A/N: Hey! This chapter was a bit of a hard one to write. I've had the scenes planned out in my head for a long time (since I've started writing this story) and I just really wanted to do it justice. Also, I know that some aspects of this fanfic is pretty unrealistic but I am taking some creative liberties in order for this story to somewhat work. I'm aware that some may think that it's far fetched and doesn't make sense and that I'm not portraying existing characters realistically but since we've never seen a situation like this in the show before (and never will) I just wanted to write something I think would be kind of interesting? It's as they say, 'don't like, don't read'. On another note, I just want to reiterate that I am not a lover of Frank (who is, right?!) and I hated writing him so…nice(?). The only reason I have him involved is because he's important in order for my version of events to work. I appreciate people's comments and take them all into account so please review when possible!
Chapter 8:
Before setting off for the hospital, Polly administered an IV drip of paracetamol whilst Luke climbed into the driver's seat. Whilst this was going on, Carla made sure she sat herself down within the line of sight of Rachel, who was obviously still very shaken by everything that was going on around her.
"There you go, little one. That should help with the pain. Just give it a couple of minutes and it will soon kick in." Polly told Rachel who refused to look away from Carla. It was as if she was afraid she was going to vanish into thin air!
Polly then looked up at Carla and attempted to give her a comforting smile even though she could still sense some animosity directed at her from the factory boss. "She'll probably end up dropping off once the meds have kicked in."
Polly was right. Within minutes, Rachel had dropped off into a somewhat peaceful slumber. Carla studied the little girl's serene expression before breaking out into sobs.
"Oh god. This is all my fault." She cried and covered her face with her hands. It was a well known fact that Carla didn't enjoy having an audience when she was mid-breakdown, let alone in the presence of a stranger whom she didn't particularly like.
Polly frowned in confusion as she tried to offer some comfort. "Accidents happen - with kids especially. Don't tell me you never fell and broke a bone or sprained something when you were Rachel's age?!" She asked incredulously.
Carl took in a shuddering breath and wiped at her face before responding. "Yeah well this," she spat and pointed at the injured girl on the stretcher, "could have been prevented. I shouldn't have left her!"
Polly's eyes widened in shock at what she had just been told and that's when Carla realised what a big mistake she had just made due to her sudden outburst and subsequent admission. She tried to backtrack but she knew deep down that she had been caught. "I mean…I didn't have any kids medicine stocked up. She was just so ill! I wanted her pain to stop so I only went to the pharmacy on the corner of our street! I was gone for all of five minutes!"
The paramedic raised a subtle yet judgemental eyebrow. "She's eight years old." She deadpanned, her tone matching her disapproving facial expression.
Carla rubbed her forehead as she started to feel a headache coming on. "Yes! And I wasn't about to drag her out and about whilst she was so poorly! I wasn't about to expose her to even more germs! She was tucked up in her bed asleep when I left. She wouldn't have known I wasn't there!" Whilst trying to justify her decision to leave a young child home alone, Carla kicked herself for being so stupid by thinking the situation she had found herself in could have ever turned out ok. Now that outsiders were involved, it was obvious she should have just come clean from the beginning. Now she would probably end up in prison for some ridiculous kidnapping charge!
All she wanted, all she ever wanted was something to call her own. She had never had that in her life. There was Paul, her ever so loving husband who constantly cheated on her with prostitutes and escorts. She wasn't enough for him, for anyone. Then came Liam. Sweet, sweet Liam who chose Maria over her time and time again. Next came Tony, psycho Tony who just wanted to control her and her factory. God! Even the factory felt like it wasn't really hers. She didn't work for it. She inherited it from her cheating scumbag dead first husband for crying out loud!
Rachel was the first and only person she could ever really refer to as hers. Someone no one else in the world knew she had. No one able to tarnish their beautiful bond they had built during their short time together. Her own little family.
And now it was all about to be ripped away from her.
All because, once again, she had made the wrong decision and tried to cover up what had been going on. If only she had gone to social services that first day. Maybe, just maybe, she could have worked something out with them. Maybe they would have let her keep her or - at the very least - kept up some regular contact with Rachel whether through visits or even sporadic phone calls.
Whilst she was having all of these thoughts, the ambulance had pulled up outside of the hospital. Carla only realised they had arrived at their destination when bright light invaded the back of the van. She squinted and looked to the back of the vehicle and saw that Luke had opened up the rear doors.
Her attention was immediately back on Rachel who was being prepped to be moved out of the ambulance and into the hospital. Carla didn't waste any time in getting up from her seat and following the stretcher that held her girl.
Carla attempted to keep up with the medical jargon Luke and Polly exchanged with the doctors and nurses who met them at the entrance to the A department but it just went over her head in the end. She instead just tried to focus on keeping up with the bed on wheels.
The bed that contained her precious cargo.
"And are you mum?" A doctor asked Carla as if he was only just noticing her presence.
Carla blinked and nodded mutely, not bothering to correct him. She knew the paramedics were onto her but if by some miracle they didn't mention her odd behaviour and words, she wasn't about to outright admit that she was in fact not Rachel's mother. By heart and soul maybe but not on paper.
"Yeah sorry. I'm Carla. Please. Help her." Carla managed to stutter out in short sentences.
The doctor smiled sympathetically and nodded his head. "We're going to do everything we can to get Rachel back to full health again. I do want to do a full body scan and x-ray on her due to her being so young. Bones of a child her age are more susceptible to injury. I've been told she took quite a tumble?" He explained softly.
Carla just nodded and gulped. She was too scared to talk in case she broke down again. Yes, Rachel may have woken up but she did have a head injury. Carla was just praying that the scans came back clear and didn't reveal some sort of bleed on the brain or any other internal injuries.
"The good news is - given the circumstances - you're in luck as slots in both the x-ray and scanning departments have just opened up. We can take her up for those right away. It should take about half an hour to get both done so why don't you head to the cafeteria and grab yourself a coffee? You look like you could do with one." The doctor advised.
Carla shook her head. "No! No, I'm not leaving her! What if she wakes up and realises I'm gone? She'll think I've abandoned her!" She didn't miss the look that Luke and Polly, who were aiding the nurses in manoeuvring Rachel from the stretcher to a proper hospital bed, shared. "No, I'm staying." She said adamantly.
The doctor sighed with a hint of disappointment, "Mrs Connor, you aren't going to be any good to Rachel if you make yourself unwell. She's going to need you at your strongest when she comes round. If you won't do it for yourself - do it for her. I can only imagine what kind of stress you've been under this morning what with having to look after a sick child and now this." He rationalised. He was used to situations like this and being a doctor in emergency medicine, he was highly trained for most situations. Worried parents were almost a walk in the park for him.
The dark haired woman thought over the doctors words before she gave him a hard stare. "Ok. Just…look after her?" She finally relented as she took the opportunity to look into his kind eyes.
The doctor chuckled, "that's kind of my job, Mrs Connor."
Carla gave him a small smile before walking over to the hospital bed. She took a moment to gaze at her girl, hoping this wouldn't be the last time she saw her sleep peacefully or at all even. Carla then placed a gentle hand on the top of the little girl's head and placed a loving kiss to her forehead. "I'll be right back, baby. Stay strong for me, ok? I love you." She whispered before quickly standing up right and marching out of the room.
Maybe if she had stayed a couple of seconds longer she could have done something to stop the conversation that was about to happen between the paramedics and one of the more senior nurses in charge of Rachel's care.
Luke and Polly were whispering amongst themselves when a nurse they knew well, Sharon, walked over to them.
"Oh, aye? And what are you two love birds whispering about?" Nurse Sharon teased and almost laughed at the blushes that came across her work colleagues faces. It was a well known fact in the emergency department that the two partners had the hots for each other but they both point blank refused to give into their feelings.
Luke was the first one to compose himself and was quick to respond. "Haha. Very funny. Haven't heard that one before." He said sarcastically before the bantering smile left his lips.
Sharon, realising the two had been discussing something important, also became more serious. "What's up? Have you two got yourself into trouble again? You best be careful otherwise you'll end up being split up and partnered with different people." She warned, hands on her hips like a mother scolding two naughty children.
Polly shook her head and waved off the other woman's concerns. "No. It's nothing like that. We were just discussing the intel we've gathered." She said.
"Intel on who?" Sharon asked slightly confused.
"You're latest patient." Luke admitted, giving a brief look towards Rachel who was being prepped for her scans. He sighed when the nurse gave him a probing look. "It's probably nothing it's just…the Connor's set up doesn't seem quite right. It's like Mrs Connor isn't being straight with us about something."
"Oh?" Sharon raised a questioning eyebrow and looked between the two paramedics who both shifted from one foot to the other under her scrutinising gaze. "Come on, guys, spit it out. If this concerns my patient I need to know."
Polly and Luke shared a look before they both nodded and began to tell Sharon what they had witnessed and heard. Once they had told their story, Sharon shook her head sadly.
"So are you guys suspecting child neglect or maybe even abuse? Is that what you're telling me?" She asked. These situations were pretty complicated and if the two paramedics had read the situation wrong, the hospital could end up facing a costly law suit. There was no need for them all to start jumping the gun.
Luke shrugged and reluctantly nodded. "Maybe not abuse but I mean neglect possibly. It's obvious Mrs Connor loves the girl but she did leave a sick child home alone to apparently go to the pharmacy but how many people do you know who wear office clothes and high heels just to pop down the road? I reckon she couldn't get a babysitter and wasn't able to get out of work and that's why the kid was left alone. You know what some bosses are like, they can be so heartless and they do tend to pick on single mothers." He explained his, as well as his partner's, point of view. He didn't want to paint Carla as a borderline abusive parent but it's as they say: 'the proof is in the pudding'.
Polly noticed how stressed her colleague was feeling about the whole situation so decided to take over at that point. "Also…the fact that she couldn't tell us whether or not the kid is allergic to anything is a bit weird. In this day and age, can you believe that? A mother not knowing if her kid has any allergies? Not only that but the girl calls her 'CC' not 'mum' or 'mummy'! How odd is that?! Something's definitely not right!"
Sharon thought over their explanation and squinted in contemplation. "I think you guys do have a point. I mean one or two of those details might not be cause for concern but there seems to be a lot going on there. I'll give social services a call and if Rachel's mother hasn't got anything to hide then she will have no need to worry." She decided and headed off to the nurses station in order to make the dreaded phone call everyone in the department despised making.
Instead of going to get coffee like she had first planned, Carla decided that what she needed more than a strong black coffee was fresh air! She had just stepped out of the entrance of the hospital when she caught sight of a familiar form rushing over to her.
"Carla?!"
Carla's eyes widened and her mouth fell open at the sight of Frank looking slightly frantic. Cool, calm and collected Frank Foster, who would have ever thought it?!
"Frank?!" She exclaimed not knowing what else to say to the man. The co-owner of Underworld shook her head and looked away from her business partner, leaning her back against the wall. "This cannot be happening…" Carla muttered to herself. The last thing she needed was someone she actually personally knew finding out about Rachel. It wouldn't be long until rumours began to circulate throughout the street - people would start to think she was some sort of psychotic child kidnapper!
Frank stopped right in front of Carla and placed a strong but comforting hand on her shoulder. She flinched and shrugged him off before standing up straight so she was no longer using the wall as support. "What are you doing here?!" She asked.
"I was worried about you. You were shaking like a leaf back at the bistro after that phone call. This person…they're more than just a friend, aren't they?" Frank asked gently.
Carla nodded reluctantly, feeling tears pool in her eyes for what felt like the tenth time that day. "I was just about to grab a coffee, why don't you join me? I can tell you about this mess I've found myself in." She suggested, knowing he wasn't about to leave anytime soon.
Frank nodded, deeply intrigued and watched as Carla mindlessly made her way back inside the hospital. He took a couple of seconds just watching her slender body walk away before his interest got the better of him and he decided to follow after her.
It took a while but Carla was eventually able to catch Frank up on what had been going on I her personal life in the past few weeks. To say he was shocked was an understatement.
"Wow. Carla Connor, Ice Queen of Coronation Street, a mother. Who would have though it, eh?" Frank quipped trying to lighten the mood.
Carla glared at him and shook her head. "Except I'm not her mother, am I? And now because of my stupidity I will probably never get the chance to be." She said flatly.
Frank sighed and tentatively reached out so he could clasp her hand that was laying limply on the table. He gave it a small squeeze when she looked at their now connected hands. "Hey, you'll figure it out. You always do. You never know, you might get lucky and social services won't get involved. Then as soon as Rachel is out of here you can go to them yourself and get it all straightened out and official."
Carla shook her head again. "I don't think it's going to be that simple somehow. Something deep inside of me is telling me that this whole thing is going to end in disaster." She admitted and looked down at the table dejectedly.
"Carla, look at me." Frank practically commanded and gave her hand another squeeze when he was ignored. He burned a whole in the top of her head until she finally relented and looked up at him expectantly. "If there's one thing I've learnt about you these past few months, it's that you don't give up easily. Especially if it's something you really want and I can tell that you want this girl. You want your child. So what are you going to do? Are you going to surrender or are you going to fight for what you know in your heart is right?"
Carla smiled at him appreciatively and nodded as if making a decision. "You're right. Thanks Frank, I really appreciate your support. Now that someone I…care about knows, I feel relieved. I thought if anyone found out about all of this, they would have just laughed in my face and called me ridiculous. I think that little speech you just made has given me the kick up the arse that I needed to get this thing sorted out once and for all. It's funny, it was only this morning when I actually made the decision to keep her. It's as if what's happened today was a sign to get the ball rolling."
It was at this moment, her phone lit up with a notification and that's when she realised the time. Carla's eyes widened and without warning, she leapt up from her seat. "Oh shit! Is that the time?! Rachel should be back from the scans by now. I have to go. She'll panic if she's awake and sees I'm not there."
Carla was just about to walk away from the table when she felt a small tug on her arm. She followed the appendage connected to her own only to realise that Frank was still holding tightly onto her hand. She tilted her head to one sighed and gave him a questioning look.
Frank smiled and said, "fancy some company? I don't think you should have to deal with this on your own. You look shattered." He could tell by the look on her face that she was about to decline his offer so he quickly added, "besides, I wouldn't mind meeting the little girl who's managed to steal my business partner's heart before I could claim it as my own."
Carla felt butterflies in her stomach when she looked into his eyes and noticed he was using his thumb to rub the back of her hand. Before she could stop herself, she had nodded and tugged him out of his seat. Her heart was going a hundred miles per hour when she felt his arm encircle her waist and she did the automatic thing of leaning into his side, desperate for some close contact with someone other than a child.
They arrived back at Rachel's cubicle just as the girl had been brought back after the scans. Carla approached the doctor she recognised from earlier and gave him a pleading look.
"How did it go? Is she going to be ok?" She asked the handsome man.
The doctor gave her a comforting smile. "Your daughter is going to be fine. The full body scan showed no internal injuries so the head wound is, thankfully, just superficial. However, the X-ray did show that her arm is broken. It's not bad enough to require surgery so the nurse is in there now getting the stuff ready to put a cast on it." He explained.
Carla sighed in relief and once again leant against Frank who had put his arm around her shoulder. "Thank god." She whispered more to herself than anyone else.
"Can we go in and see her while the nurse is putting the cast on?" Frank asked.
The doctor nodded and held out his hand for Frank to shake. "I'm sorry. Hello, you must be Rachel's father. You should be proud, Mr Connor. She's a tough little cookie."
Carla and Frank looked at each other awkwardly before Carla decided to be honest with the doctor. "Uh no, this is my business partner - Frank Foster." She told him.
The doctor chuckled and shook his head at himself. "Oh, I'm sorry. I just assumed. How silly of me."
Carla waved off the apology. "Honestly, don't worry about it. So, can we see Rachel now?"
"Yes. Of course you can. Once we've kept her for a couple more hours under observation and presuming everything goes well, I don't see any reason why Rachel can't be discharged later on today." The doctor informed the pair. "Now if you'll excuse me, I must see to my other patients."
"Of course. Thank you, doctor." Carla replied and watched the doctor walk off before turning her attention to Frank. "You don't have to stay you know? I'll be fine now that I know she's going to be ok." She told him.
Frank shook his head. "Don't be silly. You heard the doctor. She'll be discharged later on. I can give you both a lift. It will be better for her than some random cab."
Carla gave him an uncertain look before sighing. "Only if you're sure?"
Frank looked at her sternly. "I wouldn't be here if I wasn't sure. Now, come on. Let's see your girl."
Carla smiled and pulled back the curtain of the cubicle. Her smile widened a little more at the nurse who was still gathering the supplies for the plaster cast before looking at the girl on the bed. Rachel was still sleeping and Carla didn't blame her. She needed all the rest she could get what with falling down the stairs on top of having a nasty stomach bug. Carla pouted as she thought about how much strain her girl's little body had been put under in the last twenty-four hours.
The dark haired woman sat herself in the visitors chair beside the bed after placing a kiss to Rachel's forehead. She started stroking the girl's hair which seemed to gently rouse her from her slumber.
Rachel could feel a light tugging on her hair and something was telling her to open her eyes to find out what it was. She slowly opened her eyes and squinted at the bright light that assaulted her vision. That's when Carla came into focus and Rachel smiled sleepily.
"CC?"
Carla smiled and nodded her head. "I'm here, darlin'. Did you have a good sleep?"
Rachel slowly nodded and then pouted her lips. "How long until we can leave? I don't like hospitals. They smell."
Carla chuckled softly at the girl's words before answering her question. "Soon, sweetheart. That nice nurse over there is going to put a cast on your arm because it's broken. Then the doctor will come and see you once you've had some more time to rest and when he says it's ok that's when we can go, alright?" She explained gently.
"Ok." Rachel whispered. She looked around the cubicle and that's when she spotted Frank stood next to Carla. He had his hand on Carla's shoulder and Rachel glared. "Who are you?" She asked bluntly.
"Rachel! Don't be so rude!" Carla scolded, shocked at Rachel's sudden animosity. "This is Frank. He owns the factory with me."
Rachel ignored Carla's response and her warning to be polite and continued to glare at the man. Something about Frank just put the little girl on edge. She certainly didn't like him touching her 'CC'. "Why are you here?" She spat.
Carla practically growled and shot the girl a warning look. "Rachel, I won't tell you again. Watch your tone."
Rachel's lips parted as she tried to defend herself. "But-"
"No buts, young lady. You respect your elders. Do you understand me?" Carla raised an eyebrow as if daring the girl to carry on with her bad attitude.
Rachel looked away from Carla's face. She didn't like it when Carla told her off. She hated feeling like she had disappointed the woman. The little girl sighed and decided, against her better judgement, to apologise. "Yes. I'm sorry, Frank." The blonde then looked up to see Frank was smiling at her. Even his smile creeped her out.
"That's ok, blondie." Frank told her and Rachel resisted the urge to snap and tell him not to call her that. "I'm so glad to meet you. Your…CC has told me a lot about you."
Rachel was silent for a few moments before she responded. "Only I'm allowed to call her that." She deadpanned.
Carla went to scold the girl but the nurse came over to the other side of the bed and said that she was ready to start applying the cast. "Do you want to pick a colour, little one?"
This seemed to brighten Rachel's mood as she smiled and nodded. "Can I have purple please?"
The nurse grinned back at her. "Of course you can. Is that your favourite colour?" She asked and Rachel nodded in reply as she focused her eyes on what the nurse was doing.
It didn't take long for the plaster to be put on and soon it was set. The nurse then cleaned up after the process and left the three of them alone.
Carla watched Rachel and could tell that, despite being either unconscious or asleep for most of the day, she was still exhausted. Usually Rachel was full of beans and such a chatterbox, but at that moment she was just laying in the bed as quiet as a mouse and struggling to keep her eyes open. "Why don't you try and get some more sleep, baby?"
"Not tired." Rachel slurred out.
The factory boss sighed and looked to Frank for help. However, he just shrugged his shoulders as if to say 'I'm staying out of this'. Carla mouthed 'coward' to him and then looked back at Rachel who was looking between the two adults intently. "The more you sleep, the quicker you will be well enough to be discharged. You want to leave this smelly hospital, don't you?" Carla asked and Rachel nodded. "Right then, sleep."
Rachel held out her arms towards Carla and gave the woman her best puppy dog eyes. "Cuddles?" She asked.
Carla chuckled. The girl looked a sorry sight with her bandaged head and casted arm. "Oh, ok. Shift over." She relented as if she was agreeing to a massive chore although she secretly loved bedtime and morning cuddles with her girl. There was nothing better to start and end the day with.
It took a minute but soon, they were both able to find a comfortable position to lay in. Carla was laid flat on her back and had her arms wrapped around Rachel who had draped herself over Carla. She was laying on her front with her head tucked under Carla's chin.
"Go to sleep." Carla once again insisted as she ran her fingers through Rachel's hair.
"Only if you sing." Rachel near demanded.
Carla rolled her eyes and felt a small blush rise to her cheeks when she caught the smirk Frank sent her way. "Sing, CC!" The little girl whined when it took too long for Carla to do so.
"Ok, ok. Close your eyes." Carla whispered and waited until the girl had her eyes closed and her thumb was in her mouth. She then quietly began to sing the song that never failed to sooth Rachel. At this point, they referred to it as 'their song'.
Before Carla could finish her rendition of the tune, she felt Rachel's breathing even out and heard soft snores coming from the girl. She didn't have to look down at her face to know that she had nodded off.
Carla glanced over at Frank who was watching them both intently. He had that stupid smirk on his face but something about the tenderness in his eyes told Carla that he didn't think she had gone completely mad.
"No a word." She warned him before he could come up with some teasing remark.
Frank held his hands up defensively. "I wasn't going to say anything except that she definitely has you wrapped around her little finger." He told her truthfully.
Carla's mouth fell open as she glared at him. "No she doesn't."
Frank chuckled and scooted his chair a little closer to the bed. "Oh come on, Carla. It wasn't that long ago you were scolding her and all it took was for her to demand 'cuddles' for you turn to mush. I didn't even know you could somewhat hold a tune."
Carla shrugged a shoulder and pouted. "Yeah, well the poor little mite has been through a lot today. I had to find a way to sooth her whilst she's been with me. The traditional hugs and singing seemed to do the trick I stuck with it. She's definitely in need of some TLC right now." She said, not bothering to defend herself or threaten him with violence if he went back to the street and told everyone she was going around singing a song by 'The Temptations'.
Frank took a moment to just watch Carla as she continued to play with Rachel's knotted blonde locks before speaking again. "Well, you've clearly rubbed off on her already. I can already tell she's a little spitfire."
His business partner chuckled and shook her head. "Oh no, that's all her. I didn't have to teach her nowt." Then she suddenly became more serious and held out a hand towards Frank who took it as a sign to take hold of it. "Thank you for coming. It means a lot to me that you didn't freak out and run a mile." She whispered.
Frank shook his head dismissively. "Don't be ridiculous. It's what any decent partner would have done." He assured her.
Carla scoffed. "Oh aye? And how many business partners do you know who would follow their work colleague to the hospital after they've just messed up a make or break business meeting with an important client?" She asked, her eyebrow raised.
It was then Frank's turn to become more serious. "Carla, I didn't mean 'partner' in terms of the business." He stated. She gazed at him and asked him with her eyes for an explanation on what he had just said. "Oh come on, you're telling me you haven't felt this…connection we have? Today has just made me like you even more. I see a future with you so why don't we make our relationship official?"
"Frank, I-" however before Carla even had enough time to think of a response, the curtain to the cubicle they were in was pulled open by an official looking woman.
"Carla Connor?" The woman asked as she glanced between the woman in question and the smartly dressed man beside the bed.
Carla looked at the woman and glared. "Yeah. Who the hell are you?"
Th intruder flashed the ID that was around her neck, "Jackie Preston. I'm a social worker from Weatherfield Social Services and I know for a fact that the girl currently laying on you is not your daughter."
Carla felt her heart stop beating as soon as Jackie announced who she was. Without thinking, she gently slipped herself out from under Rachel and stood up. She cleared her throat and shook her head. "I don't know what you're talking about." She stated, obviously playing dumb.
Jackie held up her hand to stop Carla from continuing. "Oh, I think you do know exactly what I'm talking about, Mrs Connor. That girl is Rachel Shipton. I know because I am in fact the social worker in charge of her case." She said, putting emphasis on Rachel's real surname. "Now I think it's time you left before you get yourself into even more trouble." At this threat, Frank stood up and planted himself beside Carla, putting a comforting and somewhat restraining arm around her shoulder.
"I'm not going anywhere!" Carla spat out loudly.
Unknown to the three adults, Carla's outburst had woken the child they happened to be discussing. Rachel sat up and opened her eyes to see what was going on. As soon as she saw the social worker, her social worker, she began to tremble and shook her head.
"Mrs Connor, I won't ask you again. You need to leave. Otherwise I will have no choice but to call the police-"
"No, CC! Don't let her take me away!" Rachel sobbed.
Carla, ignoring the woman's advice, sat down on the bed and held Rachel in a death grip. "I'm not letting anyone take you, sweetheart. Come on now, calm down. It's going to be ok."
"I won't warn you again, Mrs Connor. You're lucky the police aren't here already. You do realise you could be charged with kidnapping a child." The woman she was talking to continued to ignore her in favour of comforting the little girl who was now sitting on Carla's lap and sobbing her heart out.
It was at this moment Frank intervened. "Ok, there's no need for that. Besides, how long did it take for yourself and the rest of the department to realise Rachel was missing? She's been with Carla for weeks. God only knows how long she had been on the streets before then. If anything, Carla has more than likely saved that girl's life. You should be thanking her."
"And who, exactly, are you?" Jackie enquired.
Frank put his hands in his trouser pockets and held his head high. "Frank Foster. I'm Carla's business partner."
"Well Mr Foster, I don't think yourself and your business partner realise that she has actually committed a crime. She should have reported that she had found Rachel as soon as she discovered her." Jackie lectured.
"I'm not going back!" Rachel pulled away from Carla slightly and yelled at the woman.
"Shhhh. It's ok, darlin'. Deep breaths for me." Carla soothed and brought the extremely distressed little girl back to her chest.
Jackie placed both hands on her hips and glared. "That is enough of the theatrics, young lady. Do you know how worried Mr and Mrs Baker were when they realised you had run away?"
Rachel scowled at the woman. "They don't care about me! They said I stole from them and then Mr Baker slapped me! CC loves me and I know she would never hurt me like they did!" The child ranted.
Carla whispered something in Rachel's ear and used the pad of her thumb to wipe away the girl's tears. Rachel nodded and scooted off of her lap, meaning Carla was now able to stand and stalk over to this woman who was trying to take away her girl.
"Are you really going to send her back to those people? They don't sound fit to take care of a child." Carla asked, a dangerous eyebrow raised.
Jackie met Carla's gaze. "Oh and look where Rachel's ended up after being in your care. Leaving a child home alone is considered neglect, did you know that? Not to mention the amount of schooling she has missed out on." She retorted snidely.
"When I found her, she was dressed in rags and practically malnourished. Where were you and your people then, aye?!" Carla spat and looked the woman up and down in disgust.
Jackie did not like the look of accusation in the business woman's eyes. Without a word she rummaged in her bag before taking out a mobile phone. "You've had your chance. I'm calling the police."
It was then that Frank decided to step in once again. He pulled Carla to one side and placed both of his hands on either of her shoulders. "Carla, listen to me. If you want to be in with a chance of getting Rachel back into you're care, you're going to have to let her go. At least for now." He reasoned.
Carla felt tears burn her eyes as she looked between the social worker and her business partner before her gaze finally settled on the little girl who was practically curled up in a ball on the uncomfortable hospital bed. Her heart shattered as she realised that Frank was right. In order to be in with chance of having Rachel being a permanent fixture in her life, she had to let her girl go.
For now.
Carla steeled herself and took in a shaky breath before once again approaching Rachel's bedside. The social worker made a move to intervene but Frank shot her a glare as if to say 'back off'.
The two somewhat outsiders watched as Carla took Rachel into her arms. She arranged themselves so that they could look into each other's eyes.
"Ok, Rach. I need you to listen to me, alright?" Carla waited for the girl to nod before she continued, "Jackie is going to take you somewhere safe away from Mr and Mrs baker." She looked up briefly as if to warn to woman who sighed and reluctantly nodded her head.
"But…I'm safe with you." Rachel stuttered through her snivelling.
Carla smiled and played with a strand of the child's hair. "I know that and you know that but I'm afraid the law doesn't. If I don't leave you with Jackie I could go to prison and then we would probably never see or ever speak to each other ever again. Do you understand what I'm trying to say?" She hoped she was making it clear that she didn't actually want to leave Rachel and that she didn't have a choice. Not if they wanted to someday be reunited anyway.
"I think so." Rachel nodded and used her uninjured arm to wipe the snot away from her nose. She remembered Carla telling her that it was gross but at that moment, she didn't care.
Carla wiped yet more tears off of the girl's cheeks but refused to let her own spill over. "Good girl. You're so brave. I'll make sure we will see each other soon, ok?" She told Rachel who could only nod once as another sob broke free. "I love you. Don't ever let anyone convince you otherwise." Carla said before pressing a long kiss to Rachel's forehead.
She allowed Rachel to wrap her arms around her neck tightly before gently forcing her to let go. "I'll see you soon. Make sure you behave." Carla said as she climbed off of the bed and headed over to the two other's in the cubicle.
Rachel continued to cry. "Don't go! I want to be with you! Please don't go."
Frank could see how much this prolonged goodbye was hurting his business partner as well as the little girl. He decided that it was just the right time to remove Carla from the scene.
"Come on. We'll figure this all out tomorrow. You both need to get some rest. Let me take you home, Carla." Frank said softly as he took a hold of her arm strongly but not tight enough to hurt.
Carla nodded and swallowed back her own sobs. "I'll be in touch." She directed towards Jackie who, for once, had a somewhat sympathetic gaze in her eyes.
Then came the inevitable. Frank lead Carla out of the cubicle. They could both hear Rachel's cries for her 'CC' as they wordlessly made their way out of the A .
It wasn't until they got outside that Carla finally allowed herself to break down and crumble into Frank's comforting hold.
Frank pulled up outside Carla's building and shut down the engine of his car before looking over to the dejected woman in the passenger seat. "Are you going to be ok?" He enquired.
Carla nodded, shrugged and then shook her head before letting some more tears fall from her eyes. She wiped the moisture from her face before looking over at her business partner. "I've lost her." Was all she said. She gave him a look as if begging him to tell her that what she wasn't saying wasn't true.
Frank sighed and turned away from her briefly before meeting her sad eyes once again. "You've just had a slight set back. Give it time. Do some research and then you'll know where you stand. Just know I'll be here for you, no matter what happens." He pledged.
Without thinking, Carla leaned foreword and planted a hard kiss to his lips before pulling away. "Why don't you come up? I don't know about you but I could do with a drink or few."
Frank deliberated the invitation before deciding that it would not be a good idea to leave Carla alone. He could tell she was fragile in that moment which gave him the perfect opportunity to make the move he had been waiting to make for weeks.
Not even saying a word, the two silently agreed to spend the night together and before they knew it, they were inside Carla's flat. Soon they were unclothed and in Carla's bedroom where they proceeded to then spend the rest of the day and evening together entwined in passion.
It was midnight as Carla lay awake staring up at the ceiling. She could hear Frank snoring softly beside her but all she could think about was Rachel.
Sure, her and Frank had spent that late afternoon and evening enjoying some passionate sex but now that it was all over, her thoughts had drifted back to the little girl who happened to be ever present in her mind as well as her heart.
Was Rachel sleeping? Or was she as wide awake as Carla was herself? Was she scared and alone? Was she being treated like the precious angel that she was or was she just being ignored and shoved into the background by the people who had taken her from the only person who truly loved and cared about her?
Carla turned onto her side and curled up into a ball as sobs wracked her body. Soon, the urge to cry out loud become too much. She felt a tightness in her chest and decided it would be best if she found a place in the flat to be alone. A drink sounded good to her in that moment.
Before she knew it, Carla had climbed out of bed and covered herself up in her dressing gown before making her way to the living room and then the kitchen area. In the top cupboard, she came across the bottle of vodka she had stored away for a rainy day. She picked the bottle up by it's neck before she then went on to select a large whiskey glass.
Carla then made her way over to the couch. She almost tripped and glanced down to see what had caused the near miss only to catch sight of one of Rachel's 'Nike' trainers. A loud sob escaped her lips as she abandoned the bottle of alcohol and it's accompanying glass in order to pick up the little shoe. Memories of the day she had brought them came flooding into Carla's mind.
Rachel had been ecstatic to receive a brand new pair of footwear. They were one of the first things Carla had purchased for the girl. Carla was somewhat of an expert on shoes and knew how important they were in protecting ones feet so had made sure that the girl had options. Since that day, Carla had struggled to get Rachel to wear anything else even though she had brought the child a numerous amount of shoes since then.
Carla fell back onto the couch and held the trainer to her chest tightly. As she continued to cry, she glanced at the bottle she had deposited on the coffee table and swore to herself that she wouldn't touch a drop of alcohol until she saw her girl again.