They were startled upright when the door to the family room swung open and Dr. Kurdi entered. He appeared as fresh as he had when he left to do the case, and he was smiling pleasantly, almost ecstatically.

“It went as well as we could have hoped,” he said. “I’m optimistic that we’re going to get a significant amount of function back.”

Lou had been imagining what Joey’s life of hobbies would have been like missing a functional thumb.

“That’s great news, Rafe,” he said.

“You get as much credit for the success as we do.”

Millie squeezed Lou’s arm.

“Can we go see him?” she asked.

“In a little while, one of the recovery room nurses will be in to get you. He’s still pretty out of it from the anesthesia. He’ll need to stay here for a couple days. We want to keep a close eye on him and give him pain meds and IV antibiotics.”

“Well, that’s fine,” Millie said, a note of disappointment in her voice. “I’m not much for driving any distance, but there are plenty of folks at the restaurant who will come and get him. In fact, someone will come and get me tonight. I’m just glad he’s going to be all right.”

Lou put his hand on Millie’s shoulder.

“It’s no problem for me to bring him back to Kings Ridge when it’s time,” he said. “In fact, it would be my pleasure. I’ll drive you home later tonight, too. I have a couple of new CDs I want to listen to on the way back home. Also, I work right down the street at the Annex, so I can pop in as much as I want. And I’ll phone you with progress reports. How would that be?”

Most of Millie’s wrinkles vanished around a bright smile. “How would that be?” she echoed. “Let me put it this way. Neither you nor Dr. Kurdi will ever have to pay for another meal at Millie’s again.”

Chapter 20

CHAPTER 20

Lou rolled double sixes and moved his pewter Scottie dog ahead twelve spaces. Emily reacted immediately, springing from her beanbag chair, and tapping feverously at the IN JAIL square on their Monopoly board.

“Oh no you don’t,” she said. “That’s your second double in a row. You’ve got to go to jail.”

“No, no, no,” Lou countered. “It’s three doubles in a row and go to jail. Two in a row and I get to buy North Carolina, which I, in fact, am about to do.”

This was a serious development, and the teen’s somber expression reflected it. Her father already owned two monopolies to her one. North Carolina would give him a shot at putting her away. Her usual strategy of acquiring railroads at any and all cost along with the orange or red monopoly wasn’t working out.