Page 71 of Velvet Chains

“Hi, Ms. Marquez, this is Nurse Feldman calling from Rosie’s school—”

Oh god.

“She’s okay,” the nurse added quickly, soothing and even. “She slipped during recess and bumped her head. No break, no real swelling. Just a scrape and a little bit of a scare. But per policy we ask a parent to come pick her up.”

My grip on the phone tightened. My chest seized. A flash of when she’d fallen came into my head, and I shut my eyes hard, trying to ignore it. “Her head?”

“Yeah,” Nurse Feldman said. “She’s fine. She’s been talking to me about her favorite princesses. I didn’t need to activate EMS or anything, but as you know…”

“Okay, yeah. I’m on my way.”

I hung up and immediately texted Morales to reschedule, then texted Julian—because it was technically his Friday and the school probably had called him too. Sure enough, three seconds later, he wrote back:

Already on my way. Meet you there?

I wrote:Yes.

And then, a beat later: Is she okay?

He replied:I spoke to her. She’s okay. She asked for you.

Of course she did.

I was already halfway down the hall.

The school smelled like hand sanitizer and graham crackers, a scent that made me think of nap time and nursery rhymes to this day. I signed in at the front desk, flashed my badge out of habit, and followed the hallway toward the nurse’s office, my heels clicking like a clock counting down.

Julian was already there when I arrived, more than ready to play the perfect dad at a moment’s notice. He looked like every parent wants to look when called to school—concerned, composed, just rumpled enough to seem sincere. He had taken off his coat and folded it over his arm. Rosie sat on the little cot next to the nurse’s desk, swinging her legs and holding a paper towel to her forehead like it was a war wound.

“Mami!” she said, perking up.

I crouched in front of her immediately. “Hey, baby. Are you okay?”

She nodded solemnly. “I slipped. But Nurse Feldman gave me a Powerpuff Girls bandage, so I’m mostly better now.”

Julian gave me a tight smile over her head. “Scrape and drama. Nothing major.”

“Good,” I said, brushing a stray curl from her cheek. “You scared me.”

“She was very brave,” the nurse said. “Just a little surface bump, no signs of concussion, but I still recommend keeping her home the rest of the day.”

“What happened?” I asked.

“I was playing with Oliver on the slide and I slipped,” she said. “I fell on the grass.”

“That’s why your face is covered in dirt?” Julian asked.

“Hey! I already washed it!” Rosie said, annoyed.

“Hm, you didn’t do a great job. I can see some under your nose. Can you see it?” I asked, playing along.

Rosie crossed her eyes, trying to look. It made everyone laugh.

“What does your afternoon look like?” Julian asked.

“Crazy. Yours?”

“Also crazy, but I’ll have a junior associate handle it,” he said. “I’m assuming you can’t wiggle out of your DA appointments.”