Changing the diaper, I saw the baby was indeed a girl, and was already thinking of what documents I would need and what phone calls tomake.
“I’m sorry, child, for the other day,” Morgan said, making Dawn jump. She was standing facing me, looking at thefloor.
“What did you do now?” Joan huffed, coming to stand next to him with her arms folded across herchest.
I now had the baby wrapped back up, and was holding her in my arm, hoping Emily would be back so I could have her take the baby out of harm’s way and call my dad to get here as soon as hecould.
“He scared my girl,” I said, nodding to Dawn as she grabbed onto me once again, but touching the baby at the same time. “Do you want to take her and goupstairs?”
She shook her head and shrugged. She was torn on what to do; stay with me, hersafeplace, or take this baby that was born into a world no one should have had to beaway.
“Who is she, anyway?” Joan spat. “Just a waste of space. Both of themare.”
“Joan,” Morgan warned, right as Dawn glanced up at her. Dawn had tears in her eyes, but also determination andacceptance.
“What?” she glared at him, before moving her eyes my way. They widened in shock as they landed onDawn.
“Elijah,” Emily said, coming back into the room but stopping short when she saw what I was holding and the expressions on all our faces. She only paused for a moment, before turning to me and taking the baby, saying something about calling her father-in-law.
With both hands-free, I touched Dawn to get her attention. She turned around, and tears were falling from her eyes. She lookeddevastated.
“How?” Joan asked, shocked andpale.
“Dawn?” I said in her ear, “I think you should go backupstairs.”
She shook her head, gripping my shirt. How could she not want to run fromhere?
“Okay. You can leave at any time,” I said quietly. I turned back to Joan. “This is why she hasn’t contacted you. It’s been up to her from the start. I won’t ever force her to do something she doesn’t want todo.”
“She’s a minor; she has no choice,” Joan said. “She will be going home with menow.”
“She’s nineteen, and even the courts can’t force her to go with you if she chooses not to,” Kaleb said as he entered the room, two police officers followinghim.
“You can’t stop me taking her back,” Joan said, while Morgan slowly backed up, trying to make himself invisible. “She’s my daughter, for crying out loud! I have plans for her. She owes me for her worthlessfather.”
“Sorry Ma’am, but you are both under arrest for child trafficking. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law,” Kaleb said, indicating to the two officers to arrestthem.
Joan did not go quietly, giving away her plot of how she was going to get out and come for her daughter, who was meant to die, and telling us how Morgan had just killed a woman in her home. I pulled Dawn closer to me as Joan was dragged out, kicking and screaming. Morgan went willingly, accepting his fate, head down and tail between hislegs.
“Are you okay, sweets?” Kaleb asked Dawn, who was shaking and suppressing her sobs against my chest. I knew Kaleb viewed my girl as a little sister and cared deeply abouther.
“She will be,” I said, hoping that was thetruth.
“Alright. Give me a call later?” he asked, starting toleave.
“Sure, but you need to know, I need some things taken care of. Morgan and Joan brought a baby here, less than a week old.” I said, rubbing my hand up and down Dawn’s back as she took in some deep breaths, trying to get her crying tostop.
“What?Really?”
“Yeah. He said the mother didn’t make it; Emily has her upstairs right now,” I replied. “For the time being, I’d like the baby to stay here—after my dad checks her over, of course. She’s a tinything.”
“Of course,” Kaleb said, not asking why. I wasn’t even sure why I wanted the baby to stay, as I knew Emily would be more than happy to keep it as her own, if given the choice. With it being the one thing that really got my girl’s attention, I couldn’t just leave it in someone else’shands.
“Doc is on the way,” Emily said, coming back in, holding the sleeping baby. “I called him and he should be hereshortly.”
“Thanks, Emily,” I said gratefully. She really had been wonderful help this week, with not just Dawn, buteverything.
“Not a problem,” she answered, handing the baby over toKaleb.
