“The chart was clear, James,” I said. “The lumbar puncture was delayed by twelve hours. The child had classic signs.”
“Charts are subject to interpretation,” James said. He checked his watch again. “But then, some people prefer to look for negligence where there is only unfortunate reality.”
Emily laughed from the edge of the circle, the sound high and thin.
“Let’s not talk about courtrooms,” Emily said. “We came here to be a family again. Let’s take a walk down to the water.”
The path to the Pine River was narrow, bordered by thick ferns that brushed against my jeans. Noah walked ahead, his small yellow sneakers bright against the dark earth. He was still clutching the plastic dinosaur, his thumb rubbing its plastic tail.
Emily walked beside him, her hand hovering just above his shoulder.
“The water is high today,” I said, watching the white spray rise where the current hit the granite boulders downstream. “The snowmelt from the ridge is still coming down.”
“It is perfectly safe near the shallows,” Emily said, her voice light.
She reached down and took Noah’s hand, pulling him slightly ahead of me.
“Let’s go see the big rocks, Noah,” Emily said.
I stepped forward to follow them, but a cold hand gripped my upper arm. Patricia’s fingers closed around my biceps with surprising force. Her grip was tight enough to pinch the skin through my shirt.
“Let them go,” Patricia said, her voice a low whisper near my ear.
“He is too close to the edge, Mother,” I said, trying to pull my arm away. “The current is running at several knots. A child his size has no ballast.”
“He needs to learn what the world is,” Patricia said. Her silver wedding band pressed into my flesh as she tightened her hold.
“Release my arm,” I said, using the precise, quiet tone I reserved for hysterical parents in the emergency room.
Patricia did not let go. She stared at the river, her eyes wide and fixed on the rushing water.
“If he drowns, that is his responsibility,” Patricia said.
She sneered, her lips curling back from her teeth.
“Children must learn the weight of their own choices,” Patricia said.
I pulled back hard, but the physical resistance of her body was a solid wall, blocking the narrow trail.
