Sophie Came Home With a Note Saying “DON’T TELL DAD” — Then Daniel Opened the Kitchen Cabinet
Chapter 4 — The Missing Money
Daniel slowly sat down.
“What do you mean?”
Rachel stood and walked toward a drawer.
She removed a small notebook.
Inside were names.
Dates.
Amounts.
Receipts.
Daniel flipped through the pages.
Twenty dollars.
Thirty-five.
Fifty.
Then larger amounts.
Two hundred.
Three hundred.
Five hundred.
“Where did this money come from?”
Rachel looked toward Sophie.
“Parents.”
“What parents?”
“Families at school who wanted to help anonymously.”
Daniel frowned.
“You collected donations?”
Rachel nodded.
“At first.”
Daniel noticed the way she said it.
“At first?”
Rachel took a breath.
“Then the school principal found out.”
“And?”
“He told me to stop.”
Daniel closed the notebook.
“Why?”
Rachel looked uncomfortable.
“He said donations had to go through official channels.”
“That sounds reasonable.”
“It would be if the official channels were actually reaching the families.”
Daniel stared at her.
“What are you saying?”
Rachel lowered her voice.
“Food was being donated to the school.”
“Okay.”
“A lot of it.”
“And?”
“Some of it was disappearing.”
Daniel stopped moving.
Rachel explained that a local supermarket chain donated boxes of food every Friday.
The school advertised a weekend assistance program.
But several families who were supposed to receive packages said they were getting nothing.
Rachel asked questions.
Then she began counting.
Twenty-five donated boxes arrived one Friday.
Only fourteen families received them.
The following week, thirty boxes arrived.
Sixteen were distributed.
“Where were the others?” Daniel asked.
Rachel shook her head.
“That’s what I wanted to know.”
Sophie suddenly spoke.
“I know.”
Both parents turned toward her.
Sophie wiped her eyes.
“I saw where they took them.”
