Nathan rubbed a hand over his jaw, his eyes shining. “Yesterday, I found out how bad Elena‘s chair had gotten, and how much she’d been hiding from us. And then I found out that a thirteen-year-old boy sold the thing he loved most because he couldn’t stand watching my daughter struggle.”
Alejandro‘s face went completely red. “She needed it, sir.”
Nathan nodded, his voice breaking. “I know, son. That’s why, when I told the precinct what you did, the entire squad pitched in.”
Officer Cooper tapped the case lightly. “Every officer on the shift contributed, Alejandro. It’s yours.”
Elena rolled forward smoothly in her gleaming new chair, stopping right beside him with a fierce smile. “And you better keep this guitar longer than twenty-four hours!”
Alejandro laughed, the tension finally leaving his shoulders. “No promises, Elena.”
I stood there watching my son, the officers smiling by the wall, and Elenalaughing in her new chair. I had been terrified the police were there because my son had crossed a line. Instead, they came because a thirteen-year-old boy had reminded a room full of adults where the line should have been all along.
