Chương 13
“It means the emergency process has to account for both.”
“Can Gloria demand Lizzy back?”
“Not while the temporary hospital safety hold and protective assessment remain active.”
I exhaled.
“For today?”
“For now.”
There was that careful language again.
Carmen continued.
“We are preparing a request for emergency protective custody through the court.”
“Will there be a hearing?”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“Likely very soon.”
“How soon?”
“Possibly later today, depending on the judge’s calendar.”
I looked toward Lizzy’s room.
“She can stay here until then?”
“If she remains medically admitted.”
“And if she gets discharged first?”
“We would have a safety plan before she leaves.”
“Which could be us?”
“Yes.”
“Or Ian?”
“Not immediately.”
“Or my parents?”
She held my gaze.
“Based on what we know right now, returning her to the same home would raise serious safety concerns.”
It was the closest thing to certainty anyone had given me all night.
I nodded.
Carmen lowered her voice.
“There is something else you should know.”
I felt my body brace automatically.
“Your father turned over a notebook to police.”
“The one from the garage?”
“Yes.”
“You know about it already?”
“Officer Bennett contacted me.”
“What’s in it?”
“I have not seen the full contents.”
“But?”
“She said it appears to contain dates, behaviors, punishments, meals, and notes about Lizzy.”
My stomach turned.
“Notes?”
“Descriptions.”
“By Mom?”
“Some entries appear to be in your mother’s handwriting.”
I gripped the rail beside the nurses’ station.
“Why would she write it down?”
Carmen’s expression was tired.
“People document things for many reasons.”
“To prove she was right.”
Carmen did not answer.
I knew anyway.
Gloria loved records when records supported Gloria.
Lists on the refrigerator.
Calendars with everybody’s appointments.
Receipts filed by month.
When I was seventeen, she kept a notebook of the times I came home late, including seven minutes after curfew and once two minutes early because she claimed I had parked down the street first.
The idea of that habit turned toward Lizzy made me nauseous.
“Does the notebook say she locked her in the closet?”
“I don’t know yet.”
“If it does?”
“That becomes evidence.”
I swallowed.
“Can I see it?”
“Not right now.”
“Why not?”
“Because police have it.”
I hated the answer because it was sensible.
Carmen looked past me.
“Your husband is waving.”
I turned.
Adam stood in the doorway to Lizzy’s room.
She was awake.
I went in.
Lizzy had pushed herself upright.
Her hair was flattened on one side.
“Aunt Natalie?”
“I’m here.”
“Can I call Dad?”
The request surprised me.
“Yes.”
She looked nervous.
“Is he mad?”
“No.”
“Grandma says he gets mad when he can’t see me.”
I sat beside her.
“Your dad is worried about you.”
“Is he coming?”
“I don’t know.”
She looked at the blanket.
“He cries on the phone sometimes.”
I kept my voice gentle.
“Does that scare you?”
She shrugged.
“He says sorry a lot.”
That sounded so much like Ian that my chest ached.
“Do you want to talk to him now?”
She nodded.
I texted him first.
She’s awake and wants to call.
His reply came immediately.
Please.
I dialed.
When he answered, I put the phone on speaker and set it beside Lizzy.
“Hey, peanut.”
Ian’s voice changed completely.
Soft.
Careful.
Lizzy’s mouth trembled.
“Hi, Dad.”
“Hey.”
A pause.
“I heard you had kind of a bad night.”
Lizzy looked at me.
“Yeah.”
“I’m sorry I wasn’t there.”
She picked at the blanket.
“It’s okay.”
“No.”
He stopped himself.
Then tried again.
“I wish I had been.”
Lizzy whispered, “Grandpa gave me a phone.”
“I heard.”
“Grandma didn’t know.”
“I heard that too.”
“She was really mad.”
Ian went silent for half a beat.
“You don’t have to tell me anything you don’t want to.”
Lizzy looked at the phone.
“Are you coming home?”
The question hit him hard enough that I heard his breath catch.
“Not today.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m still working on getting better.”
She considered that.
“Are you sick?”
“A little.”
“What kind?”
Ian hesitated.
I did not help him.
He had to answer this himself.
“The kind where I have to learn how to take care of myself better so I can take care of you.”
Lizzy frowned.
“Grandma says you make bad choices.”
My jaw tightened.
Ian exhaled.
“Grandma’s right about some of them.”
I looked at the phone.
That was not the answer I expected.
“But I’m trying to make better ones now.”
Lizzy was quiet.
“Are you mad I called Aunt Natalie?”
“No.”
His voice broke.
“No, baby.”
He cleared his throat.
“I’m really glad you called her.”
“She broke Grandma’s window.”
Ian gave a shaky laugh.
“That sounds like Aunt Natalie.”
I rolled my eyes.
Lizzy smiled.
“She said a bad word once when Noah spilled juice.”
“That also sounds like Aunt Natalie.”
I whispered, “Traitor.”
Ian laughed softly.
For a few seconds, the room felt almost normal.
Then Lizzy asked, “Am I going back to Grandma’s?”
Ian stopped laughing.
I looked toward Carmen, who had stepped quietly into the doorway.
She shook her head slightly, warning me not to promise.
Ian said, “I don’t know where you’re going yet.”
Lizzy’s face fell.
“But I know there are grown-ups working on it.”
He paused.
“And I know Aunt Natalie is there.”
Lizzy looked at me.
“Are you staying?”
“Yes.”
This time I could promise that.
Ian said, “Good.”
His voice sounded far away.
“I need you to listen to her and the nurses, okay?”
“Okay.”
“And eat something.”
“I had crackers.”
“More than crackers.”
“I had juice.”
“That’s a beverage.”
Lizzy giggled.
He laughed too.
It was the first sound from him all morning that did not seem broken.
When the call ended, Lizzy hugged the phone to her chest for a moment before handing it back.
“Dad sounded better.”
“He did.”
“Can he live with us too?”
I froze.
Adam looked at the floor.
Carmen stepped forward.
May you like
“That’s something the adults will figure out later.”
Lizzy sighed.
