The Puppy Had a Note Tied to Her Paw-and Someone Promised to Call at Noon

“Is Sophie alive?” she repeated.

I looked through the treatment-room window at the puppy sleeping under a warmed blanket. One paw remained stretched across the note.

“Yes,” I said. “She’s alive, and she’s warm.”

The child released a breath that crackled through the phone. For several seconds she said nothing.

“Did she still have the paper?”

“She wouldn’t continue reading …