J.C. smiled. “As a matter of fact, it is.”
“Are you serious about her? Because she’s really cool. I wouldn’t want her to get hurt.”
“That seems to be the general consensus around town, that hurting Ms. Reed would be a really bad idea.”
She tilted her head, studying him. “So, do you think you’ll get married?”
J.C. knew he should be used to how precocious kids were these days, but it always surprised him when they failed to censor their curiosity. “I’m not sure that’s a subject I should be discussing with you,” he said, suddenly feeling incredibly awkward and old.
“Because I’m just a kid?”
“No, because it’s a topic that Ms. Reed and I should probably discuss before I talk about it with anyone else. And, before you get any ideas, that does not mean it’s something we’re discussing right away.”
“But you haven’t ruled it out or anything, have you?” she pressed determinedly. “Because, if you have, you should tell her. You know, so she won’t get her hopes up.”
J.C. chuckled at her persistence. At least she was smiling for a change, so he was grateful for that much.
“Why don’t we change the subject?” he suggested.
“And talk about what? Annabelle?”
“I was thinking more about how you’re feeling about school these days.”
“Scared,” she said without hesitation. “I know I’m supposed to feel good about all these people being on my side and stuff, but you don’t get what kids are like.”
“Actually I do, and not just because I’m a pediatrician, either.”
She regarded him skeptically. “All grown-ups claim they get it, but they don’t. Not really.”
“What if I told you that I have some firsthand experience with bullying?” he said. “Would you believe me then?”
“You were bullied? No way,” she said with unmistakable astonishment. “Why? Were you a geek or something?”
“It wasn’t me. It was my little brother. He had some problems, and the kids at school made his life pretty awful. They were mean right to his face whenever they got the chance.”
Her eyes widened at that. “But you stood up for him, right? I mean, that’s what brothers are supposed to do. Even my little brother, Jake, stood up for me. He got a black eye because of it,” she said, clearly proud of him.
“That is what brothers should do,” J.C. confirmed. “Not necessarily getting beat up, but taking a stance for someone who’s weaker.”
“I’m not weaker than Jake,” she said indignantly.
“True,” he said hurriedly. “But you were the one under attack from a bully.”
“What happened with your brother?” she asked, giving him her full attention and leaving untouched the milk shake that Grace had just served.
“It got worse once I wasn’t at the same school. We didn’t tell our folks, which I realize now we should have. If the teachers saw what was happening, they didn’t intervene the way Ms. Reed has.”
“He must have felt so alone,” Misty said sympathetically.
“He must have,” J.C. said, then shook off the memory of the rest. He couldn’t bring up the tragic ending. He just wanted Misty to see that she wasn’t alone. “I told you this so you’ll understand just how important it is to me and Ms. Reed and your parents to make sure that you’re safe and can go back to being a happy, carefree student again. Whatever it takes, we’re going to fix it. Can you try to trust us to protect you? You’re not in this on your own anymore, Misty.”
She continued to look skeptical. “I want to believe you. But even with all of you, you can’t be everywhere. And stuff gets posted online, no matter what.”
“I think that will stop once the other kids see how serious this is and what could happen to them,” he said. “It goes beyond whatever punishment happens at school. There are legal consequences, as well.”
She shrugged again. “I guess.”
“And we will be around, Misty. That’s a promise,” he said with feeling, even though he knew it probably sounded empty to her right now. “Now let’s head back over to the school and see what decisions have been made while we were over here playing hooky.”
He paid for their milk shakes and they walked back to the high school.
Just outside Betty Donovan’s office, Misty grinned at him. “Playing hooky with you is a lot more fun than hiding in the stairwell.”
“Well, the next time you feel you have absolutely no other choice but to skip class, give me a call. Not that I normally condone skipping, you understand.”
She grinned. “Yeah, I get it.”
“And if you can’t reach me, go straight to Ms. Reed.”
Her grin spread. “Do you think she’d play hooky with me?”
“I doubt that, but she will help. Believe that, okay?”
“Okay,” she said with slightly more confidence.
He hoped she believed him. He hoped she understood that no matter how desperate she got, he—and Laura—intended to be right there as backup for her. She wasn’t going to be alone in this ever again. Not the way his little brother had been. He’d let one child down. He wouldn’t do it again.
* * *
Not unexpectedly, the meeting with the Litchfields got out of hand very quickly, Laura thought as she sat to the side and listened. Annabelle stared straight ahead in sullen silence as Betty explained to her parents in cut-and-dried detail exactly what the school’s bullying policy was.
Mariah’s gaze narrowed at the recitation. “Why are you telling this to us?”
“Because you need to know that this is serious business. Bullying isn’t taken lightly.”
But before Betty could describe Annabelle’s recent behavior, Mariah whipped around and focused on Laura. “This is all because of you, isn’t it?” she said, fire in her eyes. “I heard all about the way you went after Annabelle at the fall festival. I have no idea why you have it in for my daughter, but you won’t get away with it. I’ll have you fired before the week’s out.”
Don Litchfield turned on his wife. “Maybe we should hear the rest of this before you go off on some crusade, Mariah. What’s Annabelle supposedly done, Betty?”
“Your daughter has an account on a social-networking site,” Betty began.
Don looked perplexed. “Big deal. All the kids do.”
Betty nodded. “But not all of them use those sites to start ugly rumors about their classmates and to post doctored photos of them posing with virtually no clothes on,” she stated, her words matter-of-fact and all the more chilling because
