Eleven-year-old Hilda Cruz measures everything — pencils, piano keys, the exact proportions of a grandfather clock. The one thing she can't prove is Barry: the black cat only she can see, hear, and trust completely. Her parents call it a phase. A storm-lit night at a children's institution called Saint Jude's is about to prove them catastrophically wrong.
Something happened to Hilda the night her house burned down when she was five — something her father paid to make her forget. Now a man who's spent decades collecting children like her wants to know exactly what Barry is, and how far he'll go to keep her. As the storms roll in and old records surface, Hilda has to decide something no one else can decide for her: whether Barry is real, whether it matters, and whether she's willing to let the people she loves choose for her one more time.
A supernatural thriller about the companions we're told to outgrow, and the families brave enough not to make us.
Jose A. Martinez is an independent author who writes across genres, including suspense, mystery, faith-based fiction, and family drama. His stories blend compelling characters with thought-provoking themes, drawing inspiration from history, folklore, faith, and everyday life. When not writing, he enjoys researching unusual historical events and developing new story ideas to share with readers around the world.
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