My 5-Year-Old Niece Whispered, “The Chair Hurts Me”—Then She Showed Me What She Had Hidden Underneath

Maybe I was projecting.

That frightened me.

Investigative journalists are trained to distrust patterns we desperately want to see.

So I did nothing.

For ten minutes.

Then I went into the kitchen for water.

Tiny footsteps followed.

“Uncle Andrew?”