Chapter 4 - The Collar With No Name
Victor left Room 214 only after Ethan’s mother returned.
Laura Parker entered carrying a paper bag filled with fresh clothes and a stuffed blue dinosaur Ethan had owned since infancy. Her face looked exhausted, but what caught Daniel’s attention was the way she froze when she saw Victor standing near the door.
“You’re here,” she said quietly.
Victor gave her a thin smile.
“Obviously.”
Laura’s eyes moved toward Ethan.
Then Buddy.
Then Daniel.
The room became tense again.
Ethan lifted his head from the pillow.
“Mom, Daniel is going to take Buddy.”
Laura stopped walking.
For several seconds, she simply stared at her son.
“You found someone?”
Ethan nodded proudly.
“He promised.”
Laura looked at Daniel as though she wanted to thank him, but fear held back the words.
Victor answered for her.
“It’s settled.”
His tone sounded too easy.
Laura glanced at him.
“You agreed?”
“Why wouldn’t I?”
Buddy growled again.
Victor looked down at the dog.
“Control him.”
Daniel crouched beside Buddy and gently touched the old retriever’s shoulder. As his fingers brushed beneath the thick fur around the dog’s neck, he felt something hard.
Not the ordinary metal identification tag.
Something larger.
Hidden beneath the worn leather collar.
Daniel shifted slightly and noticed a second strip of leather sewn into the inside lining. It had been carefully concealed, almost as if someone had never wanted it found.
Buddy immediately turned his head.
His eyes fixed on Daniel.
The dog wasn’t frightened.
He seemed to be waiting.
Daniel glanced toward Ethan.
“Did you ever change Buddy’s collar?”
Ethan shook his head.
“My real dad gave it to him.”
The room went still.
Victor’s face changed.
Only for a second.
But Daniel saw it.
Laura lowered the paper bag onto a chair.
“Ethan,” she whispered, “you should rest.”
Daniel remained crouched beside Buddy.
“What happened to his father?”
Laura’s eyes filled with pain.
“He died three years ago.”
Victor stepped between them.
“That has nothing to do with the dog.”
Daniel slowly stood.
“Maybe not.”
Victor’s voice hardened.
“Then leave it alone.”
Ethan reached toward Buddy’s collar.
“My dad said Buddy carried something important.”
Laura’s head snapped toward him.
“When did he say that?”
“Before the accident.”
Victor suddenly grabbed the collar.
Buddy barked loudly and pulled away.
The heart monitor beside Ethan’s bed began to beep faster.
Laura moved between Victor and the dog.
“Stop it!”
Nurses appeared in the doorway.
Victor released the collar and raised both hands.
“Everybody calm down.”
But no one believed his calm expression anymore.
Dr. Carter entered moments later and ordered Victor to leave until Ethan’s condition stabilized.
Victor resisted.
Then he noticed Olivia standing behind the doctor with her phone in her hand.
He left without another word.
After the door closed, Ethan whispered,
“He knows.”
Daniel sat beside him.
“Knows what?”
Ethan stared at Buddy’s hidden collar.
“That my dad never trusted him.”
Daniel carefully turned the leather over.
Beneath one loose stitch, something metallic reflected the hospital light.
May you like
It wasn’t a tag.
It was a tiny key.
