“What about your mother?” Sam asked.
His voice didn’t relay anything other than curiosity, but I knew that he was feeling something based on the clench of his hands that were fisted on top of the table.
“My mother died when I was four, I was told.” She shrugged.
And on it went. Theo, at the end, told her entire life story, leading up until the day that she found herself walking down my street with no recollection of how she got there.
“They said they had two patients die and two are still unaccounted for.” Sam sat back in his chair. “That works out well, your disappearance. They’re going to count you as dead. A casualty of the tornado.”
Theo didn’t say anything.
“Have you tried to contact your brother?” Hoax asked, a little more relaxed at hearing Theo’s entire life story.
I wasn’t sure that he totally believed her, but I could tell that he was leaning toward wanting to.
“Assuming you’re referring to Tyson? No, I haven’t tried contacting him.” She shook her head. “I’ve thought about it…but no.”
Hoax sighed and leaned back in his chair.
“Say I believe you about all of this,” he started. “What do you hope to accomplish?”
Sam turned to him and shot him a look that I wasn’t privy to, but whatever that look happened to be, it caused Hoax to sigh.
“Your sister hurt my friend,” Hoax said softly. “It’s hard to see the difference between you and her.”
Theo didn’t offer any false platitudes that she knew wouldn’t help. Instead she waited.
“It’ll take us about a week to set something up,” he answered. “Until then, we suggest you continue staying with Liner. You’ll be safe there.”
Theo nodded once and then stood up, offering them both her hand.
My eyes went to the bones of her wrist.
Even in the weeks that I’d known her, she was still too small.
She was slowly putting on weight, but not at a fast enough rate to appease me.
She could stand to gain about thirty more pounds, and even then, it might be on the low side of acceptable.
But I could tell that she would one day get there.
One day when I was no longer in her picture.
“Thank you, gentlemen,” she said softly after shaking each of their hands.
I stood up and cupped her elbow, guiding her out of the room.
Hoax’s eyes shot to mine, and for the first time since he’d seen Theo, he looked uncertain.
Good.
Turning back to the exit, I held the door open for her and gestured for her to go in front of me.
She did but tossed me a glare over her shoulder.
“You could’ve warned me,” she growled. “You could’ve said that I was walking into a viper’s den.”
I patted her on the hand as we walked toward my truck.
“They don’t hate you,” I promised. “They just wanted to get to the bottom of the story. I swear. And, to be honest, I did request that Sam do this alone. Hoax started with Free when he got out of the military. He’s still new…and biased. Which was why I asked that he not be included in the initial meeting.”
The day was gorgeous and there wasn’t anything more I’d like to do than go for a ride with Theo on the back of my bike.
After having a week of cloudy days, it was nice to see the sunshine.
Which reminded me.
“I need to go to the office,” I said softly. “Would you mind going with me?”
She sent a glare in my direction. “Do I have a choice?”
I tossed her a look over my shoulder. “Of course, you have a choice,” I told her. “But yes, I think you’d be safer if you were with me. And those men behind me agreed.”
She sighed. “Yes.”
I grinned at her. “I shouldn’t be long. I swear.”
That was all lies.
My dad was swamped, and I ended up staying there for far longer than I ever intended to. But still, even when we did leave, she continued to be mad at me.
***
There was a point that I admitted defeat.
Gathering breath and trying not to throw up as I did, I called out for her.
“Theo!”
Nothing.
Not a sound.
I guessed that was what I got. I told her, after she stared at me with her scared rabbit eyes, that I wouldn’t bother her the rest of the night.
But what I also didn’t take into account was the predicament I now found myself in.
There was only so much I could be expected to do, to be honest.
So I did what any sane man would do.
“Theo! I need help!” I called out again.
I knew for certain she wasn’t asleep.
And when I heard the soft thump-thump of steps coming from the direction of my bedroom, I gave a pain-filled grimace.
The dog started to make that sound again, the sound that you never want to hear in the middle of the night, and I prayed that Theo hurried.