kid?”
“Finn,” he said.
“You got a last name?” the doctor asked.
“Hart,” I said, before he could answer. I could at least make this a little easier for Finn and Tom by keeping questions to a minimum.
Stanley turned his attention back to me. “Tell Regina at the front desk everything you know—including where we can reach a relative.” He was already assisting Finn into a curtained cubicle. A woman in pink scrubs came hurrying from another cubicle to help him.
“I am a relative,” I said. But to my own ears, the claim sounded hollow. Would anyone believe me?
Soon I was telling the light-skinned black woman who’d ushered me through those doors what little I knew. She had hazel eyes and a warm smile, but of course her main concern was who would be financially responsible.
That’s when I knew with certainty that to get this kid the care he needed, I would have to tell a few more lies. My stomach clenched at the thought and I remembered something my grandmother used to say: “A lie may take care of the present, but it has no future.” Such would be the case today. But still, I needed to aid a boy who’d trekked all the way from North Carolina to find Tom. I am an honest person, but honesty needed to be put aside, at least for now.
“His name is Finnian Hart,” I began. “We don’t have insurance. Can I pay with a credit card?”
Thirty minutes later, paperwork complete, I walked out to the van. I opened the driver’s-side door and saw Yoshi curled in Allison’s lap. He sat up, ears pricked, when he saw me.
“How’s Finn? What did they find out?” Allison said.
“I don’t know yet. They said the examination would take a while. I said I was his aunt and his parents were out of the country and unreachable. Can they sue me for telling fibs?”
“You told me on the phone he’s a runaway, right?”
I nodded.
“In that case, you did what you had to do, Jillian. It’s like when we take in lost animals at the shelter. Someone has to care for the strays in the moment of need. We worry about the emergency situation first and the people part later.”
I smiled, liking her analogy. “Exactly.”
“He looked like he’s what? Seventeen? Eighteen?”
“Tom said he’s eighteen. He looks younger to me, but he’s legal age and probably could have signed off on all those papers himself if he had his wits about him. But he doesn’t.”
Allison stroked Yoshi’s head. “We’re fine here, so go on back inside and wait. Yoshi and I have already shared a granola bar. Never go anywhere without a granola bar, I say.”
I noticed Allison had the quilt wrapped around her shoulders.
“You warm enough?” I said. “I have another quilt if you need one.”
“We’re fine,” she said. “You go on, now.”
Turned out, I waited only an hour before they called me to the back. Dr. Stanley was with Finn in his cubicle. Somewhere, in another curtained-off space, a child wailed.
Stanley held a clipboard and quickly told me Finn had a minor concussion, nothing that needed hospitalization unless he vomited, had seizures or his headache became severe. The treatment was simple—let him rest and allow him to have Tylenol or Advil starting tomorrow morning. He should follow up with a neurologist and the clerk Regina would give me a list of a few in the area.
Then the doctor looked straight at me for the first time. “As for his memory loss, it’s to be expected. But where did the blood come from? The cut on his forehead is small and he has no other injuries.”
“I have no idea about the blood on his hands and shirt. But he does remember hitchhiking. Maybe he got in a fight with someone.” I glanced at Finn, wondering if a fight explained the bump on his head.
Stanley said, “All he could tell me is he came to visit this person, Tom. Tom is… ?”
“His uncle,” I said quickly.
“Yes, you’re the aunt. I forgot.” Stanley cocked an eyebrow. “Anyway, blood from something or someone seeped through his sweatshirt and onto the shirt underneath.”
“I wish I had answers,” I said. “The only thing I know for sure is he has this memory gap.”
The doctor gripped Finn’s shoulder and smiled. “Aside from the concussion, he’s a healthy young man. Not remembering is, as I said, very typical after a concussion.”
“But he’ll remember in time?” I asked.
Stanley shook his head. “The information is probably gone forever, so you might have to help him solve this mystery. I’m guessing you’re probably right about a fight, though he’s so subdued right now, it’s hard to picture him getting aggressive. At any rate, he’s all yours.” Dr. Stanley turned abruptly and left us, mumbling, “I’m coming, little girl. I’m coming,” in response to the supersonic screams the child somewhere beyond had now resorted to. I hoped she would be okay.
Finn whispered, “Tom said Hart is your last name, right?”
I nodded.
“Thanks for doing this,” he said. “But, you know, when the lady was helping me take off my clothes, I couldn’t find my phone. Do you have it?”
“No, but maybe you dropped it in my van. Come on. I hate you having to put dirty clothes back on, but you can’t leave here in a hospital gown, even though it’s oh so attractive.”
With that remark, I’d managed to nudge his first real smile—and it was a nice one.
“Are we heading back to Tom’s?” Finn said. Though he still slurred his words a tad, he was considerably more alert. The nap in the car probably helped. How long had he been on the road without sleep?
“Since Tom’s been called away,” I said, “let’s stop at my house. We can phone him from there.” All I could think about was Bob, still camped out at Tom’s house. We’d be better off at my place. “You hungry?”
His sleepy eyes brightened and now he offered a genuine grin. “Hungry? You bet.”
Once we returned to the van, Allison turned Yoshi over to Finn and put one of her business cards in his hand. “If you ever want to help out at an animal shelter in sore need of volunteers, call me.”
Finn smiled and put the card in his backpack. “I love animals.”
“I can see that,” she said. Then she hugged me good-bye and took off, but not before showing me a picture of the four puppies that Doc Jensen had sent to her phone. They were tiny little things and Finn couldn’t take his eyes off them.
After a hunt for the missing phone we never found, Finn fell asleep again on the trip to my house, his terrier by his side. As we pulled into the driveway, I had the feeling that a caffeine-overloaded energy drink might give me the boost I would need when my fur friends met Yoshi. How would I convince three cats a dog visitor would be just what they needed? What was to come might be the biggest challenge of the day.
I couldn’t be sure Finn had the strength to keep up with the dog, so I took the leash as we got out of the car. Once we reached the back door, I disabled the security system.
Taking a deep breath first, I led the way inside. Or should I say I led briefly before Yoshi raced into the house, his leash nearly slipping from my hand.
We were greeted by a trio of loud hisses.
Seven
I wrapped the leash around one hand, shortening it considerably, and flipped the utility room light on with my free hand.
Syrah and Merlot, their fur standing on end and their backs arched, guarded the entrance to the kitchen. Chablis was nowhere in sight. Wispy cat hairs drifted around us—a result of all three cats’ agitation at this invasion by, of all things, a
Finn stood so close behind me his head was next to my ear. He said, “What cool cats.”
“They’re not always this, um,
