The girl stared at her for a long time, as if assessing her trustworthiness. Finally, she spoke around her thumb. “Charlotte.”
“That’s a pretty name. I’m Delaney.”
“Hi.”
“You want a piggyback ride?”
She grinned, showing her baby teeth.
Delaney took that as a yes. She turned and crouched down enough that Charlotte could climb on.
Once she was on and steady, Delaney stood and walk-bounced toward the playground, eliciting giggles all the way.
When they arrived at the kids’ area, she looked around, again searching for someone who might’ve lost a child.
Nobody seemed alarmed.
She lowered herself, letting the child slide from her back to the ground. “Who are you here with?”
Charlotte shrugged, then lifted her arms in the universal sign forpick me up.
Delaney did and propped Charlotte on her hip. “Your mommy? Your daddy?”
No response.
“Your grandparents?”
The question only seemed to confuse her, as if she’d never heard of such a thing.
“A nanny?”
That brought a shrug, and the girl’s eyes scanned the people sitting on benches along the edges of the play area. They landed on an older woman who was absorbed in her phone, thumbs flying across the screen. The woman looked to be in her sixties with graying hair pulled back in a ponytail.
Delaney pointed. “Is that her?”
Charlotte nodded.
It worried her that the child wasn’t more vocal, but at the moment, she was mostly concerned about the woman who hadn’t looked up from her phone, hadn’t noticed that the girl she was supposed to protect had wandered dangerously close to traffic.
And had caught the eye of a stranger.
What kind of caregiver was so distracted that a preschooler could disappear without her knowledge?
Delaney marched toward the woman, Charlotte still balanced on her hip. The closer they got, the tighter the little girl held on. And the angrier Delaney became.
The woman glanced up as they approached, her eyes widening slightly. She shoved her phone into her purse and stood quickly.
“Charlotte! There you are, sweetie.” Her voice carried the artificial brightness of someone who’d been caught.
“I found her on the opposite side of the park,” Delaney said. “She was almost to the road.”
“Well.” The womantsked, shaking her head. “I was just wondering where you’d gone off to.” The lie rolled off her tongue naturally. “You were supposed to stay where I could see you. It was very naughty to wander off like that.”
“Don’t blame her for your negligence.” Delaney kept her voice low, not wanting to frighten Charlotte or attract attention. “Her safety is your responsibility.”
The woman’s face flushed bright red. She squared her shoulders. “How I care for my charge is none of your business.”
“The well-being of a child is everyone’s business.” Delaney usually avoided confrontation like a toddler avoided nap time, but some things were more important than her feelings. “She was following a cat toward traffic while you were on your phone. She could’ve been hit by a car.” The thought of the person who’d been watching Charlotte filled her stomach with acid. “She could’ve been snatched by a stranger while you checked your Instagram feed.”
