They were both about to discover why that old silver music box mattered more than anything else Ethan carried.

Dr. Sarah Collins had been watching the conversation through the narrow glass panel in the hospital-room door for nearly a minute before she finally stepped outside.

She expected another frightened child struggling to understand what was happening.

Instead, she found a little boy standing perfectly still, clutching an old silver music box as though his entire world depended on it.

“Officer Hayes?” she asked softly.

Michael stepped slightly aside.