"I sure wish we had such great toys when I was your age. This is fantastic."
"You liked Batman when you were a kid?"
"He was my favorite. We could only watch on television or read comics."
Liam smiled, pleased to find another Batman fan. He reached inside his backpack and pulled out the Batman comic, showing it to Herb, who made a big fuss about it.
"We should go," Drake said to Herb, once he handed the comic back to Liam and took his place at Louise's side. "I'll come back and see her again tomorrow."
"Come whenever you like. The doctors are hopeful for the first time that she may recover so we'd be pleased if you come as often as you're able. In fact, we wanted to invite you and your family over to our place as soon as things settled down. We have a big pit barbecue right beside the beach and could cook up a mess of ribs, as my family back home in Louisiana would say."
Drake smiled and shook hands with Herb once more. "That sounds wonderful. I'd love to come and meet everyone, and introduce my family to them." He turned to Liam. "Would you like to go for a barbecue, Liam?"
Liam nodded, taking Drake's hand once more. "Yes. Could I bring my boogie board and surf?"
"Of course, you could," Herb said and smiled.
"We look forward to it," I said.
We said goodbye and made our away out of the hospital and to the car. When we got there, Drake put Sophie's car seat in the back and Liam got in beside her, on his booster seat.
We both got inside and he closed his door, then inserted the key and started the engine. Then, he sat there for a moment, his head bowed. I reached out to touch him, knowing he was overwhelmed.
He turned to me, his eyes wet. "That went better than I hoped."
"It did."
He leaned over and we kissed.
"Other than her mistaking Liam for me as a boy. Probably that's all she can do – draw on deep memories at this point in her disease progression. She thought I was my father."
"I know," I said, my own emotions overflowing. "She didn't seem upset."
"No," he said and shook his head. "She didn't."
He sighed and we drove off, on our way to the beach so we could enjoy the afternoon with Liam. He was a sweet boy who showed such composure during the visit to the people he did not know.
I glanced to the back seat and sure enough, Sophie fell asleep, the motion of the car working every time. Beside her, Liam was reading his Batman comic book, turning pages, his eyes wide.
While we were driving, Drake's cel
l let out a loud ding, indicating an incoming text message.
"Can you check that for me?"
I grabbed Drake's cell and opened it up, using his passcode. I flipped screens and found his text messages. There was one from his lawyer in Manhattan.
GARY: Court date coming up. You'll be called by the prosecutor. Need you here so we can go over your testimony. Let me know when you can get here. The sooner the better. Court is in three weeks.
I read it to Drake, a sinking feeling in my gut.
"So soon?" he said, frowning. "I thought it wouldn't be until next month."
"I guess not. We can all go together," I said, not wanting Drake to have to do it himself. "It's a good thing you only have five shifts left. You could go once they're done."
Drake nodded, but his demeanor changed from that point on.
Our special day with Liam, and with Drake's new-found family had gone so well. I didn’t want it to be ruined by a text so I took Drake's hand and squeezed.