His hand flew to his ear. His eyes went wider than she’d ever seen them. He sat up abruptly, looking around the hallway as if he were seeing it for the first time.
Then, he pointed a trembling finger at the large grandfather clock against the wall. The same clock that had been ticking his whole life, but which he had never heard. His mouth opened, and a sound came out.
A raspy, unpracticed, broken sound, but a sound nonetheless.
— “Tick… tick…” he whispered.
Tears blurred Vicky’s vision.
— “Yes, Mike! That’s the clock. You can hear it!”
Mike’s whole body was shaking with the shock of it. He touched his throat, feeling the vibration of his own voice. His eyes were full of wonder, fear, and a desperate hope.
He opened his mouth again. One word. The first conscious word of his life.
— “Da… dad…”
Vicky started to sob. She pulled him into her arms, rocking him as the new world of sound crashed over him.
— “You can hear,” she whispered into his hair. — “Thank you, Lord. You can hear!”
Mike hugged her tight. And then, footsteps. Heavy, fast footsteps coming down the hall.
Vicky looked up. David was standing in the doorway. His face was pale. He looked at his son on the floor and then at the tweezers and the small speck of blood on the housekeeper’s hand.
— “What have you done?!” David’s voice thundered through the hall.
He rushed forward, pushed Vicky aside, and grabbed Mike by the shoulders.
— “What did she do to you?!”
Mike flinched at the loud shout. It was so loud, so sharp. Но then he looked at his father.
— “Dad… I can hear you.”
David froze as if struck by lightning. His body went rigid.
— “What?..”
Mike reached out and touched his father’s cheek.
— “Your voice…” he whispered uncertainly. — “Is that your voice?”
David’s knees buckled. But before he could process the miracle, his eyes fell back on Vicky’s hands. The tweezers and the dark object on her palm. Fear and anger clouded his judgment.
— “Security!” he roared. — “In here, now!”
Two guards appeared instantly.
— “Get her away from my son!”
Vicky’s heart sank…
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