Chapter 23 - The Mask Slips
A facility nurse gently took Maya from my arms and carried her into the playroom, placing her on the padded floor mat a few feet away from Derek. I stood pressed against the glass, my heart hammering a frantic rhythm against my ribs. Elias stood right behind my shoulder, his presence a silent promise of absolute violence if Derek made a single wrong move.
Derek reached out, trying to summon the charm he had once used to manipulate the world. "Hi, Maya. It's Daddy," he cooed, picking up a plastic stacking block and holding it out to her.
Maya, possessing the pure, unfiltered instinct of an infant, stared at him blankly. She didn't reach for the block. Instead, she turned her head away, looking around the unfamiliar room for me.
Derek’s fake smile faltered. A micro-expression of pure, unadulterated rage flashed across his face. It was the exact same look he had given me right before he slammed the SUV door on the highway. He hated that he couldn't control her. He hated that this tiny, innocent creature wasn't validating his ego.
He leaned in closer, his voice dropping slightly below the normal conversational volume. "You're going to come home with me soon," he whispered under his breath. "I'm not letting her keep you."
Dr. Evans stepped forward immediately. "Mr. Grant. What did you just say?"
Derek snapped his head up, instantly playing the victim. "Nothing! I just said I missed her. Why are you hovering over me like I'm a criminal?"
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"Because you are a convicted criminal on probation, Mr. Grant," Dr. Evans replied coldly. "And you are mumbling. One more warning, and this session is over."
I watched him grind his teeth together, the veins in his neck bulging. The arrogant monster was still in there, trapped in a cage of his own making, violently rattling the bars.
