The Captain’s Badge
As the ambulance loaded Toby’s mother, the boy stood on the sidewalk, looking lost again. The “mission” was over, and the reality of his situation—the hunger, the loneliness—began to settle back in.
Elias walked over to him. He reached up and unclipped his gold Captain’s badge. It was heavy, made of real metal, and bore the seal of the city.
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“Toby, look at me,” Elias said. The boy looked up. Elias pinned the badge to the boy’s dirty blue shirt. “In this department, we give these to the people who save lives. I didn’t save her today. You did. You’re the Captain now.”
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Toby touched the cool metal, his fingers tracing the engraved numbers. For the first time that day, a tiny, flickering smile appeared on his face.
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