Page 93 of A Castle in the Sky: Fern & Connor
“Before they dragged me back here.”
“And how did that interaction go?”
Her mouth twisted. “I tried to punch him. Must be there in your notes.”
Dr. Scott made a note, then shifted slightly.
“Tell me about your relationship with your son.”
Silence.
“Matilda.”
Nothing.
Her breathing had changed—shallower now, controlled.
“I’m not going to discuss Jacob.”
Her tone was final. The teasing humour disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Dr. Scott didn’t push immediately. He let the silence sit for a few seconds.
“Is there a reason you don’t want to discuss him?”
“I said I’m not discussing him.”
“Is it distressing to talk about him?”
Her head snapped up. “Don’t do that.”
“Do what?”
“Turn everything into a symptom.”
“I’m trying to understand—”
“No.” Her voice cut through his, sharp now. “Jacob can do better than a mother like me. He is in a better place and… I don’t want to ruin that for him.” She leaned back, folding her arms tightly. “Pick something else.”
Dr. Scott watched her for a moment longer, assessing not just the refusal, but the intensity behind it.
Then, deliberately, he nodded and moved on.
“All right,” he said calmly. “We’ll leave Jacob for now.”
Immediately, the tension in her shoulders eased by a fraction.
“Let’s return to the events in Sale,” he said.
Matilda exhaled slowly, as if she had just stepped back from a ledge.
“Back to safer ground,” she murmured.
“For you?” he asked.
“For you,” she said, and smiled a not-so- pleasant smile— her mask slipping neatly back into place. “
Dr. Scott folded his hands again. “I’m interested in whether your judgment was impaired by a mood episode.”
