Never feel alone

Chapter 29

Callie

The air conditioning in the courtroom was too high; my bare arms were covered with goosebumps. I rubbed them discretely, trying to warm up. Stef saw me from the corner of her eye, and slipped her arm around me.

I'd already given my testimony. They had moved on to questioning Sophia. She looked so small up there, like a doll, almost.

"Did you ever try to tell anyone about the abuse?" The ADA asked her.

Sophia shook her head. "No."

"Never?" he asked.

"No," she said again. "I thought about telling my teacher once, but I changed my mind."

I looked down into my lap, sadly. I remembered Sophia's teacher from our last school, Mrs. Luna. She was really nice, and Sophia loved her. I knew how she felt. There were times when I wanted to reach out to anyone I thought I could trust, but in the end, I didn't.

"Why did you change your mind?" he asked her.

"I was too scared," she said softly.

"What were you scared of, exactly?" he asked.

"I- I was scared that she wouldn't believe me," she told him. "I was worried she would call Brian and he'd hurt me and Callie." Her chin quivered. Don't cry, I silently urged. Don't cry.

"Did anyone ever ask you to hide what was going on?" he continued.

Sophia shrunk back in her seat. "Yes, my sister," she admitted. "She was afraid we would get separated."

"Did you ever think it would be better to take that risk than to go on living with your foster father?"

"I-" Sophia gave me a desperate look. Her face crumpled, and tears streamed down her cheeks. "I-"

I looked up at Stef, and Stef shook her head no, as if she could read my thoughts. Then I looked back at my little sister's tear-stained face. She needed me. Without giving it another thought, I tried to get up and go to her. But Stef grabbed my arm. "Callie," she whispered, giving me a sharp look. "Sit down."

Begrudgingly, I sat back down, mad at her. Finally, someone handed Sophia a tissue, and she used to it dry her eyes. After a minute, she started to calm down.

"Miss Jacob," said the ADA, looking up from his notes. "Are you able to answer the question now?"

Sophia nodded. "Nothing could be worse than losing my sister. Callie and I have always gotten through the bad things together. If we didn't have each other, we wouldn't have anything."

After Sophia was questioned, there was a recess, and the court broke up. Stef grabbed my hand and stood up. "Honey, come in the hall with me. We need to talk."

"Fine," I said, following her. She lead me to a bench near a vending machine, and I sat down. She sat next to me and took my hands between hers. "Honey, what were you thinking in there?" she asked, looking me in the eye. "Did you forget what we talked about before we went in?"

"I'm sorry," I said, swallowing against a lump in my throat. "I just... he was making her cry. She needed me."

Stef sighed. "I know, honey. You're very protective of the people you love. I'm the very same way. But disrupting the court could have cost us everything we've worked for. You don't want to piss off the judge."

"I'm sorry," I apologized again. My eyes stung and my face was hot. "I won't do it again."

"I know you wont," she said, giving me a small smile. "And luckily, there was no harm done. Just remember that sometimes, it's better to let Sophia work things out on her own. She's old enough to advocate for herself, and she did. She's growing up, love."