Life did not stop simply because my family was frightened.
Brooks eventually emerged and asked me to sign a receipt for the copy of Gwen’s note.
She explained that Alice would provide the original directly.
“Do not confront Gwen with what you heard,” she said.
“And do not share the interview on social media.”
I asked whether Alice would be arrested.
“I can’t predict that,” Brooks replied.
“Her role and the timeline have to be assessed by the investigators and prosecutor.”
I respected the answer even though it offered no comfort.
When Alice came out, she looked exhausted but no longer seemed to be holding her breath.
She asked whether she could call a friend to stay with.
Brooks helped her arrange transportation without returning to Gwen’s house first.
As we parted, Alice took my hand.
“I should have called for help that night,” she said.
“I can’t change that.”
“You can tell the truth now,” I answered.
Alice nodded, then stepped into a waiting car.
When I returned home, Gwen was standing in my driveway with two uniformed officers.
She had reported that I was harassing her daughter.
Gwen lifted her chin when she saw me step out of the car.
“There she is,” she told the officers.
“She’s been poisoning my daughter against our family.”
One officer held a notebook, and the other looked toward my damaged garage window.
I recognized the younger one from the report he had taken after the break-in.
“Miss Donnelly,” he said, “we’re following up on a complaint.”
“I understand,” I replied.
Gwen folded her arms.
“Tell them where you took Alice.”
I refused to answer for an adult woman who had voluntarily spoken with investigators.
The older officer asked Gwen to step away while he talked with me.
I explained that Alice had visited me that morning and that I had driven her to the station at her request.
I gave no details about her statement.
The officers made a call, confirmed there was no missing-person report involving Alice, and told Gwen they could not force a grown daughter to return home.
Gwen’s anger turned bright and sharp.
“She isn’t thinking clearly,” she said.
“This woman has filled her head with lies about her brother.”
“Alice can speak for herself,” the officer replied.
For a moment Gwen looked not merely furious but startled, as if she had expected someone to obey her without asking why.
Then her gaze moved to the boarded garage window.
