True Places(12)

She nodded warily.

“Mind telling us your name?”

“Iris.”

“That’s pretty,” the nurse said, handing her the drink again.

Iris’s stomach gurgled in hunger. She sipped the drink and tried not to taste it.

Officer said, “Last name?”

“Smith.”

Officer and Rappoport exchanged a look like they didn’t believe her.

“How old are you, Iris?”

“Sixteen last fall.”

Officer’s eyebrows shot up. He looked at the nurse, who nodded.

As if she wouldn’t know her own age.

“What day?”

“What do you mean?”

“Your birthday,” Rappoport said, smiling.

“October usually. First day with good weather.”

Officer, Rappoport, and the nurse all frowned.

Iris didn’t see what was so hard to understand but decided to be helpful. “There’s not much point in having your birthday on a day with bad weather.”

Rappoport nodded. “But you know the real day, right?”

“No.”

Officer sighed and went on. “Now, what about your parents? What are their names?”

“Mary and Jim.”

“Okay. Your mother’s maiden name?”

“I don’t know what that is.”

“Her name before she married your father.”

“Oh. I don’t know.”

“Do you know where they are?”

“Mama’s dead. She fell down a hole into a cave. I tried to get her out but I couldn’t, so she died down there.”

Officer straightened his back.

Rappoport said, “I’m so sorry, Iris. When did this happen?”

“Almost three years ago.”

“And you’ve been living with your father since?”

“Oh, no. Daddy left a long time before that.”

“How long?”

“I was ten.”

“So who’s been taking care of you, Iris?”

“No one. Because, like I said, Daddy’s gone and Mama’s dead.”

Officer leaned forward, touching the tips of his fingers together. His eyes said he didn’t believe her and it was making him a little angry. “Where was this, Iris? Where were you living before you ended up in the woods?”

“I’ve always lived in the woods.”

The three of them all looked at each other, then stared at her. Iris closed her eyes to shut them out.

Finally Officer spoke. “You’re saying you’ve been living in the woods by yourself for three years.”

Iris thought to mention Ash but decided to keep him to herself. Ash had been with her, but she didn’t feel like explaining how even if she could manage to find the words. She didn’t trust these people, and it sure seemed like they didn’t trust her. Annoyance prickled in her chest. “Yes, I have. And I want to go back. Mama and Daddy were right.” She swept her arm wide. “Everything here is loud and crazy and corrupted. And it smells awful. I want to go back to my woods.”

“Now, Iris.” The nurse tried to pat her hand, but she pulled away. She’d had enough of all of them.

Officer and Rappoport asked her a few more questions, but she was tired and stopped answering. The nurse herded them out and brought Iris soup, which she ate without setting her spoon down.

“You sleep now.” The nurse left but some lights were still on. How was she supposed to sleep?

Alone now, Iris thought about Ash, missing him more than ever, wondering where he had gone. She couldn’t remember exactly the last time he’d been around. Not having Ash here made her frantic, like mice were running through her insides. She hadn’t always had her parents; she had always had Ash. Daddy had gone, just left one day and never came back, she couldn’t remember why. Something to do with Ash maybe, but that didn’t make any sense. Daddy was gone, that was the meat of it. His laugh was the best sound in the world and Mama wasn’t the same after he’d gone. She’d never been a talker and never surprised you with a hug the way Daddy did. That wasn’t Mama. And then she’d fallen into the cave and there wasn’t a thing Iris could do to help. Ash had been there. She’d helped him through it. Being a year and a half older wasn’t much, but she took it seriously. She had to look out for Ash. For nearly three years, each other was all they’d had.

And now he was gone, too.

She couldn’t work out where he might be, how he might find her or she him. The healing place was terrible. Sure, her jaw was better, and the dense fog of pain that had smothered her senses had lifted, leaving only a misty ache and a hole in her gum she could worry with her tongue. She had to be grateful for that. But she didn’t understand this hard place. Too many people, too many names, too many noises and bright lights and grinding, whirring, shrieking, booming noises. She could not contemplate—that’s what Daddy had called it—and she missed it as much as she missed Ash. Without the space and the quiet for contemplating, she could not know her own mind, trust her own perceptions, and she was lost.



Nurse Amy came at midday. She had a soft voice and only talked when she had something to say.

“If you want, I could help you take a shower.” She pointed at the small room where the toilet and sink were. Iris had learned how those worked last night.