Every morning, my fourteen-year-old daughter left home in uniform and boarded the school bus.
Then her teacher called to say she had missed every class that week—so the next morning, I followed her.
Tessa had never been the kind of teenager who skipped school. She could be moody, but she had never cut class.
So when Briarwick Academy called Thursday, I answered immediately. “This is Ms.
Elowen Pryce, Tessa’s homeroom teacher,” the woman said. “She has been absent all week.”
I almost laughed. “That cannot be right,” I replied. “She leaves our Willowfen Lane home each morning.
I watch her go.” There was a pause. “I’m sorry,” Ms. Pryce said gently.
“Tessa has not attended class since Monday.” My stomach tightened. When Tessa came home that evening, she acted normal.
