The effort of saying so much at once seemed to tire him. Bobby Joe closed his eyes. At some point they’d all been briefed on what to expect going forward: confusion, fatigue, spells of moodiness and inattention. The marked improvement in his speech and thinking was still a very good sign.

When she turned, Bobby Joe was looking at her as if she were a stranger who had wandered into his room, his brow furrowed.

“What’s the matter?” she asked in a gentle tone.

“Parr told me I crashed my car.” He looked out the window again. “I mean, I asked him. We didn’t get into details.”

At last. There had been a mutual agreement between all of them to wait for Bobby Joe to ask that question. No one wanted to bring it up out of nowhere and stress him. “Yes,” she said simply.

“I don’t remember it.”

“That’s because your head hit the steering wheel. Did Parr say anything else?”

“No. The doc sent him out so she could test me. Said he was a distraction.”

Mary Beth had her own take on that. She had experienced the Parr Effect personally. So a female doctor wasn’t immune either. “And then what?”

“I had to count backward from ten, then twenty. Oh, and tell her who the president was, stuff like that.”

“How’d you do?” she asked lightly.

“I guess I passed.”

“I’m sure you did.”

Gingerly, Bobby Joe rubbed his temples. “I wish my head would stop hurting. Were you with me in the car?” His brow furrowed again and he stared anxiously at Mary Beth.

“No.”

“Someone was. Who?”

Evidently his memories were incomplete. She half wondered if she should call in someone from his medical team. Mary Beth told herself to calm down. It was best to be careful about how she replied. Thank God Alma had survived in relatively good shape and would most likely walk again.

“Your mother. I guess you don’t know that she’s here in the hospital.”

“Parr didn’t say. He had to go out. Said he was coming back.”

“Well, she’s not on this floor,” Mary Beth added. “Long story short, she was injured but she’s going to be okay.”

Bobby Joe closed his eyes. There was a rawness in his voice when he spoke again. “Was I at fault?”

“Apparently not. The car hit the divider on a blind curve, according to witnesses. Some cars got banged up and a truck was totaled. But no one else was injured besides your mom.”

“I want to see her.”

“You will,” Mary Beth reassured him. “Just as soon as we can figure out how to make it happen. Right now she can’t walk and can’t be in a wheelchair.”

“Is she hurt that bad?”

“She’s getting better, just like you are.”