Chapter 8 - Elsie With the Yellow Coat
Elsie was eight and had appeared in Harbor House campaigns all spring. The charity claimed to help children who needed safe housing after family crises. I had donated to it because Sloane told me the stories were real.
Malcolm called the charity office, asking only whether Elsie's family was safe. The receptionist refused to discuss children, which was appropriate. Celia Grant, however, called him back furious.
"Your wife has been humiliated enough," she said. "Please don't drag a former program participant into your divorce."
"We're not getting divorced," Malcolm answered. The silence that followed told him he might have been the last person to know what Sloane was planning.
An hour later, a lawyer delivered a letter to his office. It accused him of creating an unsafe home environment and demanded that Maya be returned to Sloane's exclusive care pending a family-court review. It also described me as a dependent adult whose judgment had declined. The lawyer had not seen my medical records.
"Can she do that?" Malcolm asked our family's attorney, Andrea Bell.
"She can ask the court," Andrea said. "That doesn't mean she gets what she asks for. We need your evidence, your mother's records, and careful attention to Maya's safety. No social-media war."
Andrea arranged temporary safety plans while the investigation moved forward. She warned Malcolm not to contact Elsie or other children directly. That could scare families and compromise professional interviews.
I thought the picture was a detour until Denise showed us another. This one came from a fundraising dinner. Elsie was smiling at a microphone while Sloane stood behind her, one hand pressing against the girl's shoulder.
On the back of the printed photograph Denise had written a date. Under it, in tiny letters, she had added: ELSIE ASKED TO GO HOME.
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When Malcolm called Denise to ask what she meant, someone else answered her phone.
"She's not available," a man said. "And if I were you, I'd stop looking for her."
