Chapter 16: The Desk

Gina was on her feet before I knew I was awake.

She pulled her tank top over her head, found her pants in the dark, and handed me my white shirt, inside out.

"Stay here," she said.

"No."

"Rae."

"It's my door too. You gave me the key."

She looked at me a second and nodded.

We went to the side door together, barefoot on the cold concrete, and she switched on the hall light.

The scratching stopped.

She opened the door.

On the step stood a thin boy, maybe nine or ten, holding a gym bag bigger than his torso.

He stared at the light and at the two of us in our half-buttoned clothes, and then he lowered his eyes.

"Is this the place that's free?" he said.

Gina crouched to his level.

"It is. Are you hungry?"

"No."

"Are you lying?"

"A little."

"Come in. There's crackers in the office."

He came in.

Gina found him crackers and a juice box in the back office, sat him in her father's big chair.

Asked him questions so gently that I almost didn't recognize the voice.

His mother worked nights at a hospital laundry.

His aunt was supposed to pick him up and hadn't.

He had seen a boxing glove on the sign and the side door open one afternoon when a man took out the trash.

I stood in the doorway and watched Gina take his name down on an index card.

She didn't push him to say more.

She called the aunt's number, and then the mother's.

After twenty minutes a woman in scrubs ran in out of breath and nearly crushed him.

She cried and apologized, and Gina said, "Stop. He's fine. He ate all my crackers."

At the door the mother asked what it cost.

"Nothing," Gina said.

"I can pay something."

"We'll talk Saturday."

When they were gone, I locked the side door and leaned my forehead against it.

"That kid will be back Saturday," I said. "I want to ask her what she needs before I decide anything."

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