The Waiting: A Supernatural Thriller(36)
Evan staggered away from the papers, his hand coming to his mouth. “Oh my God,” he whispered.
12
The waiting-room Wi-Fi signal looked strong on his laptop screen.
Evan glanced at a passing nurse who gave him a smile, then lowered his face into his palm. He hadn’t slept much the night before. Not that it surprised him. Bob’s message still hung like a macabre painting in the hall of his mind. He may have gotten two hours of broken rest in before Shaun woke.
Sighing, he logged on to the Internet and sat still for a moment. Was he really going down this path? A madman had cut the trail before him, he was sure of it. The urge to shut the computer down overcame him, and he went so far as to put his hand on its lid before setting his fingers back on the keys. He typed Bob Garrison car accident into the search bar and waited. The results came back with nothing of interest. He tried again, Robert Garrison Colorado.
A webpage appeared at the top of the screen, with the title Bob’s Odd Jobs over it. Evan clicked on it and saw a simple and outdated website with a few pictures of landscaped yards, paintbrushes, and a smiling man with sandy-blond hair in cargo shorts and sunglasses. He read through the description of services and studied the man’s photograph. That was him, it had to be. A phone number was at the very bottom of the page, and Evan hesitated only a second before calling it. It didn’t ring; an automated voice picked up and told him the number was either disconnected or no longer in service.
He put his phone away and returned to the search engine, typing Colorado car accidents Billy. A few dozen hits came up, but most were decades old and none involved any information about a child.
He readjusted himself in the chair and glanced down the hospital’s hallway, his brain running too fast for him to examine his thoughts. He saw the arrangement of papers on the basement floor again and pushed the image away, but not before a new idea bloomed in his mind.
With trepidation, he typed Colorado hit-and-run Billy 6 years old. The first website that came up made his stomach coil in on itself. Hit-and-run in downtown Boulder leaves 6-year-old dead. Evan clicked on the article and began to read.
A community mourns the loss of a young child today after a hit-and-run accident late Tuesday evening. William Akely, 6, was playing in his front yard at approximately 9 p.m. when he wandered into the street near his home. An unidentified vehicle struck and killed him without stopping. Police say they are following up each and every lead in the case, and are confident that a suspect will be arrested soon. William’s mother, Janet Akely, was watching him at the time of the accident, but officials say she momentarily stepped into the house to answer a phone call. A memorial service will be held at St. Luke’s Lutheran Church of Boulder on Saturday, June 11. The Boulder Police Department is asking for any and all information in regards to the investigation.
With a shaking hand, Evan closed the webpages, and sat staring at the opposite wall of the waiting room. He let the white paint invade his eyes until it was all he could see.
“Mr. Tormer?”
He snapped out of his trance and saw that a young Asian woman stood a few paces away, holding Shaun’s hands in hers.
“Sorry,” Evan said, putting his computer aside. He stood.
“That’s okay. I’m Becky Tram. Dr. Netler said you inquired about a PCA?”
Becky had jet-black hair tied back from a round face. Her uniform looked tight in places, as if she had gained weight since she bought it and wasn’t willing to give in to a larger size. She smiled, revealing a set of very white teeth and dimples in her plump cheeks.
“Oh, yes, nice to meet you,” Evan said, holding out a hand for her to shake.
“You too. And this little man did awesome today,” Becky said, guiding Shaun to Evan.
Evan grinned and pulled Shaun up, to hold him on his hip. “Did you?” he asked, tickling Shaun’s neck.
Shaun laughed and kicked his feet.
“Yes, he did great. We worked really hard, so he might be tired. Have you been doing small motor skills with him lately?”
“Yeah, we’ve been doing tracing and some therapy putty from time to time.”
“Great. I can tell you work with him at home since he’s versed in most of the stuff we do.”
“He has a great PT and OT staff back where we live.”
“Well, he’s doing wonderful, lots of echolalia today too. So, were you thinking of regular PCA hours, or once in a while?”
Evan shifted Shaun to his other hip. “Probably just from time to time. I’m home with him now, but I thought it might be good to set something up in case I needed to go somewhere.”
Becky nodded. “Absolutely. My schedule is pretty open for the summer, and I could probably do almost any day of the week except for Mondays. Did the front desk give you my résumé?”
“They did, it looked great.”
“Good. Yeah, I’ve been doing PCA stuff for about six years now, and it works really well with my OT. I’ll eventually be full-time here, but not until they have an opening.”
Evan’s eyes glazed slightly. “Would you be able to come out tomorrow?”
“Sure, what time?”
He blinked. “How about one? Shaun usually takes his naps in the afternoon.”
“That sounds great. Where do you guys live?”