HARPER GAZED AT THE BLUE SKY OUTSIDE THE HOSPITAL WINDOW AND prayed Cora would find her. She’d been moved to the children’s hospital that morning, and as the nurse had filled out her paperwork, Harper had repeatedly told the nurse she needed to find Cora Grant, her case worker, and tell her where she was. The nurse had nodded and assured her she would, but Harper didn’t believe her. She didn’t believe anyone anymore. Now, she rolled onto her side as hot tears trickled down her cheeks. She’d pretended to be sleeping after all the tests, and she’d overheard one of the doctors say her heart couldn’t handle much stress, and although she’d promised Cora she wouldn’t worry, she couldn’t help it. She wanted to know what that meant.
She rubbed her chest. The pain was gone, but there was still a funny ghostlike sensation where it had been. She brushed back her tears. She wanted to go to Cora’s—the only place that felt like home—and play with Rudy, like they’d planned. She tried to remember all the homes she’d been in over the years, and she realized Cora was right—she hadn’t been able to get along in any of them. After Tom and Mary’s, she’d been moved to a home that already had three foster kids, and that had been a disaster. Bob and Deloris had been so short-tempered, she hadn’t stood a chance. Bob had watched her every move, leering at her with dark, creepy eyes. One time, he’d come into the kitchen when she was reaching for a cookie and he’d backhanded her so hard she’d landed on the other side of the room. It wasn’t until Cora stopped by and saw all her bruises that she and the other kids had been taken from the home.
Nine more years, she thought. She just had to survive nine more years, and then she could be on her own. No one would ever again be able to tell her what to do, or where she had to live. She’d buy her own house and have her own job and get a dog like Sundance or a cat like McMuffin. She was certain she could take care of herself. She could do it now if she didn’t have this stupid pain in her chest. Maybe after she got out of the hospital she could find Tom and ask him to let her stay with him. She’d promise not to be any trouble; she’d learn to cook, and do laundry, walk Sundance, and help out in any way she could. After all, he had to be lonely without Mary, and if she lived there, he wouldn’t be lonely anymore. Suddenly, she wondered why she hadn’t thought of that before. And if Tom couldn’t take her, she’d run away. She was sure she could make it on her own.
There was a knock on the door, and a moment later, a different nurse came in pushing a cart with a laptop on it. “Hi, Harper, my name’s Jill,” she said, smiling.
Harper watched Jill erase the name on the white board at the end of her bed and write Jill. “If you need anything, just ask.”
Harper nodded.
“How’re you feeling?”
Harper shrugged and watched Jill check the tube in her arm. “What’s that for?” she asked.
“It’s an IV,” Jill explained. “It’s to make sure you stay hydrated, and it’s also giving you a little medicine to help you feel better.” She tapped some notes into her laptop as she spoke.
“Did anybody find Cora Grant?” Harper asked.
“Not yet,” Jill said, “but I’m sure she’ll come as soon as she can.”
“She doesn’t know where I am,” Harper said.
Jill smiled. “Well, I bet she’ll keep asking till she finds you.”
“Maybe,” Harper said. “Or maybe she’ll just leave me here since I cause so much trouble.”
“I doubt that,” Jill said, laughing. “How much trouble can you be?”
“Oh, I can be a lot of trouble,” Harper said with a sigh.
Jill looked up but showed no sign of hearing what Harper had just said. “Have you had breakfast?”
“I’m not hungry.”
“Well, you have to eat to feel better,” Jill said, smiling. “I’ll make sure they bring your breakfast soon.”
Harper watched Jill roll the cart out the door and then looked down at the IV in her arm and wondered if it would hurt or bleed if she pulled it out. She knew her clothes were in the plastic bag on the chair. All she had to do was pull out the IV, untangle herself from all the wires attached to the stickers on her chest, and get dressed. No one would even miss her.
She sat up, ran her finger lightly over the needle. She had just started to peel back the tape when there was a knock on the door, and she quickly pushed the tape down and looked up.
Cora was peering around the doorway with a large McDonald’s coffee cup in her hand. “Hey, baby,” she said softly.
Harper’s face brightened. “Hi, Cora! Did you bring me a big-ass coffee?”
Cora laughed. “Lord, no!”