A Question of Will Read Online Free PDF Page A

her son as he was now. The boy looked back at her, making eye contact, his deep blue eyes sparkling with an internal light, full of warmth and wisdom. Will had always said he could see that in the boy’s eyes, even while most of the light had been deadened over the previous six years. Hope could see it, too. She’d always known her little boy was special, even without the miracle she’d just witnessed.
    “I need to call Daddy,” she said. She ran down the hall to get her phone, dialing it as she ran back to Josh’s room, where the boy had resumed the game of fetch with Smokey, his face full of concentration and concern all at once. She was reminded that Josh’s words spoke of having trouble sleeping, something he’d never struggled with before. He couldn’t have had the same nightmare I did, could he? Or sensed that I was fearful?
    “I just left the office and I’m on my way home,” Will said by way of greeting. She could hear the sound of the engine as he drove the car, which, quite sadly, featured armored exterior panels and bullet-proof glass. I guess we have to be afraid that those militia members will start shooting at us again , she thought, a humorless smile on her face. “Did Josh say where he wanted to go to dinner?” The words, though spoken in a humorous cadence, carried with them the tone of a father saddened at the cruel hand life had dealt his beloved son.
    “No, but if you ask him when you get home, you will get an answer.” She wondered if Will would catch her hidden meaning.
    There was a pause. “Are you trying to tell me something?” Will asked, his voice trembling with emotion.
    “Four words. Full sentence.” The tears were welling in her eyes once again, but the triumph in her voice was unmistakable.
    She could hear Will breaking down as well. “My little boy is talking,” he whispered. Then: “My little boy is talking!” he shouted. “Whoa!” She heard the sound of tires squealing. “Sorry, lost control of the car for a second.” Now she could hear the smile in his face. “Can you put him on the phone? By the way, what in the world is the sound in the background?”
    Hope laughed. “After you almost crashed the car by merely being told he’s talking, I dare say you’ll end up crashing into a tree if I let you talk to him right now. The sound you hear is your son playing fetch with Smokey, and they’re both having grand time.”
    “All right, all right, I can take a hint,” he said, trying to sound offended. “Guess I’ll need to risk a few speeding tickets to get home more quickly.”
    “No, drive safely. We’re not going anywhere until you get here.”
    “I love you, Hope,” he said, his voice serious. “It’s all the time you spent with him that’s enabled him to finally break free. You’re amazing.”
    “I love you, too,” she replied. “And don’t shortchange yourself. We both know you’d have spent as much time with him as I did if you’d been able. But it does take a bit of time and a singularly qualified individual to resurrect an economy of three hundred and fifty million people. Don’t forget that you’re setting a wonderful example for your son to follow. That’s just as critical as reading and math and history. Besides, without you, how would he know how to throw the baseball so that Smokey can’t catch it on the fly and break her teeth?”
    He laughed. “And on that note, I must focus on my driving. See you in about a half hour.”
    “See you then.”
    They both hung up.
    Hope watched the boy and his dog playing for a few more minutes, and then addressed her son. “Josh?”
    He turned toward her. That was unusual. Typically, Josh showed no reaction to spoken words. He looked at her, expectation on his face. He still wouldn’t be accustomed to social customs, and would not necessarily recognize when he needed to respond to a spoken statement. That would come with time. “Do you know why you’re able to talk with me now?”
    “The