Chapter 2
I reached the school office before it opened.
The secretary recognized me. I had helped with Ava’s class trip in the spring, and I was listed as her father on every school form. When I asked whether a transfer had been requested, her expression changed.
“I’ll get the principal,” she said.
The principal, Mrs. Harris, invited me into her office. I told her what I had overheard. She checked the student record while I sat across from her, trying to keep my hands still.
“There’s a request to release Ava’s records,” she said. “It came in yesterday.”
“To what school?”
“A school in Westbridge.”
Westbridge was three hours away.
“Did Nia put it in?”
“The request came from her account.”
“Has anything been sent?”
“Not yet. We need the required documents before we release the records.”
I asked what those documents were. Mrs. Harris explained the school’s process and said she would check the paperwork carefully. She could not settle a disagreement between parents, but she could confirm that nothing had been released.
I thanked her and stepped outside. The morning air felt cold against my face.
Nia had told me she needed space. She had not told me she planned to move our daughter three hours away.
I called Denise from the parking lot. I asked whether I could speak to her before Ava came into the room.
“Of course,” she said. “Is something wrong?”
“I think Nia may be planning a move. Did she mention Westbridge?”
Denise went quiet.
“She asked me whether I could help Ava pack next week,” she said. “I thought you two had agreed on it.”
“We haven’t.”
“Oh, Marcus.”
I could hear Ava talking in the background, asking whether breakfast was ready. I told Denise I would come over after school drop-off. She promised to keep the conversation away from Ava until Nia and I had spoken.
At work, I found it impossible to concentrate. I called a family lawyer whose name a colleague had given me during the separation. Her name was Priya Shah. She had an opening that afternoon.
I took the folder containing our existing parenting schedule and drove to her office. Nia and I had agreed by email that Ava would stay at the house on school nights and spend two evenings and every other weekend with me while we lived apart. We had never discussed a new city.
Priya read the messages.
“Did Nia tell you when she intended to move?” she asked.
“No. I overheard Vanessa say Ava would be gone by Monday.”
“Save anything you have. Keep following your current schedule, and speak to Nia directly in writing about the proposed move. We can act if she tries to change Ava’s school or residence without resolving the parenting arrangements.”
I wanted Priya to tell me she could make the whole problem disappear. Instead, she gave me steps I could take. I wrote them down.
Before leaving, I asked about the house. Priya said I needed to find out what the papers in the bedroom were. If Nia had signed a listing agreement or applied for a loan, the documents would matter.
I sent Nia a message from the car.
I went to Ava’s school this morning. I know you requested her records for a school in Westbridge. Are you planning to move with her? We need to discuss this before you make any arrangements involving her.
Nia called immediately. I let it ring, then answered.
“You went to the school?” she asked.
“Yes.”
“You made me look terrible.”
“I asked about Ava’s records. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Vanessa found an apartment I can afford. I was still deciding.”
“You asked for a school transfer.”
“I wanted to know how long it takes.”
“And Mr. Price?”
She exhaled. “He manages the apartments.”
I remembered the message on the second phone. It had looked like a school transfer request, though I’d seen only one line.
“Why was the paperwork on a phone I’ve never seen?”
“That’s Vanessa’s work phone. Marcus, I’m at work. I can’t do this now.”
“Then meet me tonight after Ava’s asleep. I want to hear the whole plan from you.”
She agreed.
After the call, I drove to Denise’s. She let me in while Ava was at school and told me Nia had asked her to keep several boxes of Ava’s clothes. They were in the guest room.
“I thought you knew,” Denise said.
“I believe you.”
She sat down heavily. “Nia’s been saying she feels trapped. I wanted to help my daughter. I didn’t want to help her hide Ava from you.”
I looked at the boxes. Ava’s name was written on each one in Nia’s neat handwriting.
Denise said she would not take them anywhere until we had all spoken. Then she made coffee and asked me to tell her what had happened at the house.
I told her about the flowers, Vanessa, and the message. I left out my guesses. There were already enough facts to frighten me.
That evening, I went to the house at the time Nia had chosen. Ava was asleep upstairs. Vanessa was gone.
Nia let me in and led me to the kitchen. The papers from the bedroom were spread across the table.
“I’ll show you everything,” she said.
I sat down.
The first page was an application for the Westbridge apartment. The second was a draft letter to Ava’s school.
The third had my name at the bottom.
May you like
It was a statement saying I agreed to the move.
The signature looked like mine.
