Chapter 11 - Seraphina’s version
Seraphina’s first defense was discipline.
Anouk entered the storage space voluntarily sometimes.
True.
Children love small spaces.
She had played there with flashlights months earlier.
Seraphina argued she converted it into a:
“quiet reset area.”
She provided:
Pillow.
Water.
Snacks.
Night-light.
Therefore, not dangerous.
Her lawyer pointed out:
No restraints.
No physical injury.
Door ventilation.
Normal interior temperature.
All true.
Then:
Why lock the door?
Seraphina said:
“To stop her repeatedly entering adult meetings.”
That answer helped prosecutors more than her lawyer wanted.
Why overnight?
“I did not leave her all night.”
Evidence would test.
Why were shoes and schoolbag stored there?
“Anouk carried things herself.”
Partly possible.
Why tell her:
“That hole is perfect for children nobody wants”?
Seraphina said:
“I was angry.”
There.
Why threaten to expose family secrets if I chose my daughter?
“Maximilian is mischaracterizing a private financial dispute.”
Unfortunately for her, multiple people heard the line.
Mrs. Valenti.
Owen.
Another security officer near the hall.
No recorder needed.
Why did Anouk say:
“She made me sleep in there”?
“Because she had slept there once after refusing her bedroom.”
Choice?
Locked?
That became central.
Seraphina admitted locking the compartment:
“for short periods.”
How short?
Fifteen minutes.
Twenty.
Maybe an hour.
May you like
No overnight.
Then home-security data complicated that.
