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“Ready!” She squealed.
As Lewis drove, Sophie sang along to one of her favorite songs.
“Mary had a little lamb.” Her tiny voice sang along to the radio.
“Little lamb…” I trailed along. It was routine to sing this or any of her other favorites on our playdates.
I’d planned a special outing to the zoo. Sophie loved animals. She continued singing until we finally reached the zoo.
We entered through the grand gates and were greeted by birds chirping and the distant roar of lions. The lion’s pride was our first stop.
Shielded behind durable glass walls, I watched Sophie’s eyes widen in excitement at the lion. We’d been here a couple of times, and she always had the same reactions.
“Daddy, look! Lions!”
And the same exclamations.
“Aren’t they beautiful?” I leaned down to pat her hair.
“They are, and they’re a bit scary too. But I’m not scared of them because they won’t hurt me.”
I laughed at that.
“If they let me go inside, I will—”
That’s enough lions for today. I quickly tugged her to other sections. First the elephants. Then the monkeys.
“They look like us.” She pointed at one monkey, staring curiously at us.
“Yes, baby. They do,” I smiled.
“Are they us?”
“No, baby. They aren’t.”
After our time at the zoo, we headed to the park for a picnic lunch. I had Virginia pack all of Sophie’s favorite foods – peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, carrot sticks, and chocolate chip cookies.
Sitting on a checkered blanket, we enjoyed our meal amidst the laughter of children playing nearby. At some point, she got up to play with the other children while I took pictures with the camera I’d gotten.
I wanted this memory to be captured forever. It somehow was also a way to remind myself never to put work above her.
She was still within reach as I made sure to trail her closely. Sophie happily explored the playground with the other kids. She climbed up the jungle gym with confidence, her giggles echoing through the air as she went down the slide over and over again.
I soon joined in, chasing her around the playground, playing tag, and pretending to be a monster.
As the sun began to set, painting the sky in hues of pink and orange, we made our way to the car. I carried Sophie on my shoulders, her arms wrapped tightly around my head as we laughed and sang songs together.
We got to the car, and after a few minutes of singing, we arrived at the mansion.
Sophie still wanted to play for a while in her playroom, and though the nanny had taken a day off to sort out some personal stuff, I let her play.
All I wanted to do was rest for a while. But as I walked to my room, I saw her, Olivia.
She looked different. I instantly knew something was unusually off. Her steps wavered slightly, and her eyes were bloodshot.
That was the night of the incident.
***
