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Tess squeezed her hand and kept walking. "To a special
place."
Katie pulled her hand free. "What special place?" Tess felt keenly the loss of Katie's tiny hand in hers, but knew that kind of trust was something she'd have to earn. "I don't know. I haven't seen it yet."
They trudged through the pasture, passing wild rabbits, granite rocks, and sheep along the way. Finally the land dipped and rose, creating a perfect grassy pinnacle overlooking the house, t
he pasture, and Haro Strait. Tess led Katie to the special spot and sat down.
Evening was just beginning to mask the fading sun. Wind burrowed through the tall grass, carrying with it the scent of twilight and wildflowers.
They sat side by side. After a few moments, Tess scooted closer and touched Katie's chin. "Katie?"
Katie resisted the pressure for a heartbeat, then turned her head slightly and looked up.
Fear and uncertainty darkened the child's brown eyes. Tess understood perfectly. There was a time when Tess had felt the very same things. It was a pain not easily forgotten.
She squeezed her eyes shut in a quick, silent prayer.
Please, God, don't let me screw up. ...
"I ... I know how much it hurts when people treat you as if you're ... dumb."
Surprise widened Katie's eyes. "You do?"
Tess nodded. "When I was about your age, I ... I mean a friend of mine ... got a disease called spinal meningitis. She got really, really sick?the doctors didn't think she would live, but she did. Only ... not all of her got better. When it was all over, she couldn't hear."
Katie frowned. "Nothin'?"
"Not a thing. It made everything really difficult for her because she didn't know how to communicate anymore.
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So ..." Painful memories catapulted Tess back in time. Suddenly she was a child again, seven years old, being led across the schoolyard to the rickety old portable that housed the special education class.
This is Tess Gregory, the principal said, signing the condemning words at the same time. She belongs here. ... "Mama?"
Katie's voice yanked Tess back to the present. She dashed the film of moisture from her eyes and cleared her throat. "Sorry. Anyway, they put... my friend in a special class at school?a class for people who were different. It was hard for her. After a while people forgot she couldn't hear and started treating her as if she was ... stupid. And the other kids, who weren't in the special class and used to be her friends, laughed at her and then forgot...." "Gosh, that's terrible."
Tess forced a shaky smile. "Yeah. Then my friend's mom died, and she went to live with another family." The first of many foster families . .. "She was sad for a long time, and then something wonderful happened." "What?"
She smiled, remembering the day Jane Essex had walked into the special ed class. "She made a friend in her class. Her friend had something called dyslexia." "What's that?"
"It's a problem lots of people have." Tess took hold of Katie's small hands and drew them into her lap. "It's where letters get all jumbled around in your mind and seem to blur and dance on the page. Is that what it's like for you?"
Katie swallowed hard and nodded. "Uh-huh." "Her friend was smart as a whip, too." "Did ... did she learn how to read?" "She sure did. It took her a little longer, but she worked really hard and learned how." Tess stroked Katie's hair,
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looked deeply into her eyes. "I know how you feel. But
you're not dumb. Do you want to learn to read?"
Katie's bottom lip quivered. Tears flooded her eyes and streaked down her cheeks. She tried to look away, but Tess wouldn't let her. "Katie?"