She walked straight to the advocate’s table, her small brown shoes quiet on the linoleum.

Mrs.

Gable pulled out a wooden chair, but Sophie stayed standing beside the low railing.

She reached into the back of her stuffed rabbit, undid the little Velcro strip near its tail, and took out the purple toy phone recorder.

The plastic gadget lay flat in her palm, its red side button showing under the bright courtroom lights.

“Your Honor, Mom doesn’t know I have this inside my bunny,” Sophie said, her soft voice carrying across the quiet room.

Judge Whitmore slid her reading glasses down her nose and leaned forward over the bench.