Magic Hour: A Novel

At the police station, Ellie tells Julia that Alice’s real name is Brittany. Ellie explains that George had been accused of killing his wife and daughter, but the state recently released him from prison due to a lack of evidence in his case. Ellie leads Julia into her office to meet George. Julia tells him that she will not give Alice to him because he murdered his wife. George responds that he will fight for custody.

Afterward, Ellie gives Julia the documents on George’s case. On April 13, 2002, George reported his wife, Zoë, and his one-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Brittany, missing. A witness saw a man with a Batman baseball cap and a yellow raincoat in front of the house in a van. Later, the neighbors saw George leaving his house with a large bag. The Seattle Police Department investigated the disappearance and found blood in the Azelle house, indicating a struggle. As she reads over the police reports, she remembers the constant media surrounding the case, which insisted he murdered his wife and daughter even before the trial started.

Despite Ellie, Peanut, and Cal’s efforts to find evidence to prove that George would be a bad father, George’s record before the murder accusation is spotless.