Doc Roper finished his examination in Mr. Jackson’s inner office, where the boy sat cleaned up with a bandaged ear and a growing bruise on his face. Roper reported to Tim that the boy was dehydrated and hungry but otherwise fine, with clear, alert eyes. He relayed the boy’s stated story: he was twelve, called himself Nick Wilholm, boarded the train in northern Maine, and could not divulge what he was doing there or remember his address.

Roper judged the boy’s evasions as deliberate reticence rather than genuine amnesia, concluding the child was hiding significant information. He suggested Tim could coax the full story by promising a large meal at the café. Roper declined payment, joking instead about a nicer dinner, and asked to hear the story once Tim learned it.

After Roper departed, Tim closed the door, called Deputy Bill Wicklow to cover the night knocker shift as a dry run, and arranged to leave the time clock at the station. With his night duties covered, Tim turned his attention back to the boy.

Tim asked about the boy’s condition and then pressed for the boy’s real name, rejecting the alias. After a brief hesitation, the boy confessed his true identity, revealing himself to Tim.