Sandra didn’t recognize the cop who brought him in—he wasn’t one of the regulars. In itself that wasn’t unusual; delivering minor arrests to the Texas State Care intake facility wasn’t high-prestige duty at the Houston Police Department. Oddly, though, this particular cop seemed personally concerned with his charge. The boy didn’t cringe away but pressed close to him, as if for protection. The cop kept a steady hand on his shoulder and said something Sandra couldn’t hear but which seemed to soothe the boy’s anxiety.

They were a study in contrasts. The cop was tall, big-bodied but not fat, with a dark complexion, dark hair, dark eyes. The boy was six inches shorter, dressed in a prison-issue jumper that sagged over his skinny body. He was so pale he looked like he’d been living in a cave for the past six months.

The orderly on reception duty at State was Jack Geddes, a man plausibly rumored to moonlight as a bouncer in a downtown bar. Geddes was often rough with patients—too rough, in Sandra’s opinion. He sprang forward from his place behind the reception desk as soon as he registered Orrin Mather’s agitation, quickly followed by the duty nurse with her armamentarium of sedatives and needles.

The cop—and this was very unusual—placed himself squarely between Orrin and the orderly. “None of that ought to be necessary,” he said. His voice was Texas with a hint of something foreign. “I can escort Mr. Mather wherever you need him to go.”

Sandra stepped forward, slightly embarrassed that she hadn’t spoken first. She introduced herself as Dr. Cole and said, “The first thing we’ll need to do is an intake interview. Do you understand, Mr. Mather? That happens in a room down the corridor. I’ll ask you some questions and take down your information. Then we’ll assign you a room of your own. Do you understand?”

Orrin Mather took a steadying breath and nodded. Geddes and the nurse backed off, Geddes looking a little annoyed. The cop gave Sandra an evaluative look.

“I’m Officer Bose,” he said. “Dr. Cole, can I have a word with you once you get Orrin settled?”

“That might take some time.”

“I’ll wait,” Bose said. “If you don’t mind.”

And that was the most unusual thing of all.

*   *   *

Daytime temperatures in the city had topped 100 degrees Fahrenheit for ten consecutive days now. The State Care evaluation facility was air-conditioned, often to the point of absurdity (Sandra kept a sweater in her office), but only a trickle of cool air forced its way through a ceiling grate into the room that was reserved for intake interviews. Orrin Mather was already sweating when Sandra took the chair across the table from him. “Morning, Mr. Mather,” she said.