“She was deeply troubled. I wanted to be strong for her, not weak, not in a hospital bed. I picked up the small control pad for the bed and cranked it so that I could sit up.

“Dr. Winn came in to take his leave. ‘The CAT scan’s fine,’ he repeated. ‘And in the next few days we’ll run some more tests. All you have to do, Quinn, is stay in bed. I’ll be talking to you later this morning.’

“ ‘Doctor,’ I said, ‘would I try your patience if I asked you a question?’

“ ‘No, not at all, what is it?’

“ ‘There was a brilliant premed student; a friend of mine. She’d been accepted into a research project here. She died as the result of a traffic accident. I wonder if you knew her.’

“A change came into his calm face that was very eloquent of suffering. ‘You’re speaking of Lynelle Springer,’ he said.

“I nodded.

“ ‘You’re the boy she taught, the boy she talked so much about, aren’t you?’ he asked. ‘Of course. Tarquin Blackwood, her pride and joy. She loved you the way she loved her own children.’

“I swallowed. I was about to cry. I hadn’t expected this much of an answer. ‘Is it true?’ I asked, ‘that after the accident she never regained consciousness? She never knew how badly she was hurt?’

“ ‘It’s true,’ he said. He spoke in a humble voice, a voice that was reverent. ‘We had her here for two weeks. Her daughters came. They played tapes for her of music and poetry readings,’ he said. ‘But she was down too deep and her injuries were too great. Everything was done that could be done, and then she left us.’

“I felt immeasurable relief knowing all this. I felt like some key chapter in my life was finally closed so that it could remain with me in its entirety now without a host of little distractions. I also felt sure this man wouldn’t lie to me—ever—about anything.

“Aunt Queen inundated me with kisses and told me she was going to get dressed.

“Fr. Kevin Mayfair came into the room and sat down beside me. Goblin, who still stood solidly at the end of the bed, eyed him suspiciously.

“ ‘So what do you want me to say?’ I asked Fr. Kevin. ‘They’ve probably told you all I told them. They’ve told you that Goblin rescued me. You know Goblin. Goblin comes to Mass with me every Sunday.’

“ ‘Don’t be so scared of me, Quinn,’ he said, his tone firmer and a little higher in timbre than that of Dr. Winn. ‘I’m not the enemy. I’m not here to haul you up before the Spanish Inquisition. Your housekeeper, Ramona, she saw all this flying glass. If I’d seen it, maybe I’d never doubt Almighty God again. Maybe the Devil can do that for us.’