He Let Our Daughter Die for Twenty-Three Dollars novel · Chapter 7 of 24

Chapter 7: Carol's Hats

Carol came into the parent room with her purse in front of her and her eyes red.

Colter stood up from the couch.

"I'll get coffee," he said, and he left without looking at either of us.

Carol watched him go.

Then she sat down beside me and took both my hands in hers.

"Oh, sweetheart," she said. "Oh, my girl."

Her hands were warm and dry, the same hands that had braided my hair when I was twelve.

"Dennis is in the car," she said. "He couldn't come in. He couldn't stand to see her in that box."

"Is Brooke with him?"

"Brooke is at home with the baby. She's sick about it. She didn't know, honey."

"She put cereal in a bottle for a baby who was born six weeks early."

"She's a mother, Annabel. Mothers do it all the time. In our day, we all did."

I looked at her.

"In your day, I wasn't born yet," I said. "I'm the one who has to live with what the doctor said."

Carol pressed her lips together and nodded.

"You're right. Of course you're right."

She dug in her purse and pulled out a bag.

It was full of tiny knitted hats, in white and yellow and gray.

"I made these in the spring. I didn't know which color you'd want."

I held one up.

It was so small it fit on my fist.

My eyes stung, and I hated her a little for it, because it still worked.

"Thank you," I said.

"You know I love that baby like she's mine." She stroked the back of my hand. "That's why I'm here. Sweetheart, what you did in the waiting room."

"I told the truth."

"I know. I know you did. But Brooke's phone, in front of thousands of people." She dabbed her eyes with a tissue. "Dennis's fund has donors. If they think the Hanleys hurt a baby, we'll lose them. Those are foster kids, Annabel. Kids like you were."

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