The room changes. Conversations fade. Even the air feels heavier.
Ximena shifts in her seat.
You kneel beside her. “Did he speak to your mom tonight?”
She nods.
“Did he scare her?”
Another nod, smaller this time.
Esteban cuts in, trying to regain control. “This is inappropriate. That child shouldn’t be here. Her mother broke policy bringing her.”
There it is.
Not concern. Not urgency. Just rules used as a shield.
Then Ximena speaks.
“He said if my mom caused trouble, she wouldn’t work here anymore.”
Every eye turns to Esteban.
He recovers quickly. “Children misunderstand.”
