The Summer I Left novel · Chapter 4 of 24

Chapter 4: Three Digits

At nine, I had the house to myself.

Mom and Dad had left at dawn to take Nate to a psychiatrist, and Brynn had gone with them.

I was zipping my suitcase when my phone started buzzing.

One charge alert, then another, then another.

I pulled up my account, and my balance had dropped from six thousand eight hundred dollars to two hundred and fourteen.

The roar in my ears drowned out the room.

Most of the charges came from the hospital Nate kept visiting.

One was from a name I didn't know.

I tore open my closet and checked the top shelf, where I kept my debit card inside an old sneaker.

The sneaker was empty.

I called Mom, and it rang out.

I called Dad, and it rang out.

I left the suitcase on the bed, caught a bus, and walked into the psychiatric wing of St. Anne's with my heart pounding.

They were all in the waiting area, Mom and Dad and Brynn, with Nate in the corner with his headphones on.

All three adults saw how hard I was breathing, and guilt crossed each of their faces before they hid it.

Mom pulled a mask from her purse.

"Put this on first."

I knocked it out of her hand.

"Where is my money?" I said. "Where is my card?"

Mom looked at Dad.

Dad frowned at the carpet.

"The specialist consultation is today," he said. "I booked an appointment for Nate. It's paid for."

Their voices sounded far away.

I turned my eyes on Brynn.

She had the grace to look away for half a second. Then her chin came up.

"I gave them the password," she said. "They raised you for eighteen years, Drew. It's only fair that you give something back this once."

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