A heavy silence fell in the room and beyond. I couldn’t see Vincent’s face, but I could imagine the rage burning inside him. I myself was shaking from where I was, so what of him? How was he going to handle the shame? The embarrassment would swallow him whole before he could even take up that mop and the bucket. God!

“This is unacceptable, Dad!” Vincent muttered. “You can’t humiliate me like this. A janitor? What do you expect my friends and everyone in this hospital to say and ...