After Anna(45)

‘Thank you, Your Honor.’ Thomas turned from the dais, and Noah knew they had just dodged a bullet. It was a rare victory for them, but at least they had points on the board. Except that the jury had heard they were being deprived of Anna’s own words.

‘Thank you, Your Honor.’ Linda signaled her paralegal. ‘Dr Alderman, I am calling to the screen Commonwealth Exhibit 52, a transcript of the PFA hearing.’





Chapter Twenty-eight


Maggie, Before

Maggie drove while Anna sat plugged into her phone, but she knew from driving Caleb around that moms were Uber without the tip. They approached Lower Merion High School and the district administration building, a massive low-profiled rectangle with several different wings, encircled by a well-trimmed hedge, mulched beds of forsythia, and a lush lawn. An American flag flapped on a tall pole, and in front was a sign painted by the theater students advertising the spring show, Oklahoma!

‘I love Oklahoma!’ Maggie said, glancing over. ‘Have you seen it?’

‘No.’

‘The song, “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’ ” is from Oklahoma! It is a beautiful morning, isn’t it?’ Maggie smiled, trying to be cheery. In fact, it was cool and sunny, and this morning when she’d checked the garden, she’d spotted buds on her peonies, balled like tiny fists.

Anna started texting, and Maggie looked over, wondering.

‘Anna, if you don’t mind my asking, who are you texting?’

‘I’m not, I’m using my app. It’s called Calm. Ellen turned me on to it.’

‘How does it work?’

‘You choose what you’re interested in, like calming your thoughts, reducing anxiety, helping you sleep, or building self-esteem.’

‘So what did you choose?’

‘All of the above.’ Anna smiled.

‘I had no idea they had apps like that.’

‘I have a ton.’ Anna started scrolling through her phone. ‘Pacifica, Chill, Relaxed State, Nervana. Jamie really loved Nervana. She was into the breathing and meditation apps like Headspace. Her parents worried she’d commit suicide, but she never would. They had her on the suicide-prevention apps like Crisis Care and some others.’

‘There are apps for suicide prevention?’ Maggie felt a pang for teenagers in so much pain. From her postpartum days, she knew how it felt to have anguish you couldn’t wish away.

‘They used an app that searches your social media for the words “kill myself” or “kill yourself.” It even searched her texts and emails, like, if she said KMS in a text it meant, kill myself. KYS is kill yourself.’ Anna frowned. ‘I don’t think they had the right to do that. They invaded her privacy.’

‘I guess sometimes you have to protect your child from herself.’

‘But maybe if they hadn’t pushed her, she wouldn’t have left school.’ Anna looked at the high school as they rounded the curve. ‘Do you think I’m too dressed up?’

‘No, you look great.’ Maggie glanced over, and Anna had on one of her new boho dresses, a flowy affair in dark blues. Her brownish hair swung shiny to her shoulders, complementing her lovely blue eyes.

‘It was dumb to dress up. I look like a tryhard.’

‘What does that mean?’ Maggie smiled. ‘I try hard.’

‘It means you’re thirsty.’

‘I’m thirsty, too!’ Maggie said, and they both laughed. She turned into the entrance, steered toward the parking lot, pulled in, and they walked to the school, which was modern and newly renovated, with tan stone and four large panels of glass above an overhang for the main entrance.

Anna looked this way and that. ‘That must be the student lot. I can’t wait to go car shopping.’

‘We will, in time.’ Maggie had forgotten to talk to Anna about the new car. They entered the school’s bright entrance room, with its large black rug that read LM in maroon letters, then went to the main office, another large, bright room with a long counter of light wood. The school staff worked on sleek desks behind the counter, and a waiting room held maroon-padded chairs organized in a square.

They went to the counter, and a blond staff member approached them with a smile. ‘May I help you?’

‘Yes, I’m Maggie Ippoliti, and I have an appointment to register my daughter, Anna Desroches.’

‘Great, Maggie.’ The staffer turned to Anna. ‘Anna, I’m Judy, and welcome to Lower Merion. Did you bring your papers?’

‘I did, right here.’ Maggie dug in her purse and extracted a thick folder of documents that James had emailed them. ‘Here’s her immunization records, transcript, Social Security card and birth certificate, and bills showing proof of residence. I also filled out the Parental Registration Statement.’

‘Thank you so much. I’ll get these photocopied.’ Judy took the folder and turned to Anna. ‘We’ll get you into classes tomorrow. I’m going to introduce you to your guidance counselor, and she’ll go over your schedule with you, then give you a quick tour.’

‘That sounds great.’

‘Thank you,’ Maggie said, then they were taken down a hallway blanketed with colorful college pennants to the Guidance Center to meet Brittany Holt, a young brunette in a Lilly Pulitzer dress. Brittany’s office was covered with inspirational posters and a metal rack of pamphlets: Straight Talk for Teens About Alcohol, 37 Scary But True Facts About Drugs, and When Is It Rape? Maggie eyed the titles, realizing that she had a whole new list of things to worry about, while Brittany and Anna talked about her course schedule.