Page 75 of Jericho

"Like this," he says, mimicking the actions.

"That's perfect. Let's head downstairs. There's a friend down there I'd like you to meet."

He slowly gets off the bed, but he's in no rush as he crosses the room toward the door.

"What will I be doing?" he bravely asks as we look down at Nolan and Caitlyn from the top of the stairs.

"I think you're going to play. Maybe color," I tell him.

"Will there be trains?"

"I don't know," I answer, making a mental note to buy the kid every train in existence if it makes him happy.

Chapter 37

Jericho

Eli was incredibly timid when he came into the living room, but I think Hemlock picking a female therapist with everything he has been through was the best choice. Eli has warmed up a little, and it's so strange to watch Caitlyn with him. She isn't sitting on the couch asking him a million questions. She's right beside him on the floor, and it's as if they have a playdate together. It doesn't resemble anything I thought it would, but after her explanation, I can see what she means about therapy.

We now know that his favorite color is green. He loves trains, and he would rather play with magnetic blocks to build stuff than action figures with weapons.

Every new thing that is introduced to him is met with uncertainty, and I swear I want to kill Damien all over again. If I could track down whomever it was that was keeping Eli, I'd skin them from the tops of their heads to the slopes of their feet for the harm they've caused my son.

I hold my breath when Eli is handed a train that doesn't have a rolling wheel. He looks at the thing with narrowed eyes, but he doesn't focus on it for very long. When he's handed a train that has a button you can push that makes it emit a really loud noise, he puts it to the side.

Caitlyn gathers it and places it back in front of him, laughing when she presses the button and it makes the sound.

He keeps his eyes locked on her when he presses the button for the first time, gauging her reaction, as if he thinks hemight get into trouble for making noise. She laughs again when he does it, and then quickly moves on. Eli then uses the button to make the noise and even makes the sound with his own mouth for several of the other trains he has been provided.

Caitlyn looks up at us frequently, as if to let us know that things are going well. I never realized just how much you can learn about a child by watching them play. He was afraid to make noise, but she let him know that noise was okay.

I know this is the first of many appointments he'll have with her, so I'm glad he seems to like her.

Eli doesn't look up when Hemlock walks around the outer edge of the room to get to the kitchen, but I see how he stiffens and the way his eyes dart to the side as if he has to prepare himself for something bad. I hate the way his little shoulders tense up with fear.

"Did I hear a train whistle?" Hemlock asks as he inches closer.

Eli sits up fully, his eyes darting between all of us in the room.

"I found this upstairs. It's not a train but listen," Hemlock says, pressing a button on the top of the car, smiling when it makes an engine revving noise.

Hemlock inches forward, passing the toy car to Eli. The child looks up at Hemlock and bravely presses the button on the top of the car, a wide smile spreading his entire face.

"It shakes in my hand," he says.

"That is a great car," Hemlock says, pointing to the toy in Eli's hands. "You can play with it if you want."

I watch, realizing this was one of Caitlyn's tests when she dips her head at Hemlock. The man smiles as if he is worried he is being graded as well.

"Thank you, Mr. Hemlock," Eli says.

"You're welcome," my boss says to him, a softness in his eyes I usually only see when he's looking at Zara.

"Hey," Zara says when she comes into the room from the kitchen. "I was checking to see if anyone was hungry?"

Eli's eyes open fully, and I realize he went straight to his room yesterday evening and went to sleep instead of eating. He had some peanut butter crackers and apple juice after we left the hospital but nothing else. The child has to be starving by now.

"Eli? Are you hungry?" Zara asks.

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