I balk at the suggestion but realize that Jess might not be completely honest in front of me. He probably wants to gauge her genuine reactions on his own.

“I’ll go check on the baby.” The baby. The words send irrational chills down my spine. I want my baby. I step into the hallway but linger as Jake begins his questioning. I flatten myself against the wall and listen.

“So you know Bec pretty well?”

“As well as someone can know another person in less than a year, sure.”

“And you’ve spent a lot of time with Jackson?”

“I have.”

“Would you say you’d be able to recognize him just from sight alone?”

“I would.”

“Any distinguishing marks you can recall—birthmarks, scars, that sort of thing?”

Jess is silent for a moment. “I know he has eczema. And a little dent in his collarbone. At least she told me that. I’ve never felt it.”

My stomach tightens at the way she’s talking, like what I’ve told her might not be true.

“Can you take me through what happened today? You and Rebecca walked to the park together?”

“No, we didn’t walk to the park together, but I saw her once she arrived. All the moms had their strollers lined up behind this park bench—we do that sometimes, just so we can sit and chat. I made space for Jackson beside my son’s stroller—Baxter.”

“How many strollers were there?”

“I don’t know … five? Maybe six?”

“Did you get a good look at Jackson?”

“I peeked into his stroller to say hello, but we were already talking. I wasn’t paying close attention, if I’m being honest.”

“How did Rebecca seem? Normal? Tired? Off?”

“Nothing seemed off. She was tired but in a good mood.”

“Okay, then take me through what happened.”

“Well, we were all just talking for a while, and then Rebecca stood up too fast and fainted. It was pretty scary actually.”

“And you rushed to help?”

“We all did.”

“How many other mothers?”

“I don’t know … again, maybe five or six? I was just focused on helping. I told everyone to give her some room because they were all pushing in on her. Even I was getting claustrophobic.”

“During this time, was anyone watching the strollers? Did you notice any commotion going on behind the park bench? Anyone out of the ordinary?”

“I didn’t. I was one hundred percent focused on making sure Rebecca was okay. I didn’t even check my own son.” Jess takes a slurp of coffee. “But Elmhurst is safe. We all watch out for each other.”

“I understand.” Jake pauses, and I wonder if he’s taking notes. “So then what happened?”

“I helped her sit up and walk to the bench. She actually said she should check on Jackson, but I told her he was fine.”

“How did you know he was fine?”