Chapter 2 - THE ER
"What is that supposed to mean?" I asked.
Dad's jaw tightened. "It means you embarrassed your sister in her own family home."
James turned slowly. "She hit a baby."
"And you threatened her."
"I counted."
"You threatened to drag her outside."
"After she hit my daughter."
Mom stood and started gathering plates with trembling hands. "Please. It's Christmas."
Emma's scream had softened into hiccupping sobs. I pulled her away from my chest and saw a faint pink mark near her left cheekbone.
My stomach dropped.
"We're leaving," I said.
Mom reached for me. "Sarah, don't make this bigger than it is."
James stepped between us. "It's already exactly as big as it is."
Twenty minutes later we were driving through freezing rain toward St. Catherine's Emergency Department. I sat in the back seat beside Emma, watching every breath she took.
"She seems sleepy," I whispered.
"It's past her bedtime," James said, but his hands were locked around the steering wheel.
At the hospital, the triage nurse took one look at Emma's face and asked, "How did this happen?"
I tried to answer.
Nothing came out.
James did it for me.
"Her aunt slapped her."
The nurse's expression went flat and professional.
Within ten minutes, we had a pediatrician, a social worker and a police officer standing outside our curtain.
The doctor examined Emma carefully. No fracture. No swelling around the eye. No neurological signs. She would likely be fine.
I should have felt relief.
Instead, I started shaking.
The social worker sat beside me. "Mrs. Walker, I need you to understand that because the victim is an infant, we are required to report this."
"Good," James said.
My phone vibrated.
Lauren.
I ignored it.
It vibrated again.
Then again.
Finally a text appeared on the screen.
YOU JUST DESTROYED THIS FAMILY.
May you like
A second message followed before I could breathe.
AND IF YOU TALK TO THE POLICE, I'LL DESTROY YOUR HUSBAND TOO.
