WHEN I WAS 14, I SPENT THE NIGHT AT MY FRIEND’S HOUSE—AND DISCOVERED HER FATHER’S DARK SECRET
When I was 14, I stayed at my friend Sorrel’s house and noticed a hidden camera in her room. Alarmed, I covered it, but her dad, Gideon, stormed in, claiming it was a fire alarm camera. His reaction felt off, and I couldn’t shake the unease. The next morning, Sorrel’s mom acted normal, but something seemed wrong. I told my cousin Orin, who confronted Gideon. Gideon dismissed it as a security camera, but Orin was suspicious. I avoided Sorrel, feeling guilty, until she showed up crying, saying her dad monitored her constantly. Orin had me hide a recorder in Sorrel’s backpack, capturing Gideon’s abusive rants. We went to the police, but Gideon fled with Sorrel before
they could act. Eventually, police found Sorrel in an abandoned motel; Gideon was arrested. Later, I learned he’d been secretly filming Sorrel’s friends, including me, for years. At trial, Gideon got 25 years, and Sorrel’s mom, complicit, also faced charges. Sorrel and I leaned on each other, healing through friendship and therapy. We studied psychology, spoke at a safety conference, and turned our trauma into purpose, learning to trust our instincts and help others.
