I ran over to them like I'd found a lifeline. "Mr. Brown, please call emergency services! A child's been hit. He's still alive!"

David's gaze landed on the child lying on the ground. His expression changed slightly.

"Calm down. Let me take a look."

David turned around and said something to a male teacher behind him.

The teacher nodded and quickly left.

I asked anxiously, "David, did you call emergency services?"

He ignored my question and looked at Esther instead.

"Are you the child's mother?"

Esther shook her head and pointed at me. "She is. I'm her best friend. I-I was the one who hit him."

David nodded before turning to look at me.

"Don't panic. I've already asked our school doctor to come over. Let him check on the child first."

I froze. "The school doctor? Aren't you calling for an ambulance?"

"Even if we do make that call, it'll take time. We might as well let the doctor take a look first. Don't worry. Our doctor is very experienced."

Something felt off, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it.

Within a few minutes, a middle-aged man in a white coat hurried over with a medical kit.

"David, what happened?"

David pointed at the child. "Car accident. Check if he can still be saved."

'Check if he can still be saved? Why did that sound so wrong?'

The doctor crouched down, lifted the child's eyelids, and felt for his carotid pulse.

The entire process took less than thirty seconds.

He then stood up and dusted off his hands.

"He can't be saved. His pupils are already dilated. Find somewhere to bury him."

I heard a buzz in my head.

"What did you just say?"

I lunged forward and grabbed his collar. "You barely checked him, but you already came to a conclusion? Did you even examine him properly?"

The doctor staggered back. He clearly looked irritated.

"Are you the doctor here, or am I? If I say he's gone, he's gone. What's there left to check in this condition?"

"That's nonsense!" My eyes turned bloodshot. "He was still alive! I heard him say it hurt just moments ago!"

"That was a nerve reflex. It's involuntary." The doctor shook off my hand and straightened his coat. "If you don't believe me, check for yourself. See if he's still moving now."

I dropped to the child's side. My hands trembled as I touched his face.

It was cold. He really wasn't moving anymore.

My tears overflowed immediately.

Although this wasn't my son, he was still a living, breathing child just moments ago.

I stood up and stared angrily at David.

"I'm calling the police. This is a matter of life and death!"

David's expression darkened instantly.

"Are you crazy? If this gets out, our kindergarten's reputation will be ruined! Who would ever send their kids here again?"

I stared at him in disbelief. "We're talking about someone's life here!"

"He's already dead!" David raised his voice too. "What's the point of calling the police now? Will that bring him back?"

Esther stepped closer and grabbed my arm.

"Eve, Mr. Brown is right. Don't act rashly. Your son is already dead anyway. Making this a big deal won't help anyone."

I shook her hand off.

"Shut up!"

She stumbled back but didn't get angry. Instead, her voice softened.

"Eve, I know you're upset. But you have to think about the bigger picture. We'll take care of the funeral. We'll pay for everything and make sure nothing's left out."

David nodded. His tone softened a little too.

"How about this? The kindergarten will pay 10 grand, and your friend will pay another 10 grand. 20 grand in total. You take it, and we'll put this matter behind us."

'20 grand?'

I looked at them like they were monsters.

"That's a human life. Do you think you can settle it with 14 grand?"

Esther sighed somewhat impatiently.

"Eve, can you stop being so stubborn? I've apologized, and I'm willing to pay. What more do you want? Will you not let it rest until I'm in prison?"

David nodded. "Exactly. The dead can't come back to life. You need to move on. 20 grand is a lot. A life isn't even worth that much in rural areas."

'A life isn't even worth that much in rural areas?'

I could feel my blood boiling.

"Just you wait. I'm calling the police right now."

I reached for my phone, but then remembered it had been taken by Esther.

"Give me my phone back!" I yelled.

She instinctively took a step back before hiding it behind her.

"No. You can't call the police!"

"Give it to me!"

I lunged at her. She screamed and dodged backward.

David shouted nearby, "Stop her! Hurry, stop her!"

Two teachers ran over and grabbed my arms, one on each side.

I struggled with everything I had, but I couldn't break free.

A trace of coldness flickered in Esther's eyes.

"Eve, don't blame me. I'm doing this for your own good. Once you calm down, you'll understand you're better off accepting the 20 grand than blowing things up."

"You hit someone, and you're stopping me from calling the police. How's that better?"

I stared at her, but she looked away.

It had already felt strange when she insisted on driving today.

She used to be terrified of driving. She had even delayed getting her license for years because of it.

David sighed. "Enough. Stop making a scene. The boy is already gone. There's no point causing trouble here. Fine, let's add another 5 grand. 25 grand in total. That's my final offer. Take the money, go home, and sort out the funeral."

I looked at them and suddenly laughed.

"Mr. Brown, do you even know who that boy is?"

He frowned. "Isn't he your son?"

Esther also turned to look at me.

I smiled.

"My son had a fever today. He never even came to kindergarten."

Esther's expression froze.

"What did you say?"

"I said my son's sick today. I left him at home with my mom.

"He never came to school."

Esther suddenly became agitated.

"T-That's impossible! That boy was wearing your son's hoodie! I saw it clearly!"

"The hoodie might be the same, but the person wearing it isn't," I said.

David reacted the fastest. He immediately changed his tone.

"Oh! So it's all a misunderstanding! Then whose child is this? Hurry, contact the parents!"

As he spoke, he turned to the teachers. "Go check which child didn't show up today. Find out who he is!"

I looked at him coldly. "You said earlier it was my son and wanted to settle it privately. Now that you know it's not, you're suddenly eager to find the parents?"

The smile on David's face stiffened.

Esther's expression changed. As if something occurred to her, she stepped closer and tugged at my sleeve.

"Eve, I was wrong earlier. Don't take it to heart. Since he's not your son, this has nothing to do with you anymore. You should head home. We'll handle it."

'Nothing to do with me?'

I looked at her face. It suddenly felt terrifyingly unfamiliar.

"When you snatched my phone earlier, why didn't you say it had nothing to do with me?"

Her expression faltered.

I couldn't be bothered to deal with her. I turned around and walked toward the child.

No matter whose child he was, I couldn't just leave him lying there.

But after only two steps, a voice came from behind me.

"That's not right. I remember your son did come to school this morning."

I froze.

"What did you say?"

A teacher nearby hesitated before speaking.

"I was at the gate this morning to welcome the kids. I saw your son come in. He was wearing that blue hoodie."

My heart sank.

"That's impossible! My son has a fever. He didn't come today!"

"I really did see him!" the teacher insisted. "I even greeted him, and he said good morning to me!"

Another teacher nearby nodded.

"Yes, I saw him too. He even waved at me."

I stood in stunned silence. I heard a buzzing sound in my mind.

Esther looked at the teachers before turning to face me. She slowly began to smile.

"Eve, didn't you say your son didn't come? Why did so many teachers see him?

"It can't be all of them seeing things, right? Eve, are you so upset that you're remembering it wrong?"

I clenched my fists.

"That's impossible! My mom is at home with him. There's no way he came!"

Esther snorted. "Why don't you call and ask? You'll find out right away."

She handed me my phone.

I stared at her face and suddenly felt uneasy.

I accepted the phone and dialed a number with trembling fingers.

After a few rings, the call connected.

"Hello, Eve?"

I took a deep breath and tried to steady my voice.

"Mom, is Leo with you?"

"Leo?" My mom paused. "He went to school."

I heard a buzz in my mind.

"He had a fever. Didn't we say he wouldn't go?"

"It went down this morning. He insisted on going. He said he had plans with his friends." My mother, Bea Spencer, sounded calm as always. "I dropped him off at the school gate. What's wrong?"

I opened my mouth, but the words wouldn't come out.

"Hello? Eve? What happened?"

She continued speaking, but I couldn't hear anything anymore.

My phone slipped from my hand and hit the ground with a sharp crack.

Slowly, I turned around and looked at the small body lying there.

That blue hoodie was exactly the same one my son, Leo Spencer, had.

Could it really be him?

Step by step, I walked over and lifted the cloth covering the child's face.

It was a mangled, bloodied mess.

His features were unrecognizable.

Something inside me snapped, and I began wailing uncontrollably.

Esther walked over and tried to comfort me.

"Eve, is he really Leo? Aww. Don't be too sad. The dead can't come back to life–"

I pushed her away and lunged forward before grabbing her by the collar.

"You killed him!"

She fell to the ground and looked aggrieved.

"Eve! I told you it wasn't on purpose! What are you doing?"

"Not on purpose? Why didn't you say that when you stopped me from calling emergency services?"

Her face stiffened for a split second.

David hurried over to break things up.

"Enough, enough! Calm down! The dead can't come back. Right now, the most important thing is sorting out the funeral!"

'Sorting out the funeral?'

I turned to him with bloodshot eyes.

"That's not what you said when you were stopping me from calling the police."

David's expression darkened.

Esther got up from the ground and dusted herself off. The grievance on her face slowly turned into impatience.

"Eve, I already apologized. What more do you want? Will you not stop until I'm dead?"

"Apologized?" I stared at her. "You killed my son, took my phone, and stopped me from calling for an ambulance. Do you think saying sorry is enough?"

"Then what do you want?" Esther raised her voice. "I told you it wasn't on purpose! I'm willing to pay too! What else do you expect from me?"

She glared at me furiously.

"I was trying to comfort you, and yet you pushed me. Look at you. You're acting like a lunatic. If it weren't for the fact that you just lost your son, I wouldn't even bother saying anything to you!"

She then turned to face David.

"Mr. Brown, get someone to drag her away. Move the body. Let's bury the boy as soon as possible."

David nodded and gestured to the teachers.

"Drag her away."

Two teachers stepped forward and grabbed my arms. They tried to drag me away.

"Let go of me!" I thrashed around. "Don't touch my son!"

A sudden slap landed across my face.

My head snapped to the side. Blood seeped from the corner of my mouth.

Esther lowered her hand. She was fuming when she glared at me.

"Have you had enough? Or do you still want to keep causing a scene?"

I touched my face. There was a look of burning rage in my eyes.

Just as I was about to fight them with everything I had, I suddenly heard a voice from behind.

"Mom, what are you doing?"

I turned around and froze.

Leo stood at the entrance. He seemed completely unharmed.

Who exactly was the child that got hit?