Chapter 1

I instinctively assumed that Claire was making this up, since it all sounded so absurd and unnecessary.

No decent person would ever say something so cruel to a fifteen-year-old. After comforting Claire, I called her homeroom teacher, Lydia Lawson.

I tried calling three times in a row, but every call went unanswered.

This clearly was not a minor issue, so I drove straight to the school and headed for Lydia’s office. Before I even reached the door, I heard her voice coming from inside, dripping with sarcasm.

“Ugh, having a difficult parent like this is impossible to deal with. They are always demanding special treatment. As I’ve said before, this is an advanced track class designed for top-performing students. If you’re not prepared for the pressure, you should leave early rather than waste good teachers’ time and take up limited places. But what do we get? They fight their way in, then take leave over every little thing, effectively challenging the teacher’s authority. You can’t deal with students and parents like these without giving them consequences.”

A female teacher beside her hesitantly asked, “Are you talking about Claire Stephens? I taught her math in seventh grade. She was a very good student, very diligent and hardworking. Maybe she really was unwell—”

Before she could finish, Lydia cut her off impatiently.

“Even if she were unwell, she should have pushed through it. Last month, a boy in my class broke his leg playing basketball. I only gave him one class period off. His dad ran three red lights and got into a car accident just to rush him back to school in a cast as quickly as possible. Now that’s what I call cooperating with education. Claire’s mom, however, simply talked nonsense and waved around doctors’ orders to intimidate me. My husband works as an ambulance driver at the hospital, and he’s seen all kinds of cases. Does she think I’m ignorant about how hospitals operate?”

She lowered her voice and gave a few suggestive chuckles, not caring that other teachers and students were still in the office.

“My husband told me that when girls this young claim they had appendicitis surgery, most of the time, it was actually an abortion. The procedure, cost, and even the recovery time are close enough that most people can’t tell the difference. Claire’s always been obsessed with her appearance, anyway. She constantly checks herself in a compact mirror. I bet she hooked up with some delinquent from outside school and that her mom is covering for her…”

At this point, I could no longer suppress my fury. I stormed into the office and slapped Lydia across the face.