Chapter 1Lioness

At one in the morning, I was jolted awake by a rapid-fire series of text notifications.

It was from the mother of a boy in my son’s kindergarten class.

She sent a photo of my son Leo’s arm. On it was a faint, shallow bite mark.

The text that followed read:

"Is this Leo's mom? Did my Dylan bite your son today?"

I figured she was texting to apologize, so I quickly replied that it was no big deal, that kids will be kids. I thought that would be the end of it.

Then she sent another picture: a receipt from an emergency dental clinic.

Confused, I was about to type a reply when my phone started ringing. It was her.

"Leo's mom," she said, her voice sharp. "My Dylan chipped his front tooth when he bit your son. What are you going to do about this?"

* * *

The words chased the last remnants of sleep from my brain. A sharp pain started throbbing in my temples.

Is this something a human being would actually say?

I thought I must have misheard her. I pressed my forehead and asked for clarification.

"Jessica, are you saying that your son bit my son, and because your son's tooth got chipped in the process, you want me to be responsible?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying."

Her voice on the other end was shrill and laced with an incredible, unearned arrogance.

"What else would I mean? If your son's arm wasn't so tough, would my Dylan's tooth have chipped? What kind of parents are you, anyway? Raising him to have skin like armor. What are you feeding him, gravel?"

She was on a roll now. "Talking to people like you is a waste of time. I guess it’s true what they say, people with nothing going for them just pop out kids and don't even teach them basic manners."

I was so angry I started to laugh.

"Jessica, if you’re sick, go see a doctor. Don't call me in the middle of the night to have a psychotic episode. My son was the one who got bitten. We weren't going to make a big deal out of it, but now you're coming after me?"

She cut me off with a shriek. "Oh, so now you're getting an attitude? You pathetic little nobody."

"Let me tell you, this isn't over! Your son is responsible for my son's chipped tooth and the severe emotional distress this has caused him. Tomorrow, I want you and your son on your knees, begging for forgiveness. Then we can put this behind us."

"Otherwise, I'll be at that school every single day, making such a scene that your son will be forced to leave!"

On our knees? She really thought she was somebody.

I don't respond well to threats. Wasting another word on a woman like this was pointless.

"Your son bites people because you don't have him on a leash. That has nothing to do with my son. Maybe you should spend less time harassing me and more time taking him to a vet."

I hung up and blocked her number.

The rest of the night was sleepless. Having Leo in the same class as a kid like that was a ticking time bomb. I decided I would find a new school for him.

The next morning, I brought up the idea of transferring. Leo's little lip quivered, his eyes instantly welling up with tears.

"But Mommy, I don't want to change schools. Today is rehearsal for the class play! Me and Sophie are supposed to recite a poem together."

Seeing his heartbroken face, my resolve melted.

Fine. One more day. What could happen? That woman, Jessica, was probably all bark and no bite. The school has teachers, security cameras everywhere. What could she possibly do?

With that thought, my anxiety subsided.

"Leo, if anyone, and I mean anyone, bothers you at school today, you call me immediately. Do you understand?"

"Okay, Mommy! I'm going now!"

Just in case, I sent a long text to his teacher, Ms. Davis, asking her to please keep an extra eye on Leo.

With everything seemingly in order, I drove to work. My firm had just landed a major development project downtown, and I was buried in work. It wasn't until two in the afternoon that I finally had a second to grab a drink of water.

I opened my phone and habitually checked my texts with Ms. Davis. The last message was still the long one I had sent that morning. Usually, no matter how busy she was, she'd reply with a quick "Got it." Today, there was nothing.

The knot of anxiety I’d felt earlier returned, tighter than before.

I called her cell. It went straight to a cold, robotic voice: "The number you have dialed has been turned off."

My heart sank.

I tried calling Leo's smartwatch. The result made my blood run cold.

"We're sorry, the number you are calling is currently unavailable."