Chapter 11 - The Woman at the Library
"She's tracking your phone," I told Dad.
He stared at the message. "We share locations. Patricia says it's for emergencies."
"Does every conversation that makes her uncomfortable count as one?"
He switched off location sharing while I watched. Then he called Brooks and asked to correct his signed account. His voice cracked when he described hearing Vanessa speak after the crash.
"I should've told you that the first day," he said to the detective.
"You can tell us now," she replied. "But we need the whole truth."
Mom appeared at the library before we finished. She must have left home as soon as Dad's location stopped updating. She carried her purse like a shield.
"Martin, we're going home," she announced.
"I need to talk to Rachel."
"You've talked enough. Do you have any idea what this will do to Vanessa?"
I stood. "Do you have any idea what it did to Emma?"
"I have worried about that child all week."
"You haven't asked her doctor one question."
She turned to Dad. "Tell your daughter to stop performing for strangers."
He didn't move.
"Patricia," he said, "I signed something I didn't see happen. I need to fix it."
Mom's face changed. For a second I saw fear beneath the anger.
"If you do," she whispered, "Rachel could lose Emma too. She left her unattended."
I took one step toward her. "You mean unattended with her grandmother, grandfather and aunt?"
Mom grabbed her purse tighter. "People see things differently when social services gets involved."
May you like
I had spent years hearing that kind of sentence as advice. Standing there, I finally recognized a threat.
That evening Denise called Tess. A report alleging I'd neglected Emma had been filed with child protective services.
