The boy realized his tactic was no longer working. His voice gradually faded, and he looked up at his mother with apprehension, unsure of how to wrap up the scene.
"Are you done crying?" his mother asked calmly.
She glanced at her child, composedly put away her phone, and then, with one hand pulling the shopping cart and the other gripping the back of the boy’s collar, she walked away.
Chapter 26