Chapter 12 - THE SCHOOL COUNSELOR
Noah’s school counselor, Mrs. Vega, was devastated.
Six weeks before the ER, Noah said:
“Derek makes Mom cry.”
She asked if he felt safe.
Noah said yes.
Then:
“Mostly.”
She made a mandated report based on family violence concerns.
Child protection screened it.
No specific allegation of child harm.
A worker called Emily.
Derek was present.
Emily minimized.
Case closed after preliminary contact.
People later attacked the agency.
Maybe some criticism was fair.
But the report did not say:
Derek is forcing Noah to swallow magnets.
Systems cannot investigate facts nobody has.
Still, one line in Mrs. Vega’s notes mattered.
NOAH ASKED WHETHER “BAD THINGS INSIDE YOUR BODY” COUNT AS INJURIES IF NOBODY CAN SEE THEM.
She thought he meant anxiety.
Reasonable.
Wrong.
After the ER, she could barely speak about it.
Paul Nolan told her:
“You didn’t put the magnets in him.”
She replied:
May you like
“But he tried to tell me.”
Both true.
