She’d left a two-year-old with an eight-year-old and a swimming pool. And walked away.
The police opened an investigation that night. She was charged with child neglect and child endangerment.
The doorbell videos were the evidence. Ninety-one days in a row of her walking out at 9:05 a.m.
The judge gave me emergency custody that week. Then full custody in the spring.
I switched to the day shift. My mother moved in with us for a few months. I put a fence and an alarm around the pool.
Hattie went back to school. The school counselor started meeting with her every week. Her grades came back up. Her teacher sent me an email that said, “She’s laughing again.”
At the end of the school year, the fire department gave Hattie a junior lifesaving award. She stood on a stage in her best dress while they read the citation out loud.
