Sarah waited until Emma was upstairs with the boys before she spoke.
“What did she mean?”
Daniel stood beside the kitchen counter.
“I don't know.”
“Daniel.”
“I said I don't know.”
Sarah watched him.
She knew his voice.
He was not angry.
He was frightened.
That worried her more.
“You said you saw something before the cake was served.”
“I did.”
“What?”
Daniel rubbed his forehead.
“Something dark near the strawberries.”
Sarah folded her arms.
“Why didn't you say that at the hospital?”
“Because I wasn't sure.”
“You're sure now?”
“No.”
“Then what are you sure about?”
Daniel looked toward the stairs.
“I remember Emma standing beside me when I was cutting the cake.”
“And?”
“She pointed at the bowl of strawberries.”
Sarah frowned.
“What did she say?”
“She said there was something in them.”
“Something?”
“She wouldn't touch them.”
Sarah stared at him.
“Why didn't you tell me?”
“I thought she was being picky.”
“You thought she was being picky?”
Daniel looked ashamed.
“Yes.”
Sarah turned away.
The cake had become something else entirely.
Not just dessert.
Not just the thing that had frightened them.
It was now a question.
And Sarah hated unanswered questions.
She went upstairs.
Emma was sitting on the bed with Noah and Ethan.
Noah was showing her a video on his phone.
Sarah knocked.
“Can I talk to Emma?”
The boys left.
Sarah sat beside her daughter.
“Sweetheart, I need to ask you about the strawberries.”
Emma looked nervous.
“Did I do something wrong?”
“No.”
“Daddy is mad?”
“No.”
Sarah took her hand.
“Your dad said you noticed something before the cake.”
Emma nodded.
“What?”
“I don't know.”
“Did it look like food?”
“No.”
“What did it look like?”
Emma thought.
“Like a little black piece.”
Sarah felt a chill.
“Where was it?”
“In the bowl.”
“Did you touch it?”
“No.”
“Did you tell Dad?”
“Yes.”
“What did he say?”
“He said it was probably chocolate.”
Sarah's eyes narrowed.
“Chocolate?”
Emma nodded.
“Then he said not to worry.”
“Did you believe him?”
“I wanted to.”
Sarah kissed her forehead.
“Thank you for telling me.”
Emma looked worried.
“Are you angry at Daddy?”
Sarah paused.
“No.”
“Are you going to yell?”
“No.”
“Good.”
Sarah smiled.
“Why?”
“Because yelling makes everybody scared.”
The sentence stayed with Sarah.
She had not realized how carefully Emma watched adults.
Downstairs, Daniel had begun inspecting the kitchen.
He opened the refrigerator.
The strawberry container was gone.
Sarah entered.
“What are you doing?”
“Looking for the fruit.”
“I threw it out.”
Daniel stopped.
“You did?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because Emma choked.”
Daniel nodded.
“Okay.”
Sarah watched him.
“Do you remember where you bought them?”
“The grocery store.”
“When?”
“Yesterday.”
“Were they already washed?”
“Yes.”
“Did you notice anything?”
Daniel thought.
“There was one strawberry that looked bruised.”
“Did you cut it?”
“I did.”
Sarah looked at him.
“Did you eat any?”
“No.”
“Did anyone?”
“No.”
They stood silently.
Then Ethan appeared.
“Mom?”
“Yes?”
“Can I tell you something?”
Sarah turned.
“What?”
“I saw Dad put something in the bowl.”
Daniel looked at him.
“What?”
Ethan swallowed.
“Yesterday.”
Sarah stared.
“What did you see?”
“I don't know.”
“Ethan.”
“It was in a little packet.”
Daniel's expression changed.
“What packet?”
“I don't know.”
“Where?”
“In the garage.”
Sarah looked at Daniel.
“Why were you in the garage?”
“I was cleaning.”
“What packet?”
Daniel shook his head.
“I don't remember.”
Ethan stepped backward.
“Dad, you told me not to touch it.”
Sarah's face tightened.
“Daniel?”
“I don't know what he's talking about.”
Ethan looked confused.
“You said it was for the garden.”
Daniel went still.
Sarah stared at him.
“Garden?”
Daniel nodded slowly.
“Yes.”
“What was in it?”
“Fertilizer.”
Sarah's eyes widened.
“You put fertilizer near food?”
“I didn't put it in the food.”
Ethan said, “I saw you carrying it.”
Daniel turned.
“Carrying it where?”
“Toward the kitchen.”
Silence.
Daniel's face had lost all color.
“I carried a bag of garden fertilizer through the kitchen because I was cleaning the garage.”
Sarah looked at him.
“Did you open it?”
“No.”
“Are you certain?”
Daniel hesitated.
“I think so.”
Sarah stepped closer.
“You think so?”
“I don't remember.”
That was enough.
She picked up her phone.
“We're calling the hospital.”
Daniel shook his head.
“Emma is fine.”
“We don't know that.”
“She was cleared.”
“Because we thought she swallowed food.”
Daniel looked at the floor.
Sarah called.
She explained what they had learned.
The doctor recommended returning for further evaluation if there was any possibility of chemical exposure.
Sarah looked at Emma's room.
“We're going back.”
Daniel nodded.
This time, no one argued.
At the hospital, Emma underwent additional evaluation.
The doctor asked whether there could have been contamination.
Sarah explained everything.
The doctor became more cautious.
“We'll need to know what substance we're dealing with.”
Daniel called a neighbor who knew the gardening supplies.
He sent a photograph of the suspected packet.
The neighbor replied.
It was not ordinary fertilizer.
It was a concentrated garden treatment.
Daniel stared at the message.
“That's not mine.”
Sarah looked at him.
“What?”
“I've never bought that.”
“Then where did it come from?”
“I don't know.”
The investigator from the earlier incident was not involved.
This was a new event.
Police were contacted because there was a possibility that a hazardous substance had come into contact with food.
Sarah felt overwhelmed.
“We're talking about a birthday cake.”
The doctor answered gently.
“We're talking about protecting your child.”
Emma sat quietly on the hospital bed.
She looked at her mother.
“Am I sick?”
“We're checking.”
“Did I eat something bad?”
“We don't know yet.”
Daniel approached.
“Emma.”
She looked at him.
“I'm sorry.”
“For what?”
“For not listening when you told me something was wrong.”
Emma looked down.
“I told you.”
“I know.”
“Why didn't you believe me?”
Daniel swallowed.
“Because I thought I knew better.”
Emma frowned.
“You don't always know.”
Sarah almost smiled despite everything.
“No,” Daniel said. “I don't.”
The doctor returned.
“Her tests are reassuring.”
Sarah released a breath.
“But we still need to identify the material.”
Daniel nodded.
“I'll find it.”
“You need to let investigators handle that.”
Daniel stopped.
“Right.”
They returned home late.
The cake was sealed.
The kitchen was untouched.
An investigator arrived.
He examined the cake and the remaining ingredients.
Sarah explained what Emma had said.
Daniel explained what he remembered.
Ethan described the packet.
Noah admitted he had been in the garage earlier.
The investigator asked him what he saw.
Noah thought.
“A red bag.”
“What kind?”
“I don't know.”
“Did you touch it?”
“No.”
“Did anyone else?”
“I saw Uncle Mark.”
Daniel looked up.
“Mark?”
Noah nodded.
“He came over yesterday.”
Sarah frowned.
“Why?”
“He said he needed to borrow something.”
Daniel stared at his son.
“That isn't possible.”
“Why?”
“Mark hasn't been here in months.”
Noah looked confused.
“I saw him.”
Sarah looked at Daniel.
“Are you sure?”
Daniel nodded.
“My brother is out of town.”
The room went quiet.
The investigator wrote something down.
“Who else had access to the house?”
Sarah answered.
“Family. Neighbors. The delivery driver.”
Daniel shook his head.
“We need to check the security camera.”
Sarah's eyes widened.
“We have cameras?”
“In the garage and front door.”
The investigator looked at Daniel.
“Let's see the footage.”
Daniel opened the camera application.
The footage from the previous afternoon loaded.
The screen showed the driveway.
Then a person entered.
Sarah leaned closer.
The figure carried a small red bag.
Daniel stopped breathing.
“That isn't Mark.”
The investigator paused the footage.
“Who is it?”
Daniel stared at the screen.
“I don't know.”
Emma's birthday had been yesterday.
The stranger had arrived hours before the party.
And he had gone directly toward the garage.
Click Here to continue read next: PART3: The Camera Revealed a Stranger Entering the House Before the Party, but the Most Disturbing Detail Was What He Left Behind
The Candle Was Still Burning When Emma Suddenly Went Silent, and Her Father Realized the Birthday Celebration Had Turned Into an Emergency
Part 2 of 8
