Ryan Saw Vanessa Holding Their Crying Daughter in the Kitchen — Then Emma Pointed at the Security Camera
Chapter 5 — The Missing Gift Cards
Ryan opened the notebook from Linda’s backpack.
Each page contained handwritten numbers.
Dates.
Families.
Gift-card serial numbers.
Amounts.
Linda had been tracking assistance cards issued by the district.
According to her records, hundreds of cards had arrived at the school.
But dozens never reached the families assigned to receive them.
“How much money are we talking about?” Ryan asked.
Vanessa answered quietly.
“Almost forty thousand dollars.”
Ryan stared at her.
“And you think Dalton took it?”
“Linda does.”
“Why?”
Vanessa pulled one of the prepaid phones from the backpack.
It contained photographs.
One showed several grocery cards laid across a desk.
Another showed the same cards being placed inside envelopes.
A third image showed Dalton carrying those envelopes toward the staff parking lot.
But there was no photograph of him actually spending anything.
“That’s not enough,” Ryan said.
“We know.”
Emma tugged on his sleeve.
“I saw his car.”
Ryan looked down.
“When?”
“Saturday.”
Emma had been with Vanessa at a supermarket.
While Vanessa paid, Emma waited near the entrance.
She saw Dalton leaving.
He was carrying several electronics-store shopping bags.
That alone meant nothing.
But Emma also noticed something else.
A woman stood beside him holding a thick stack of grocery gift cards.
She handed Dalton cash.
Vanessa remembered Emma mentioning it.
She hadn’t understood why it mattered at the time.
Now Ryan did.
Someone might have been buying the donated cards from Dalton for cash.
“Did you record any of it?” Ryan asked.
Emma shook her head.
Then she stopped.
“Mom did.”
Vanessa looked confused.
“What?”
Emma pointed toward Vanessa’s car keys.
“Your car camera.”
