“I realize this has upset you.”
“No. You clearly don’t understand.”
I paused at a traffic light.
“Your driver wouldn’t release my daughter. He left while she was crying.”
“Mr. Lawson had already contacted dispatch before arriving at your stop.”
That information only increased my frustration.
“Are you saying he planned it?”
“No, ma’am. That isn’t what I meant.”
“Then explain what actually happened.”
“I’ll share everything after we’ve verified the information. For now, Ellie is being returned to the school.”
I refused to wait for further details.
I disconnected the call.
By 3:42, I reached the school’s parking area.
I could scarcely recall switching off my car.
At the front office, the secretary was speaking on the telephone.
“I’m Ellie’s mother, Mrs. Carter. Where is my daughter?”
The secretary immediately got to her feet.
“She’s waiting in the conference room with our assistant principal.”
