Lone Wolf by Tracy Krauss Page B

and pointed. “Second floor.”
    â€œI knew that,” Thomas said with a grin. When had his son become so tall? They could see eye to eye.
    â€œRace you up the stairs,” Ryder dared. He was off without giving his father a chance to respond, taking the stairs two at a time. Thomas smiled. Despite his height, Ryder was still a kid. It wouldn’t be long now, though, and he would be a man.
    Thomas took Whisper’s hand and they ascended the steps at a more reasonable pace. Ryder was already down the hall and standing in front of the dentist’s office, grinning widely, when Thomas and Whisper joined him.
    The second floor was not as bright as the main level. The hallway seemed narrow and the woodwork around each door frame was stained in a dark, turn-of-the-century hue. Corrugated glass panels in each door proclaimed the name of the occupants.
    Thomas opened the door and held it while Ryder and Whisper entered. “You kids have a seat. I’ll tell the receptionist we’re here.” They shuffled to a bank of chairs while he stepped up to a blue Formica counter. A young woman with a slicked back ponytail and wearing nurse’s scrubs sat on the other side. “Hi. I’m Thomas Lone Wolf. I’m here with my children, Ryder and Whisper, to see Dr. Ducharme.”
    The woman scanned her appointment book and nodded. “Yes. Just a routine checkup for all three of you?” She looked up and smiled pleasantly.
    â€œThat’s right.” Thomas hesitated. “For the kids at least. I…I’ve been having a bit of a toothache. If it needs a filling, I’d like to get it done today, if possible.”
    â€œWe’ll see what we can do. When was your last visit?”
    Thomas cleared his throat. “This is our first visit here. The kids have had checkups at school, but they haven’t been to a dentist in…oh, three years.”
    â€œAnd you?” She looked up again, her eyebrows raised in question.
    Thomas let out a puff of air and looked at the ceiling. “Let’s see. It’s been awhile. Eight, ten years?”
    â€œAll right.” Her face remained poker straight, but he had a hunch she was silently chastising him as she checked off a few boxes on a clipboard. “Do you have insurance?”
    Thomas shook his head. “Not at the moment. Probably why I haven’t been to the dentist in a while.” He smiled, trying to appear at ease. If the truth be told, he was slightly phobic about dentists. It was more of an unreasonable fear than any costs that had kept him away. But the pain in his tooth could no longer be denied.
    She checked a few more boxes and then set the clipboard up on the counter. “I just need you to finish filling in this form. Standard stuff about your general medical condition as well as that of the children.”
    Thomas took the clipboard and headed to the chairs across from the reception desk. Ryder had his earbuds in place and was listening to his music with his eyes shut. Whisper was just sitting there, swinging her legs back and forth. There were two other people waiting, an older gentleman and a woman of about thirty. They were both reading magazines.
    Thomas sat down in the chair beside Whisper. “Hey, my girl. Why don’t you go play with those toys over there while I fill this out?”
    â€œIs it gonna hurt?” She turned soulful eyes to her father.
    He patted her knee. “I doubt it.” He leaned a little closer and whispered into her ear. “Would it help if you knew I was scared, too?”
    Her eyes got round. “Really? But you’re not scared of anything.”
    Thomas laughed. “Oh, yes I am. But I just choose not to show it, that’s all. Now go play. It’ll take your mind off things.”
    Whisper slid off the chair and scampered to the small play area. There was a low table with lots of interlocking bricks and she immediately began constructing