Chloe watched him leave.

The receptionist noticed how the child’s hand remained near her collar for several seconds afterward.

“James has it,” she said.

“I know.”

Chloe sounded less certain than the words.

The nurse returned to assess her hands and the rest of her condition.

The child had walked a long way, strained to move the wheelbarrow, and spent days without an adult able to care for her.

Her needs were not less urgent to understand because she could speak and sit upright.