I was grateful for the closed windows.

Piper had hidden her face inside my coat.

The dispatcher had asked me to stay connected and avoid a confrontation.

“An ambulance is coming,” I said through the cracked window.

Dolores stared at me.

Her expression changed when she noticed Piper’s small feet tucked beneath my jacket.

“You’ve misunderstood,” she said immediately.

“The child was playing.

She gets into things.”

“Then why did she say you put her there?”

Dolores stepped closer.

“Because she’s six.

She makes things up when she wants attention.

Whitney will explain.”