ACE
Alice’s bedtime routine begins at exactly eight o’clock.
Not because she needs the structure—she would sleep whenever exhaustion finally claimed her—but because children thrive on consistency. Predictability. It fosters security. That’s what every expert says. And I do not rely on instinct when data exists.
Tonight, I will oversee it myself.
Margaret looked surprised when I told her. Not alarmed or disapproving, just… surprised. As if my presence in my daughter’s evening was an exception instead of a right.
“Of course, sir,” she’d said. “I’ll let Alice know.”
“No,” I replied. “I will.”
So here I was, standing outside Alice’s bedroom door, listening to the faint hum of her voice from inside. She’s talking to herself—narrating something, likely involving her stuffed rabbit or the
