Happy Sunday Everyone,
Time for another update and after 3 weeks of writers block I have managed to finish a chapter and start the next. Bit more of the Trial today which means we are getting closer to some Calzona loving! I bet your all happy about that!
On to the chapter, enjoy and please find the time to leave just a little review at the end of it.
Thanks for reading
AL xxx
-oOo-
John went through witness after witness as he called all the doctors that had been on Callie's case in, each statement making the defence lawyer sweat a little further. Finally at five in the evening, Judge Rinder called it a night, as expected the trial would run at least another day and Callie was glad the day was over, she was absolutely drained and she had only taken to the stand to read her Victim Impact Statement, she still had to sit and testify, but that was a problem for tomorrow. Tonight she needed to relax, her baby had obviously sensed that something was amiss with her mother and had been unsettled for the past few hours, mixed with the anxiety of the proceedings, Callie was not in the best of moods.
They stood as the judge and jury left the room out of respect before turning to exit the room themselves.
"Good night Calliope, Sweet dreams" Earl called tauntingly to her retreating back.
Callie's steps faltered, but Arizona took her hand and gave it a gentle tug. Refusing to acknowledge Earl, the two women left the room and sighed when they were out of sight of him.
Arizona turned to Callie to ask if she was ok but two strong arms wrapped around her neck as the Latina fell into her, quickly wrapping her arms around Callie's waist to support her, Arizona drew her closer into the embrace and let her cry.
Carlos and Lucia were on their feet the second the two women exited the court room and stood by helplessly as their daughter fell apart.
Finally Callie was able to pull herself together and leaned back in the embrace and offered a sad smile to the blonde.
"One day down, you've got this Cal, the bastard is going down... just you wait and see" Arizona promised, even though it wasn't her promise to make.
"I wish I could have a drink, I really need a tequila right now"
"How about a nice hot bath instead Mija" Lucia asked looking weary, the day had taken its toll on her also. Sitting in a room waiting for over eight hours with nothing to do but stress and over think about what was going on in the next room would do that to you.
"That sounds like heaven" Callie admitted as she glanced away from the blonde and to her parents who were surrounded by Dan, Barb, Tim, Claire, Bailey and Sloan. The other doctors had left due to being on shift but Sloan and Bailey had stuck around to show their support to the younger Latina.
"Well I'd best be off, my shift starts at eight tomorrow so I wont be able to make it but know that I will be thinking of you and hoping the verdict goes exactly how you want it to go" Bailey smiled softly.
"Thank you Bailey, and thank you for testifying. Every single testimony against him will help paint the picture of what kind of animal he is, its more likely that the jury will give him a harsher sentence" Callie smiled softly to the woman who was now Arizona's boss as well as becoming a fast friend to both women.
"No thanks needed Torres, your one of us now and we look after our own" Bailey offered a unusual wide smile before waving to the rest of the Torres-Robbins family and making her way out.
"How are you feeling Torres?" Mark asked after Bailey had left.
"You know, exhausted truthfully but I doubt I will sleep a wink tonight knowing we have to go through it all again tomorrow" Callie offered honestly.
"Well I'm proud of you kiddo, what you did today, standing up in front of him after all he put you through took real balls, getting your life back on track takes even bigger balls. I couldn't be prouder of you" Mark squeezed Callie's forearm supportively, grinning big when she didn't flinch or make a move to remove herself from his contact.
"Thanks Mark, I appreciate it. None of this is easy and it worries me what all of this stress is doing to the baby, I can feel how unsettled she has been today, she has been kicking like crazy" Callie informed the taller man worriedly.
"This little one is a fighter just like her mother, don't worry too much about her ok?" Mark soothed.
"Ok" Callie conceded, knowing the doctor was right.
"Well I best be off, I will see you in the morning, try and get some rest even if you cant sleep"
"Thanks Mark, I will try" Callie smiled softly.
"Night Cal, Arizona, everyone" Mark waved at the group and left through the doors.
"Lets get you home" Arizona smiled at the brunette warmly, the day had been hell for her and she was mentally, emotionally and physically drained so she could only imagine what the Latina felt like.
Arizona drove Callie home in silence while the Robbins and Torres parents shared a ride home, Tim and Claire making their way home to their little abode further down the street.
Once in the house Arizona ran Callie a bath whilst Lucia made her a grilled cheese sandwich, which she only ate a half of. Thanking everyone she made her way to the bathroom and smiled when she found Arizona finishing lighting some candles, the bath was poured, there was ample bubbles and the lights were off.
"Arizona, you didn't have to go to this much effort" Callie said as she tried to fight the tears threatening to fill her eyes.
"Nothing is too much trouble for you" Arizona shrugged. "Will you be ok from here or do you want me to stay for a while?"
"I think I need to be alone for a while, there is a lot going on in my head right now" Callie admitted.
"If that's what you need, but I'm only on the other end of the phone if you need company or just want to chat, I doubt I will get much sleep tonight either" Arizona confessed softly.
"I don't deserve you!" Callie sobbed, her emotions finally getting the better of her.
"Hey you deserve the universe and all of the stars in it, don't you forget that... you mean the world to me and I would do anything for you, I love you Cal, you're my rock" Arizona sighed as she pulled the brunette into a tight embrace, her hands stroking softly on Callie's tense back. She could feel the Latina's body shuddering with the sobs so she stood firm and held her until the sobs subsided, which they eventually did.
"Thanks, I feel a bit better now for getting that out" Callie said, her voice muffled by an alabaster shoulder.
"Anytime, you know that. Now I'm going to go and let you relax. Try not to stress too much about what tomorrow will bring, we will get through it together" Arizona said, pulling back slightly so she could look into red rimmed eyes which broke her heart.
"together" Callie smiled in return.
-oOo-
The next day Callie found herself sitting in the same court room behind the solid wood desk averting her eyes from her husband who she could feel studying her. Judge Rinder and the jury had been brought in and Arizona was sitting on the stand giving her testimony. John had gone first as she was his witness and they had talked in length about how Callie had acted the last day they had spoken, about the bruises that Callie had tried to cover with make up. They had discussed how Callie had gone missing and how Arizona had attempted to find her at every opportunity she had. The fliers she had spent numerous weekends handing out around town, the missing persons reports, how she had found out about Callie's arrival at the hospital right through to how she had come to be under a temporary contract under the hospital to compile the evidence against Earl which had been provided to the police.
Arizona spoke clearly and confidently, her eyes never leaving John's as she spoke, afraid that if she looked at Earl she would snap and say or do something which would jeopardise the case. When it came to the cross examination she did everything she could to not belittle and argue with the defence attorney as he tore her statement to shreds. He claimed that she was obsessed with Callie and that Earl and his wife had gone into hiding from her because she was unstable and was practically stalking Callie.
"Let me ask you this, Miss Robbins. Are you in love with Mrs Thompson?" The defence attorney asked, refusing to call Callie by her maiden name.
"I love Callie, I always have and I always will. I have loved her since I was ten years old but whilst Callie was missing I have been in several relationships, one of which was loving and committed" Arizona answered tensly, hoping that the lawyer would not force her to admit that she was in love with her best friend. She did not want Callie to find out that way, she doubted she ever wanted Callie to find out her secret, but definitely not in a room full of strangers and her abusive husband.
"Loving and committed relationship. So tell me where is your partner today?" the defence attorney asked with a sneer.
"We broke up. We wanted different things, wanted to be different places and we don't believe in long distance relationships, so the relationship was no longer sustainable" Arizona explained, glancing at John who nodded approvingly.
"So it had nothing to do with Mrs Thompson reappearing in your life and you dropping everything to be with her?"
"No. We both knew the end was coming at the end of the school year. I wanted an internship back near home and she wanted to spread her wings and travel the country while she did her internship" Arizona explained, her heart thudding as the smarmy lawyer smirked unabashed.
"Would you like to explain to me why I have a text message from your Naomi explaining that you broke up because of Mrs Thompson?" Arizona followed his eyes and fell on the TV screen which clearly displayed the text that Naomi had sent her. How the fuck had this slimeball gotten hold of it.
Az, I'm so glad u found her but I'm so sorry to hear that things r really bad for her! Look, I know this isn't a good time but we both know that ur not coming back, not now. Callie needs u, and u need to be there with her and that's ok too, we both knew this day was gonna come eventually, I'm just sorry that day is finally here and we didn't get to say goodbye properly. Just look after urself and look after ur girl. I will sort everything on this end and get some movers to ship ur things to ur parents house. Stay safe and find ur happiness Az, ur amazing and u deserve to be happy. U know where I am if you need anything Nxxx
"As I said, we parted on good terms. As you can see in the message it says that we both knew this day would eventually come. Like I said we were prepared to separate at the end of school" Arizona seethed.
"And what about the part where it says its because of Mrs Thompson, I believe Naomi refers to her as your girl"
"Callie is my girl, I have called her that for years now. It doesn't mean anything further than friendship. I doubt very much if it did Naomi would have been so understanding, which if you read the message you will see that she is very much understanding of the situation" Arizona tried to reign her anger in.
"So you are denying there is any romantic involvement between you and Mrs Thompson"
"Yes" Arizona said clearly, her eyes flitting to Earl who was smirking at her.
"So you are denying there has never been any romantic involvement between yourself and Mrs Thompson"
"Objection, badgering the witness" John called.
"Sustained, the witness has answered that question" Judge Rinder warned.
"Apologies your honour, let me rephrase. Have you ever had a sexual relationship with Mrs Thompson" He smirked as his eyes bored into Arizona's.
"I have never had sex with Calliope, no" Arizona answered despite the question feeling sleezy.
"Not so much as a kiss?"
"I... well..." Arizona stuttered looking to John for help.
"Answer the question please Miss Robbins" Judge Rinder asked kindly. Arizona glanced at Callie apologetically before taking a deep breath.
"We kissed once when we were about twelve, if that is what you are referring to" Arizona watched as Earls fist's clenched on top of the table and his head spun around to Callie accusingly. Callie looked pale and Arizona could see from even this distance that she was trembling with fear.
"So you do have a romantic involvement with Mrs Thompson after all, that's all your honour" and the defence attorney sat down before Arizona had a chance to defend their actions. She felt like she had messed up, Callie wouldn't look at her and Earl looked ready to kill her. Fuckity fuck, this was not how this was supposed to go.