There was no way Karen could possibly take her eyes off of Aurora, who had been brought home from the hospital only a few hours ago. The little girl, who wasn't really all that little anymore, was staring out at the window, watching the snowfall against the window, building up on the ledge. The crackle and flicker of the fireplace reflected in the window; in the girl's eyes.
Karen could watch her daughter, on one condition. A condition made by Aurora herself. There could be no talking of what transpired over night. Not until she was ready to talk about it. There was too many questions, all answered the same; being asked the questions by a parent would cause her to break down, something she hadn't done yet. Something she wasn't ready for. And so, because there was nothing else Karen wanted to talk about, Karen stayed in her chair, with a cup of hot cocoa for Aurora, watching her.
It was Aurora's birthday. Karen's birthday as well. The girl was turning seven. And for the beginning of her seventh birthday she was in a interrogation room in a police station down town. It was the one proud parenting moment Karen had when she made Aurora memorize the home phone number. She didn't care what else Aurora knew, as long as she knew that ten digit phone number. And she knew one day, not as soon, that it would come in handy.
"I'm cold," Aurora said from her spot on the window. She turned her face a fraction, looking at her mother out of the corner of her eye. Karen shifted, placed the cup of hot chocolate, which was now most likely cold, on the table beside her and moved towards the window, grabbing a throw blanket from the couch.
"Do you want something to eat?" Karen asked. There was no way Aurora could be cold in her spot from the window. The fireplace made the little corner a sauna. Karen drug her fingers through her daughter's mess of curls.
"No, thank you." She said in almost a whisper. Karen draped the blanket over her shoulders. "Thank you." Karen kissed the top of her head, smoothed it down, and moved away from her.
"If you need anything-" Karen offered. Aurora nodded and went to look back outside.
Karen smiled as she sat back down in her chair and waited. Cradled the cold cup of hot chocolate and watched as her daughter started to cry. Again. How the girl had any more tears to cry was beyond her, but there they were, escaping her pretty hazel eyes. Will, who was futzing around in the kitchen, probably trying to occupy himself from breaking anything was doing everything he could not to come out and interrogate Aurora. He already had tried, not getting very far with Karen's glare.
Karen was tired. Aurora was tired. Will was tired. All three emotionally drained from the night's activities. Aurora wasn't allowed to sleep. A concussion she attained from knocking her head against a concrete wall. Karen would not sleep, not wanting Aurora to drift off and become unconscious, or wake up screaming and crying. And Will. Will couldn't sleep due to the mere fact that he just couldn't clear his mind, something he liked to do before he went to bed.
"Mommy," Karen almost missed the whimper. Her eyes snapped up to see Aurora's chin tucked into her chest. Her shoulders shaking. In one swift move, reminding Karen of the time Aurora found it necessary to walk the length of the counter when she was three, she was at her side. Aurora buried her face into Karen's chest, wrapping her arms around the woman's waist, begging to be held.
"Shhhh." Karen soothed. Aurora shook her head, maybe trying to wipe her tears, or not give into the thought that popped into her head. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Will hovering in the doorway. Most likely sensing something was wrong.
He gave it to Karen, the task of dealing with Aurora. She needed her mother, and Karen needed to be a mother. She had to be the one to wait, to listen for anything that Aurora might supply; while Will stewed in the kitchen. He wanted to kill Stanley Walker. Not really, but the threat was there. He just wanted the man out of his life. His and his family's life. It wasn't fair to what he did to Karen or to Aurora for that matter.
It was just like in the movie. When a damsel in distress is rescued by her knight in shining armor and falls limp in the arms of her capturer. Aurora became pure body weight, causing Karen to stumble backwards, and shoot a glance at Will, screaming help. He moved to Karen's side and swept Aurora up, bridal style, and cradled her to him. The girl wove her arms around his neck and buried her face. She continued to cry. Whimpering. Mumbling apologies.
Will took her up the stairs and down the hallway to her bedroom. The girl sensing her whereabouts began to kick. She shook her head, trying to climb up her father when he moved to put her down. It was then that Karen climbed into Aurora's tiny big girl bed and pulled Aurora to her. The girl began to sob. Karen shook her head and tilted her head back and just rubbed the girls back.
"He came here." Aurora began. Her voice completely broken."He came here told me you were hurt." Will raised an eyebrow at Karen. "He told me your mommy is hurt and told me to come get you. I didn't know what to do. I don't like thinking you're hurt momma." Karen sighed, continuously rubbing her back. "And when I said okay, he took me to that big place and you weren't there. I couldn't do nothing. He wouldn't let me see you."
"It's okay, Aurora. You're safe now." Karen said, quietly. "You're safe now. He's not here. He's not going to be here for some time okay?"
"I don't want to see him again." Aurora quietly said. "Ever."
"Neither do I, baby doll. Neither does daddy." Karen said as Will watched in awe. It sounded like she was singing some kind of lullaby. The girl was instantly calming down. He could never do that. It wasn't something he could do after a man kidnapped his daughter. Even if Aurora was a boy, he'd leave the condolences to Karen. He'd be pummeling Stan's face in.
"Daddy?" The girl lifted her head to look at the man standing in the doorway. He smiled and nodded his head. "No see."
"No baby girl. I don't want to see him either." Will smiled. He itched his way back into the room and took a seat at the edge of the bed. "Like mom said, we don't want to see him and we won't okay? I won't let it happen."
Aurora nodded her head and leaned her head against Karen's shoulder. "I'll be right there," she whispered. Will kissed Karen's temple before he kissed Aurora's forehead. He didn't miss her stiffen under his touch. Acceptable since she was probably touched.
Will went into the living room, emptied out the glass into the sink and leaned against the counter. He drug a hand through his hair. It was three in the morning and there was no way he or Karen was going to be asleep anytime soon. Aurora would be asleep in minutes, probably sooner with Karen mumbling things to her. Humming. Singing. She could put him to sleep in seconds with a few strokes to the back of the head, her fingers running through his hair at the base of his neck, and telling him the event's of her day. He was out quick.
And with the lack of sleep Aurora had, he was sure she was out cold in a matter of seconds. And with the footsteps walking above him, belonging to Karen, he smiled, knowing he was right. She appeared moments later in the doorway to the kitchen, leaning against it, sighing as if she was defeated.
"She's asleep." Karen announced. Will smiled and nodded, pushing himself off the counter, walking in her direction. He took her in her arms. He could feel the tense muscles in her back starting to ease.
"What are we going to do about her?" Will asked. "I mean what else can we do? She won't talk about it."
"We let it ease out of her, Will." Karen said carefully. "One day, it'll be in the middle of breakfast or in the middle of her shower and then she'll come to us and spill everything. That bit about telling her I was hurt? That didn't happen. It's not like Stan. Stan doesn't care about my wellbeing."
"I just want to know what happened so that way he could go back to jail and stay there." Will said. It was what they both were thinking.
"You have to wait until she opens up to you." Karen said, placing a palm against his cheek. "Trust me on this."
He nodded and she kissed him, slowly, and fell into his arms, before walking away. Up to their bedroom. He wouldn't trust her. At least she didn't think so.