My Daughter And Son-In-Law Planned My Death As An Accident — Until A Forgotten Security Camera... — Transcript

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1. 0:00Mr. Hayes, I forgot to disconnect an old
2. 0:02security camera behind your house. Last
3. 0:05night it recorded your daughter and
4. 0:07son-in-law. Please don't tell anyone.
5. 0:09Come see me alone. An hour later, Daniel
6. 0:12Price pushed a flash drive across the
7. 0:14table. Whatever you see on this, he
8. 0:17whispered, don't let them know.
9. 0:19I thought I knew my daughter. I had
10. 0:21raised her, protected her, and trusted
11. 0:23her for 34 years. Then I watched a
12. 0:26recording of her discussing how my death
13. 0:28could look like an accident. And what
14. 0:30frightened me most wasn't what her
15. 0:32husband said. It was what she asked him.
16. 0:353 weeks earlier, I had moved into a
17. 0:37small ranch style house on Clover Hill
18. 0:39Road outside Dayton. My wife, Carol, had
19. 0:42died 3 years before. We'd spent 31 years
20. 0:46in our old house, raising Megan,
21. 0:48celebrating birthdays, building a life.
22. 0:51After Carol died, every room seemed too
23. 0:53large, so I sold it. I was 60, retired
24. 0:57after 32 years as a mechanical engineer,
25. 1:00with a decent pension and enough savings
26. 1:02to buy the new house outright. I wanted
27. 1:05a quiet life. On moving day, Megan
28. 1:07arrived with her husband, Eric, and
29. 1:09their 7-year-old daughter, Lily. Lily
30. 1:12ran straight toward the backyard.
31. 1:14Grandpa, can we plant strawberries? I
32. 1:16picked her up, ignoring the pain in my
33. 1:18knee. Whatever you want, sweetheart. She
34. 1:21had Carol's gray-green eyes. Sometimes
35. 1:24looking at her still caught me off
36. 1:25guard. Eric spent the morning helping
37. 1:28with furniture and fixing the back gate.
38. 1:30He was the kind of son-in-law who always
39. 1:32offered practical help. Around noon, he
40. 1:35found me unpacking dishes. Hey, Dad,
41. 1:37what time do you usually take your
42. 1:39morning drive? 7:30, sometimes 8. Why?
43. 1:43Just want to know when it's a good time
44. 1:45to call. I didn't think anything of it.
45. 1:47Before leaving, he asked for a spare
46. 1:49key. In case something happens, Megan
47. 1:52explained. You're living alone now. I
48. 1:55handed it over. I remember feeling
49. 1:57grateful. I didn't realize I'd just
50. 1:59given him access to everything he
51. 2:01needed. Looking back, there had been
52. 2:03signs. My closest friend, Frank Doyle,
53. 2:06had never completely trusted Eric.
54. 2:09"Bobby, that son-in-law of yours smiles
55. 2:11too much." he'd told me once. I'd
56. 2:14laughed, but Frank had noticed something
57. 2:15Carol had noticed, too. Eric was always
58. 2:18a little too smooth. Megan had also
59. 2:20changed. Expensive furniture, designer
60. 2:23bags, a renovated kitchen. Whenever I
61. 2:26asked about money, she insisted
62. 2:28everything was fine. What I didn't know
63. 2:31was that she and Eric were nearly
64. 2:32$800,000 in debt, a failed import
65. 2:35business, years of overspending, loans
66. 2:38taken out to cover other loans. The bank
67. 2:41was threatening to take their house, and
68. 2:43they had decided I was their solution.
69. 2:45Daniel's recording showed Megan and Eric
70. 2:47standing behind my storage shed at
71. 2:49night. Eric's voice was perfectly clear.
72. 2:52"He doesn't suspect anything. He handed
73. 2:54over the key the same day." Megan stood
74. 2:56with her arms wrapped around herself.
75. 2:59Then Eric said something I'll never
76. 3:00forget. "The car is old. People don't
77. 3:03maintain vehicles properly at his age.
78. 3:05If something goes wrong on the road,
79. 3:08they'll write down mechanical failure
80. 3:09and move on." Megan looked at him. "Are
81. 3:12you absolutely sure no one would be able
82. 3:14to tell?" "Not if it's done right." I
83. 3:16watched the recording twice. I
84. 3:18remembered teaching Megan to ride a
85. 3:20bicycle when she was seven, how she'd
86. 3:22get up every time she fell, furious with
87. 3:24herself, determined to try again. Now
88. 3:27that same daughter was asking whether
89. 3:29anyone could detect what they were
90. 3:30planning to do to me.
91. 3:32Daniel gave me the footage and his
92. 3:33written account. "You need to call the
93. 3:35police." he said. "I will, but first I
94. 3:38need to know how far this has gone." I
95. 3:41didn't want to warn them before I
96. 3:42understood what they had already done. I
97. 3:44called Frank. "I need you to take my car
98. 3:46to Ray Kowalski. Don't tell Eric, and
99. 3:49please do it before Friday." Frank was
100. 3:51quiet. "Bobby, what's going on?" "I'll
101. 3:54explain after." He didn't push.
102. 3:56Wednesday morning, Frank collected my
103. 3:58car. That evening, Megan called. "Dad,
104. 4:02Lilly has art class Saturday. Could you
105. 4:05drive her? Eric and I have a conflict.
106. 4:07Maybe. My car's in the shop. She paused.
107. 4:11Which shop? The one Frank recommended.
108. 4:14Another paused. Okay. Just let me know.
109. 4:17Something about her voice bothered me.
110. 4:19Friday afternoon, Frank called. Bobby,
111. 4:23come to Ray's shop right now. When I
112. 4:25arrived, my car was raised on a lift.
113. 4:28Ray pointed toward the rear brake line.
114. 4:30This damage wasn't caused by age or road
115. 4:33debris. He showed me a deliberately
116. 4:35weakened section. Someone did this with
117. 4:37a tool. The line could fail under
118. 4:39sustained braking pressure. I understood
119. 4:41enough about hydraulic systems to know
120. 4:43what he meant. At highway speed? I
121. 4:46asked. Ray nodded. This was not an
122. 4:48accident. I stared at the damaged line.
123. 4:51Then I remembered Megan asking me to
124. 4:53drive Lily on Saturday. The route to her
125. 4:55art class passed the interstate. I asked
126. 4:57Ray for a full written report and left
127. 5:00the car with him. While I was still
128. 5:02standing in the garage, Megan called.
129. 5:04Dad, did you hear back about the car?
130. 5:07Not yet, sweetheart. I kept my voice
131. 5:09normal. Love you, Maggie. Love you, too,
132. 5:12Dad. After hanging up, I stood beside
133. 5:15the lift staring at the damaged brake
134. 5:17line. I had never felt further away from
135. 5:19my daughter. My attorney, Laura Bennett,
136. 5:22reviewed everything. Daniel's video,
137. 5:24Ray's report, my call records, and the
138. 5:27notes I'd started keeping. She told me
139. 5:29the evidence was serious, but the case
140. 5:31needed to be handled carefully. She
141. 5:34introduced Detective Sharon Mills, who
142. 5:36specialized in financial crimes and
143. 5:38elder abuse. We changed my garage locks,
144. 5:41installed independent cameras, and
145. 5:43preserved every message. Eric noticed
146. 5:45almost immediately. He appeared at my
147. 5:47house Sunday afternoon claiming he
148. 5:49wanted to check a door seal. I tried the
149. 5:52garage, he said. Did you change the
150. 5:54locks? New house, fresh start. His smile
151. 5:57stayed in place, but his eyes changed.
152. 6:00Then he asked about my car. After he
153. 6:02left, one of my new cameras recorded him
154. 6:05speaking on the phone outside. The locks
155. 6:07have been changed and the car's still at
156. 6:09the shop, Megan answered. Eric, we have
157. 6:1310 days. The bank called. I know. What
158. 6:16do we do? His voice went flat. We
159. 6:19changed the plan. I saved the recording.
160. 6:22Two days later, Megan brought Carol's
161. 6:24pot roast. She'd learned the recipe from
162. 6:26her mother. The smell nearly broke me.
163. 6:29She asked whether I was sleeping enough,
164. 6:31whether I was driving alone, whether I
165. 6:33needed more help. Eric moved through the
166. 6:35house looking at everything. They stayed
167. 6:382 hours. After they left, I took Carol's
168. 6:41old letter from my desk. She'd written
169. 6:43it shortly before she died, addressed to
170. 6:45Megan. There was one passage I couldn't
171. 6:48stop reading. Your father needs someone
172. 6:50in his corner the way I've always been
173. 6:52in his corner. That's your job now. Take
174. 6:54care of him the way he took care of both
175. 6:56of us. I folded the letter. Then Daniel
176. 6:59called again. Mr. Hayes, the camera
177. 7:02recorded another conversation. This
178. 7:04time, Megan and Eric were arguing. You
179. 7:07told me it would be small, she cried.
180. 7:09Just a minor accident. You said he
181. 7:11wouldn't be seriously hurt. Eric
182. 7:13answered without hesitation. I told you
183. 7:16what you needed to hear. Then Megan said
184. 7:18a name I'd never heard before. Like
185. 7:20Marcus, you said it would only scare him
186. 7:22and he spent 11 days in the hospital. I
187. 7:25stopped the video. Marcus, 11 days. When
188. 7:28I pressed play again, Eric said
189. 7:30something that made my stomach turn.
190. 7:32Marcus walked out. Your father won't be
191. 7:34that lucky. The next morning, Laura
192. 7:37called. Marcus Webb had been Eric's
193. 7:39business partner. His car had crashed on
194. 7:42an icy highway leaving him hospitalized
195. 7:44with broken ribs and a fractured
196. 7:46sternum. Police had classified it as
197. 7:48weather related, but Eric had taken out
198. 7:51a $400,000 life insurance policy on
199. 7:53Marcus. Marcus survived, so the policy
200. 7:57never paid out. Detective Mills was now
201. 7:59looking into that accident, too. Megan
202. 8:02had known about Marcus and she'd still
203. 8:04given Eric my house key. Thursday
204. 8:06morning, I was making coffee when I saw
205. 8:09Lily's little wooden chair near the back
206. 8:10window. Suddenly, I remembered the
207. 8:13timing.
208. 8:14Frank had collected my car Wednesday
209. 8:16morning. Megan had asked me to drive
210. 8:18Lily Wednesday evening. If Frank had
211. 8:20waited one more day, my car would have
212. 8:23been sitting in the driveway. I would
213. 8:25have agreed. And Saturday morning, my
214. 8:277-year-old granddaughter would have been
215. 8:29in the backseat. I made it outside
216. 8:32before my legs gave way. I sat beside
217. 8:35Lily's chair and cried. For 17 days, I'd
218. 8:38been thinking about what they wanted to
219. 8:40do to me. I hadn't fully understood what
220. 8:42could have happened to her. When I
221. 8:44finally stood up, I knew I couldn't wait
222. 8:46any longer. Laura called shortly
223. 8:48afterward. Sharon and I reviewed
224. 8:50everything. We have what we need. We
225. 8:53agreed on Sunday. That afternoon, I
226. 8:56called Megan. I've been thinking about
227. 8:58your financial situation. There's some
228. 9:00money from a piece of land I sold. Maybe
229. 9:02I can help. Her breathing changed. Dad,
230. 9:06you don't have to. I know. Come for
231. 9:08dinner Sunday. Bring Eric. She agreed
232. 9:11immediately. By Saturday, everything was
233. 9:13arranged. Frank knew the plan. Daniel
234. 9:16had backed up the recordings. Ray had
235. 9:19prepared his report. Laura had organized
236. 9:21the evidence, and Detective Mills would
237. 9:23be nearby. I set the dining table with
238. 9:26Carol's good plates and brass candle
239. 9:28holders. I wanted it to look like a
240. 9:30family celebration. Sunday evening,
241. 9:32Megan and Eric arrived 7 minutes early.
242. 9:35They brought pot roast and wine. Lily
243. 9:38was spending the night with the
244. 9:39Hendersons next door. We ate dinner like
245. 9:41an ordinary family.
246. 9:43Eric talked about renovations. Megan
247. 9:46asked about the garden.
248. 9:47I answered calmly, though my hand was
249. 9:49shaking beneath the table. When dinner
250. 9:52was finished, Eric opened his leather
251. 9:54portfolio.
252. 9:55"We put together a repayment structure,"
253. 9:57he said.
254. 9:58He slid a folder toward me. $750,000.
255. 10:02Nearly everything I had left. He
256. 10:04explained how they'd repay it over 4
257. 10:06years. I listened. Then I asked, "What
258. 10:09happens if don't help?" Eric leaned
259. 10:11forward. "Dad, you wouldn't want to
260. 10:13watch Megan lose everything." "That's
261. 10:16not what I asked." I looked at Megan.
262. 10:19"What happens if I don't help?" "The way
263. 10:21I didn't understand what happened to my
264. 10:22car." Her face went white. Eric's hand
265. 10:25flattened against the table. Then the
266. 10:27doorbell rang. I stood and opened the
267. 10:30door. Laura was there with Daniel, Ray,
268. 10:33and Detective Mills. "Please come in." I
269. 10:35said. Eric stood when they entered.
270. 10:38"What is this?" I returned to my chair.
271. 10:41"People I asked to come."
272. 10:42Sharon introduced herself and explained
273. 10:45that Eric was the subject of an active
274. 10:47criminal investigation. Then Laura
275. 10:49opened her laptop. Eric's voice filled
276. 10:51the dining room. "The car is old. People
277. 10:54don't maintain vehicles properly at his
278. 10:56age." Megan covered her mouth. Laura
279. 10:59presented Ray's report, the financial
280. 11:01records, and the information about
281. 11:03Marcus Webb. Sharon confirmed she'd
282. 11:05spoken with Marcus, who had agreed to
283. 11:07provide a statement. Eric tried to
284. 11:09dismiss the evidence. "A damaged brake
285. 11:12line doesn't prove who did it." "No."
286. 11:14Laura said. "Not by itself." Then Megan
287. 11:17broke. "You told me Dad would only get a
288. 11:19little hurt." She cried. "You said we'd
289. 11:21get the insurance money and nobody would
290. 11:23look twice." Eric turned on her. "You
291. 11:26agreed. You gave me the key. You
292. 11:28arranged Lily's art class." Megan was
293. 11:30sobbing now. "You lied to me about
294. 11:32Marcus and you lied about this."
295. 11:35Then she looked at me. "Dad, I'm so
296. 11:37sorry." I wanted to say a hundred
297. 11:40things. Instead, I said the only thing I
298. 11:42knew was true. "I know you are, Maggie."
299. 11:45Detective Mills asked Eric to accompany
300. 11:47her to the station to provide a formal
301. 11:49statement. She made clear he was not
302. 11:52under arrest at that time and
303. 11:53recommended he speak to an attorney.
304. 11:56He looked at me once, then he walked
305. 11:58out. Megan stayed behind. "I kept
306. 12:00telling myself there was a line I
307. 12:02wouldn't cross." She whispered. "And
308. 12:04every time I reached it, I moved it."
309. 12:06She wiped her face. "I moved it all the
310. 12:09way to you, Dad." I looked at her for a
311. 12:11long time. "Go home, Maggie. Get some
312. 12:14sleep. The rest of this keeps. She left
313. 12:16quietly. I didn't feel victorious. I
314. 12:19stood in the dining room looking at the
315. 12:21folder Eric had brought. $750,000
316. 12:25of my life reduced to 30 pages. Then I
317. 12:28went to my desk and read Carol's letter
318. 12:30again. That's your job now. My phone
319. 12:33rang, an unknown number. Grandpa, it was
320. 12:36Lily calling from Mrs. Henderson's
321. 12:39phone. I had a bad dream. I wanted to
322. 12:41make sure you're okay. My throat
323. 12:44tightened. I'm okay, sweetheart. Are you
324. 12:46really okay? I really am. She was quiet
325. 12:49for a moment. Then she asked, "When can
326. 12:52I come plant strawberries?" I looked
327. 12:54toward the backyard. Whenever you want.
328. 12:57I decided they should go on the left
329. 12:58side. I laughed. For the first time in
330. 13:01weeks, it came naturally. Left side it
331. 13:04is. The next morning, Daniel came to
332. 13:06remove the old camera from the shed. He
333. 13:09placed it in my hand. If I'd remembered
334. 13:11to disconnect this, you never would have
335. 13:13known. I looked at him, but you found
336. 13:16it, and you made the call. After he
337. 13:18left, I checked the mailbox. There was a
338. 13:20letter from Megan. She wrote about the
339. 13:22debt, the failed business, and the
340. 13:24terrible decisions she'd kept justifying
341. 13:27until she couldn't deny what they had
342. 13:28become. I folded it and put it in my
343. 13:31pocket. I wasn't ready to answer.
344. 13:33Instead, I went into the backyard. I
345. 13:36took out the garden tools I'd bought
346. 13:38when I first moved in and began turning
347. 13:40the soil. I planted six tomato seedlings
348. 13:43along the eastern fence where Carol
349. 13:45always said they'd get the best
350. 13:47sunlight. The strawberries would go on
351. 13:49the left, exactly where Lily wanted
352. 13:51them. I had spent most of my life
353. 13:53believing that loving someone meant
354. 13:55trusting them completely. I don't
355. 13:57believe that anymore. Love doesn't
356. 13:59require you to stop paying attention,
357. 14:01and protecting your family doesn't
358. 14:03always mean protecting them from the
359. 14:04consequences of what they've done.
360. 14:06Sometimes it means protecting the people
361. 14:08who still need you. I still had my home.
362. 14:11I still had my granddaughter, and I
363. 14:13still had a garden waiting to grow.
364. 14:15That morning, with my hands in the soil,
365. 14:18I realized something. I hadn't gotten
366. 14:20everything back. I never would. But I
367. 14:23was still here. And for the first time
368. 14:25since moving into that house, that felt
369. 14:27like enough.