Izabel jumped a little at the sound of the doorbell. She stood next to the kitchen counter, her arms tense, while she told herself over and over that it was probably Andy. And it was.

Andy wiped off her shoes, left them at the door, and hung up her mask. “How was your day?” she asked Izabel.

“Good,” Izabel said. “Sorry about this morning.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Andy said.

“I can help with dinner tonight.”

“Only if you want to,” Andy said.

“Not really.” Izabel laughed.

Andy laughed, too.

The doorbell went off again. It was the girls. Izabel saw their outlines in the space between the sets of doors. She heard the air rush over them and then they ran in holding hands. Each of them went to hug their mothers. Izabel felt like she was in a sitcom. But then she noticed Cami was upset.

“Oh no. What is it?”

“I can’t tell you.”

“Why?”

Cami shook her head.

“You can tell me anything.”

Cami’s eyes welled with tears.

“Are you worried I’ll be mad?”

Cami nodded.

“I won’t be mad. I promise.”

Still Cami wouldn’t tell her.

“What if I got you some juice?”

“Okay,” Cami said.

Izabel lifted her up and put her in a chair at the table.

“I once did so badly on something at school and I was so upset,” Andy said. “I told my parents and it made me feel better.”

“Was it something like that?” Izabel said, handing her a juice.

“No,” Cami said. She drank the juice.

Izabel sat down next to her and squeezed her arm.

“I once hurt someone at school, when I was your age. A boy kept chasing me so I twisted his arm. I twisted it until he cried, and then I cried, too.”

Cami looked at Izabel like Izabel was a monster.

“Not something like that, huh?”

“No!” Cami said, like a fancy white woman going, I would never!

“You don’t have to tell me,” Izabel said, “but I want you to know you can tell me. No matter what it is.”

After Cami had a snack, Izabel asked her again.

“I used a pen,” Cami said, her face turning red.

“What?”

“I’m only supposed to use a pencil in class and I used a pen.” Little tears rolled down her little face.

“Oh, mi amorcito,” Izabel said. She pulled Cami into her stomach. All that torment over nothing. And Izabel, revealing herself, to everyone, to be a violent person.

    Chapter Sixteen

A few days later Paz called Izabel to tell her they could take the girl after the doctors cleared her. And Paz told her the girl’s name so Izabel could finally stop calling her the girl. Jana Harb.