"Hello, Maria," Dr. Murphy said with a kind smile. "I have been working with young people like you for 15 years. I understand what you are going through."
Dr. Murphy explained that she had a safe place where Maria could stay while they figured out what to do next. It was a special home for talented young people who had difficult backgrounds. Maria would have her own room, good food, and counseling to help her deal with all the trauma she had experienced.
"Will I be able to play piano there?" Maria asked.
"We have three beautiful pianos," Dr. Murphy said. "You can play whenever you want, and if you choose to, we can help you prepare for the opportunities that are waiting for you."
But before Maria could make any decisions about her future, she had one request. "Please," she said to Jonathan and Dr. Murphy, "I need to find my mama. I cannot move forward until I know what happened to her."
Jonathan had been expecting this. He had already hired a private investigator named David Chen to look for Elena Petrova. David specialized in finding missing persons, especially immigrants who might be living without legal papers.
"We will do everything we can to find your mother," Jonathan promised. "But it might take time, and we might not like what we discover."
The search for Elena began immediately. David Chen and his team looked through hospital records, shelter registration lists, and police reports. They checked immigration databases and social service records. They put up flyers in Russian neighborhoods throughout New York City.
Meanwhile, Maria moved to Dr. Murphy's facility in a quiet part of Brooklyn. The building was old but comfortable, with practice rooms and a common area where young people could spend time together.
Maria met other teenagers who had difficult stories like hers. There was Carlos, a violin player whose family had fled violence in El Salvador. There was Aisha, a singer whose parents had died in a car accident. There was Jiang Wei, a dancer whose family had lost everything in a fire.
For the first time in over a year, Maria felt like she was not alone. These young people understood what it was like to lose everything and still hold on to their art.