Her voice rises. “Ifshe shoved a student? There arewitnesses.”
I’ll just bet there are. “Who did she shove? Who are the witnesses?”
She lifts her chin. “I’m not allowed to release the names of the other children involved. Confidentiality and all.”
What a farce. We both know Jane’s going to tell me as soon as I drag it out of her.
“I would like to see my daughter.”
“She’s in the nurse’s office.”
I move to the edge of the plastic seat. “Whyis my daughter in the nurse's office?”
“She had a bloody nose, but I’m sure she’s fine now.”
“A bloody nose?” Now it’s my turn to raise my voice. “How did my daughter get abloody nose?”
“We’re not entirely sure, but you’re straying off-topic, Mr. Garrison.”
“Oh, no,” I say, shaking my head. “It seems to me we are very muchontopic. You have no idea why my daughter allegedly pushed—”
“There is no allegedly!”
“—another student off a riser, and now you’re telling me she has a bloody nose? Did that happenbeforeorafterthe incident?”
“I haven’t interviewed all the students involved yet.”
“But you had no trouble calling me here to crucify my daughter,” I say, my voice tight.
“Crucify is a strong word, Mr. Garrison,” she says, clucking her tongue. She starts to say something but cuts herself off. Setting her clasped hands on her desk, she takes a deep breath, then finally says, “I feel it’s only fair to inform you that there have been inquiries.”
“What the—” I bite off thefuckI was about to say. “What does that mean?”
“Jane’s grandparents have requested to be notified when Jane has incidents at school.”
My blood runs cold. “And did you notify the Labelles aboutthisincident?”
“Of course not,” she says, but she doesn’t sound as indignant as when I’d asked for the names of the students involved in the riser incident. “I told them I cannot legally release information about a student without the express consent of the child’s parents.”
“I do not consent,” I say emphatically. “You are not to speak to those people about my daughter.” Millie’s parents are toxic with a capital T and an arsenic-laced X. She walked away from them for good when she was nineteen. The only reason I let the Labelles see Jane on a limited basis is because they’ve threatened to sue me for full custody if I don’t. “They are to come nowhere near Jane. Is that clear?”
Her gaze turns icy. “Crystal.”
My head is swimming with this new information. Millie’s parents are rich. Not as rich as my friend Rory Byrne, a multi-billionaire businessman who somehow escaped being an asshole, but they have the biggest house in Heber County. For a while, there were rumors that they were broke, but they seem to be dropping plenty of money lately. If they decide to seek custody of my daughter, something they’ve threatened, they definitely have better financial resources for a legal fight than I do.
Last summer, Rory got me consultations with several family attorneys. All three told me I would likely retain custody, but I might have to give the Labelles more visitation than they currently get. And while the judge might take Millie’s estrangement from them into consideration, the Labelles could hire a lawyer tricky enough to possibly convince the judge that they’ve changed, even if I know it’s bullshit. My stomach turns sour, and I feel like I’m going to throw up.
“Is that all, Mrs. Knucklehead?” Oh fuck.
Her eyes narrow into slits. “We haven’t discussed the matter of Jane’s punishment.”
“Until all of the students involved are questioned, there will be no punishment,” I state firmly.
“But—”
I stand. “I’m going to the nurse’s office. Contact me when you know the full story.” Then I turn on my heels and head out of the office into the outer waiting room.
One of the school secretaries shoots me a disapproving glare. My reputation as an incompetent father has been fully gelled with her, but the other, a much younger woman, bats her eyelashes. I’m fairly certain she’d love an opportunity at becoming my next wife, but she’ll bat all her eyelashes off before I marry again. A fling? Sure, a guy has needs. But no girlfriends. Definitely no wife. I have plenty to deal with, from the brewery to my wayward daughter and the ever-present threat from the Labelles. I don’t have the time or attention to give to a woman.
