(no subject)
Elizabeth insisted on picking out her clothes. She wanted to wear her favorite blue dress and a pair of little white sandals.
Alex quietly thanked the gods that her child knew how to match. She ran a hairbrush through the little girl’s hair before securing it up in a cute white bow.
She sank down on her knees and looked her daughter in the eyes. “I can’t believe how big you’re getting.” She murmured. “Are you ready to go to preschool?”
Elizabeth nodded.
“My good girl.” She leaned in and kissed her daughter on the forehead. “Come on.” She rose and extended a hand to her daughter. “Where’s your bookbag?”
Elizabeth pointed towards the couch.
“Ok. Go get it for me.”
Elizabeth ran to the couch and grabbed her bookbag. She handed it over to her mother. Alex laughed and slung it over her shoulder as she and her daughter left the house.
They pulled up at the school and Alex unbuckled the carseat and helped her daughter out. She handed the little girl her bookbag. “Ready?”
Elizabeth nodded and clutched her mother’s hand.
“It’s going to be fun.” Alex smiled as she led her daughter to the classroom.
Other kids were already there, running around and playing. Elizabeth looked up at her mother, looked back at the kids, and took off her bookbag. She handed it to Alex and ran off to go join a child playing with a set of leggos.
Alex shook her head, laughing quietly to herself. She chatted with the teacher, hung the bookbag up and turned to leave.
She felt tiny arms wrap around her waist and she turned around, reaching down to hug her daughter. “Bye Elizabeth. I love you.”
“I love you Mommy.” Elizabeth whispered before running back to her toys.
***
Herbert, Elizabeth decided, was her new best friend. She liked the way he wiggled and squirmed in her hand.
She liked how slimey he felt when she touched him.
Herbert was, in fact, a worm. A worm that she had found while out on the playground.
The boys thought it was cool. They wanted to take it from her. The girls thought it was icky and they ran.
So Elizabeth decided that she didn’t need any of them because she had Herbert anyways.
She sat in her chair as the rest of the class started to come inside. Herbert was squirming a lot. She decided that she wanted to draw his picture during coloring time. He could help her if he wanted to.
She put him on the desk and watched him roll around. She liked Herbert. He made her giggle.
The teacher looked around the class and her eyes rested on Elizabeth. A frown formed on her face and she walked over to the table where Elizabeth sat, still watching the room.
“Elizabeth, what is that?”
Elizabeth looked up at the teacher. She blinked her pretty blue eyes, but said nothing.
“Elizabeth is that a worm?”
Elizabeth gave her a look that said she ought to know what it was and nodded.
“Those things are icky. You shouldn’t touch them. They’re dirty.”
Elizabeth wondered why her teacher was acting like one of the girls.
“Hand it over.”
Elizabeth frowned and picked Herbert up. She handed him to the teacher. She watched her teacher walk to the door and throw Herbert out into the grass.
She hoped Herbert knew how to fly. She hoped he would live.
Elizabeth scrunched her legs up to her chest. She wrapped her arms around them and stared at her desk. Her face was blank.
She missed Herbert already.
~~~
Elizabeth gave the picture of Herbert to her moms. She’d even written his name on it. She still missed Herbert.
They put his picture on the fridge. They liked her friend as much as she did. Elizabeth was happy.
***
Elizabeth saw the doll lying on the floor. A frown appeared on her lips. She went back to her table and found her notebook and a crayon. A blue crayon, to be exact.
She drew a picture of the doll.
She walked up to James. “Did you do it?” She asked.
“Do what?”
She pointed to the doll in the middle of the floor.
“No.”
Elizabeth’s brow furrowed and she made a squiggly line on the paper.
She looked at Michaela. “Did you do it?”
“No.”
Elizabeth made another squiggly line.
She walked around the room, talking to each of the kids, making squiggly lines in her notebook.
The last person was the teacher. Elizabeth walked up to her desk.
“Yes, Elizabeth?”
“Did you do it?” She asked, pointing to the doll in the middle of the floor.
“No.” The teacher gazed down at the little girl, wondering what was running through her mind. She watched her scribble something in the notebook and wander over to the doll.
Elizabeth knelt down by the doll. She picked it up and hugged it before putting it back on the shelf where it belonged.
~~~
Alex answered the phone. “Hello?”
“Mrs. Benson-Cabot?”
“Yes.”
“This is Ms. Brenner, Elizabeth’s teacher.”
“Is something wrong?”
“I don’t know.” Ms. Brenner paused. “Does she know what you and your, erm, partner do for a living?”
“She’s been to work with us before so I believe she has some idea.”
“So she knows about crimes?”
“Yes.” Alex raised her eyebrows, wondering where this conversation could possibly be headed.
“I, uhm, I think she’s trying to investigate a murder.”
“What?”
“She walked around to all the kids. I saw her talk to them, point to a doll on the floor, and scribble on a piece of paper. She even came and talked to me.”
“What did she say?”
“She asked, ‘Did you do it?’”
Alex had to keep from snorting into the phone. She also had to refrain from asking if the teacher did, in fact, do it. “Is that all?”
“Well I think I must have been the final, erm, suspect. After she talked to me, she walked over to the doll, hugged it, and put it back on the shelf.”
“Did she do anything else?”
“Well, no.” Ms. Brenner paused. “Does your daughter ever talk to you about school?”
“Sometimes. She’s not a very talkative child, as I’m sure you have noticed.”
“Yes.” Another pause. “Did she tell you about Herbert?”
“The worm she found a while back?”
“Yes.”
“She said she found him and that you took him away. That’s all I know.”
“Well you know children shouldn’t bring live things in from recess. It’s a health issue and it’s frankly rather gross.”
“I’m sure kids have done much worse, Ms. Brenner.”
“Does Elizabeth ever mention any friends?”
“A couple. I believe we have established, though, that she is a very quiet child.”
“Even for a quiet child, her behavior is rather…how shall I put this…odd.”
“Ms. Brenner, Elizabeth is a bright young girl…”
“I’m not denying that…”
“She’s a very observant child and she mimics what she sees. Frankly, I don’t have a problem with her investigating crimes. At least it means she is on the right side. I’m glad she has learned something from us and I’m sure it’s a phase that will pass quickly. As for the worm, Elizabeth is also a very curious child. She finds new things and becomes fascinated by them. I see nothing wrong with that. I would be more worried if she had killed the worm. But she didn’t. She named it and she drew a picture of it. I really don’t understand what your problem is.”
“I think some of the other children find her rather odd.” Ms. Brenner said timidly.
“Do they find her odd, Ms. Brenner, or do you?”
“Well they don’t talk to her very often.”
“Ms. Brenner, might I give you a bit of advice? If you are going to try and argue with a lawyer, make sure you have a better argument lined up. Now, if you will excuse me, I have some work I need to get finished before I come to pick up Elizabeth.”
“Ok. Nice talking to you, Mrs. Benson-Cabot.”
“You too.” Alex smirked as she hung up the phone.