was uneven.

His eyes were filled with confusion.

“I didn’t do anything,” he whispered.

Andre swallowed.

“I know, Dad.”

Baird stepped closer.

“You don’t know what happened here.”

Andre looked up.

His expression was calm.

But his voice had changed.

“Actually, Sergeant, I know more than you think.”

Baird laughed.

“Oh, really?”

Andre raised his phone.

“Because my father’s security cameras recorded what happened before you arrived.”

The sergeant stopped smiling.

Chapter 3: The House That Had Been Watching

Samuel Bennett had lived on Willow Creek Drive for thirty-seven years.

He purchased the house with his wife, Evelyn, after spending nearly twenty years working as an automotive technology instructor at the county high school.

Samuel loved teaching young people how to fix things.

He believed every student should graduate knowing how to change a tire, check engine oil, and recognize when someone was trying to charge them for repairs they didn’t need.

His students remembered him as a patient man.

A teacher who stayed late.

A mentor who brought extra tools for students who couldn’t afford them.

And a father figure to young people who needed someone to believe in them.

Evelyn worked as a school librarian.

They raised two children in the house.

Andre, their oldest, became an electrical systems technician.

Their daughter, Monique, moved to North Carolina and became a nurse.

Eight years earlier, Evelyn died after a long illness.

Samuel never considered leaving the house.

Every room reminded him of her.

The kitchen where she made Sunday breakfast.

The living room where they watched old movies.

The porch where they sat together during summer storms.

The garage where Samuel kept the pickup truck they had purchased shortly before retirement.

But age had begun changing his routines.

After a cardiac hospitalization the previous year, Andre became concerned about his father’s safety.

Samuel insisted he could manage independently.

Andre respected that.

But they agreed to install security cameras around the house.

One watched the front porch.

Another covered the driveway.

A third overlooked the garage.

The cameras were connected to a secure account that both men could access.

Andre checked the system occasionally, especially when Samuel didn’t answer his phone.

Most days, the recordings showed nothing unusual.

The mail carrier.