Chapter 149

The following Monday morning, a full three days from her encounter with Mr. Stamine and her discussion with Mr. Lawless, Hope walked into the schoolyard to see a fully erected swing set, a slide, and an elaborate climbing gym the likes of which she'd only ever seen in photographs. She could hardly believe her eyes. She was still marveling at it when Mr. Stewart stepped around the climbing apparatus, a scowl on his face. "Miss Tucker!" he barked, and she wiped the smile off her face.

"Mr. Stewart, good morning."

"What is the meaning of this?" he asked, gawking at the new playground equipment. "Did you order this?"

"No. I mean… not exactly. I may have mentioned to a parent or two that I thought the children needed more play equipment. It's important to their learning, Mr. Stewart. Without proper play, they cannot pay as much attention to their lessons."

"Miss Tucker, children come here to learn, not to cavort outside and have fun…."