“Thank goodness you’re home early!”
“Clara had a terrible dizzy spell and dropped her medication.”
“I told her to rest, but she’s being hysterical.”
“And poor Leo is frightened by all the crying.”
I didn’t argue with her explanation.
“Quiet.”
For the first time, Eleanor’s smile faltered.
“Excuse me?”
Without another word, I walked past her, lifted Clara carefully off the floor, and settled her into the nearby armchair, making sure she stayed away from the shattered glass. She buried her face against my shoulder, shaking uncontrollably as tears streamed down her cheeks.
“Julian…”
“The baby…”
“She won’t let me hold him.”
“I have him.”
I kissed her forehead before turning back toward my mother and calmly holding out my hand.
“Give me my son.”
Instead of handing Leo over, Eleanor tightened her grip and tried one last time to justify herself. She insisted Clara was too unstable to hold a newborn, claimed she had only been protecting her grandson, and accused me of overreacting to an innocent misunderstanding.
“I’m his grandmother.”
“Clara isn’t in any condition to care for him.”
“I was keeping him safe.”
Rather than answering, I unlocked my phone and pressed play. Fifteen minutes earlier, the hidden camera had recorded every word she believed no one else would ever hear.
“Leo is crying because his mother is weak and completely incompetent.”
“Get down on your hands and knees and clean up this glass.”
“Only then will I let you hold him.”
The color vanished from Eleanor’s face.
“Where…”
“Where did you get that?”
“You disconnected the router.”
“You forgot to look for the hidden camera.”
“I watched everything.”
“And so did Audrey.”
For the first time since arriving, Eleanor completely lost control. She called it a joke, insisted she had only been trying to motivate Clara, and accused my wife of manipulating me. The loving grandmother everyone admired disappeared, replaced by the woman I had finally seen with my own eyes.
“It was a joke!”
“Clara is lazy!”
“She turned you against me!”
I gently took Leo from her arms and placed him safely in Clara’s lap before looking back at my mother.