I remembered the hospital’s calm voices, the careful explanations, and the women who had stood between a frightened child and a demanding adult without raising their voices.

“Why a nurse?” I asked.

“Because Maribel believed me,” Sadie said.

“And she kept coming back.”

There it was again, the smallest word with the greatest weight: believed.

That night I called Maribel through the hospital’s patient-relations office and left a message thanking her for the kindness she’d shown.

I didn’t expect a reply, but two days later a card arrived in the mail, signed by several staff members.

It read: Keep asking questions.