Chapter 5 - Judith Had Already Been Calling
Mara requested copies of her postpartum and prenatal records through the hospital system.
She expected routine notes.
Blood pressure.
Lab work.
Ultrasound reports.
Delivery planning.
Instead she found three telephone entries.
The first was six weeks before her due date.
Caller: spouse.
Concern: patient becoming emotionally overwhelmed and “irrational” when discussing postpartum help.
The nurse had recommended that Owen encourage Mara to contact the office directly if she was experiencing anxiety.
Mara never heard about the call.
The second entry came two weeks later.
Caller: mother-in-law.
Judith had asked whether a grandmother could temporarily care for a newborn if the mother became “mentally unable.”
The nurse had refused to discuss Mara’s private medical information.
The third call came five days before delivery.
Owen again reported that Mara was sleeping poorly, crying, and “suspicious of family support.”
That final phrase almost made Mara laugh.
Suspicious of family support.
She remembered exactly what happened that week.
Judith had announced she planned to stay in their home for “at least a month.”
Mara said she wanted the first two weeks mostly private.
Owen accused her of excluding his mother.
Mara cried afterward.
That had become evidence.
She showed the records to Allison.
“These notes don’t prove they planned to take your child,” Allison said.
“I know.”
“But they establish a pattern of them characterizing ordinary disagreements as concerns about your mental stability.”
Mara nodded.
At the pediatrician’s office the next day, another clue appeared.
The nurse asked Mara whether feeding had “improved.”
“Improved from what?”
The nurse checked the chart.
“Someone called yesterday saying the baby had missed several feedings.”
Mara stared at her.
“He hasn’t.”
The pediatrician reviewed the newborn’s weight.
He was feeding normally and gaining appropriately.
“Who called?”
The office could not give Mara every detail over the phone without checking documentation, but the chart identified the caller as grandmother.
Judith.
Mara felt her hands go cold.
Judith was no longer merely making comments inside the house.
She was contacting professionals.
Creating concerns.
Leaving records.
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And every concern pointed toward the same conclusion.
Mara was supposedly becoming incapable of caring for her own son.
