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"Mayberry!"

Craig Wilson didn't talk. He barked.

Somewhere in his life, he had probably been told that the editor of a major newspaper was required to be brusque and sound as if he was growling all the time. He wasn't a bad guy; Laurie was thrilled to be working for him, even if she usually drew the most mundane assignments. When she walked into the office that morning, Craig was striding through the rows of desks and computer screens as if he was running from a fire. But that was his way. Underneath the gruffness, he was a nice man. Maybe he was afraid that if people suspected he was too nice, he wouldn't be respected as a top-notch journalist.

"I'm here," Laurie said. She glanced quickly at her watch. She wasn't late. She'd worked at the Valley News for almost a year, and she hadn't been late a single day yet. It was also surprising to see Craig anxious to see her. She wasn't one of his ace reporters; she was more bottom of the totem pole. She was young, and she was new.

"Sybil Chaney is getting married up in St. Marys."

"St. Marys," Laurie repeated, looking at him blankly.

"St. Marys, Pennsylvania. Just a few hours north of home. You need to head up there. Since she's big local money and we're a local paper, we'll do a major piece, covering the lead-up and the wedding itself, which will be Saturday night. Which means you need to get up there ASAP," Craig said.

She stared at him, not at all sure why he was so gung ho to give her an assignment about a socialite's wedding.

"Wedding. Great," she said.

"Don't be a wiseass, young lady," he admonished.

"I said great," she protested.

"Do your homework. It's Sybil Chaney. She was engaged to the Braff Steel heir and threw him over for an artist. It's a great human-interest story. Sal will follow you up in time to take pictures of the place and the ceremony. You can go home now and pack, so you can leave this afternoon."

"Wait!" Laurie called. He had already started for his office. She ran after him, and he spun around and stared until she felt her cheeks redden. "I can't go until Thursday morning."

"Why? Have I given you an assignment I don't remember?" he asked her.

"No."

"Then…?"

"I have to go to the hospital tomorrow night," she said.

His brow furrowed. "Are you ill?"

"No, I'm fine. I go every other Wednesday night. You know that. You're the one who allows me to canvas the office for toys, books and electronics for the kids."

"It's that important to you? You can't miss one night?"

"Will it make any difference if I go now or Thursday morning?"

He stared at her a moment longer. "I have a solution. Go to the hospital tonight. And be in St. Marys by noon tomorrow. You have an actual appointment to talk with the bride at one. And I've finagled an invitation to the wedding itself. You should be thanking me for this one, not making excuses to get out of it."

"Of course. A wedding for a woman I don't know. I'll be all teary-eyed. Craig, I'm not sure if I can switch nights at the hospital. They have very strict rules about people coming in to work with the children," she told him.

Then she hesitated. Sybil Chaney. Maybe she did know the woman. A girl named Sybil had been a fellow patient at Care for the Children Hospital, and now that Laurie thought about it, she recalled her last name had been Chaney or something similar. Like Laurie, she had beaten cancer. At the hospital, though, all the children had been the same. Laurie had never associated the local heiress with the girl she had known five years ago.

"I'll take care of it."

"What?" she asked, deep in her memories of the lowest time of her life.

"The hospital."

"Craig—"

"Just pack up your goodie bags and head over tonight. And be ready to drive up to St. Marys tomorrow."

She was silent, still not certain he had any sway with the children's hospital.

She let out a sigh as he disappeared into his office. Maybe he could arrange for her to go in this evening. She had done the Wednesday night routine for so long, she wasn't sure herself what the current rules were. At least he hadn't suggested that her job was more important, and if she wanted to keep it, she had to cancel. To many people, her time there might be no big deal, but those Wednesday nights back at the hospital were important to her. Laurie had sworn to herself that as long as she lived she would never forget what it was like to be a kid in a hospital, and she had wanted to help others who found themselves in a situation she knew all too well. Then, just a year ago she had heard about Toys.Calm, an incredible organization started by someone just like her, a young woman who had been a cancer patient at the age of thirteen and had received an anonymous gift that had made a world of difference to her. Laurie simply loved the name of the Web site—Toys.Calm. Because toys and books really did provide comfort and a sense of calm in the midst of the chaos and stress of a long and depressing hospital stay.

She still valued her book, her illustrated edition of Little Women. The book that Brian Thompson had brought for her. Little things could make so much of a difference for a child in the hospital.

"A society wedding.Wow," Jack Mason teased as she sat down in her cubicle. Jack, who had the cube next to her, was good-looking in a tawny-haired beach boy way, and he was a flirt. He had been with the paper a year longer and was a thousand times more cutthroat than she was. She was pretty sure he would trample his own mother to get a story.

She liked to think that she got more of a story by being a good listener. Of course, it didn't matter all that much how well you listened when the topic was a dog show or the newest diet craze.

"Yeah, thanks," she replied, then turned her attention to her work. There was nothing wrong with human-interest pieces, she told herself.

She was deep in an obit when she felt a presence at her shoulder. Looking up, she saw Craig standing over her.

"You're on for tonight."

"Really?"

"And tomorrow, bright and early, St. Marys," he said gruffly, then nodded curtly and moved away.

A few minutes later she looked up and saw that Jack had wheeled his chair over and was right behind her.

"What's on for tonight?" he whispered, looking from side to side to make sure he wasn't being overheard. "What are you and the boss cooking up?"

Good God, the man thought she had something going with Craig, she realized after a moment's puzzlement. And he was jealous, afraid that she would start getting the better stories.

She almost laughed out loud. "Pardon?"

"Tonight. What's the secret mission?" Jack asked.

"It wouldn't be a secret if I told you."

"Come on, what's going on? I'm an investigative reporter, so you know I'll just hound you until I find out the truth."

"Jack," she said firmly, "my life is none of your business."

He arched a brow, indicating the entire office. "It might be our business," he said knowingly.

It would have been amusing to play him for a while, but she didn't want to take a chance on any repercussions. "Jack, I'm going to the hospital tonight. I was supposed to go tomorrow, but I'm going tonight instead, so I can leave tomorrow to cover the wedding."

"You're going to the hospital? Why? Are you sick?"

She let out a long sigh, thinking, No, not anymore. I'm one of the lucky ones. I'm cancer free, and I have been for five years. But I'll never forget what it was like to be a kid with cancer and how one brightened moment can mean everything.

"No. I drop off toys and books and things for kids who are sick, remember?" she told him.

"Oh, yeah." He studied her face for a long time, as if making sure she was telling the truth, and once he decided that she was, he lost interest and wheeled his chair back to his own desk."

Sabrina Ewellwas now a resident in pediatric oncology, but tonight she was the one to greet Laurie, instead of the community relations director, Tim Wadell.

"Hey there," Sabrina said, hurrying over to help her get things out of her minivan.

"Hey," Laurie replied. "Thanks for letting me come in tonight." "It's not a problem. You know Tim. He's completely anal, but he has the kids' welfare at heart. And speaking of the kids, a couple of the younger ones can't wait for you to read another chapter from Dragon-Spy. So what have you got?" Sabrina asked, looking into the back of the van.

"Tons of video games, and—you're not going to believe this— two almost new computers. My next-door neighbor has a small business and just upgraded, so she gave me two of their old computers. She said this way she gets a tax cut."

"That's wonderful. Come on, I'll give you a hand." Sabrina helped her on and off the elevator, and then toward the glass-walled playroom. As they approached, Laurie was surprised to see that there was already a large crowd of children, some in chairs, some on the floor, sitting around the small stage, where some kind of performance seemed to be under way. "Sabrina, what's going on in there?" "Oh, it's just Brian. He always comes on Tuesdays." Laurie frowned and asked slowly, "Brian… Thompson?" Sabrina was momentarily startled, and frowned at her. "Oh, right, you know him, don't you?"

"I don't really know him. I met him that one time when his cousin died. I had no idea he still came here."

"Yes. I can't believe I never thought to mention it. He's been coming for the last few years with stuff for the kids. He brought in a Wii a few months ago, and he's donated several portable DVD players for the kids who are bedbound." She smiled. "You know, come to think of it, he told me once that he'd been inspired by Toys.Calm, too. Amazing, the way one person's charitable dream can inspire others, isn't it? I love it. Anyway, Brian is just finishing up."

"No problem," Laurie said, looking through the window again. He was reading—and directing two kids in their early teens, who were laughing and acting out whatever Brian was telling them to do. The performance seemed to be ending just then, because suddenly all the kids stood up, clapping and laughing.

Laurie smiled as she looked at their happy faces, but she felt her heart squeeze, as well. It was so easy to remember when she had been one of the children in that room. Like several of the ones there tonight, she had often gone everywhere with an IV attachment following her. And yet the human spirit was amazing. No matter what misfortunes had entered their lives, these children were clearly determined to enjoy every moment.

"Let's go on in," Sabrina said.

As she walked beside the other woman, Laurie felt her heart start pounding, so loudly that it seemed to echo in her ears. Brian was a few years older, but her reaction to him hadn't changed at all.

He was still gorgeous, with that dark hair and those deep dark eyes. His face was less boyish now, his features more sculpted, and he was taller, with a man's physique. And he had the kind of confidence that didn't seem to need applause or recognition, though she could see on his face how much he enjoyed being there, surrounded by the children.

He looked across the room at Sabrina and Laurie, and smiled. "I heard the kids were getting a double treat tonight," he said, and glanced at his watch. "I finished on time, right?"

"Exactly," Sabrina said.

"It wouldn't have mattered," Laurie stated. "They were having a great time."

He laughed. "Thanks, but Mary-Katherine over there warned me that the story lady was coming, so I'd better hurry up. How do you do? I'm Brian Thompson."

She blushed, feeling foolish. He hadn't recognized her. Well, of course he hadn't. She gained twenty pounds and turned into a grown woman with a head of long blond hair. She accepted his hand. "Actually, we've met."

"Oh?" He looked at her curiously, then suddenly seemed to recognize her. "There is something about your eyes." He laughed. "That sounds like a line, doesn't it?"

"You met me here about five years ago. I was a patient."

"Oh." He studied her, and his grin deepened. "Little Women."

She nodded. "Thank you so much. I left you a note, but they didn't know if you were coming back."

"After my cousin died," he said, "it was a very long time before I came back."

"I heard. I'm very sorry."

He nodded, looking away, then returning his gaze to her. "Well, it's wonderful to see you again. I'll leave you to your dragon story. The children are waiting for it."

"Thanks, Brian," Sabrina told him.

"Always a pleasure," he replied.