Callie's POV
"I don't want you to be nervous. Just be yourself and everything should be fine." Jenny's words jumbled in my head. I couldn't keep focused on her long enough to be able to process what she was saying. Why was this happening? I had three more days to prepare for the evaluation and that time was stripped from me. Anger boiled up in me and I used every ounce of strength I had left to suppress it. "I'm just going to ask you a few questions and I need you to answer as honest as possible, okay?"
"Of course." My voice was quiet and weak. I rubbed my palms against my pants and tried to slow my breathing. "Can I ask you a question before we start?"
Jenny looked up from her notebook and smiled at me. "Absolutely. What's up, Callie?" Her smile calmed me a little, but not enough to rid me of my anxiety.
"What is your job title?" It sounded like a dumb question as soon as the words spilled out of my mouth. "I know a lot about the foster care system and I never heard about and 'evaluator'. Are you a social worker?"
"No, I'm not a social worker. I'm a psychiatrist." She wrote a couple things down. All the while her smile never left her face.
"Okay… I was just curious." I looked down at my lap and wrung my hands together nervously.
Jenny sighed a little, gathered her things, and moved to the seat directly to my left. "Callie, I know you're nervous. I don't want you to be. This has to be scary for you, I'm not trying to downplay that. Let's just talk. I want to get to know you. Don't put up a brave front. I'm not going to send you away from your foster family if you tell me you want to hit something when you get mad or scared. Okay? So let's just chat for a while. Think you can do that?"
I nodded slowly. My nerves had been calmed a little but I was still afraid of what was to come.
"Good. So can you tell me what it was like for you at New Intelligence?"
I looked up at the young woman and noticed that she had closed her notebook and was facing me directly. It started to feel less like an interrogation and more like a therapy session.
"New Intelligence was… it was mostly terrifying. I never knew what the next day was going to hold. I never knew if I was going to be sent out on a mission or if I was going to be in class all day." I paused waiting for her to comment but she remained silent. "The trainers were horrible too. They screamed at us if we did one thing wrong. But it taught us to do everything correctly the first time."
"That must have been incredibly difficult for you. How did you feel on a day-to-day basis?"
"I felt like a pawn in a game of chess. But like a really terrifying and screwed up game of chess. It was like they were just using me, and everyone else, to do their dirty work. But after Jude and I were promoted to operatives I started to feel more like an essential piece to the company. And that made me feel even more disgusting."
"Why?" She slowly pulled her notebook close to her and wrote down one word. I tried to read it but her hand covered it.
"My parents were Marines. They instilled a love of this country into my brother and me from a very young age. We were taught to protect this land with everything we had. And New Intelligence just wanted to destroy it. I felt like I'd failed my parents." I sighed deeply. "Can I get a glass of water?" I pointed to the water cooler in the corner of the room.
She smiled at me. "Of course." She kept asking questions as I moved across the room. "What did you learn in your time at New Intelligence. And I'm not talking about life lessons. I mean, what were you taught in your classes?"
I filled a small paper cup full of water and gulped it down quickly. I filled it again and filled one for Jenny. "We were taught a wide variety of things. When we were first recruited the classes seemed more like typical subjects we would learn in school. English, math, writing… those kinds of things." I sat down again and handed Jenny her cup. She thanked me and set it on the table. "But after a few months the classes got more intense. We started learning military tactics, forensic science, weapons training, combat…"
"I'm guessing the courses got even more intense once you got older." She tipped her head to the side a little. She was really studying my face.
"Yeah. We just went more in depth on all of the subjects." I sipped on my water, wondering how much longer the evaluation would work.
"I've read the reports that Agent Gibbs's team collected from New Intelligence. I found your reports to be the most interesting. Commander Doran really liked you. She wrote that she'd never known anyone to excel as much as you, that you were a natural in all forms of combat, and that your leadership was beyond exceptional. You never had a disciplinary report. You seem like the model recruit."
I shrugged my shoulders. "I guess so. I just did what I was told." I sighed and shook my head. "Can we just get to the root of this? I know you just want to know how often I want to explode. Or what I would do if something triggered me. So, please, just ask those questions. I'll answer all of them. I can't handle these "foreplay questions". Can we just get to the action?" I realized that my voice was getting louder and louder. "I'm sorry. I'm not mad at you, just a little frustrated at the situation."
"That's quite alright, Callie. The reason I was asking you those questions is because I needed to get an idea of the knowledge you acquired while you were at New Intelligence. But, we can get to the core questions. So, when you find yourself in a triggered situation, what do you want to do?"
"The only times I've been triggered since I was placed with the Fosters has been when I feel I need to protect them. We were out to dinner a few months ago and a man started screaming at my fosters moms. He was calling them dykes. He said he was going to call social services and have us taken away from them. He was spitting racial slurs out at Lena and the twins. I thought he was going to hit one of us. I remember thinking about what I would do if he did." I took a deep breath and continued. "I was going to tackle him and put a pressure point on his neck so he would pass out."
"So you weren't necessarily going to be violent if you could avoid it? You just wanted to neutralize the situation."
"Exactly. But, I have wanted to be violent a couple times. And I was once…" I hung my head in shame. I felt like I was getting ready to get myself taken away from the only people who had ever truly loved me. "My little brother was attacked about a week ago. I wanted to find the guy who did it and pound him into the ground. I hated seeing my little brother so broken."
"But you didn't go seek him out, right?" She scribbled down a few notes but quickly turned her attention back to me. It was like she was watching her favorite soap opera.
"No, I didn't. I knew Jude needed me to be there for him. If I beat that guy up I would have been arrested probably. It wasn't going to be a productive solution. I- I feel like you think I'm just saying what you want to hear. New Intelligence taught us when violence was necessary. They taught us how to control our wants to go on a rampage. Every time I find myself in one of these situations I think about every possible outcome. And if violence seems like the only way to put an end to the danger, then I react. But if the violence would just cause more problems, I find a different way."
"Callie, from what I'm hearing, you are doing everything right. You've learned how to control your instinct to fight, you're protective, and most of all your loyal to the right people. I would like to make one suggestion though. I want you to talk to a therapist. It can be me, you can talk to the on-staff psychiatrist here at NCIS, or you can find someone of your own choosing. I think it would be helpful for you to continue to work through some of the trauma you experienced. You're young, Callie. You shouldn't have to deal with so much stress and so much pain. Do you think you can do that?"
I smiled softly. "I can do that. Does this mean I can go back home?" I crossed my fingers under the table and prayed she would say yes.
"I have to type up the official report, but yes, you get to go back home tonight. I'm sorry your social worker made this seem like a bigger deal than it really was. You're a good kid. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise." Jenny gathered all of her things and placed them in her briefcase. "Oh, one more thought. Talk to your moms. I've read your social workers reports and I've talked with her. I know that they love you very much. They just want to help you get better."
I nodded in agreement. I stood and opened the door for her. "Thank you, Jenny. Have nice day."
"You too, Callie. Oh, here's my card in case you want to set up some sessions with me." With that, she made her way to the elevator and disappeared behind the metal doors.
I pocketed her card and made my way down to the squad room.
Stef's POV
It felt like Callie had been up in that conference room for an eternity. But when I checked my watch I was shocked to see that it had only been about twenty minutes.
"Mom! There's Callie!" Jude tapped me on the arm and pointed to the stairs.
I looked up and sure enough there was Callie coming down. I tried to read her face but I couldn't tell if she was happy or sad.
"Please tell me you have good news." I grasped her hands as soon as she reached us. She was shaking a little and I didn't take that as a good sign.
"I uh… I'm… I'm coming home." A single tear fell from her cheek as a smile made its way across her face. "I'm coming home!"
I pulled her into a hug and held her tightly. Jude threw his strong arms around both of us and soon enough Ziva joined in on the love too. The four of us stood their hugging, laughing, and crying for a good amount of time. We were all so overwhelmed with happiness that we couldn't seem to form words.
Finally, Ziva collected herself and broke our silence. "Cal, you should go home. I'll tell Gibbs the good news. You should go celebrate with your family." Ziva wrapped her arms tightly around Callie.
"Are you sure? It's only 1:00. I still have four hours left."
"I'm sure. You aren't training anyone anyway so you'd just be sitting around bored. Get outta here!" Ziva's wide smile warmed my heart. It was so comforting to know that Callie had someone to lean on outside of the family.
"Alright, well let's get going then!" Callie slung her backpack over her shoulder and led Jude and me to the elevator.
Several hours later…
After we'd left the navy yard I called into work and informed them that I was going to be taking a half day. I was assigned to desk duty for the week so I wasn't missing out on much. Finally Lena and the rest of the kids got home after all of their after school practices and meetings.
"Hello, my love!" Lena greeted me with a kiss.
"Where are the kids. I have a surprise for you all." I almost couldn't contain my excitement.
Lena raised one eyebrow, suspicious of what I was up to. "They're getting their things out of the car. Here, they are coming in now."
"You can't always have the front seat Jesus! There is plenty of room for your giant ape legs in the backseat!" Mariana came storming in seconds before her brothers.
"Hey, I don't know what you're bickering about, but forget about it for a few minutes." I gathered the four of them at the table. "I have a surprise for you!"
"What about Jude?" Mariana prodded.
"Jude already knows. He's upstairs sleeping." I rubbed my hands together and jumped around in excitement. "Ready? 3… 2… 1! Ta-dah!"
Callie jumped down from the stairs with a huge smile on her face. She was met with squeals, hugs, and kisses.
"What's happening? Are you home for good?" Mariana all but tackled Callie to the ground and hung onto her for dear life.
"I'm home for good! My evaluation was moved up and I passed!"
"What is with all the screaming? I was trying to take a nap." Jude stumbled down the stairs, rubbing his eyes and yawning.
"We're just celebrating because Callie is home. Come join in on the fun, love." I extended my arm to my youngest and pulled him in on the group hug.
For the first time in months I felt at peace. I finally felt like nothing was going to tear us apart. My family was complete. I couldn't have asked for anything more.
I've been thinking about a few ideas for the upcoming chapters. I decided to let all of you vote on your favorite. PM me or let me know what your choice is in the reviews!
Option 1- Action oriented. Maybe some kind of trouble with a rogue NI agent or some kind of hostage situation where Jude and Callie have to use their skills.
Option 2- Family oriented. I thought I would bring in Liam. He always seems to bring drama with him!
Option 3- Jude oriented. Maybe expansion on his relationship with Connor. Or I could bring in Noah since their budding relationship is SO cute.