Author's Note: The story I had original planned to ONLY really work on until I decided I couldn't not write "Hope For The Hopeless" either. xD Prayer circle I can write these together. I have so much planned for this story and I hope I can get it all out the way I want. I've had it planned since like Chapter 10 of "Hear Me" and then it changed and then it changed again to what I have planned now. So I dedicate this first chapter to Mira-because she got on my ass about posting this. I'd also like to thank my lovely girlfriend for helping me reign in all my ideas and then Caro & Mira for being my sounding board with this story. Thank you all of you. You're the best. Now, enjoy the story.
Disclaimer: I own nothing but Callie and the unnamed baby.
To The Moon and Back
Chapter One
It was dark as they walked down the alleyway. So dark, that her little green eyes widened as she held on tighter to her mother's hand. Her little legs stumbled slightly in her footy pajamas as her mother struggled to move them faster.
"Mommy, wheres we goin'?" She asked in a quiet tone. She was tired and her feet were cold on the dirty concrete. She knew it had to be late because the sun wasn't there to say hello.
Her mother finally stopped and leaned against the nearest brick wall, breathing heavy. "Hush, baby." She replied back, holding the bundle in her free arm, closer to her chest and not even glancing down at her daughter.
The little girl watched as her mother bit her lip and finally knelt down to face her. "Listen to me, sweet girl," She placed her free hand on the little girl's cheek and she could tell her mommy was trying not to cry. "I need you to stay here. I won't let him hurt you anymore. Someone will come and take-take you, take care of you and your brother." Her mother said in a trembling voice. She gently nudged her daughter into a corner on top of a cardboard box.
"You keep your brother safe until then, okay?" The little girl's face creased and she looked as though she was going to cry but she automatically held out her arms instead. Tears sprang into her mother's eyes as she gently placed the little baby in her 4 year olds' arms. He was tiny and new, barely a day old.
The 4 year old held her sleeping baby brother close to her chest and sat down on the cardboard box. "Who's gonna get us, mommy?" She asked quietly, lip trembling.
"Someone good." Her mother murmured back. "Someone who will love you."
"To the moon and back?"
Her mother tried to laugh but it came out as a sob. "More than that." She whispered through her tears. "You'll know them when you see them. You'll feel it in your heart." The woman gently brushed away a stray tear from her daughter's cheek.
"No more hurtings? That why you letting us go?"
"No more hurt. Be good, baby. I love you, I love you so much and don't ever forget that." The woman leaned forward and pressed a long kiss to her daughter's forehead.
The little girl leaned into her touch and sniffled. "Love you too, mommy. I'll be good. Promise."
"I-I've gotta go. They'll find you." The little girl's mother staggered to her feet and hurried back the way she came, her heart breaking with every step away.
Back in the corner, the little girl held on to her little brother and shivered. "Don't worry, baby brover. I'll p'tect you." She whispered quietly.
She didn't sleep, watched as the sun kissed her good morning and the moon said it's goodbye. But she was used to that. There were a lot of nights she didn't sleep, busy hiding from him. She had learned not to trust anything or anyone because even when they acted nice it was always a trick; just a trick to get her to come out. But she never cried. That only made it worse.
Just as the sun had fully risen the little girl's brother started to cry, hungry for his mother's milk. "Hush brover, shhh." The little girl rocked him gently, her green eyes alert and watching for signs of danger.
She managed to get him to calm down but the sound of sirens wailing startled him and he began to cry once more.
It was 15 minutes before she finally got him to calm down into quiet whimpers, still not happy. But the sound of clicking heels against concrete made her heart rate quicken. She held her brother closer and sunk further behind a few bags of garbage, trying to be quiet.
From her hiding place she could see a pretty woman peering down the alleyway curiously. She was in a light blue dress and a jacket and heels. Her hazel eyes looked concerned. "Hello?" She called gently. And just at that moment, her brother decided to start crying again.
"Hush brover, please." The little girl said anxiously, but it was too late, the woman hurried down the alleyway and moved the garbage bag and as she spotted her, a look of worry crossed her face.
"Oh!" She gasped as she looked down at the little girl and the fussy baby in her arms. "Oh, sweetheart are you okay? Where's your mommy?" She knelt down in front of the 4 year old.
The little girl's green eyes gave her a once over and she held her brother closer. "What's your name?" She asked boldly, though her heart was trembling in her chest.
The woman's brows creased and she looked to be contemplating her answer before she finally spoke. "I—My name is Dr. Isles—Maura." She replied awkwardly.
And then the little girl knew. She stood up slowly in her dirty footy pajamas and handed her crying little brother to Maura and looked up at her. "You help us? Mommy is gone."
Maura looked down at the tiny newborn fussing in her arms and back to the little girl. She had dirt smudges on the side of her cheeks and her golden hair was greasy. She was shivering and her little lips were purple. "Come with me, sweetie." She said softly as she stood up and held out her hand.
Cautiously, the little girl placed her tiny hand in Maura's and they walked out of the alleyway and down a few blocks to a Blue Prius. Maura let go of the little girl's hand and opened the back door for her and nudged her gently in. She then sat in the driver's side, still holding the fussing baby in her arms and turned on the car and then immediately, the heat.
The little girl climbed towards the front. "Doctor Moowa, I fink brover is hungry. I promised I would take care a him."
Maura held the baby closer to her and looked back at the 4 year old. "I'm sure he's very hungry and cold. What's your name, sweetie?" She asked as she grabbed her phone from its charger with her free hand.
"Callie." She stated, although it came out as 'Cawee'.
Smiling, Maura looked down at the infant. "And what about your brother, what's his name?"
Callie frowned and leaned forward to lightly trace her tiny fingers over his forehead, making the fussing baby calm down. "He's bwand new," She said quietly, her eyes finally meeting Maura's after a long moment. "No name." She clarified.
Maura was silent for a moment, her heart pounding with anxiety. "How brand new, Callie? Was he born in a hospital?" The ME tried to prod gently, her fingers hovering over the speed dial for Jane.
"He wasn't borned in a ho'pital, he was borned at home…" Callie seemed to concentrate now as she tried to answer the next question. "The last moon. He was borned two moons when the sun was up."
Maura worked hard to understand the child's words. "He was born the night before?" She asked after a moment.
Callie looked thoughtful for a moment before she nodded and pushed a stringy blonde hair away from her face.
Reaching for her phone with her free hand, Maura pressed the speed dial one.
Jane answered on the third ring. "Hey, Maur. What's up? I thought you had a crime scene to go to?"
For a moment, Maura wasn't sure how to even begin to explain but then suddenly it was all spilling out of her like a waterfall. "Jane, I found a little girl and a baby in the alley way and I just—would you please come?" She asked in an anxious voice.
"What? What do you mean you found—I mean, yeah I'll—I'll be there as fast as I can. Text me the address."
"I'll explain more when you get here. Call an ambulance, I—I haven't called one. I'm just I—"
Jane cut her off. "I know, sweetie. I'll be there. Love you."
When Maura hung up with Jane, she quickly texted her girlfriend the address while trying to sooth the fussy infant in her arms.
"What's gonna happen to us Doctor Moowa?" Callie asked from the backseat. Maura glanced back to see that she was practically curled up, little arms wrapped around her knees and eyes tired but frightened.
Maura tried to give the child a reassuring smile. "You both need to see a doctor. My uh—friend is on the way and she called an ambulance to take you and your brother to the hospital." She explained.
Callie looked nervous, trying to hide further into herself. "B-but yous a doctor. P-please don't leave us." Her eyes were brimming with tears but she refused to let them fall. Crying made things worse. Maybe she had been wrong to trust this woman.
Maura's heart felt as though it was being slowly crushed. The look of fear on Callie's face made her automatically promise not to leave the child. "I won't, sweetheart. But your brother needs special care that I can't give him and so do you. I'm not the right kind of doctor." She tried to explain softly. "I'll stay with you." It was a promise she wasn't sure she could keep but she would damn near do her best.
Callie merely nodded slowly, still looking scared.
It didn't help that moments later a siren could be heard, no doubt the EMS that Jane had called. Callie hugged herself tighter as her head jerked all around, looking like a scared animal.
There was a tapping on the window and Maura turned to see Jane. The ME felt a wave of relief wash over her as she nodded, letting her girlfriend know the door was open.
Jane opened the door and peered down at Maura with the now fussing infant in her arms and then in the back at the scared little girl. She looked back at Maura and placed a hand on the other woman's shoulder. "You okay?"
"Not really," Maura murmured quietly, shaking her head.
Offering a small smile, Jane squeezed Maura's shoulder gently and glanced at the little girl. "Hi there, I'm Jane." She said in a soft voice.
Callie didn't say anything in return, just continued to stare.
A few minutes later, two EMS guys were behind Jane with a stretcher. The detective moved out of their way and watched as her girlfriend gently handed over the baby and relayed information. "He'll probably need to be in an incubator—he wasn't born in a sterile environment and he's been out in the cold all night." She said quickly, twisting one of the rings around her finger.
Both of the men nodded, one working to wrap the baby up in something warmer and clean while the other moved to open the back door but before he could even ask the little girl anything, she backed away to the other side of the door, screaming. "DON'T TOUCH ME!" Her eyes were wide as she pushed herself up against the door.
The man startled at the outburst but tried to speak soothingly over her screaming. "NO! NO HURTS." Her frightened eyes looked to Maura desperately. "Doctor Moora p-please." She whimpered, unable to hold her tears any longer.
The EMS man looked back at Maura and after a moment she just nodded and took the man's place. "It's okay, Callie," She said gently, holding out her arms.
After some hesitance, Callie suddenly flew into Maura's arms, wrapping her arms tight around the ME's neck, little face hiding in her chest. Her breaths were shallow and her heart was racing.
"Shhh, it's okay." Maura said softly. "I've got you. I'm not going anywhere. Everything is going to be okay, I promise." She whispered, rubbing the little girl's back soothingly. She looked to Jane who looked just as heartbroken as she felt.
"Do you want to ride with us or meet us there?" One of the EMS workers asked quietly so as not to startle the little girl.
Maura looked to Jane who stepped up beside the woman. "We'll follow. I think that's best." The detective said with a concerned look over at the little girl.
The man nodded and moved to follow his partner back to the bus.
Jane turned her attention back to Maura. "Ride in the back of the car with her and I'll drive us?"
"Okay." Maura said quietly, feeling slightly numb. She wasn't sure how this had all happened. One minute she's walking back from a crime scene in a shady part of Boston and the next she's holding a trembling child who doesn't seem to trust anyone but her.
All sorts of feelings and thoughts raced through her as she held on tightly to that little girl, unconsciously whispering words of comfort as Jane followed behind the EMS.
She'd promised this little girl she wouldn't leave, what had she gotten herself into?