Callie carefully followed behind the police officer but couldn't keep her mind from racing or slow her pounding heart that echoed in her ears and no longer sounded like the normal thud-thud, thud-thud, but had slowly morphed into not-again, not-again. It's all she could think while her memories plagued her. She knew what was going to happen when they got there. She was going to be taken into a cabin or a car or off in a corner with the other families and they would all be screaming questions that no one could understand because everyone was talking at the same time. Then they would be told that rescue squads had been sent out and were doing the best they could to find the girls. Then they would be left alone to pace and argue amongst themselves because it's all you could do, let your fear turn into anger and your inability to understand what was happening turn into blame. She held tightly to Arizona's hand and couldn't tell who was shaking worse at that moment. She knew Arizona was facing her own fears and fighting her own demons.
Arizona stared out the window repeatedly telling herself this wasn't the same. A plane didn't fall out of the sky, no one was sitting in the woods staring at their leg, no one was crushed under a wing, they wouldn't be out there for days wondering if anyone was even looking for them. These were kids in a specific area, how far could 8 year olds walk in just a few hours? No this wasn't the same, it was scarier because it was her child, her child with a group of other children who had no medical knowledge, no sense of direction. Arizona felt Callie's grip tighten and turned to look at her face that was stone-like, she wasn't showing any emotion, not from her expression anyway, but those dark brown eyes were telling her everything she needed to know. Callie's mind had gone to another place. She was recalling another time when her loved ones were missing and she could do nothing but stand by and wait.
Maria sat in the middle of the back seat staring out the windshield focusing on the flashing blue lights of the police car. She was allowing the siren to drown out her thoughts because she knew the moment she allowed herself to think, she would imagine the worst. The tension in the car was palpable. They had to turn off the radio because they could no longer listen to the reporters drone on about how one tragedy was contained but led to another in the form of missing children. She had been a nurse for many years so she knew what damage fire could do to a body. She knew what being out in the elements could do to a body. She'd seen what a wild animal could do to a body. But she wouldn't let her mind go there. So she focused on the lights and the sirens and the clenched hands of the women in front of her. The hands of two people who had been here before, one of them missing while the other waited for news. Her heart was in shambles and her mind was all over the place, but she couldn't imagine what her two friends were thinking or feeling. She just prayed for both of their sakes that this time tragedy didn't break them.
All three women sighed in relief when they finally made it to the road that led to the camp. Television news crews were lined up on either side of the road with the reporters standing as close to the barrier as they could get. Worried parents were also standing along the side of the road speaking to a man with a clipboard while waiting to be reunited with their children. The police officer ahead of them stopped and spoke to the officer who was guarding the gate. The man nodded, moved the barrier and allowed both the police car and Callie's SUV to enter the camp. They drove down the bumpy road and the acrid smell of burning wood and leaves filled the air. They could barely see in front of them for the smoke and mist from the fire hoses. Once they stopped, they remained in their car for further directions.
The police officer got out to speak to someone, put a mask resembling a surgical mask over his mouth and nose, then ran over to Callie's SUV and handed her three masks, directing, "Put these on." Once all three women expertly donned the masks, the man stated, "It's my understanding you didn't tell me the whole truth about why you were coming up here." Callie shook her head and responded, "We are surgeons, that part wasn't a lie and we are prepared to help wherever we are needed, we have our bags in the back, but our daughters are two of the campers and we just learned on our way here they are part of the group who are missing." The man nodded and offered, "All of the injured are currently being seen to, but the director of the camp and the commander of the rescue squad are asking parents of those campers to come in and provide any insight they might have about their children that would help us narrow our search." All three women felt their hearts drop to their stomachs. They were hoping they would arrive and discover their girls had been found and were safe and healthy. They exited the car and the officer commanded, "Come with me please." The three women were led into a trailer where two men stood looking at a map and two other couples sat at a table in the middle of the room. As soon as they were safely inside, they removed their masks and stood off to the side of the other parents. The officer announced he had more parents, then said to the room as a whole, "We will do everything we can to find your children." Then he took his leave and joined the search and rescue team. Though he wasn't from this area, he had gotten permission from his captain to join the search.
One of the fathers stood up and started pacing and demanded, "There are more parents now, can you please tell us what is going on?" At that time, the door opened revealing Miguel, Marco, Stevie, Jordyn, and another man, obviously the father of one of the children. All of the parents started pelting the two men with questions while Callie and Arizona stood quietly in the corner saying nothing. Callie rubbed her face with her hands and pushed back the tears she knew were struggling to fall. After a few minutes of everyone talking at once, Callie had enough and firmly said, "STOP! This is getting us nowhere. Allow the men to tell us what they know and then we can ask questions." Everyone stopped talking, slightly surprised by Callie's outburst, and looked at the two men in charge. The man in the fireman's uniform, clearly the commander of the rescue squad informed them, "At this time, all cabins have been thoroughly checked and evacuated. We have teams doing a second search throughout the grounds looking for your children. The wooded area to the west also caught fire and we are in the process of containing that now. As soon as it is safe, we will start searching that area, in the meantime, we have multiple teams spread out in all other directions looking for your girls." He looked to the camp director and nodded for him to speak.
The man stepped up with a clipboard and announced, I'm Alex Winters, the director of the Brooklyn Bridge Park Camp. According to the schedule, the campers and counselors from what they titled themselves as 'The Unicorn Tribe', consisted of Carrie Joplin, the counselor and her three campers, Jessica Branson, Sofia Torres, and Bella Santos, along with the other counselor, Jennifer Sedlar, and campers Mikayla Carter, Arianna Bright, and Stephanie Jennings. This group was scheduled to go horseback riding at 11:00 am for a 45 minute ride. It is a 20 minute hike to the ranch further north behind the camp. According to the trainer, the group arrived and left on time, which should have put them on the northern outskirts of the grounds just past their cabin at about the same time as the explosion and the fire. It's our hope that they saw or heard the fire and sought shelter somewhere deeper in the woods. We have the largest groups searching for them in that area." He looked to the commander who took over again.
The commander wrote a phone number on the white board and asked, "We would find it most helpful if you could each send us one clear picture of your child so I can disperse it and we know who we are looking for. It would also help if you could tell us anything you feel would be pertinent to our search, allergies, special skills, even the small things you may not find important will help us." Each parent took out their phone and sent a picture of their child then waited their turn to be interviewed by one of the search team members. Callie and Arizona stood off to the side while other parents continued to ask questions and demand more be done to find their children. Arizona looked to Callie and asked quietly, "What are you thinking?" Callie took a deep breath and said, "Honestly, I'm wondering what secrets the Colonel told Sofia. I can't help but think he may have told her something that stuck with her." Arizona closed her eyes and thought back to the day her father took her out to the back yard and shared his 'secret' with her. She opened them again and answered, "He would have told her first and foremost, if she sensed danger, go in the opposite direction, secondly find shelter, third find water, and finally find food, most importantly, never leave a man behind." Callie nodded and started pacing back and forth.
Almost muttering to herself, she kept repeating the survival skills her daughter was told. Finally she looked to Arizona and declared, "If they were close by and heard the explosion or smelled the fire, they would have turned around and ran away." Arizona nodded. Callie kept pacing and continued, "But they didn't go back to the ranch which is only 20 minutes from here." Arizona furrowed her brow and asked aloud, "Why wouldn't they go back to the ranch?" By this time, they had drawn the attention of their friends and Miguel added, "Something was keeping them from going back there. Someone got hurt running away or there was an animal or something that scared them." He walked over to look at the map and everyone else followed. He asked the director, "What is the terrain like between here and the ranch?" Mr. Winters replied, "It's mostly wooded until you get about halfway, then there's a small bridge leading to a clearing where they take the horses for water during the ride, then just beyond that is another wooded area for the horse trail, and the ranch is on the other side." Callie's head snapped up and she asked, "How do they get water?" Mr. Winters answered, "There's a shallow river that stems off from the…" "Canoeing!" Arizona cut in and asked, "How far is the lake from there?" Callie looked at Arizona and asked, "What is it?" Arizona remembered, "If you get lost, trace the current of the water, it will lead you to a bigger body of water. My dad would have told her that."
Mr. Winters pointed to the map and explained, "It's about a three mile walk from there if they follow the river. We usually load the kids on the buses and do the boating and fishing on the second day, which was the plan for after lunch today." Callie asked, "How do we get there by car?" The commander stepped in, "Hold on now, I'll send a search crew over and we can just wait here…" Callie snapped, "NO! No, you will not send a search crew over and I will not wait here while my child is out there, lost, and probably scared to death and possibly injured. Your search crews have been looking for hours and have turned up nothing and no one even thought about this possibility. So you are going to tell us how to get there, move the damn barriers and we are going to find our children ourselves because I'll be damned if I sit on my ass and do nothing ever again while someone else searches for someone I love!" With Arizona right behind her, Callie stormed out of the trailer and headed for her car. The policeman saw the woman he escorted to the camp stomping toward her car and ran over to talk to her. Callie looked at him and commanded, "Lead, follow, or get out of my damn way!" The man looked up to see the commander heading to his own vehicle and waved his arm for several of the officers to follow them. Maria, Miguel, and Marco, piled in Miguel's truck, and the other parents went to their own vehicles. The commander turned on his flashing lights and led the caravan of parents and police officers to the road that would take them to the boat landing for the lake.
Throughout the short drive, Callie and Arizona held tightly to one another's hand, neither knowing who was drawing strength from whom. Both women felt better just knowing they were going to do something rather than sit around and wait for news. It would be dark soon and they knew all the girls had to be tired, hungry, and terribly frightened. They just hoped the counselors they were with were able to keep their heads and comfort the younger girls. Turning down the narrow dirt road toward the boat landing, Callie noticed it was right at the mouth of the river. If the kids made it this far, they would see the dirt road that would have led them to the main road. Once everyone was out of their cars, they circled around the commander who announced, "I just sent a team with Winters to follow the trail from the camp to the bridge and they are going to work their way towards us." Arizona looked at Callie, just shook her head and asked, "You didn't even have a team get that far yet?" The commander explained, "No, when we first arrived, our focus was on controlling the fire and getting the campers out. We didn't know until everyone was out that there was still a group missing. We started in the direct area and were fanning out from there." Stevie asked, "So you didn't even know our kids were missing for what nearly two hours?" The commander responded, "That's correct. From what we were told, all the campers were in the dining hall or on their way there when the fire and explosion occurred." The parents began pelting the man with questions again and Callie walked toward the water with Arizona, Miguel, and Marco.
Sharing her earlier thoughts, Callie explained, "If they came this way, I doubt they made it this far by now. If they did, they would have seen the road and went that way trying to find help. I don't know how well trained these counselors are or if they even know their way around." Miguel agreed, "It could have taken them even longer if someone was hurt. If they did get back across the bridge, they may be on the other side, but I'm sure they would stay along the water's edge." Marco added, "I'm going to take one of the canoes and go toward the lake to check that side just in case." Miguel nodded his head and offered, "I'll take another and go in the opposite direction." At this point, the rest of the parents joined the group and the majority decided to fan out, walking back toward the camp while Stevie, Jordyn, and a few others chose to walk in the other direction toward the lake. Knowing Arizona didn't want to be in the woods, Callie volunteered for the two of them to walk along the bank of the river. Prior to breaking off for the search, Callie and Maria both grabbed their medical bags and Arizona pulled certain items from hers and dispersed them amongst the others and quickly explained how to properly clean and cover a wound and Callie told them what to look for in case of a broken bone. The officers passed out what extra flashlights they had and the groups dispersed.
As they walked along the riverbank, periodically calling out one of the girls' names, Callie and Arizona could hear others doing the same. Each time a name was called, they all sent up a silent prayer that it would be answered. Off in the distance, they could hear the crackle of someone's walkie-talkie or the snap of a stick. Callie called out for Sofia, then turned to Arizona and said softly, "I knew what it would be like once we got here. I knew everyone would be hollering out questions and getting angry and we would be told they were doing the best they could. I knew we would sit there for hours and wait and start to blame ourselves and everyone would fight because they didn't know what to do with their fear." Arizona tightened her grip on Callie's hand and just listened as she talked. Callie continued, "I couldn't sit there. Not this time. For four days they told me there was nothing I could do, but this time, I couldn't just sit there and know what thoughts were going through your head and the fears you must have. I couldn't just sit there and think the worst." Arizona called out for Sofia then responded, "I'm glad you spoke up. I couldn't sit there either. I could see the fears and the memories in your eyes and I don't know what it was like for you, I never asked. I can only imagine because I know what it would be like for me." Callie nodded her head and said, "We both went through our own hell. Yours was far worse, mine ended when I saw your face again." Arizona shook her head and argued, "No, it didn't. I carried you through my hell with me." Callie stopped for a minute and looked into Arizona's eyes and stated clearly, "We made it to the other side. We got pretty scraped up, but we're here now." Arizona nodded, kissed her cheek and they continued to walk, listening for a child's voice, looking for their daughter's face, hoping and praying that this time there was no tragedy to be had…this time there was no hell to go through. Begging God in their own heads that this is the worst of it.
About an hour into the search, Miguel returned and rowed his canoe to the bank near where Callie and Arizona were walking. They noticed his clothes were soaked and Arizona asked, "What happened?" Miguel explained, "I got as far as the bridge and saw that several boards were broken, like someone fell through. That explains why they didn't go back to the ranch." Callie nodded and replied, "But it doesn't explain why you are wet." Miguel offered, "When I saw that, I got worried that someone had fallen all the way through. The water down there is only about 4 or 5 feet deep, but I went under a few times to see if I could find any sign of the girls, a ribbon or a shoe or anything." Callie asked, "Did you find anything?" Miguel held up his hands and declared, "There was this small piece of fabric stuck on one of the boards and this shoe was under the water, not far from the bridge. It looks too big for an 8 year old, but it could belong to one of the counselors. I'm going to the commander to tell him what I found." Callie nodded and thanked him for telling them, then the two women started walking again, both calling out all of the girls' names this time. It was starting to get dark and they were getting more scared by the minute.
Deciding to walk a little further into the woods, Arizona suggested, "If that was the counselor's shoe and she fell through, she must have scraped up her leg pretty badly which means they are moving slower, probably stopping to rest frequently." Callie sighed and said sadly, "If we are on the right track." Arizona replied confidently, "We are. You know our daughter, she's stubborn and if her grandpa told her to do something, she would listen." Callie took a deep breath and chuckled, she did know their daughter and something in her told her their little girl would take charge of the situation. They walked for another ten minutes and Arizona asked, "Shouldn't we be getting close to the bridge by now?" Callie shook her head and responded, "It's probably about another mile. We've been walking slowly and stopping to check certain areas." They walked a little further and heard the crackle of a walkie-talkie again, letting them know one of the policemen or rescue squad was close. Right after that, they heard, "Over here, I think I found something." Callie pointed in the direction she heard the voice and they both carefully made their way through the woods. By the time they got there, several of the search team, Maria, and the two sets of parents who were in the trailer when they got there were gathered in a circle.
Maria walked over to them and explained, "They found a plastic water bottle and a shoe." Callie looked up and asked, "May I see the shoe?" The officer held up the shoe and Callie and Arizona looked at one another and Arizona proclaimed, "Miguel found the match to that shoe underwater by the bridge. He said it looked like someone had fallen through." Several people started talking at once until one of the fathers said, "That could belong to anybody." Arizona shook her head and explained, "They had to cross the bridge to get to the ranch and they made it there safely. The match to the shoe is on this side which means someone fell through on the way back and they never even got close to the camp, or they made it to camp, saw the fire and tried to cross again and didn't make it." The policeman looked at Arizona and asked, "Are you sure you're not a detective?" Arizona nodded and replied, "Not a detective, but whatever happened, they passed through this area." Maria asked, "Does that mean we missed them? Could they have gotten to the lake before we even got here?" The policeman answered, "Not necessarily, we've been communicating and there's no sign of them that way. The bridge is about a mile from here, but if someone is hurt, it took a long time to even get this far. They may have had to stop and find shelter." One of the rescue team members suggested, "Let's fan out from here, stay in groups of two or three, look up in the trees, look for holes in the larger trees, large piles of twigs and sticks, hollow logs, keep calling their names." Everyone formed a large circle and started to spread out.
Maria joined Callie and Arizona and they all decided to walk back in the direction they just came from in case they missed something. The three women were walking several feet apart in a straight line allowing Arizona to stay at the edge of the woods on the smoother terrain. Every couple of minutes, they would call out names and listen for a response, their hopes sinking further each time they heard nothing but an echo. Maria was deepest into the woods and was looking up into the trees as she walked. Taking another step, she heard and felt a crunch and knew it wasn't a stick. Looking down, she saw another water bottle, the same brand as the one they found earlier and called out, I found another bottle." Not long after that, they heard a woman from behind them call out, I found an empty bag of chips." Callie smirked and said, "They're leaving a trail." Arizona asked, "Why didn't we see it before?" Maria explained, I was much deeper into the woods and you two were mostly on the bank." Callie asked, "But why haven't they heard us?" Maria shrugged and answered, "There's no telling, maybe they are hidden somewhere." Callie nodded and looked up to the sky which was shrouded by the canopy of trees. It was getting darker by the minute. The three women chose to stick together and walk the same path Maria was walking, meaning they were about twenty feet from the riverbank which they could barely see now.
Arizona reached out and grabbed Callie's hand and willed herself not to think about the crickets chirping or the cicadas buzzing and she most definitely didn't feel the bugs crawling up her leg, the leg that didn't exist. Stopping, she looked to Callie and ordered, "Turn off the sensation in my leg." Callie could see the panic start to set in and grabbed her phone and turned off the sensors. Arizona took a deep breath and nodded then started walking forward again. Maria, who was walking a few feet away watched the interaction and slowly made her way to Arizona's other side and slid her arm through the crook of her elbow. Arizona arched her brow and looked oddly and Maria who shrugged and said, "I'm afraid of the dark, sue me." Arizona saw right through the lie and quipped, "I can't, your husband is my lawyer, it would be a conflict of interest." Maria chuckled and responded, "True." Callie smiled at her friend's action and warned, "Just don't start speaking Spanish." Arizona looked at her girlfriend and said, "Shut…Oh my God! Look!" She pointed at a tree several feet in front of her that looked like it had a neon yellow circle stuck to it. Callie went to the tree and smiled as she asked, "Do you know what this is?" Arizona laughed and answered, "It's one of the glowsticks we told Sof she couldn't bring with her." Maria put her hands together and declared, "Bless her thieving little heart." Callie called out, "Over here, they've left a trail."
People came running from all directions and the three women pointed out the bracelet hanging from a knob in the tree. One of the fathers pointed slightly to his right, further into the woods and said, "There's another one!" Everyone started calling out the girls' names and waiting for them to respond. After finding 3 more bracelets hanging from trees or bushes, they saw a large brush pile with two neon red glowsticks connected in the shape of an upside down V sitting on top of it. Everyone ran to the pile and started removing branches and sticks and Callie called out, "Stop! Listen." They all stopped and after a minute or two, they heard a muffled sound then some banging. The police officer said, "Its coming from behind this pile." He then called out, "Sofia, Bella, Jessica, Mikayla, Arianna, Stephanie." As soon as he finished, they heard banging on what sounded like glass and muffled yelling. He then called out, "Keep making noise." Everyone took off in the direction of the sound and found the rear end of an old car sticking out of a large pile of wood and brush with only one dented door visible. Callie was the first to see it and called out, "They're in this car." She walked up to the window which was covered in mud and dirt and was relieved to see all 8 girls were in the car together.
Callie wiped off the window as best she could and nearly cried when she heard, "Mama? Is that you?" She sobbed out, "Yeah baby, its me. You all are safe; you can come out now." Sofia called back, "We can't get the door open." Callie reached out and tried the handle and it just lifted up, there was no catch to it. She looked at Arizona and Maria who were clinging to one another with tears in their eyes, then back to all the rest of the parents and declared, "They're trapped in there." They heard one of the men behind them call off the search and tell them to have medics waiting at the landing. One of the officers tried the door as well and said, "The handle's broken and the other doors are blocked." Looking down at his utility belt, he knew he had a glass breaking tool but was afraid to hurt the girls and he didn't know if they could get far enough away from the window.
Looking in the window, he held his flashlight up and said calmly, "I need to break the window to get you out of there, everybody move as far away from the window as you can and turn your backs toward me." He watched as the girls climbed around the car trying to get away from the window. Callie stood right next to the car and took the officer's flashlight and said, "Okay, everyone turn away. We are going to count to three and then he will hit the window." All the girls called out their understanding and the officer took the small pointed hammer and started, "One, two, three!" He smacked the hammer at the window and the glass shattered but didn't break. He told them all to stay still and keep their faces turned and tapped on the glass once again and all the parents watched as the tiny shards fell to the ground. One of the officers took off his uniform shirt, leaving him in just a t-shirt and used it to clean off the window and seat, then he asked, "Is anyone hurt?" Jess answered, "Carrie's leg is cut and she can't really walk on it and Jennifer hurt her arm trying to help Carrie off the bridge." The man nodded then directed, "Okay, one at a time, I need you to come to the window very carefully, look for any glass on the seat I might have missed and we will lift you out." The other officers surrounded the window and Callie stepped back to join her friend and girlfriend, wrapping her arms around both of them.
One little girl was lifted out and ran to her parents and fell into their arms. Bella was the next to come out and ran straight to Maria. Sofia followed and the minute she flew into their arms, both Callie and Arizona felt the relief and finally released the tears they'd been holding in all day. One by one, each girl was pulled from the car. Jess was the last of the little girls and Callie, Maria, and Arizona pulled her to them and explained her parents were looking for them in another area and would be waiting for her when they got out of the woods. "Hey doc?" Callie and Arizona both looked up and went to the officer who called for them. He shined the light on Carrie's leg and asked, "Can we move her or should we try to get medics out here?" Callie leaned into the car and saw the girl's leg had been crudely bandaged with torn fabric of some sort and stated, "Carrie, I'm Dr. Torres, I need to take the bandage off and look at your leg." The teenager nodded and replied, "I don't think anything is broken. I've had a broken leg before and this doesn't feel like that." Callie felt around on her leg and couldn't feel any protruding bones which was good, but it didn't mean there were no breaks. She said, "Okay, I'm going to take off the bandage now and take a look at your cut." Callie untied the knots of what looked like hair ribbons and pulled off the thick layer of sweatshirt material. She could see a long cut that had clearly bled a great deal, but she couldn't tell how deep it was.
She looked over to Arizona who bent down and opened Callie's medical bag and took out a bottle of water and explained, "Dr. Robbins is going to clean up your wound. This is just regular water, but it might sting." Arizona put on a pair of gloves, poured the water on the wound and carefully wiped around it with sterile gauze. She looked back to Callie and said, "I'm sure she will need a tetanus shot and what looks to be about ten stitches, but it's not too deep." Callie agreed, reached in her bag to give Arizona a sterile pad and a roll of gauze. Arizona explained that she was going to wrap the wound but Carrie would need to go to the hospital to have them clean it out better and stitch it up. The two doctors stepped back and watched as the final two girls were pulled from the car and all six girls ran up to them and hugged them. Once everyone was out and safe, Maria asked, "What happened? How did you get out here?" Jennifer stepped up and explained, "We were on our way back to camp when we heard this loud bang that felt like it shook the ground and we saw smoke coming from the direction of the camp. We all started to run back toward the ranch. Carrie was first and she must have stepped on the cracked board because she almost fell through the bridge." Carrie interjected, "And I lost my shoe." Arizona almost wanted to laugh but she knew it would be highly inappropriate and no one would understand.
Jennifer continued, "I went onto the bridge and pulled her up, but I hurt my arm when I did. Once she got back on land, we saw the cut on her leg and Sofia and Bella tried to clean it up with water and Sofia's sweatshirt, then they made that bandage for her with part of the shirt and Sofia's hair-ties. We didn't know what to do or where to go so we sat there for a long time." Sofia cut in, "I was staring at the water and I remembered grandpa said to trace the current, so we started walking upstream. We had to stop a lot for Carrie and we took turns trying to help her walk. I don't know how far we got, but we all got hot and tired." Jess added, "We knew it was going to be dark and we hoped people would be looking for us so we started to leave a trail. When we ran out of water bottles and things, we remembered we all had these glowsticks that Sofia brought for us, so we snapped them and put them on trees and things. Sofia said we needed to find shelter, then we found the old car." Bella added, "We saw the door was opened a little bit so we all climbed in. When it started getting darker and bugs started getting in, we shut the door, but then we couldn't open it again when we got hot." The policeman looked at the girls and commended, "You all were very resourceful and very smart." The girls smiled proudly and one of the rescue squad members said, "Okay, let's get back now." Two of the rescuers carried Carrie back to the boat launch and the rest of the kids walked with their parents.
As soon as they hit the clearing, Jess broke away from Callie's hand and ran to her parents. Miguel, Stevie and Jordan joined their friends and Maria explained where they found them. Callie looked down to Sofia who was gripping both of her moms' hands tightly and just wanted to scoop her up and never let her go. After all the girls were checked out by the paramedics, the two counselors were loaded into the ambulances and their parents followed them to the local hospital. As they started to head to their cars, the other parents joined them and one father looked to both Callie and Arizona and said sincerely, "Thank you for insisting we join the search. I don't even want to think about what would have happened if you didn't suggest we look in this area." Callie and Arizona both shook his extended hand and Callie replied, "Thank you. I'm just glad our girls are safe." The other parents extended their thanks as well then they all went to their cars. Maria looked at her husband who had clearly changed his clothes and was now wearing a pair of police sweats and t-shirt and asked, "Where's Marco?" Miguel responded, "He went back to the camp with me to get a change of clothes and stayed to pack up the girls' things since their cabin didn't have any fire damage. We need to stop and pick him up on the way." Callie hugged Maria and offered, "Take the day off tomorrow, stay home with your baby girl." Maria replied, "I think I will, thank you." She looked at Callie and Arizona, tilted her head and asked, "What about you two?" Arizona walked to Callie and put her arm around her waist and answered, "We can't take the day, but we will definitely be keeping Sof close." Stevie nodded and agreed, "Oh yeah, this one will be at the shop with us tomorrow."
All three girls hugged each other then hugged each of the adults and thanked them for finding them. Neither of them wanted to say it during the day, but they knew if they weren't found, something really bad could happen. All of the adults said their goodbyes and each family went to their vehicles and headed home, happy that their child was safe and sound and back in their arms. Once they pulled onto the main road, Sofia asked, "Mama can we stop for something to eat. I'm starving." Callie smiled and replied, "I bet you are baby girl." Though her stomach was still doing flip flops, Callie realized neither she nor Arizona had eaten all day and they should probably eat as well. Looking to Arizona, she was almost certain she would say she wasn't hungry but was pleasantly surprised when her girlfriend nodded her head and started giving her order for their favorite fast food restaurant. Callie pulled through the drive-thru, got their food and was slightly grateful that it gave her something to do other than think about the day's events.
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Callie pulled into the garage, let out the breath she felt like she'd been holding all day, and rested her head on the steering wheel. The entire ride home was non-stop phone calls to or from Nicole, Lorraine, Dee, and both sets of parents. Arizona reached over and rubbed her back soothingly, she knew this day took as much of a toll on Callie as it did on her. All she wanted to do was cuddle up with her girlfriend and just let go. When Callie lifted her head, Arizona could see the tears were already starting to fall. Speaking softly so she didn't wake their daughter just yet, Arizona suggested, "Go get in the shower, I'll get this one inside and in the tub, then I'll join you, unless you want…" "No, I want you with me please." Callie cut in. It was all she wanted at this moment, just to hold Arizona in her arms for a while and allow them both to fall apart. Then she wanted to cuddle up in the bed with both of her girls, so she could fall asleep knowing they were both safe. Arizona nodded and started to wake their little girl. Callie got out of the car, opened the door and went straight to their bedroom so her daughter wouldn't hear or see her crying. Arizona got the sleepy girl out of the car, got her started in the shower then went to join Callie.
When Arizona stepped into the bathroom, she found Callie sitting on the built-in bench with both shower heads spraying down on her as her body shook with racking sobs. Arizona quickly removed her clothes, stepped into the shower and pulled Callie up and into her arms. Callie wrapped her arms around Arizona's back and pulled her as close as she could get then buried her head in the crook of her neck. Arizona's arms snaked under Callie's and wound around her waist and she rested her head on her shoulder and they both stood underneath the hot spray crying in each other's arms, finally releasing the tension, the fear, and the ghosts of the past that haunted them for most of the day. When Callie settled down enough to be able to talk, she just repeated over and over again, "I love you, I love you, I love you." Arizona lifted her head and brushed their lips together and responded, "I love you too baby. We're safe. I'm safe, Sofia's safe. We're right here." Callie nodded and opened her mouth but Arizona knew an apology of some sort was going to fall out, so she shook her head and softly declared, "You are allowed to feel how you feel and you feel it for as long as you need to and I will be right here." Callie smiled softly at hearing her words being repeated back to her and realized that they were indeed healing. She brushed their lips together softly, and whispered, "Thank you." Arizona just smiled and the two women quickly washed up and got out of the shower.
When they walked into their room, Callie smiled as she saw a tiny little body fast asleep smack dab in the middle of their bed. Arizona let out a sigh of relief at the sight. They both dressed quietly, climbed into their sides of the bed, Arizona removed her prosthesis and they sandwiched their precious daughter between them as they each turned on their sides to face each other and draped their arms across the little girl to rest their hand on the hip of the other. Arizona asked quietly, "Do you think she'll be okay?" Callie nodded and suggested, "Let's see how she does for a couple of days and if she or we are struggling, we can call Dr. G, or Dr. Dawson if you prefer." Arizona nodded and answered, "I think that's a good idea. I think you are more comfortable with your therapist, so I can go with you, if we need to." Callie smiled, leaned over their daughter, and connected their lips in a chaste kiss and whispered, "Goodnight my love." Arizona smiled and responded, "Goodnight my sweet Calliope." Both women closed their eyes and relished the fact that their family was whole and safe and healthy and while it was difficult, they survived the harrowing day together.
A/N: You knew I couldn't leave you hanging. I personally do not do well with angsty drama so I was not going to draw this out.