Zaden looked straight at the judge, his voice quiet but clear. “May I play the recording from last night?”

Every single person in the courtroom froze. Even Damian turned to look at him.

The judge leaned forward slightly. “A recording?”

Zaden nodded. “Yes, sir. From my dad. Last night.” He added, “I didn’t know what to do. I just recorded it so someone would believe me.”

And in that moment, I knew. I knew something had happened, something I hadn’t seen, hadn’t been able to protect him from. And my son, my 8-year-old boy, had figured out how to protect himself.

The judge looked at Damian, then at me, then back to Zaden. “You’re sure you want to share this with the court?”