Bizarre Truths

Twenty years ago, a medical centre 10,000 km away from Lisbern took in a special patient. She gave her age as sixteen, but she looked like a little girl. Her physical development stopped at the age of eight. She retained the appearance and height of a girl and, despite the best medical care available, showed no signs of improvement after two decades. Doctors came and went, tried experimental medications on her and eventually gave up. The girl, perhaps finally losing hope, disappeared one morning. She was never seen again. The last page of the medical file sent by Jonathan contained a yellowed newspaper clipping. It was a missing person notice. The doctors at the medical centre made a last-ditch effort to locate the girl. They published a picture of her. Kieran and I sat in the car. An ambulance wailed past. People shouted. Doors banged open and shut. But inside the car was absolute silence. I tried to digest the bizarre and horrible truth as I stared at the picture of ‘Mia.’ She looked