— What’s going on?! — shouted the nurse as she rushed into the room.

The doctors ran in, panicked. They could not believe their eyes: the screen showed the first clear signs of spontaneous breathing.

The police officer blinked, then tried to move his fingers. The puppy barked happily and rubbed his nose against his cheek, as if calling him back to life completely.

No one could explain this phenomenon — perhaps the familiar smell, the voice, the dog’s presence had triggered the deepest mechanisms of the brain, awakening memory and the will to live.