47. Chapter 47
Chapter 47
On Monday morning, after dropping Jacob off at preschool, David sat down at his desk and looked down at the contact information Paige had texted him. Then, taking a deep breath, he called Paige’s therapist.
Luckily, the receptionist was able to connect him to Lauren right away. “Hi, Lauren,” he began strong, only to falter and clear his throat. “My name is David Lowe, and—”
“David Lowe?”
“Yes.”
“As in … Paige’s ex-husband?”
“Yes.”
Thinking it had to have been more than a while since she and Paige had talked, David said, “You must have a good memory.”
“I do actually,” she agreed cheerfully. “But Paige and I also talked about you many times, so that helped.”
“Oh.” For the first time, it occurred to David in an uncomfortable way, that this woman probably knew a lot about him.
“Anyway, that’s all I can say about that. Doctor-patient confidentiality, you know.”
“Um, of course.”
“So, what can I do for you, David?”
He took a deep breath. “I think my son, Jacob, is being abused by his mother during his visitations with her, and I was hoping you could talk to him.”
There was a pause, and then Lauren calmly asked, “You think he’s being abused?”
Remembering Paige’s account of her first conversation with Lauren, David shouldn’t have been surprised that he’d gotten called out for his uncertainty, and he steeled his spine. “I know he is,” he clarified, and the words felt both cathartic and terrifying. “But I don’t know the extent of it because Jacob won’t … talk to me about it. He actually lied to me when I was asking him questions last night.”
“How old is he?”
“He’ll be four in January.”
“At that age, it can be difficult to communicate things they might not have language for, which could be one reason why he wouldn’t talk to you about it,” Lauren said. “However, his lying to you is a pretty big red flag. It tells me that he probably could tell you what’s wrong, but doesn’t want to, either because he’s ashamed of what it is, or he’s afraid of being punished if you find out what it is.”
“That’s pretty much what Paige said,” David murmured.
“Oh?”
“She and I are … together,” he explained. “Again.”
Lauren made a low humming noise, before saying, “How interesting. I’m dying to ask how that came about.”
David couldn’t help but smile at her curiosity, and the way she ‘asked’ without asking. “Ironically, it was Paige’s book that brought us together again,” he told Lauren. “After I found out it was published, we met and talked about her abuse and recovery, which was also around the time Ashley—Jacob’s mother—and I were ending things. One thing led to another, and Paige and I just found ourselves … re-connecting.”
“I see. So, Paige is a part of Jacob’s life?”
“She actually just met him for the first time a few days ago,” he said, then added, “We dated under the radar for a while, until we were sure what we had was real, before introducing Jacob to her.”
“That’s always smart.”
David nodded, even though Lauren couldn’t see him. “Anyway, yesterday, when Ashley brought Jacob home, he was a mess.”
“Define ‘a mess’.”
He gave her a detailed accounting of Jacob’s appearance and demeanor upon arrival, then continued with Paige’s assertion that he was being abused, Jacob’s bath, and ending with Paige suggesting Lauren’s involvement.
“Well, given what you’ve told me,” Lauren said slowly, “I think my talking to Jacob is definitely a good idea, and something I’ll be happy to do.”
“Really? Oh, thank you.” Relief washed over him. “So, what else do you need to know?”
“Nothing. I actually prefer to go in as blind as I can, to avoid being influenced by outside ‘noise’. It’s imperative to not go in with any preconceived visions, so to speak, and from this moment on, Jacob will be my guide. I’ll learn everything I need to know from him.”
“Fair enough,” David said.
“Now, then, before we go any further, I want to make sure you’re aware of a few things.”
“Like what?”
“Well, for starters, you won’t be in the room during my session with Jacob. This is to ensure he has an environment where he feels comfortable and can speak freely, without worrying about your reaction.”
“Okay. I understand.”
“Good. You will, however, be able to watch the session through a one-way window, if you want. You won’t be able to hear anything, but you can at least see what’s going on.”
“That’s … thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Now then, back to the session itself,” Lauren said, then paused for a moment. “If I do uncover any evidence of abuse, I’ll want to see him again, maybe several times. I’ll also be legally obligated to report my findings to the appropriate authorities. And if an investigation is deemed necessary, one would be opened—”
“An investigation?”
“Yes, but that’s usually only for cases on the extreme end of the spectrum.”
“What do you mean?”
“The spectrum of abuse is fairly broad,” she explained gently. “On one end is neglect, endangerment, and emotional abuse. Things like that, which are unfortunately pretty common, and are usually classified as misdemeanors. On the other end are felonies, like molestation, bodily injury, and …” she broke off. “Well, you get the picture.”
Assuming she’d been on the verge of saying ‘death’, David was silent for several seconds as his thoughts turned to the daily horror of Lauren’s job, and how heart-breaking it must be to deal with so much abuse. To anyone, of any age.
“So, if I end up finding evidence of abuse—and depending on what it is—Ashley could be legally charged with either a misdemeanor or a felony.”
Even though he knew child abuse was a crime, hearing the legal ramifications that could be applied to the mother of his child was a bit sobering, and it took David a few moments to respond. “Okay.”
In the wake of his heavy tone, Lauren said, “I’m sure this is a lot for you to absorb. Hearing the words ‘misdemeanor’ and ‘felony’ makes shit real, with real consequences, and sadly, some people back away at that point, because they don’t want to get that deep. Especially when it involves family members.”
“Well, no worries there. I’m not one of those people,” he told her, disgusted that protecting a perpetrator would be more important to someone than protecting a victim. “If Ashley’s guilty of anything, then I want her to be held accountable for it.”
“Good. I’m glad to hear that.”
He cleared his throat. “So, with that out of the way … when can you see Jacob?”
“Let me pull up my calendar. Hold on.”
While she was busy doing that, David pulled up his own.
“All right,” she announced about a minute later. “The earliest available time I have is Wednesday at five. I realize that’s probably around dinnertime, so if it doesn’t work—”
“It’ll work. We’ll have an early dinner.”
“Okay, good. Now until then, just relax and don’t talk about Ashley, or this past weekend with Jacob anymore. It’s important to just let him be, so he can decompress and feel safe before I see him, all right?”
“What if he brings it up on his own?”
“Honestly, I doubt he will, but if he does, go with it, and then let me know what he says.”
“All right.”
Lauren made a low humming noise again. “One more thing. What are you planning on telling Jacob about his visit with me?”
“Um …” David trailed off, stumped, as if he’d been asked how nuclear reactors worked.
“That’s what I thought,” she said, then quickly went on to tell him, “In my experience, the simplest explanation is always the best. You could tell him you know he’s been feeling ‘sad’ and you want him to feel better, so you’re taking him to see me because one of my super powers is making kids feel better—all of which are true.”