Lottie actually smiled. Shy, but real, understanding she could eat the cupcake with no problems.
Abby and Clare raced for the balloons, giggling. And I let Lottie up to join in. Gideon just arched an eyebrow at me and shrugged, like, “What did you expect?” He pulled me aside after a minute. “You holding up?”
I grunted. “Better now. Heard anything?”
“Eric’s going to call us later, as soon as he knows.”
The presents were ridiculous. Stickers, coloring books, fuzzy blankets, onesies, even a box of sugar-free cookies. Abby handed her the coloring book first, all but bouncing up and down. Lottie stared at the cover, blinking. There were kittens all over it. Princess kittens. Her hands shook a little as she traced the raised letters. I saw the moment she realized it was all for her, just her, and I swear my chest nearly cracked open.
Abby opened to the first page. “It’s for you to do with us,” she whispered, like it was a secret. “I want to use the sparkly pens first.”
Clare grinned at her. “We can all share!”
Emily drew her in for a hug.
Lottie nodded, but there was awe in her face. She let them pull her over to the coffee table, and for the next ten minutes the girls colored, giggled, and stuck so many stickers to themselves and Mr. Snuggles I was pretty sure the bear would never recover.
I hovered in the doorway, keeping an eye on everything. Gideon and Maddox helped Vera set out food, which was a joke because Vera did not need help, but she let them anyway. There were balloons everywhere. Streamers hanging from the light. I didn’t know how they’d managed it in five minutes, but it looked like a party supply truck had exploded in my family room.
The best part was Lottie. She didn’t try to hide. She let them celebrate her. Every time she looked at the pile of gifts, her lips trembled, but she didn’t freak out. She just squeezed her stuffie and colored kittens with her friends. Every so often she’d glance at me but not like she was scared. Just checking I was still there.
I was. I always would be.
Gideon raised a glass. “To Lottie. Happy birthday.”
The whole room cheered. Abby and Clare whooped, and even Vera joined in. Lottie went scarlet, but she ducked her head and smiled, a soft and real one, and I knew it was the first time anyone had ever made this much fuss over her.
She opened the gifts slowly. Didn’t rip the paper, just peeled tape and folded it neatly. Each time she found something inside—a soft blanket, pastel scrunchies, a box of bright markers—it was like her whole system lit up like a Christmas tree. Once, she started to tear up, but Abby just hugged her and said, “It’s okay to cry if you’re happy.”
That nearly broke me.
I watched her, every second. She’d come so far. Even when the room got loud, she didn’t wilt. She just reached for another sticker and giggled when Vera stuck one to her forehead.
Time blurred. There was food, then cake. Vera led the singing, which was so off-key even I had to laugh. Lottie let them light the candle and she made a wish.
I caught her eye. I didn’t need to ask what she’d wished for.
The party lasted all afternoon. Abby and Clare played with the balloons. The girls colored pages for each other. Lottie didn’t speak much, but every time I checked, she was smiling. Everyone was having a good time. Maddox ate three cupcakes, and I might have been equally guilty.
After seeing the third yawn from the group, but knowing I needed an update from the team, I eyed them and said quietly. “How about a giant nap in here all together?”
Vera and Fiona had already left, but Fiona had watched earlier as I discreetly checked Lottie’s blood sugar and gave me a thumbs up. I’d been doing some research and there were monitors you could put painlessly under the skin to track blood sugar on an app so she didn’t have to go through this all the time.
The idea of a group nap was hugely popular so after a bathroom trip, we all made a cocoon of blankets and pillows and one by one all the girls fell asleep. I headed for the kitchen to put on more coffee. I’d seen Gideon take a couple of calls and knew he had information to share.
Gideon waited until I finished pouring the coffee. He didn’t need a lead-in. Just hit the facts point-blank.
“They got a statement from the guy who hit her. He rolled as soon as the cops told him he’s been fingered in another hit and run where the victim died. The cops have taken the death penalty off the table and he’s admitting everything.” Gideon looked me in the eye. “Says her uncle set it up. Paid him cash and gave him a photo. They’d been watching for the chance and when she moved out of the apartment the uncle panicked, which is the reason for all the recent phone calls.”
“We also have emails between the uncle—false name but the IP address wasn’t hidden—to our old pal Marco. All he had to do was keep an eye on her, send the uncle her work schedule. Marco got a little inventive.”
“But wasn’t he leaving it a little late?” Maddox asked.
“He had to wait it out for some time because he knew he’d be the first suspect, but my guess is he was hoping the mismanagement of her diabetes might solve the problem for him. The cops have a business link between a doctor that works at her practice before she started at the clinic and her uncle. He also has a nurse in his pocket from the clinic that seemed to make sure Lottie only got appointments when she was working and at their busiest times. When the clinic would have been a nightmare.”
I closed my eyes for a second. “She was set up to fail from the start.”
"It also explains why she never got any assistance. That same nurse had her fooled."
