Chapter 44

The slide collapsed from a leak, and Evan Smith slammed his forehead right into the metal railing. There was no padding at all—just pure metal—so it split open, and blood started gushing out. My vision spun, I nearly blacked out from the shock. Beside me, Cindy Clark was in a panic, scooping Evan up and shouting, “Somebody, help!” I snapped out of it real fast, rushed over, and pulled Evan out of her arms. My eyes were red as I turned to the store manager and demanded, “What the hell happened to your safety checks?” I knew I was blaming them, but deep down, I was blaming myself more. Jason Smith trusted me to take his kid out, and what did I do? I let Cindy’s nonsense steer my focus away for literally five minutes. Just five minutes, and this happened. It’s all on me. No time to argue or wait for explanations. I ran out of the shop with Evan in my arms and dashed to the street, flagging down a taxi like my life depended on it. That’s when a bright red BMW pulled up out of nowhere. Lena