Page 44 of Keepsake

That was all that he replied.

On Wednesday, I thought I had it. I had a crazy day on Monday, an ok day on Tuesday, and I had high hopes for Wednesday. I got an appointment for Lachlan with a renowned children’s psychologist. Alvaro said one hundred times I didn’t need Dashiell’s approval but bringing Lachlan behind his back felt wrong.

I told Alvaro I’d bring the kids to school today, so I could tell them before I drove Lachlan to the appointment.

“I’m not asking permission,” I informed him.

“There’s nothing wrong with him.” He huffed.

“He doesn’t talk anymore,” Vienna helpfully pointed out.

“There you go.” I nodded. “But anyway, something doesn’t have to be wrong for him to see a therapist.”

Dash shook his head. “He will talk when he’s ready.”

I turned right, following the road without glancing at him. “Maybe we should all go. Everyone grieves differently.”

“Can I go to therapy too, Logan?” Vienna wanted to know.

I looked at her from the rearview mirror. “Of course.”

“You just like to talk about yourself, Vienna,” Dash interrupted.

“She’s eight,” I reminded him. “There’s nothing wrong with anyone in this car. But I think a checkup is in order.”

“So wait until I can go with him.”

“Why?” I poked. “You can’t go in.”

“That’s not good.” He fretted. “Not good at all.”

“You know what, Dashiell?” I just realized. “I think you’re a control freak.”

“Oh, yeah, you came to this conclusion after half a week of living with me?”

“That’s how transparent you are,” I sassed.

Looking at the road, their school approached. “There’s nothing wrong with Lachlan,” I told Dash. “There have been a lot of changes and I just want to know if he’s dealing with them, ok? I want what’s the best for him. Can you believe that?”

He took his time, but eventually nodded. “The problem is that you don’t know him well enough to know what’s best for him.”

I parked at the school. “I’m going to start with fed and healthy and we’ll go from there, what do you think?”

Dash mumbled but opened his door and then Vienna’s. She said her goodbyes, waving animatedly. Dash never looked back, even the back of his head looked like it was sulking.

I released a calming breath and glanced at Lachlan in the mirror. “So, here we go buddy.”

“CanLachlanandIhave a chat?”

Dr. Maya Humphrey was her name. I read everything about her before making the call, and if the tons of degrees decorating her walls were to say anything, she was more than qualified.

Her office was nothing like what you expected of a therapist, all soft tones and cheerful. Her desk tucked in the corner, while toys took up the majority of the room. Building blocks, soft mats made of big jigsaw pieces, and a small table with sheets of paper and arts and crafts filled the room.

She looked kind, had curly hair and a soft voice. She was waiting expectantly for my reply. I had no other option but to nod and go for the door. We had talked about what recently happened in our lives, not in depth, but I gave her as much as I knew and now she wanted a chance to connect with Lachlan on her own.

I glanced over my shoulder, Lachlan watched me go with his little forehead closing in a frown.

Of all the kids, Lachlan had more of his father’s looks. Dash was the spitting image of Sofia, his frown was the trademark Castillo trait. Vienna didn’t look exactly like Sofia when she was young, but it was more about how she talked. The softness of her tone, the warm smile.