Free Emergence by Denise Grover Swank Page B

was another incident with Jake and another child today. This one was quite serious.”
    Emma crossed her legs and rested her hands on her knees. “And?”
    “Ms. Thompson, I’m not sure you’re taking this seriously.”
    “Perhaps I would if I knew what this was about.”
    The woman cleared her throat and glared. “Jake told a girl in his class that she was going to fall off the slide and break her arm.”
    “Jake has always had a very active imagination.”
    “The girl fell off the picnic table two hours later and broke her arm.”
    Emma’s chest tightened. “Small children are often accident-prone.”
    “Most children don’t predict their accidents.”
    Emma narrowed her eyes and pulled out her coldest tone. “What are you suggesting?”
    “This isn’t the first time Jake has warned a child of an impending accident.”
    “As I said, small children are prone to accidents.”
    “Yet Jake knows exactly what is going to happen to them before it happens.”
    Shifting in her seat, Emma rolled her eyes. “Mrs. Williams, I don’t have time to sit here and beat around the bush. You called me here from work. Surely you have something else to say.”
    “We believe Jake has psychological issues that need to be addressed.”
    “ Excuse me ?”
    “We believe Jake is intentionally hurting his classmates.”
    Anger flooded Emma’s head and she fought to remain calm. Losing control was not an option. Ever. “I’m sorry, but I wasn’t aware Jake was anywhere near the little boy when he cut his head open last week. The incident report said that Jake was in the restroom when the boy fell.”
    “Well, yes…”
    Emma tilted her head, glaring at the woman. “I’m sorry, but I fail to see how my son could injure a child in another room.”
    For the first time, the director showed uncertainty. “We haven’t figured that part out—”
    “And who is we?”
    “The assistant director and myself. And one of the parents is a child psychologist.”
    “I’m sorry.” Emma fought to keep her voice from rising. “Are you telling me that you had someone examine my child without my permission?”
    The director’s eyes widened. “Oh, no! I assure you that’s not what happened.”
    “Then how could this parent know anything about my son?”
    “We…we discussed the issue with him.”
    “You discussed my son with another parent? Aren’t there confidentiality rules or laws you need to follow?”
    The woman’s face paled for several moments before her eyes hardened. “Ms. Thompson, you’re missing the point of this conversation. Your son is a very troubled child. Children are being harmed, and your son is telling them exactly what’s going to happen to them before it occurs. The child psychologist has never seen something like this in a child so young.” The woman paused then lifted her chin. “Ms. Thompson, has Jake suffered any kind of abuse? Physical or psychological?”
    Emma stood. “How dare you!”
    “I’m not insinuating it was you. It’s often an unsuspected family member. An uncle. A grandfather. A father…”
    “There is no father.” Emma fought to keep the bitterness from her words.
    “It’s not uncommon for abused children to manifest their anger on others.”
    “No one has abused my son! I’ve heard enough. Jake won’t be back.”
    “No. He won’t. He’s officially expelled from our school. I strongly suggest you seek help for your son, Ms. Thompson. In fact, Child Protective Services has been notified.”
    The blood rushed from her head and she stumbled on her heels. “ What ?”
    “We are bound by law to report suspected abuse cases.”
    “My son has not been abused!”
    “Then you have nothing to worry about, do you?”
    Emma threw the door open and picked up Jake and his backpack, stomping out of the building. Her shaky fingers fumbled with his car seat strap and he reached his hand to her cheek. “It’s going to be okay, Mommy.”
    Closing her eyes, she leaned her cheek into