Chapter 2

John's expression changed instantly.

"Say that again!"

He lunged at me, but his wife grabbed him and held him back.

I was about to respond when sirens wailed from downstairs.

John rushed toward them like he'd found his savior:

"Officers! It's her! She ran a red light and hit my dad, then refused to admit it!"

The police officer looked me over. "Are you the owner of vehicle A123?"

"Yes."

"Did you hit someone?"

"No."

John panicked. "It was her! I saw it with my own eyes!"

The officer waved for him to be quiet and turned back to me. "Miss, you say you didn't hit anyone. Do you have proof?"

I picked up the certificate from the floor and handed it over.

The officer opened it and paused. "Red-green colorblind?"

"Yes." I nodded.

The officer frowned. "Then how did you get this car?"

"It's a keepsake from my father," I paused. "But I can't drive it, so it's always been parked in the garage."

"The dealership comes to pick it up for maintenance. There are records."

John sneered. "Keep making stuff up! You think the cops will believe you?"

The officer ignored him and turned to the property manager. "Pull up the security footage."

The manager scratched his head. "Well, we had that heavy snow a couple days ago, right?"

"It damaged some of the wiring. The parking garage cameras are down—we haven't had a chance to fix them yet..."

My heart sank.

What a coincidence.

John immediately perked up. "The footage is gone? Your evidence disappeared! Bet you're thrilled!"

The officer frowned. "Sir, please remain quiet."

"We have our own procedures. Without clear evidence, please show this woman some respect."

He turned to me. "Miss, does your car have a dashcam?"

"Yes."

"May we take a look?"

I nodded, grabbed the car keys from the living room cabinet, and handed them over.

The group went downstairs to the underground garage.

The officer had just reached the front of the car and hadn't even opened the door yet.

Suddenly John rushed forward and threw himself onto the hood, his voice cracking with excitement:

"Officers! Come look at this!"

He pointed at the front bumper. "What is this?"

I walked over and used my phone light to see.

On the right side of the bumper was a fresh scrape mark with a bloodstain on it.