Chapter 4: What Was in the Bottle
The hallway outside Sophie's room was empty except for the hum of the ventilation system and the distant sound of a cart being wheeled somewhere far away.
Dr.
Harris held a single sheet of paper.
"The preliminary results came back faster than I expected," she said.
"I asked the lab to prioritize."
Alejandro stood with his back against the wall.
"Tell me."
"The bottle your mother found contains ipecac syrup," Dr.
Harris said.
"It's a substance that was once used medically to induce vomiting in poisoning cases.
It was pulled from pharmacy shelves years ago because of @buse.
It causes severe nausea, stomach cramping, vomiting, and with repeated doses over time — damage to the esophagus, chronic weakness, and in children, it can cause the kind of respiratory complications that look almost identical to pneumonia."
Alejandro did not move.
"Someone was giving it to her," he said.
It was not a question.
"The search history on the tablet, the sealed antibiotic bottle, and this substance together — yes.
The pattern is consistent with what's called Factitious Disorder Imposed on Another.
Some people call it by an older name.
Munchausen by proxy."
"She was making Sophie sick on purpose."
"The evidence strongly suggests that someone was.
I've already made the mandatory report to Child Protective Services and to Dallas PD.
An officer will be here within the hour."
Alejandro's hands pressed flat against the wall behind him.
"Sophie's going to be okay," Dr.
Harris said.
"She's going to need monitoring, proper medication, and time.
But she will recover.
You got her here when you did."
"My mother got her here."
"Then your mother saved her life."
The door at the end of the corridor opened.
Alejandro straightened.
It was a nurse, not Valerie.
He exhaled.
"What do I do right now?" he asked.
"Go back in that room and sit with your daughter," Dr.
Harris said.
"Let me handle what comes next.
Do not tell Valerie anything.
Do not give her any reason to leave the building."
He nodded once and turned back toward Sophie's room.
When he pushed open the door, Valerie was standing at the window with her arms crossed, looking out at the parking lot below.
Rosa was in the chair beside Sophie, stroking the little girl's hair.
"Everything okay?" Valerie asked without turning around.
"Fine," Alejandro said.
"Just paperwork."
He sat down on the edge of Sophie's bed.
Sophie stirred and opened her eyes.
"Daddy."
"I'm right here, princess."
"Is Valerie going home?"
The room went very still.
Valerie turned from the window.
Her smile came back, smooth and practiced.
"I'm not going anywhere, sweet girl.
I'm staying right here with you."
Sophie looked at her father.
Her eyes did not move to Valerie.
"Daddy," she said again, softer.
"Just you.
Can it just be you and Grandma?"
Valerie's smile tightened at the corners.
"Sophie, sweetheart, I—"
"She's tired," Rosa said quietly.
"She needs to rest."
"I understand that, Rosa, but I'm her mother and I—"
"You're not her mother."
The words landed in the room like something dropped from a height.
Valerie stared at Rosa.
Rosa did not raise her voice.
She did not look away.
"You are not her mother," Rosa said again.
"Her mother is gone.
And right now, this child is asking for her father.
So sit down and be quiet, or step outside."
Valerie's jaw tightened.
She looked at Alejandro.
He said nothing.
She picked up her purse from the chair.
"I need some air," she said.
"I'll be back in a few minutes."
She walked out.
The door swung shut behind her.
Alejandro looked at his mother.
Rosa shook her head once.
Don't follow her.
Forty seconds later, they heard voices in the hallway.
Then the sound of the stairwell door opening and closing.
May you like
Then, from somewhere below — the sound of the main entrance.
Alejandro was on his feet.
