the needle in the crook of my arm. It was only a pinch, but I still couldn’t look. She handed me a cotton ball and told me to press the spot. As I sat on a stool, she swung up two foot pedals from under the bed and tossed a gown to me.
“Put this on, honey.”
I pulled the gown over my head, slipped my tank top off my shoulders, and stepped out of my shorts just as the gown dropped around my hips. The shy girl’s disrobing style.
The nurse draped a sheet across the end of the bed and patted it. “Have a seat, Penny. The doctor will be here in a moment.” She pushed open the door and stepped out of the room.
Mother and I sat there quietly, the air conditioner humming. Somebody knocked on the door, and the man I’d seen in the hallway breezed into the room, the flaps of his coat blown back, a cloud of musky cologne in his wake. He pulled on his Fu Manchu mustache and extended a clammy hand.
“Penny. Dr. Keller.”
I shook his hand quickly, and he turned to Mother. “Ms. Entwhistle? Dr. William Keller.”
His use of “Ms.” was well calculated, and Mother visibly relaxed, her shoulders dropping down from her ears.
“Can I call you Anne-Marie?”
Mother shrugged. “Sure.”
“Great, Anne-Marie, I just need to ask Penny a few questions, and then we can see what’s what.” His voice was smooth and friendly, but with the smarmy warmth of a car salesman. He picked up his clipboard again and smiled big at me, showcasing his oversized yellow teeth. One front tooth protruded farther than the other, like a battered picket fence. “Now, Penny, do you know what year it is?”
“It’s 1974.”
“Do you know where you are?”
“At the hospital.”
On and on went the battery of questions. Then he asked, “Do you know who the president is?”
“Unfortunately.”
He pointed a finger at me and snapped his fingers, winking like a talk show host. “Good one, kiddo!” He checked some boxes on his clipboard. “That’s great. Mental status seems fine at the moment. Now, here’s the nurse. She’ll be giving you a little examination, and then you and I will continue our chat!”
The nurse set down a plastic tray that held a pile of large Q-tips, a box of rubber gloves, a tube of something. Even though she was probably only in her mid-twenties, the circles under her eyes and the heavy way she moved made her seem much older. “Okay, Penny, I need you to lie back on the bed. There you go. Now put your feet in the stirrups, and scooch to the end of the bed.” She turned to Mother. “Ma’am, perhaps you should wait in the hall?”
“I’m not going anywhere!”
“Is this Penny’s first time?”
“She’s thirteen!”
“My first time what?”
“Honey.” Mother loosened her grip on my arm. “The nurse needs to examine you…inside.”
“Up my—?”
“Vagina.” Mother bit her index finger, nodding her head. She’d always insisted on using real anatomical words and not euphemisms.
“Why?” Then it dawned on me. They thought I’d been raped. “Nobody. Did. That.”
“I’m sure you’re right, but we have to confirm it.”
“It’s a simple procedure, miss. Be over in no time.” The nurse moved to the foot of the bed and palmed the stirrups from behind, giving each an encouraging pat. “Just put your feet in here.”
“Nurse. Will you please give me a moment alone with my daughter?”
“Yes, ma’am,” she said. “But we’re packed to the gills tonight.”
As soon as she crossed the threshold, I started to whine. “Why won’t you believe me?”
“I do believe you. I want to believe you more than anything. But there’s only one way to satisfy the police. They have to know what sort of predator they’re looking for.” She handed me a tissue.
“It’s Deirdre’s husband. She ran away from him, and now he’s come to get her back. Just tell them that.”
“You know I can’t tell them that,” Mother said.
“Why not?” I challenged. “Why do we have to keep hiding
“Put this on, honey.”
I pulled the gown over my head, slipped my tank top off my shoulders, and stepped out of my shorts just as the gown dropped around my hips. The shy girl’s disrobing style.
The nurse draped a sheet across the end of the bed and patted it. “Have a seat, Penny. The doctor will be here in a moment.” She pushed open the door and stepped out of the room.
Mother and I sat there quietly, the air conditioner humming. Somebody knocked on the door, and the man I’d seen in the hallway breezed into the room, the flaps of his coat blown back, a cloud of musky cologne in his wake. He pulled on his Fu Manchu mustache and extended a clammy hand.
“Penny. Dr. Keller.”
I shook his hand quickly, and he turned to Mother. “Ms. Entwhistle? Dr. William Keller.”
His use of “Ms.” was well calculated, and Mother visibly relaxed, her shoulders dropping down from her ears.
“Can I call you Anne-Marie?”
Mother shrugged. “Sure.”
“Great, Anne-Marie, I just need to ask Penny a few questions, and then we can see what’s what.” His voice was smooth and friendly, but with the smarmy warmth of a car salesman. He picked up his clipboard again and smiled big at me, showcasing his oversized yellow teeth. One front tooth protruded farther than the other, like a battered picket fence. “Now, Penny, do you know what year it is?”
“It’s 1974.”
“Do you know where you are?”
“At the hospital.”
On and on went the battery of questions. Then he asked, “Do you know who the president is?”
“Unfortunately.”
He pointed a finger at me and snapped his fingers, winking like a talk show host. “Good one, kiddo!” He checked some boxes on his clipboard. “That’s great. Mental status seems fine at the moment. Now, here’s the nurse. She’ll be giving you a little examination, and then you and I will continue our chat!”
The nurse set down a plastic tray that held a pile of large Q-tips, a box of rubber gloves, a tube of something. Even though she was probably only in her mid-twenties, the circles under her eyes and the heavy way she moved made her seem much older. “Okay, Penny, I need you to lie back on the bed. There you go. Now put your feet in the stirrups, and scooch to the end of the bed.” She turned to Mother. “Ma’am, perhaps you should wait in the hall?”
“I’m not going anywhere!”
“Is this Penny’s first time?”
“She’s thirteen!”
“My first time what?”
“Honey.” Mother loosened her grip on my arm. “The nurse needs to examine you…inside.”
“Up my—?”
“Vagina.” Mother bit her index finger, nodding her head. She’d always insisted on using real anatomical words and not euphemisms.
“Why?” Then it dawned on me. They thought I’d been raped. “Nobody. Did. That.”
“I’m sure you’re right, but we have to confirm it.”
“It’s a simple procedure, miss. Be over in no time.” The nurse moved to the foot of the bed and palmed the stirrups from behind, giving each an encouraging pat. “Just put your feet in here.”
“Nurse. Will you please give me a moment alone with my daughter?”
“Yes, ma’am,” she said. “But we’re packed to the gills tonight.”
As soon as she crossed the threshold, I started to whine. “Why won’t you believe me?”
“I do believe you. I want to believe you more than anything. But there’s only one way to satisfy the police. They have to know what sort of predator they’re looking for.” She handed me a tissue.
“It’s Deirdre’s husband. She ran away from him, and now he’s come to get her back. Just tell them that.”
“You know I can’t tell them that,” Mother said.
“Why not?” I challenged. “Why do we have to keep hiding
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