My heart pounded in my chest as I watched Zariah hand the tablet to the clerk. I had no idea what was on it, what she had been recording or saving in secret. My husband shifted uncomfortably in his chair, the confidence he had displayed throughout the hearing beginning to waver. Everyone, including the judge, seemed to hold their breath as the clerk connected the tablet to a screen visible to the whole courtroom.
Zariah glanced at me, her eyes filled with a courage I had never noticed before. “I recorded it,” she said simply. “I didn’t want anyone to lie about my mommy.” The room fell completely silent as the first video clip began to play.
It was a shaky recording, taken from the perspective of a child trying to remain unseen. There was my husband, Tmaine, in our living room, pacing back and forth, phone pressed to his ear. His voice was raised, angry, and unguarded. “Yeah, she’s a mess. No, she won’t see it coming. I’ve got everything lined up. We’ll get the house, the money, Zariah. She can’t handle anything on her own,” he was saying. My heart ached as the reality of his betrayal became unmistakably clear to everyone present.
