In Vera’s yard, Arsen was watching with deep concentration as Grisha shaved curls from another piece of wood. At the squeak of the gate, the boy turned his head at once and looked directly at his father with clear recognition. In his eyes was the lively presence Mike had not seen in months.
Vera came out onto the porch and said the child’s hearing had fully returned once the source of the toxin was removed. Mike proudly reported that he had thrown out all the dangerous household chemicals and bleach. The healer gave him a long, thoughtful look but said nothing.
On the day they came to bring him home, the whole family rode in tense silence. In Vera’s yard, Arsen was carefully sorting river stones and looked like a healthy, active little boy. When Grisha accidentally dropped a mug, the child reacted instantly to the sharp sound.
A relieved Alena rushed toward her son, but Vera’s sharp command stopped her in place. The healer came out of the house carrying a dark towel soaked in a special herbal solution. She told Alena to hold out her hand and slowly wiped the cloth across her skin.
An oily bluish streak appeared on the towel at once—a chemical reaction with the cream on her hands. Mike felt a wave of horror as he realized the toxic source had been that same harmless-looking bottle on the shelf above the sink. Vera explained calmly that cheap contaminated cosmetics could soak into the skin and damage a child’s nervous system through constant contact.
Alena went still, realizing that for a year and a half she had been poisoning her beloved son with her own hands. She remembered putting on the cream every night before bed and how often Arsen had put her fingers in his mouth. Then it came out that her best friend Katya had been the one regularly bringing her that cream…
