Chapter 8 - Against the Wall by the Sconces
A woman I didn't know came over from the side of the hall. She wasn't in a long gown like the others. She had on black pants and a white shirt with the sleeves pushed up, and a little gold name tag I couldn't read. She looked at Dad first, then at us.
She didn't reach for us right away. She stopped a few feet back and got down low, so her knees were almost on the marble. The light from the sconces behind her made the wall too bright to look at.
"Hey," she said quiet. "I'm with the events team. Can I sit here with you for a minute?"
Maya didn't answer. Her face was still wet against my shoulder. I could feel her breathing too fast.
Dad was still right behind us. He'd been holding us so tight, and then when the woman in the white shirt looked at him, he loosened his arms a little. He didn't stand up and leave. He slid back maybe a foot, so his knees were still touching my back. He kept his hands where we could see them.
"I'm right here," he said. "I'm not going anywhere."
The staffer nodded at him, then looked back at Maya. "What's your name, sweetie?"
Maya pressed harder into me. I put my arm around her the way Dad had done to us.
"Maya," I whispered for her, because her mouth wasn't working.
"Hi, Maya. I'm Dana," she said. "Can you tell me what happened just now? Just what you saw."
Maya shook her head. Her hair stuck to her cheek. I tried to swallow, but my throat hurt.
"She had it up," I said. My voice sounded wrong, thin. "The bat."
Dana didn't write anything down. She just kept her eyes on us. "Up where, honey?"
I looked past her without meaning to. The bat was still on the floor where it had fallen, off to the side near her heeled sandals. Nobody had picked it up. Someone had taken pictures of it, and now everyone was giving it space like it was still hot.
"Over us," I said. "Like this." I lifted my hand a little, then dropped it because I didn't want to let go of Maya.
Maya made a small sound. "Yelling," she said into my shirt.
Dana nodded slow. "Yeah. I heard loud voices. Who was yelling?"
"Her," I said. I didn't look at the woman in the burgundy dress. I could see her anyway, on the edge of everything, sitting up now with her hair messed up. "She was mad. We were crying. Then—"
I stopped because my chest hitched. Dad put his hand flat on my back, steady, not pushing.
"Take your time," Dana said.
"Then Dad came," I said. "He ran in."
That was when the burgundy dress moved. I heard her heel scrape on the marble.
"That's enough. They're confused, they're—" she said, loud, standing halfway up. "Leo, tell them—"
Dana turned her head, but didn't get up from her knees. "Ma'am, please give them a minute."
"He's my—" she started. A man in a dark suit from the doors stepped in fast and put his hand out, not touching her, just blocking.
"Let's step back this way," he said.
"I didn't— he doesn't understand what—" She was still talking, but the suit man moved between her and us and walked her two steps back toward the center. She was breathing hard and pulling at the bottom of her dress.
Dana waited until it got quieter, then turned back. Her face hadn't changed.
"Maya?" she said soft. "Were you crying before your dad got there?"
Maya nodded against me. A fresh tear slid down and hit my vest.
"Yes," I said, because she couldn't. "We were already crying. She raised it before he came."
Dana glanced up at Dad. He hadn't moved closer. His hands were in his lap now, fists tight. He was watching us, not her.
"Thank you for telling me," Dana said. "You did good."
Maya finally lifted her head a little. "Don't let her take it," she whispered, looking at the bat on the floor.
May you like
"No one's taking it," Dana said. "It's staying right there where everyone can see it."
I held onto Maya tighter. Dad leaned forward just enough that his shoulder touched mine again, so I knew he was still there.
