Chapter 12 - The Stolen Notes.
Nora had attended therapy for six months after her first miscarriage.
She had been twenty-six, grieving, isolated, and terrified that Marcus would leave her because her body had failed him.
The therapist, Dr. Miriam Cole, had written about anxiety, insomnia, and Nora’s fear of conflict.
Marcus now presented those notes as proof that Nora was psychologically unstable.
He omitted the pages describing his behavior.
Dana obtained the full record under subpoena.
The missing context was devastating.
One entry documented Nora saying Marcus had disabled her car after an argument.
Another recorded that he had taken her phone for three days because she contacted an old college friend.
A third described him punching a wall beside her head and later insisting she had exaggerated the incident.
Judge Keene reviewed the motion that afternoon.
Sloan argued that Nora’s “longstanding mental-health instability” raised concerns about her ability to make rational decisions during pregnancy.
Dana stood slowly.
“Your Honor, the movant has presented illegally obtained, selectively edited therapy records to portray documented fear responses as pathology.”
Sloan objected.
Keene overruled him.
Dana continued.
“The complete notes repeatedly identify Mr. Hale’s conduct as a source of the distress.”
The courtroom became quiet.
Marcus stared straight ahead.
Keene removed her glasses.
“Mr. Sloan, how did your client obtain these records?”
Sloan conferred with Marcus.
“My client believes they were retained in the marital home.”
Nora whispered to Dana.
“They never were.”
Dana stood again.
“My client states she never possessed a paper copy at the residence.”
Keene looked at Sloan.
“Then I suggest your client determine the source before relying on them again.”
She denied the psychiatric-evaluation request.
Then she ordered Marcus to disclose how he obtained the records within forty-eight hours.
Outside the courtroom, Nora’s knees felt weak.
Dana guided her toward a bench.
“This is what he does,” Nora said.
“He takes the moment I was weakest and turns it into evidence against me.”
Dana sat beside her.
“And today it became evidence of something else.”
Nora looked up.
“What?”
“That the story he tells about you depends on removing context.”
A familiar voice spoke from several feet away.
“Nora.”
Elias stood near the elevator.
He had waited until the lawyers and reporters cleared the hallway.
Nora walked toward him.
He looked at her carefully.
“I heard only that the motion was denied.”
“It was.”
Nora’s eyes filled.
“He used records from after the miscarriage.”
Elias’s face changed.
Nora had never told him about the miscarriage.
“You were pregnant before?”
She nodded.
“And you went through that alone?”
“With Marcus.”
The answer sounded hollow.
Elias looked down the empty hallway.
“I am sorry.”
Nora almost said it was not his fault.
Then she stopped.
There was enough fault to go around without simplifying it.
“I should have called you.”
“I should have made it easier for you to call.”
They stood in silence.
Dana approached with her phone in hand.
“We found out how Marcus got the notes.”
Nora turned.
“Already?”
“Dr. Cole’s office discovered an unauthorized download from its archived server.”
“Who accessed it?”
Dana looked at Elias, then back at Nora.
“A contractor account.”
Nora knew the answer before Dana said the name.
“Aaron Pike.”
The same man had touched the courthouse system.
The same man had entered Nora’s house.
The same man was linked to the warehouse.
Marcus did not merely have a mistress and hidden accounts.
May you like
He had a fixer.
And now the fixer knew investigators were closing in.
