"No," Alicia said. "Those are yours. We may need to look at what you're carrying for safety, but I won't make you hand over something important without explaining why."
"What about my mom's bracelet?"
"That stays with you," she replied. "Unless there's a reason you want somebody to keep it safe for a little while."
Alicia spoke with the restaurant manager, documented how Miles had been found, and began contacting the office responsible for his earlier placement. The situation was more complicated than a millionaire offering an apartment. Miles had no parent available to sign a lease or authorize medical care, and the state needed to establish who could act on his behalf. Alicia did not want to punish him for running away, but she also could not pretend a child of nine could choose to live alone.
Hamilton remained at the table for the necessary final arrangements, then agreed to go for medical evaluation. He asked Brandon to coordinate with the social worker and keep the reporters away from Miles's private records. Dana Wallace was already preparing a story about the evening, and online viewers were beginning to invent details about the boy's mother and where he slept. Victoria told the restaurant manager to stop allowing strangers to approach the child for photographs.
"People want to help," Brandon said, looking at his phone. "Messages are coming in from everywhere."
"Then they can help by respecting him," Alicia replied. "He's not a public exhibit."
Shortly before ten-thirty, Hamilton left for the hospital, promising Miles they would speak again the next day. Miles watched the vehicle pull away, surprised to find himself worried about the man who had insulted him only hours earlier. Hamilton had regained movement, but the paramedics' questions reminded Miles that the story was not finished medically. He hoped the improvement would last and that no one would discover some other problem hidden beneath it.
Alicia arranged an emergency overnight placement with a vetted caregiver named Mrs. Elena Alvarez, a woman who had spent years helping children through short-term transitions. The proposed apartment on Spruce Street could be used as part of a longer-term plan if the authorities approved and a responsible adult lived there with Miles. Tonight, Alicia explained, Miles could visit the newly prepared unit with Mrs. Alvarez and stay there under her supervision while the necessary arrangements were documented.
The distinction mattered to Alicia, and after a moment it mattered to Miles too. He did not want to return to uncertainty, but he also wanted someone who would be there when he woke up. "Will Mrs. Alvarez leave after I go to sleep?" he asked.
"No," Alicia said. "She'll stay in the other bedroom. If you wake up frightened, you can knock on her door."
Miles looked at her for a long moment. "Even if it's the middle of the night?"
"Especially then."