Page 61 of Ravage

“A dog.”

“But I have a cat.”

“A dog will bark and bite if it needs to.”

“You have a good point there.”

As a therapist, I wasn’t supposed to have my favorites, but I couldn’t help myself. I looked at the precious, determined, spunky little girl sitting across from me, and I found myself drawn to her in ways I couldn’t explain.

“You should add a swing, too.”

“Oh, I like that idea. Where do you think I should add it?”

“On the tree by the house.”

“Perfect.” I started to sketch it out as I asked, “Anything else?”

She thought for a second, then answered, “A swimming pool.”

“A pool?” I kept sketching. “That’s a lot for a little house.”

“It’s a big house.”

“You think?”

“It has an upstairs and lots of windows.” Her eyes drifted over to me for a split second as she explained, “That makes it a big house.”

“I see.”

She smiled, and it made my chest tighten. Seeing her happy made me happy, and sometimes, like today, she helped me more than I helped her. I needed my mind off of Ravage and our latest lesson. It got pretty intense, and I wasn’t exactly upset about it.

In fact, I liked it.

I liked it a lot.

And judging by the bulge in his jeans, I’d say he was liking it, too. I’m not sure what would’ve happened if he hadn’t gotten that call, and now I couldn’t help but wonder where that left us. But that was a thought for another time. Right now, my focus was on Poppy and only Poppy.

Or so I thought.

I glanced over at her picture and smiled when I saw that she’d drawn a swing in a tree and was working on her own swimming pool in the backyard. She’d always been a spunky kid, strong and determined, but there was a time when her pictures weren’t so full of warmth and possibility.

Her houses were once very dark. They had no windows or trees in the front yard, and there certainly weren’t any flowers or pets. She hadn’t forgotten those dark houses or what happened there. She still remembered all of it and even spoke about it from time to time. But with a little help, she’d learned that what had happened to her didn’t determine what happened next. She still had her whole life ahead of her, and even though she might not realize it just yet, she had a lot of people standing in her corner.

“I need glitter,” Poppy announced, breaking my train of thought.

“How much?”

“All of it,” she answered with her sweetest smile.

“Not a chance.”

“Half?”

“That’s still a lot.”

“Three-fourths?”

“Umm,” I giggled. “That’s more than half.”