Page 23 of The Two Last Moments

“See?” I lean in and whisper. “You’ve got a lot of people on your team.”

She smiles, but it doesn’t reach her eyes.

“Officer Easton,” Angela says to Cliff, “write up what we have so far and meet me back at the station.”

“Yes, detective.” He says goodbye, then heads for the front door like a man with a mission.

Angela gets up and sits on the other side of Lark, reaching for her other hand. “The county provides services for all crime victims, including therapy. I’d like to make an appointment for you to meet with one of our resource officers, and she’ll go over your options.”

“The psychiatrist at the hospital already talked to me. But I don’t know if sitting and talking in an office is going to help me get my memory back.”

“It could help in other ways. Will you consider it?”

Lark hesitates, subtly leaning into me. “I’ll think about it.”

“That’s all I ask.” Angela rubs her belly. “So you’re heading back to the hospital?”

Lark glances at me, but all I do is raise my eyebrows, putting the question back at her.

“Not excited about it, but yeah. I’m supposed to be staying for observation. Maybe they’ll write research papers about me and my dissociative amnesia.” She smirks. “I’m a rare case, apparently.”

“I’ll be right back,” I whisper to her. “I won’t go far. That okay?”

I excuse myself while she and Angela continue to talk.

I want to do more for Lark. I just have to figure out how to make it happen.

* * *

I’m notsure if Nina will be awake. Usually she naps in the afternoon. But she and Starla are watching an old episode ofGray’s Anatomyon Nina’s iPad. She hits pause when she sees me.

“How is Lark?”

“Doing all right. Angela’s been great with her.”

“But what’s the plan?”

I don’t need any more explanation to know what Nina means. My grandmother doesn’t screw around when there’s a problem. She might not alwaystell methere’s a problem, but she’ll be doing her damnedest to handle it.

“I’m supposed to take Lark back to the hospital. We might have left without permission.”

“My Danny-boy, misbehaving? Who would’ve thought.” Nina eyes me sardonically.

“What? I usually follow the rules.”

“And you’ll also bend them to within an inch of your life.”

“But bending isn’t breaking,” I point out.

Nina’s nurse, Starla, clucks her tongue. “Danny, you need to take Lark back. The hospital is the best place for her. That way, once they release her, it’ll be an easy transition to an in- or out-patient facility.”

My body goes rigid. Dammit. I should’ve realized this was how it would go.

“Amental hospital?” Nina asks. “Is that what you’re talking about?”

“Or a group home,” Starla says. “It’s nothing to be afraid of. They’ll take good care of her. And with no idea who she is and with no one to take charge of her, what else can the county do? They’d be irresponsible to just turn her loose on her own. The girl would be homeless.”

My grandmother fixes me with a glare. “Daniel Ashford Bradley the Second, you’re not letting that girl be sent all alone to a mental hospital or turned out on the street.”

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