Chapter 70: Picking sides

Chapter 70: Picking sides

Yvonne did not knock, she pushed the door open and walked straight into the sitting room where Tennessee stood by the window, phone in hand, staring down at the driveway like he was waiting for something to explode.

Lorrine followed behind her, shoulders hunched, eyes darting around the room as though the walls themselves might accuse her. Tennessee turned sharply at the sound of the door and frowned when he saw both of them together.

“What’s going on?” he asked immediately. “Why do you look like that?”

Yvonne didn’t sit. She didn’t waste time easing into it. Her voice came out fast and tight. “I know what happened to Audrey.”

Tennessee stiffened. “What are you talking about?”

Yvonne pointed straight at Lorrine. “She poisoned her. Gwen gave Lorrine a substance to poison Audrey.”

Lorrine gasped loudly, like the word had slapped her. “That’s a lie,” she said quickly, shaking her head. “That’s a lie. I didn’t do anything. No one gave me anything to poison her. No one poisoned Audrey!”

Tennessee looked from Yvonne to Lorrine, disbelief crossing his face. “Yvonne, slow down,” he said. “What do you mean poisoned her?”

“In the kitchen,” Yvonne said. “I found out Gwen gave Lorrine something and told her to put it in Audrey’s food. I heard everything. I was right there...Gwen didn’t deny it.”

Lorrine shook her head harder now, tears springing to her eyes. “She’s lying,” she said, voice trembling. “She hates Gwen. Everybody knows she hates Gwen. She’s just trying to pin this on her.”

Tennessee raised a hand. “Lorrine,” he said firmly. “Look at me. Are you saying none of this happened?”

Lorrine looked at him, then away, then back again. “Nothing happened,” she said. “I didn’t put anything in her food. I served the food and left. That’s all.”

Yvonne stared at her like she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “You’re lying,” she said, her voice cracking. “You were shaking. You were crying. You said Gwen threatened you. You admitted to the crime, you said…”

“I said nothing,” Lorrine cut in quickly. “You’re the one putting words in my mouth.”

Tennessee’s jaw tightened. “Yvonne,” he said, “this is serious. You can’t just accuse people like this without proof.”

Yvonne laughed once, sharp and disbelieving. “Proof?” she said. “Audrey can’t walk anymore. What more proof do you need?”

Before Tennessee could answer, soft humming floated through the hallway. Gwen walked past the open doorway, dressed casually, phone in hand, singing under her breath like the house wasn’t choking on tension. She didn’t look at any of them. She didn’t slow down. She didn’t ask what was going on. She just walked by, her voice light, careless, almost cheerful.

Yvonne watched her pass, stunned into silence.

Tennessee turned his head slowly, confusion deepening. He watched Gwen disappear down the corridor, then looked back at the two women in front of him. “Why is she acting like this?” he asked quietly.

Yvonne swallowed. “Because she knows,” she said. “She knows what she did.”

Lorrine shook her head again, backing away slightly. “This is crazy,” she said. “I don’t know why she’s saying all this. I just work here.”

Tennessee ran a hand through his hair. “Enough,” he said. “All of you, enough. I need facts. Not emotions.”

Yvonne stared at him, hurt flashing across her face. “I’m telling you the truth,” she said. “I swear on my life.”

Tennessee didn’t answer. He just looked tired, torn between anger and doubt.

“Yvonne, I know Gwen is often mean to Audrey but she certainly can’t do such evil to Audrey. Gwen is my sister, she’s not evil spirited.”

Gwen sat alone in a small security room tucked behind the kitchen. The glow from the monitors reflected calmly in her eyes as her fingers moved fast across the keyboard. She didn’t rush, didn’t panic. She rewound footage, clipped sections, erased timestamps, adjusted angles. Where there had been whispered voices, there was now silence.

Where there had been a hand passing a small item, there was now nothing but empty counter space. She watched it through once, then twice, making sure the story it told was clean. She worked on the earlier kitchen footages too. When she was satisfied, she deleted the original files permanently, leaned back in her chair, and smiled faintly.

Not long after, Tennessee sat in front of the living room screen with Yvonne standing beside him. “This is the kitchen footage,” he said. “If something happened, it’ll be here.”

Yvonne crossed her arms tightly. “It has to be,” she said. “There’s no way it won’t be.”

The footage played. Lorrine walked in, set a tray down, adjusted plates, and left. No hesitation. No shaking hands. No Gwen. No exchange. Nothing. He fast forwarded to earlier in the kitchen, nothing! Except Lorrine doing her duties.

Yvonne stared at the screen, her breath catching. “That’s not right,” she said. “That’s not what happened.”

Tennessee paused the video. “This is what’s here,” he said. “This is all that’s here.”

“It’s been edited,” Yvonne said immediately. “Someone changed it.”

Tennessee turned to her sharply. “You’re saying Gwen hacked the CCTV?”

“Yes,” Yvonne said. “I’m saying exactly that.”

“That’s a serious accusation,” Tennessee said, his voice rising despite himself.

“Because it’s serious,” Yvonne shot back. “Audrey is paralyzed.”

Tennessee exhaled slowly, pressing his fingers to his temple. “Yvonne, calm down,” he said. “Yelling isn’t going to help.”

“I am calm,” she said, though her voice shook. “You’re just refusing to see it.”

Tennessee stood up. “I’m trying to keep this from turning into something serious,” he said. “Until I have undeniable proof, I can’t act on this.”

Yvonne stared at him, disbelief giving way to fury. “So that’s it?” she asked. “You’re just going to pretend nothing happened?”

“I didn’t say that,” Tennessee replied. “I said I need control.”

Yvonne laughed bitterly. “Control?” she said. “Audrey lost her legs. You’re worried about control?”

Tennessee clenched his jaw, forcing his voice down. “Enough,” he said. “You’re too emotional right now.”

Yvonne looked at him like he’d just betrayed her. “One day,” she said quietly, “you’ll realize you chose the wrong side.”

Tennessee didn’t answer. He turned back to the frozen screen, the edited footage reflecting silently in his eyes as Yvonne stood there, shaking with anger and helplessness.