Ava nodded because that seemed to be the desired response.
“I’d like you to tell me why you came to see me today, Ava.”
Ava wondered why the doctor repeated her name so often. Was it to make it personal? Or so she didn’t forget her patient’s name? And now she was purposely trying to stall, which seemed the opposite of her reason for being here. Trey’s words whispered through her mind:If you’re puttin’ in the effort to go, give it everything while you’re there. Believe it or not, talkin’ helps.
Taking a deep breath, she decided to take his advice. “When I was released from the hospital, my doctor suggested I seek therapy to deal with the … trauma.”
Dr. Briggs had a notebook sitting on her lap. Ava could see there were some things written on it, but the woman didn’t look down at it once. “And the trauma you endured … is that something you’d like to discuss with me?”
“I thought that was the point.”
Dr. Briggs smiled. “The point of therapy is to improve the quality of life. Our objective in these sessions is to discuss you and whatever issues you might have so we can address them and get you to a point where you can cope. With that said, I truly believe talking about what happened would be beneficial, but that’s entirely up to you.”
“Okay.”
“Have you ever talked to anyone about what happened to you?”
“No.” Ava hadn’t even told the doctors because they had already been informed. At least to the point they knew she’d been beaten and left for dead in a field, which was enough for them to address her physical ailments.
“Why don’t we make this an easy session?”
Ava snorted. “Easy?”
“Yes,” Dr. Briggs said, her eyes kind. “Start by telling me about you. Your family, your friends, where you live.”
“I’m twenty-four years old, and up until five months ago, I was married, living with my mother and my … Harrison.”
“He was your husband?”
Ava nodded.
“Why do you not want to refer to him as such?”
“Because I hate him,” she admitted, hearing the fury in her tone.
“Very well.”
Ava cleared her throat when Dr. Briggs watched her as though expecting her to continue.
“Anyway. Now I’m a widow, and I haven’t gone back to my house because I can’t stand the thought of going inside.”
“How did you meet Harrison?”
“At school.”
Dr. Briggs’s eyes narrow slightly. “College?”
Ava shook her head. “No. High school. I was seventeen, just starting my senior year. It was a school function.” She paused briefly, debating on how much she wanted to reveal. She sighed, letting Trey’s words play in her head before continuing. “Career day, I think. There were a lot of people there to discuss our future and potential career opportunities.”
“And he was there?”
Ava nodded. “He was.”
“What was his job?”
“He was a state senator.”
“And he was discussing careers in politics?”
