He laughs and says, “The older I get, the more I think there are a whole lot of things in this world that we don’t understand. So you think a dog is telepathically communicating with you? I’ve heard of stranger things.”

“Really?” I ask, relieved.

“Really,” he answers. “You catch some Zs tonight. I’m gonna go hit the hay too.” He stands up and leans over to kiss my forehead.

“Good night, Gramps,” I tell him.

He stops in my doorway, turns around, and says, “Sleep tight, Katie.”

“Sadie,” I correct.

“I know.” He smiles. “That’s what I said.”

“Oh-kay,” I say uncertainly.

Part Two

LOST AND FOUND

Chapter 8

ORIGAMI

Mama drives me to school a half hour early so she can meet with Ms. Avery. It’s weird to walk through the halls when no one is here except for teachers. It’s almost like a creepy dream, or an alternate universe that is a lot like my school but also a place I’ve never been before.

When we get to my classroom Ms. Avery hands me a plastic spray bottle filled with some kind of bluish-green cleaner, and a roll of brown paper towels, like the kind that are in the restroom, which for some reason my school calls a lavatory.

Jude and I used to make fun of the word because it sounded like laboratory. Anytime Jude had to go to the bathroom, she’d put on this weird mad-scientist kind of accent and say, “I have to go conduct an experiment!”

I start accidentally laughing out loud thinking about it now, but then I glance over at Mama and she shoots me a look.

Sorry, I mouth.

Mama and Ms. Avery leave the room to talk in the hall while I clean off my desk. I can see them standing out there through the little window in the door, but I can’t be sure what they’re saying.

I spray the top of my desk with the cleaner and watch as the pen marks of my drawing begin to flood and wave, getting all distorted and blurry. It makes me think about what Dewey said to me yesterday—how my weird dream-drawing was neither just a dream nor a drawing, but was what actually had happened to Dewey: she was trying to run to me, away from being caught, and that’s exactly what I saw. As I wipe the spray with the paper towels, the drawing begins to slowly disappear. I spray again and make one more pass, and now the desk looks totally clean and shiny, except for a pointy-looking heart with an arrow through its center that someone carved into the top corner—probably years ago.