Only Yours (Fool's Gold #5)(46)

“We’re done,” Simon told her.

Mindy looked startled. “That was quick. It didn’t really hurt that much. I was surprised is all.”

Her mother moved close and studied the work. “It barely shows and it’s not even finished healing.”

Simon nodded. “I’m not expecting her to have a scar. You have the instructions for what to do as soon as the scab falls off?”

“Yes.”

Mindy stared at her mother. “So I’ll still be pretty?”

Simon helped her down from the table. “You’re already beautiful. I don’t think there’s anything I could do to make you more beautiful. I’m not that talented.”

Mindy beamed at him, then hugged him. “Thank you. I was scared but this wasn’t bad at all.”

“I’m glad,” he told her with a smile.

He was so different with his patients, Montana thought. More himself—open and giving. It seemed that was the only place he allowed himself to relax. The rest of the time there was a wall between him and the world.

Mindy and her mother left. The nurse let in a small boy accompanied by a woman Montana would swear she recognized from the social services office. The boy had cuts all over his face and dozens of stitches.

Simon immediately dropped to a crouch and put his hand on the boy’s shoulder. “Hello, Freddie.”

“Hi.”

The boy’s voice was soft and high-pitched. He was probably six or seven, skinny and small boned.

“I heard about your aunt coming to get you.”

Freddie’s mouth turned up but he didn’t actually smile. It took Montana a second to realize that because of all the cuts and stitches, he couldn’t.

“The judge said she could and she’s taking me back to Hawaii.” Freddie looked at the social worker. “My cousin Sean is my best friend, but Dad said I couldn’t see him anymore. Now I can.”

Simon motioned for Buddy to approach. “My friend Montana brought in a very special dog. His name is Buddy. He’s kind of scared to be in the hospital but when I told him about you, he wanted to visit anyway.”

Humor twinkled in Freddie’s eyes. “You can’t talk to dogs.”

“I’m a doctor, young man. I can do anything.” Simon turned to the dog. “Buddy, are you nervous?”

Buddy’s eyebrows drew together even more and he whimpered.

“Whoa.” Freddie looked impressed. “Okay, Buddy. Thanks for wanting to come see me.”

Buddy held out a paw to shake.

Simon helped the boy onto the table. This time Buddy jumped in the chair without being asked. Freddie put an arm around him and the dog leaned close.

Simon went to work. Unlike the last time, there were no tears, no requests to stop. Freddie flinched a few times, but otherwise he was completely stoic.

Montana realized Freddie had been through this before and wondered what could have happened to him. Why was he having more surgeries? Except for the lines from the cuts, he didn’t look deformed.

After Freddie there were three more children. When they were finished, Simon escorted Montana and Buddy out of the hospital.

“I have an idea,” she said. “Would you get us our coffee and I’ll meet you there in a second?”

Simon nodded. “Of course.”

While he walked toward the center of town, she and Buddy headed for her car. Fifteen minutes later, coffee in cupholders, they were driving up the mountain.

“We’re not going far,” she told him. “I know this beautiful meadow where we can talk and Buddy can run around.”

Simon reached back and patted the dog. “You’ve earned a romp.”

She pulled off the road and into a makeshift dirt parking lot. After letting Buddy out, she grabbed a blanket from the back and led the way to a meadow.

The sun was warm, the grassy area dotted with small flowers. The hum of insects mingled with birdsongs and the soft breeze. It was a perfect kind of morning in a perfect kind of place. She spread out the blanket and motioned for Simon to sit.

“Tell me about Freddie,” she said when he settled. “How did he get hurt?”

“His father. He cut him. This wasn’t the first time.”

Montana stared at him. “I don’t understand.”

“Not all parents are like yours. Some have mental or emotional problems. Some are just cruel. Freddie’s father would tie him up and then cut him with a hunting knife. His back, his chest. This is the first time he went to work on his face.”

Her chest was tight and she found it difficult to breathe. Her eyes burned. Rather than give in, she looked past Simon to where Buddy chased a butterfly—for once having fun rather than worrying.

“Why wasn’t Freddie taken away from him before now?”

Simon shrugged. “The kid didn’t say how it happened and he slipped through the cracks.”

“What kind of parent does that?”

“The bad kind. It happens more than you would think.”

Her gaze shifted to his scars as an impossible thought formed. Had one of Simon’s parents been responsible for his burns?

“I can’t believe something like that would happen in Fool’s Gold,” she whispered, because she was too afraid to ask.

“It happens everywhere, but if it makes you feel better, Freddie and his father have only been in town a few months. The E.R. staff figured it out immediately and called social services. Freddie was taken away from his father that day.”