She sighed. “The girls came to see me over the weekend. I didn’t ask them to. They decided to surprise me, and there was no way I was going to tell them they had to leave. Adrienne said Kennedy was out with her boyfriend, but somehow, she tracked them to the house. She showed up and showed her ass with all that yelling and cursing. She threatened my sisters, slapped me, and when she slapped my uncle, I lost it and slapped her back.”
“Shit.”
“I need my sisters out of that house. I haven’t heard from them in days, Killian. I know if I go over there, it’s going to be a brawl, and I can’t go back to jail. They need me.”
She dropped her head in her hands and began to cry. I stood from my seat and went around to comfort her. I hated that she was going through this. All she wanted was a relationship with her sisters, and their mother was making it difficult at every turn. If it had been noted in the conditions of her parole, that would have been different. Alayah wasn’t a danger to Adrienne, Amiyah, or anyone else for that matter.
“What am I gonna do, Killian? What if the judge sides with her?”
“Well, more than likely, this will be a family-court issue. We’re gonna need a list of solid character witnesses. It would also be helpful if we had someone who can attest to how she treats the girls—like a neighbor or someone who’s seen it first-hand.”
“I’m sure someone in that neighborhood has heard or seen something.”
“I think Erica would be a great help on this. I can help in the background, but I’d better serve you as a character witness.”
She sniffled and nodded. “Is she here?”
“Let me call her.”
I turned my desk phone around and called down to Erica’s office. She answered on the second ring, and I asked her to come down the hall. She agreed, asking me to give her a few minutes. While we waited, I grabbed some tissue to wipe the tears from Alayah’s face and a bottle of water for her to drink. Her hands were trembling as she twisted the top off and took a sip.
“We’re gonna figure this out,” I assured her.
There was a knock on my door before it opened and Erica walked in.
“Alayah? What are you doing here?”
I handed her the petition for the restraining order, and she read over it as I explained what led to the motion being filed.
“I figured this was gonna happen.” Erica sighed as she took a seat next to Alayah. “We—”
“I want guardianship of my sisters—at least until both of them reach eighteen. That’s only a few months for Adrienne, and she’ll be off to college. Miyah still has two years before she graduates, but I can do this.”
“Alayah, you’re on parole. You’re still trying to get yourself together. Are you sure you want to add on taking in two teenagers? You’d have to get your own place, a license, and transportation. If this becomes permanent, they have to have health care, food, clothes, insurance… There’s a lot you have to prepare for, honey.”
“I can do it. I’ve been learning to drive, and I’m getting better at it. I’ll get a car. I’ll take on a second job if I have to. Please, Erica. I don’t feel like they are safe with Kennedy. I haven’t heard from them in a week, and I can’t go over there. She isn’t going to let my aunt or uncle in. Please! You have to do something; you have to help me.”
There was desperation in her voice. Erica looked from Alayah to me then sighed.
“Okay. We can start with a wellness check. My husband is an officer. I can get him to do it. Once we see what he finds, we can move from there. We’re gonna have to get on this quickly before the hearing. The more we get to prove her unfit the better. This can get very ugly, Alayah. Your past is gonna come up, and you may have to relive that trauma again in the public eye. Are you prepared for that?”
Alayah nodded. “For my sisters, I have to be ready.”
“Should your request be declined, are your aunt and uncle prepared to step up?”
“Without a doubt.”
Erica gave her a tight-lipped smile. “I’ll make the call.”
She stood and walked to the door.
“Wait,” Alayah called. “I need to know how much this is going to cost me.”
“Don’t worry about that.”
“Erica, I have to pay you.”
“I believe in you, and because I believe in you, I’m not worried about you paying me. There are too many red flags when it comes to your mother, Alayah. Somebody has to knock her down a few notches. I’ll be in touch.”
