Chapter Nineteen: Another Family, Another Home

Summary

• The protagonist was tasked with arranging a prehearing speech evaluation for Eugene and faced difficulty due to Covid-19 impacting therapists who worked within the juvenile justice system.
• John was simultaneously trying to locate a neuropsychologist for an intellectual-disability evaluation, part of their legal strategy.
• Due to the pandemic, most of the therapists were overwhelmed with preparations for quarantine and were not answering calls or accepting new cases.
• The protagonist was worried that the Covid-19 outbreak, although it had given them a reprieve, might ultimately hinder their preparations for the hearing.
• John remained stubbornly optimistic, believing that despite the setbacks, they would find a solution.
• They attempted to reach out to all the contacts on the provided lists without success, resulting in unanswered calls and messages.
• In a last-ditch effort, the protagonist and John decided to drive directly to the therapists' offices, only to find them closed due to Covid-19 protocols.
• During the office visit attempts, the protagonist's mother called healthcare professionals regarding the father's cancer and appeared protectively close to Eugene.
• Unexpectedly, Eugene ran from the car to the back of a house with a home office, found a hidden key, and entered with an alarming level of familiarity.
• Eugene interacted with objects inside the home—a basketball toy and a trampoline—that were identical to items in his own home, suggesting a hidden aspect of his life.
• The protagonist, her mother, and John discovered an office in the house with a bulletin board containing a heartfelt message from the father, displaying a photo with Eugene and mentioning someone named Anjeli.