Chapter 17 - The Pharmacy Camera
Samuel Reed testified on day four.
Pharmacist.
No family connection.
No motive.
He explained Margaret picked up Emma’s prescriptions on three dates.
Signature records.
Camera clip.
He remembered her questions.
Could pills look different?
Could bottles be reused?
Could treatment side effects worsen if medications changed?
Defense objected to interpretation.
Judge sustained where necessary.
Samuel stuck to exact words.
Then prosecutor showed the tablet photographs.
Bottles open.
Store products nearby.
Handwritten note:
Keep originals upstairs.
Caroline West attacked chain.
Could note refer to something else?
Yes.
Could photos be organizational?
Yes.
Did Samuel see Margaret swap tablets?
No.
Reasonable cross.
Then Detective Price testified about the locked cabinet.
Real prescriptions upstairs.
Margaret had said no medication stored there.
Defense:
“She was under stress.”
Detective:
“Possible.”
“Could she have forgotten?”
“Possible.”
No drama.
Then deleted photo metadata.
Margaret’s tablet.
Her user account.
Her cloud.
Still not a camera of act itself.
Total evidence.
Linda Marsh testified about texts.
“Doctors give children too much. I’m fixing the schedule myself.”
“Emma sleeps better with mine than theirs.”
Linda said:
“I thought she meant bedtime routine.”
“Did she tell you Rachel approved?”
“No.”
“Did she ever say Rachel knew?”
“No.”
Then prosecution introduced search history.
Judge limited some because search terms can be prejudicial.
Enough remained to show research on medication appearance and missed doses.
Caroline argued Margaret researched because she was caregiver.
Plausible.
Then came Emma’s clinic waiting-room footage.
Margaret tried to take backpack.
Dr. Brooks stopped.
Minutes later bottles discovered.
After appointment, Margaret’s anger escalated.
Next day trash.
Phone knocked away.
Cause sequence.
The jury watched.
Margaret stared at table.
At lunch, Nora found me in hallway.
“You’re doing the thing.”
“What?”
“Trying to read jurors.”
“I’m not.”
“You are.”
“Fine.”
“Stop.”
I laughed.
“How?”
“Eat.”
I had half a sandwich.
Emma was at school.
That mattered.
She did not need courtroom becoming her life.
After school she called.
“Did Grandma go to jail yet?”
“No.”
“What happened?”
“Trial is still happening.”
“Can I know later?”
“Yes.”
“Do I have to?”
“No.”
She paused.
“Good.”
May you like
Then told me she got ninety two on science quiz.
Normal life became rebellion.
