thought covers my skin in goosebumps as I put the car into reverse. He backs away and gives me a wink and a wave, back to his old self. As I back out of the parking spot and pull away from the curb, the front door opens, and I see a familiar face in the rearview mirror.
He doesn’t wave.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
I know something is wrong when I walk into the school and Principal Harris and Evie are talking together amongst themselves. As soon as I spot Ainsley sitting in Harris’s office, my lips twitch with oncoming anger like the day I left. Once Evie looks up and sees me, she offers a small smile.
“What’s going on?” I demand, not even trying to be nice. I like Evie, she’s a good person and a great teacher. Without her, I wouldn’t have thought to take sign language or quit here and find something that makes me happier.
Its Principal Harris who speaks. “We’ve had some complications with some girls in class harassing Ainsley. Ms. Burke brought it to my attention and we’re handling it.”
I point to the room. “Care to explain why my kid is the one isolated then? Where are the girls responsible? What have they been saying?”
Evie reaches out and squeezes my hand in comfort, her typical default. “I promise that they’re being taken care of. Ainsley has been okay, we just wanted to speak with her.”
My teeth grind. “Aren’t girls supposed to wait to start being catty? Why the hell are they starting early?”
“Ms. Montgomery—”
I hold my finger out at Harris. “No. With all due respect, I don’t want to hear what you have to say. I want to know what they’ve been telling her. She hasn’t been herself lately and I haven’t been able to get anything out of her.”
To nobody’s surprise, Principal Harris arches her brows and crosses her arms over her chest. “That seems like a problem. Are there concerns at home we should know about? If she won’t talk to you, how is she going to communicate with anybody else?”
My lips part at her inquiry.
Evie turns to her boss. “I mean no disrespect, Angie, but that’s inappropriate.”
“No,” I tell Evie, not bothering to look away from the devil’s spawn standing in front of me. “You want to know what’s been going on at home, Angie? That beautiful, smart, kind-hearted little girl in there has been struggling. She has had more awful things happen to her in her lifetime than most people I know. She’s grieving her father, her voice, and her chance at normalcy. I bet that’s what the girls pick on her about, right? It’s because she’s different than them. They think because she doesn’t talk that she’s somehow beneath them. That kind of attitude will only get worse if you don’t stop it now.
“And before you say anything about how I must be an awful parent for not forcing her to talk, know this. Ainsley is just like her father. If she doesn’t want to talk, she won’t. If she doesn’t want to tell me what happened, she won’t. Instead, she’ll hold in everything that’s happened until she breaks. She’ll latch onto me and never let go until there are no more tears left to cry, and during that period you bet your ass that I wish I could hear her voice when I tell her that everything will be okay. That life won’t be this hard all the time. The worst part of this entire situation is that I can’t make a promise like that when all she’s known is grief.
“So, answer me this. Who the fuck do you think you are for judging me? Or for trying to dictate that precious girl’s life? You’re supposed to be a role model here, somebody who gives a shit. Be honest with yourself, Angie. You hate your job and you hate being around difficult situations. If I’m completely wrong, then prove it. Do something about the kids responsible for bullying my little girl before they get worse. Because, I assure you, they will.”
I turn on my heel and walk away from the gaping expression of the woman I’m proud I didn’t smack. No matter how tempting that is, it won’t do anybody any good. So, I walk into Harris’s office and kneel in front of Ainsley.
Her eyes are wide as she stares at me, then fill with tears as she launches herself into my arms. I breathe in the lavender of her shampoo and wrap my