Officer Brandt read the screen twice, then slowly turned toward my father. “Mr. Delaney, this shows a deposit into your account, not a withdrawal. Two dollars, sent by your daughter.” The neighbors in their doorways had gone completely silent. My father’s jaw tightened. “She’s lying,” he snapped. “The memo is some kind of trick.” The officer looked down again and read it aloud in a flat voice: “Payment in full. For every empty pew.”

Then Michael stepped off the porch holding a thick folder. “Officer, there is more,” he said. “Forty minutes ago, Sophia’s executive officer called to say Mr. Delaney was seen at the base gate, and the base security report is already on its way here.” My father’s smirk vanished, and his hand began to shake. I leaned toward the camera and said, “Keep recording, because he has not told you what he wanted from me.”