29 She’s Ours Now

Calliope's P.O.V.

Mommy and Daddy have always told me I was a smart girl, too smart, they said. I knew they weren't being nice. They would have liked it if I were stupid, so they could get away with more. I was always watching what they were doing. They were not doing good things. We all knew it, but they kept doing it.

‘You tell anyone about this and you're dead, you hear me, Cali?' Daddy would threaten me any time I saw him selling that funny white powder in a tiny baggie. I would just nod my head and keep quiet, because I learned that saying anything would make Daddy hurt me.

‘She's just a little girl, Mateo. She won't say anything.' Mommy would try to defend me, but the moment Daddy gave her a look, she would stop.

Mommy didn't want to get hit either, so she never fought hard for me. She liked it better when I got hit instead of her. It was okay though, because I would rather Daddy hit me over her, too. When Daddy was done hitting me, Mommy took extra good care of me. She couldn't do that if she was hurt, too.

It had been three weeks since Mommy wouldn't wake up. Daddy got home, and he was so mad at Mommy. When he looked at me, he grabbed me by the arm and took me outside. We went on a car ride, and when Daddy told me to get down, I did. I knew better than to not listen, but then Daddy drove away, and I didn't know where I was. I stayed there, waiting for him to come back, but he never did. That spot was my home for the first few days until I knew that Daddy wasn't coming back for me.

Lisa's P.O.V.

Calliope refused to go to the social worker when we got here, so I told them it was fine, that she could stay with me. The social worker nodded, but stuck by our side. Now it was Davis, Calliope, the social worker and myself, sitting across from this officer in his small, cramped desk. The smell of coffee was strongest, mixed in with the odd scents from the people that were brought in. I hadn't been here in a while, not since Liv had me file a report against my first abusive boyfriend.

Definitely not happy to be back here.

They asked millions of questions. Where did we find her? What was her name? Her last name? Were there any other adults around? They asked her questions too, but she never answered them. Would only answer if I asked and usually only if she could answer with her hands. She wouldn't tell us her last name, but nodded her head yes when I asked her if she knew the names of her parents. She wrote them down for us, then she handed me a separate torn piece of paper.

"Daddy doesn't want me back, and I don't want to go back. Don't make me go."

I showed Davis the paper, making a face that told him he better make sure this beautiful girl wasn't dragged away from us. Calliope wasn't going anywhere. If her asshole father abandoned her like a stray dog, then he didn't get to have her back. Davis seemed to understand what I was mentally telling him, as he looked just as determined as I.

"Look, Chuck, it's pretty obvious what happened here. You have what you need from her and I know you need to make the call to her father, but we both know you will not get an answer. In the meantime, we are taking the girl home, so give me the paperwork, or whatever you need to do, to make it happen." Davis meant business, giving Chuck a very stern tone, intimidating him.

"I don't think that's how it works. She has to be placed in the system and then they call and find a foster family for her to stay at, if we don't find any other relatives first." Chuck answered with a shaky voice.

"Make it happen, Chuck. We'll foster her, so figure it out and get it done. This girl isn't leaving our side."

To drive the point further, Calliope clung onto me tightly. Chuck then went off to talk to the social worker who had walked away for a moment to get a cup of coffee. After a lot of arguing, a lot of paperwork, and a lot of other shit we had to do, Calliope left with us. I held her in my arms as Davis called us a taxi. He would take the bike home and we would meet him there.

"You're okay now, Calliope, I have you." I told her, running my hand over her hair since there was no way for me to run my fingers through it. I would have to help her wash her hair.

Calliope passed out on my lap, exhausted. Her little face relaxed slowly, showing me her age further. She must be no older than six. Her round cheeks were making it hard for me to tell her actual age. I would have to see if she would tell me when she woke again.

Davis was already home when the taxi pulled into the driveway. I gave the man his money and carefully carried Calliope inside. Davis opened the doors for me and signaled for me to put her in the guest room beside ours. I would have to keep an ear out for her all night. This girl has been through so much already. Davis helped me carefully remove her shoes, and we saw how blistered her feet were. I silently cried as we tucked her in.

How could anyone do this to her?

"What do you want to do, Lisa? They're going to find her dad and he might want his daughter back. I am sure he will come up with a stupid story like she ran away or got lost. That note she gave you, tells me her parents are no good. God, I hate whoever they are!" Davis' punched the wall in anger, making a hole through the drywall.

"You're going to scare her if she wakes up. Calm down, or go downstairs and hit the bag."

I doubt she would warm up to Davis if she saw him punching the walls in frustration. He would probably frighten her away even though he was the kindest man on this planet. At least to those deserving of his kindness.

"You're right." He sighed. "But Lisa, what do you want to do with her?"

"I don't know, Davis. I just know I can't send her back. She can't go back." I started crying again for the poor small child laying in the room next door. There was no telling what horrors she had been through.

"I won't let them send her back. Derek and I will find who her parents are, and understand what happened. If they really are bad, I'll make them sign their rights away. Fuck them!" Davis held me tightly as he spoke, allowing me to hear the rumble of his words in his chest.

We'll keep you safe, Calliope.

A little hand on my shoulder shook me awake. I sat up so fast, remembering that we had taken a beautiful little girl home. A beautiful, broken little girl. She stood before me with sad eyes in our dark room, making me look at the clock on my bedside table to see it was three in the morning.

"What's wrong?" I asked her, worriedly. She looked ready to cry, flinching away. "Oh, sweetheart, whatever it is, it's okay. What's the matter?"

Davis sat up, waking because of my not-so-quiet talking. It seemed to only make her more nervous. He turned on the lamp on his nightstand, illuminating the room enough for me to see the wet spot between her thighs. She'd had an accident.

"Sweet child. It's okay. Let's get you cleaned up. Davis will get the bed changed for you. Don't worry, okay?"

She looked at Davis as if waiting for him to do something. When he got off the bed, she backed away scared, and that's when I flashed back to my childhood. She had been abused by her father. It was obvious by the way she cowered away from Davis, like he would punish her for having an accident.

"He will not hurt you."

I grabbed her hand, took her to my bathroom, and started a bath for her. I needed to wash her hair anyway, so at least she would have nice clean curls for tomorrow. She was shy, but when I added bubbles to the bath, she quickly undressed and got right in.

"Does your dad hurt you, Calliope?" She didn't answer, neither shook nor nodded her head. The action told me everything I needed to know.

He did.

"My father would hurt me and my brother, too. Any time he got mad, or things weren't going his way at work, he would take it out on us. Usually my brother more than me, but I know that fear you're feeling, Calliope. I've lived through it. I won't let him ever hurt you again. You hear me? Never again. I'll make sure of it, I promise."

She stayed silent, but I saw her give me a small nod before she continued to play with the bubbles. I washed her hair as she played, having to soak it and wash it multiple times. I had to use a multitude of deep conditioners and oils to finally get a brush through her wet hair. It took a while, and she was all pruned by the time I got her out.

"I'm a little old lady," she whispered, showing me her pruned fingers. I smiled, having gotten a sentence out of her.

"If you're an old lady, then I must be a dinosaur."

She giggled at my joke, relieving some of my worry for her. Her giggle was magical, like fairy dust and rainbows. I wanted to hear it as often as possible, and I would make it my goal to make her laugh daily.

Could I keep her?

Davis' P.O.V.

Calliope watched me carefully as I made her bed. I had done this many times for Izzy when she was younger. It was something I was used to, even though I hadn't done it in over a decade. This little girl seemed so scared of me, and all I wanted to do was offer her a hug.

"All ready for you, princess." I patted the bed for her, giving her my warmest smile, but it didn't convince her in the slightest.

"Let's get you back in bed now."

Lisa guided her to bed, tucking her in as I stayed back so as not to frighten her further. Lisa took my hand as we left the room, but I heard Calliope whisper "thank you" to me before I was out of earshot. Progress.

I got Lisa to go back to sleep, but sleep evaded me for the rest of the night. So, I decided to make a breakfast of champions when seven o'clock rolled around. I wanted Calliope to wake up to a big meal, one she could pick her favorites from. I made a large array of foods.

Omelets, pancakes, waffles, even crepes were made for her to choose from. Anything that screamed breakfast, I cooked it. Bacon, sausages, muffins, biscuits, all displayed on the table. Seeing I made too much food, I invited Izzy to come over as well. Maybe if Calliope saw me with her, she wouldn't be so wary of me. Who knows though, Izzy and I don't exactly have a conventional father daughter relationship.

"What's all this?" Lisa asked with a smile as she grabbed the coffeepot and made herself a cup.

"Breakfast, of course. Izzy should be here soon, too."

"Perfect, I'm going to go check on Calliope. You keep being your sweet self with your freaking country music." She laughed as she went to exit the kitchen.

"Hey, leave my country music alone, woman. You know you secretly like it." I called after her. When I turned, I found that she never left. Instead, Calliope had come and stood in the doorway with wide eyes. "Good morning, Princess. I didn't know what you liked, so I made everything. You are welcome to eat as much as you want." She didn't move, probably trying to decide if this was some sort of trap.

"I told you he was sweet." Lisa winked at her as she took a sip of her coffee.

"I have come for my promised food and I brought Jared with me!" I heard Izzy yell down the hall.

"We're in the kitchen." Lisa called out.

"What do you mean Jared is with you?" I asked, a little sternly, scaring Calliope by mistake. Dammit.

"I mean, he's with me. I am sure you can put two and two together. Get over it," Izzy paused, seeing Calliope standing in her way. She cocked her head to the side for a moment. I had to swallow my anger down, and chew her out later when I wasn't around Calliope. She couldn't be sleeping with Jared already. I would kill him.

"I think you have another stray. This one is really cute, though." Izzy smiled, kneeling down, so she was at Calliope's height. She poked her on the shoulder, trying to get her to turn. Surprisingly, Calliope did, meeting face to face with her. "Hi, I'm Izzy, that guy's daughter." She pointed to me, making a face like it sucked to be my daughter. Whatever, she loves me. "What's your name?"

"Calliope." Her voice was shy as she answered her.

"That's a beautiful name, say it more proudly. Tell me again, but say it with confidence."

I love the way my daughter gets anyone around her to feel confident and strong.

"Calliope," she said louder.

"Good, we'll work on it more." Izzy winked at her, patting her on the head and standing tall. "Where'd you find her?" she asked me, taking a muffin off the table.

"The park last night." I answered. "But we're not talking about that. We're all going to have breakfast and talk about you and Jared."

"Uh, no we are not."

"Uh, yes we are."

"I'll leave."

"You'd do no such thing."

"I would, wanna see?" She walked away, calling my bluff.

"Stop, Izzy. I'll save it for another time. Just come have breakfast." I rolled my eyes, caving too easily as usual.

"That's right."

"Wow," Calliope whispered, having seen the whole thing. She seemed impressed for some reason, but I wasn't sure why.

"Let's eat," Lisa told her, guiding her towards the food.

Breakfast was great, and I'd even heard Calliope laugh a few times at Izzy and my interactions. I guess to others we were very entertaining, even though all it was just Izzy trying to annoy me and succeeding. I enjoyed hearing Calliope laugh, so inviting Izzy was definitely a smart idea on my part. Besides, I love spending time with my daughter, so making Calliope laugh was just a bonus.

Now to find Calliope's parents and ensure she never has to go back.

"You're sure this is the place?" I asked Derek as I stared at the rundown apartment building.

"Yup, one Mateo Barns, apartment 3D, father to Calliope Barns and husband to Monica Barns. It says here that they found Monica overdosed in an alleyway three weeks ago. So it's just the dad. Are you sure you want to do this?" He asked me, now looking up from his file.

"Very."

"Alright then, lead the way."

I marched my way up the stairs, since this building had no elevator. There was a lot happening in these halls that scared me to know Calliope had been living here. It was obvious there were drug deals going down, and what looked like a lot of gang activities by the tags on the stairwell and corridors. We finally arrived at 3D, and I wasted no time pounding on the door. It didn't take long for an average height, skinny man with dark hair to open the door. His dark eyes with even darker circles met me in confusion.

"Are you Mateo Barns?" I asked him. The moment he nodded his head, I decked him right in the jaw, causing him to fall back.

I stepped inside his trashy apartment, stepping over the dirty clothes he had lying on the ground. The place was a complete mess. Trash, cigarette butt, needles, and clothes littered the floor. The smell was repulsive, and the place was so small, I doubt it had a second bedroom. So this must have been where Calliope slept. My heart broke, picturing her sleeping on the broken couch to the left of me.

"What the fuck, man?! What's your problem?" Mateo asked, rubbing his jaw.

"Tell me where your daughter is." I wanted to hear what he'd say to that.

"What's that matter to you? Why are you looking for my daughter? Are you some kind of perv?" He wiped at his bleeding lip.

"Where is she?"

"With her grandmother, man. What did that little creep do now?"

I picked him up by the collar of his shirt and held him in front of me, lifting him a few inches from the ground. He stared at me wide eyed and scared shitless.

"Wrong answer."

Derek stayed outside, unwilling to watch me beat this guy. He said he didn't want to testify against me if things got out of hand. I made sure not to break Mateo's hands so he could sign what I needed him to. I broke other things instead.

"You no longer have a daughter. Sign the papers, and forget all about her. If I see you anywhere near her, I won't hesitate to break every bone in your body."

His hand shook as he signed the papers, thankfully not getting any blood on it.

"Good luck with her." He chuckled dryly, so I kicked him in the chest while he was still down.

"Don't need it."

Fuck this guy. She was ours now.