Shortly after, Nick returned with an old cell phone.
"Luckily, it's still charged. I checked and found the video I took of Ivy."
Before Nick could continue, Elliot snatched the phone out of his hands.
Hayden leaned closer to Elliot, trying to get a glance at his sister.
Elliot opened the video and a chubby little girl appeared on the screen.
Ivy looked well-fed and happy in the video, and anyone would be able to tell how well she was treated. She laughed while shaking the toy in her hand. She was sitting on a carpet. She smiled at the camera, and her bright eyes blinded Hayden.
Elliot instantly burst into tears.
Nick had not expected Elliot to cry and immediately handed a box of tissue to Hayden, hinting for Hayden to hand it to Elliot.
"Don't cry." Hayden shoved the tissue paper in Elliot's hands. "Ivy might still be alive."
Elliot wiped his tears dry and said, "She's so adorable... She is so adorable... I shouldn't have been so mean to her."
"What are you talking about?" Hayden scowled. "She is adorable only because she's Mom's daughter." Hayden would not consider Ivy adorable if she was not his sister.
Elliot gripped the phone tightly and watched the video of his daughter. His heart twisted in pain from his soul-crushing guilt.
When they left Nick's house, Elliot took Nick's phone with him, and once they returned to the hotel, he went straight into his room, slamming the door shut behind him.
"What's wrong with your dad?" Mike asked. "He looks scary!"
"He saw a video of Ivy before the massacre."
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