Denise raised an eyebrow. “Today I can.”
For the first time in nearly twenty-four hours, Gabriela almost cried.
Instead, she whispered, “Thank you.”
When she picked Willow up from kindergarten, the little girl was waiting at the classroom door with her backpack clutched to her chest.
Her teacher, Ms. Ellis, leaned close to Gabriela. “She was quiet today.”
Gabriela swallowed. “Yesterday was hard.”
Ms. Ellis glanced at Willow, then back at Gabriela. “Let me know if there’s anything we should be aware of.”
Gabriela almost said no.
Years of family conditioning rose automatically inside her. Don’t tell outsiders. Don’t make things look bad. Don’t embarrass the family.
Then she remembered Ronald’s face in the store.
Your daughter is a mistake.
Gabriela looked at Ms. Ellis and said, “My parents are not allowed to pick her up. Neither is my sister. No one except me.”
Ms. Ellis’s expression sharpened immediately. “I’ll update the file right now.”
“Thank you.”
As they walked home, Willow held Gabriela’s hand with both of hers.
“Mommy,” she said after two blocks.
“Yes?”
“Did my doll go to Piper’s house?”
Gabriela’s throat tightened. “Probably.”
Willow nodded solemnly.
Then she said, “I hope she brushes her hair.”
Gabriela stopped walking.
Willow looked up, confused.
And Gabriela knelt right there on the sidewalk and hugged her daughter so tightly the backpack squeaked between them.
That evening, they ate tomato soup and toast at the wobbly kitchen table. Gabriela had just convinced Willow to take three more bites when someone knocked on the door.
Not a friendly knock.
Three hard strikes.
Gabriela froze.
Willow’s spoon hovered over her bowl.
Another knock came.
Then Vanessa’s voice.
“Open this door, Gabriela.”
Willow’s face went pale.
Gabriela stood slowly. “Go to your room, baby.”
“But—”
“Now.”
Willow slipped off the chair and hurried down the hall.
Gabriela walked to the door but did not open it.
“What do you want?” she asked.
“Do not speak to me through a door like I’m a stranger.”
Gabriela’s laugh came out flat. “You stole from me. You became a stranger yesterday.”
A pause.
Then Ronald’s voice, low and dangerous. “Open the door.”
Gabriela’s hand tightened around her phone. “I filed a police report.”
“You stupid girl,” Vanessa hissed. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done?”