Callie POV

October 20th

I walked out of the restaurant and looked back at it angrily. My boss had basically said he won't allow me back to work, till my arm is healed, which won't be for weeks. I had suggested that I could work in the kitchen by doing dishes or do janitor work, but he rejected both of my ideas.

I walked a bit further away from the entrance as I was muttering some not so nice things about my boss Peter underneath my nose. Just trying to let the steam out, stop being so angry. Deep down that he was right, that I wasn't ready for work, because my wounds and injuries still haven't fully healed, but I needed the work. I needed to get Jude back. And the CPS won't let Jude come live with me till I can get back to work and have regular income and care for Jude like I could before.

I heard the small bell ring out, but didn't think much of it as I thought that a customer walked in or out of the restaurant. When I felt a hand on my shoulder, I flinched and even jumped aside. I winced in pain afterward as my ribs and the incision on my abdomen, which was made to stop my internal bleeding, still hurt as they weren't healed yet.

"Sorry!" Lisa, my friend and co-worker, apologized "Didn't mean to scare you,"

"Don't worry about it," I replied getting my composure back

"You okay?" Lisa asked taking a step closer, when she saw me wince in pain again

"I'm fine. Really,"

Lisa observed me for couple of seconds "Peter means well. He doesn't want you to injure yourself while you work," she defend our boss

I sighed as I looked over the street "I know," I replied tilting my head down to look at my own feet

"The new girl Peter hired is no way as good as you," Lisa said after we had stood in silence for a while, just watching the cars drive pass

"She looked like she's doing fine," I answered briefly looking over my shoulder to the restaurant. Through the windows I saw how the new girl was serving a table. It was quite early. The restaurant was open for only an hour, so the restaurant wasn't full of customers. That's why Lisa could walk out and chat with me for 2 minutes.

"Yeah, you are right...I just miss you," Lisa said with a small chuckle and poking my left arm playful

I looked at my friend smiling at her words "I miss you too,"

"How's Jude doing? Have you talked to him lately?"

I looked back down to my feet again "Jude's okay. He visited yesterday, along with his foster mom."

"How's that going on?" Lisa asked warily

I shrugged my shoulders a bit as I thought about my answer "They're not so bad as I first thought. They pretty much allow him to visit every day" I said as I looked up to my friend "I'm not exactly sure, why they're so nice to me, though. Can't really figure them out," I bit my lip for few seconds as I thought about the two woman "I can't get this feeling away that they will want something in return for the help."

"What could they possibly want from you?" Lisa questioned back, her forehead slightly frowned up

"No idea," I shook my head "It's just a feeling I get. They are just...too nice. Jude and I spent 8 years in foster care and not a single foster parent was as -" I thought for a while about the right word to describe them "-invested as they are!"

"Two days ago they made dinner," I stated still taken stunned by what had happened few days ago "We ate dinner together! The four of us. Like we were a family or something," I still couldn't believe it myself. Not that I would ever say it to them, but I enjoyed that dinner. The conversations was pleasant as well. It was kind of nice. Reminded me of the time, when mom was alive, and how we all sat together at dinner table as a family.

"Sounds like they are one of the good ones," Lisa commented. I didn't say anything back to that, just kept thinking about the two woman.

"Who makes dinner?" I gesturing with my left hand and waited for her to answered "I barely know them!"

"Was it good?" Lisa asked warily, looking at me curiously "The food that they made?"

"The best thing I had eaten in years!" I retorted quickly. If the meal hadn't been so tasty I doubt I would still be racking my brain over it. I kind of hated myself for loving the food so much. There were leftovers from the diner and it was enough for me to eat yesterday and for today.

"I should probably head back home," I replied after a moment, thinking about how much time and energy it will take me

"And I have to get back to work," Lisa said as she looked over her shoulder to the restaurant. We said our goodbyes and then I headed back home.

~o~o~o~

By the time I got home, it was middle of afternoon. Knowing that Jude will come visit me today, I decided to clean up the apartment. It wasn't exactly dirty and messy, but I think everyone could tell it wasn't cleaned in a while. The last time I cleaned the apartment was the day before the CPS visit, day before I got mugged.

I started off with putting a small load of laundry in. Then I dusted the place. After that I pulled out the vacuum. My abdomen and ribs hurt a bit, whenever the motion of pushing the vacuum in front of me was too fast and far. After spinning around the apartment cleaning all the corners, my head started to hurt a bit too. Nothing too bad, just a light headache.

Once I was done, I laid down on my bed and closed my eyes, now desperately needing and wanting some rest. It felt good to go finally be off my feet. Jude will be here in few hours, which was plenty of time for me to catch some sleep.

When I woke up it was few almost 4PM. I sat up on the couch and thought about what I could do till Jude gets here. Looking at the kitchen area, I thought about eating, but it wasn't like I was hungry. The apartment was clean. When I set my eyes on the bathroom, I remembered about the load I put in the washing machine. In about 15 minutes the laundry was drying on a rack, which stood by the window, just few steps way from the doors to Jude's room.

I walked back into the bathroom and looked at myself in the mirror. The bandages on my cheek that covered the stitches, looked like they needed changing. Bruises on my face were now in the last stage of disappearing. They were now kind of yellowish. Hair looked greasy. I decided to take a shower and afterward clean my wounds and change my bandages.

Lena POV

Jude and I were driving in our car. I picked him up from school 5 minutes ago. As of right now, we were driving towards Callie's apartment, so Jude can visit her. He didn't get to see her yesterday, because Jude had tests in math he had to study for.

"How did you get that in italic?" Jude asked me after studying his phone screen for a long time

Not understanding what he was talking about, I frowned my forehead up "Get what in italic?" I asked him and briefly glanced to him. He had WhatsApp open and he was looking at our chat from earlier today.

"This words right here," Jude held the phone out so I could see it, while driving. He was pointing towards my messages to him, that I had sent him, when he didn't see me parked on the street by the school.

It read: On your left! You are looking at right!

"Oh, that...put the word between underscore," I replied slowing the car down as I was looking for a place to park on the street. There wasn't a parking place by the apartment building, so I had to find a spot for my car on the street.

"The what?" Jude screwed his face up in confusion. In the corner of my eye, I saw him looking at the pop up keyboard, desperately looking for the symbol.

"The line thing, that looks kind of like minus sign, just more lower!"

After couple of seconds Jude exclaimed "Found it. I think!" Jude typed something and the next moment my phone, which stood in the center console next to the shifting gear, buzzed "That's so cool!" he beamed

"Try putting a word in asterisk!" I told him as I started to back into a parking spot

My phone beeped again "Wow, that puts it in bold!" Jude exclaimed "Is there anything else?" Jude asked turning to look at me, he seemed very excited

"One more," I replied as I watched the side mirrors and rear view mirror, so I don't bump into anyone "Tilde."

"What's a tilde?"

"The wavy line," I said while driving forward a bit to straighten the car out

Jude sent me another message right when I was done parking. I took my purse from the backseat and grabbed my phone, Jude got his backpack and we both got out of the car. We got out of the car and walked towards the apartment building.

"How did you know about these things?" Jude asked me as I reached for the door handle

"I have a very…techie daughter," I replied pulling the doors open and let Jude in first "Mariana introduced me and Stef to WhatsApp few years ago and taught us few tricks. "

We had just reached the stairs, when Jude asked "Will I ever meet her? Or your other kids?"

"I don't know," I answered honestly as we both walked up the stairs, heading upstairs to the 3rd floor "We know they will be flying home for Christmas, but I have no idea, how long will you be staying with us. So I honestly can't answer that. Maybe you will, maybe you won't. But I would love for you to meet them. I think you would like them."

"Do you miss them?" the young boy asked curiously, when we had reached the second floor

"Yes, I miss them very much," I confirmed without any hesitation "I used to talk and see them every day. Now we only talk once a week, if we are lucky. It's hard. The house is empty and quiet without them,"

"Even the twins?" Jude questioned warily few seconds later

I continued to walk, but glanced back to Jude, little bit surprised by the question "Of course. We love our kids all the same. Them being adopted, doesn't change anything!"

We reached the third floor and walked up the apartment doors. I stood half a step behind him. Jude raised his hand up and knocked on the doors "What about the other kids you have fostered?" Jude questioned without looking at me, he stared at the doors in front of him "Do you miss them as well?" his voice got a bit more quiet, he sounded more timid

"They all have a special place in my heart. I will never forget them," I replied looking at the back of Jude's head. Jude knocked again, when we didn't hear a sound coming from the apartment.

"If you are wondering if Stef and I will miss you once you go back to living with your sister, the answer is yes," I stated back now staring at the doors as well. In the corned of my eye, I saw how Jude briefly looked back at me. Averting my eyes quickly to him, I noticed a small smile on his lips. When our eyes met, Jude turned back to the doors, scared of too long eye contact.

"Callie!" Jude banged on the doors again "It's me - Jude! Let me in!" When there was no response, I got a bit worried.

"Do you have your key?" I asked wanting to get inside quickly, to make sure she's okay

"Yeah," Jude turned his backpack to front and found his key in the outside pocket. He unlocked the doors.

"Her shoes are here," Jude observed once the doors were open and we saw inside the apartment. We both walked inside. The blanket on the couch was messy, like she had slept there few minutes ago. There was laundry drying on a rack. I set my purse down on the kitchen table for now as I looked around the apartment.

"Callie?" Jude called out walking through the big room. He stopped briefly at the coffee table. Jude leaned down and picked something up "Hey keys are here!"

"Check your room," I said as I walked up to bathroom doors. I pressed my ear to the doors, listening whether or not the water was running.

"She's not in my room," Jude called back seconds later

"Callie? Are you there?" I knocked on the bathroom doors, but got no response

"Is she in shower?" I heard Jude ask as he came up to me

"I don't hear the water running," I replied and knocked again getting more worried each second "Callie! I'm coming in...okay?"

I tried the door handle. Thankfully, the doors weren't locked. Slowly I opened the doors and peaked my head in "Callie?"

I gasped, when I saw Callie lying on the cold tile floor naked. Water droplets still on her body, like she had stepped out of the shower seconds ago. Her hair was wet. The shower was turned off. But what scared me the most was the fact that there was blood next to her head.

"Call 9-1-1!" I instructed Jude as I hurried to the girl

Stef POV

"This is it," I said stopping the car on the side of the road as I was looking at the apartment building on our right. Harry finally gave away the location to the place where they are all staying. He endured the interrogation so long, only because we were asking for his sisters location. It was obvious, he didn't want to give up his sister.

We were at the Normal Heights regions, the same region Callie's phone was last on. On our right there was a 5 story dark red brick building. The building wasn't in the best condition, in fact it was let down.

It had a small yard on the left side of it. Maybe two meters (~6.5 feet) wide and it went all the way to the back of the building. Grass uncut. The fence doors were broken, only holding on to the upper hinge. One of the first floor windows was shattered and a plastic was put in its place. The banister on the porch stairs had missing balusters. The porch steps had small pieces of it broken off, maybe it has happened over time as the material got weaker, but it also could resulted in some vandalism. Metal garbage can next to the building was kicked over, some of the trash was on the street. A cat was eating something from it. Even from within the car, we heard some people yelling from withing the building. Overall, I got a bad vibe from this building. But it was similar to what I had imagined their living situation to be like.

To be safe, I put on my bulletproof vest. Getting shot one time was bad enough. I do not want to experience that again. Diaz suited up as well. As I checked my gun, another police cruiser drove up. The two officers came over to us and we went over all of the facts and everything we knew of the two suspects. Harry told us that Chad, the other male suspect, owns a gun, that's why we were being so cautions with the vests.

The four of us split up. The other two officers went around the building, to the back, while Diaz and I went inside and made our way up to the third floor, apartment 4D.

The inside of the building matched the outside of the building. Torn carpets and wallpapers throughout the hallways, flickering lights, postal boxes whose doors were jammed open and no mail would be safe there. There was a nasty smell in the air as well. Just a filthy place. Yelling and music from other apartments was louder. A woman, who was dressed like a prostitute, walked pass.

We reached the apartment and stopped. I put my hand on my gun, which was still in my holster. Diaz pulled his out, but held it down.

We looked to one another, making sure we were both ready, before Diaz banged on the doors "San Diego Police Department. Open up!" right after he called out we heard a noise coming from within the apartment. A noise of someone trying to run away.

Diaz reacted quickly and kicked the doors in. I pulled my gun out as well and we both barged in the apartment our guns drawn. As we looked around the apartment, we saw how one of the doors were slammed close. That's where the suspect was heading. Diaz followed the suspect to the room. I remained standing in the room we came in. There were two more doors, in which the other suspect could be in. I could not turn my back on them.

"Suspect is heading out to the fire escape!" Diaz voice was heard on the radio on my shoulder

"I'm following him!" Diaz called out and claimed out the window following him, but my attention was grabbed by another noise coming from the other room. With my gun out, I walked closer to the doors that were across the room.

"Police!" I called out aiming my gun at the doors, where I know the sound came out of "Come out with your hands on your head!"

I took a slow and carefully placed step, moving closer to the room "Put your hands on your head and come-" I didn't get to finish, because I was interrupted by bullets being shot at me, through the doors.