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Now
The world outside the tinted window blurred as a jet-black hatchback drove in the rain down the motorway. It was evening and getting darker as the car drove down the quiet roads towards their destination, which was a quiet town. The wind pushes the grass, forcing it to lie down and submit to its power. Birds were trying to fight against the wind but soon gave up and went with the flow.
"I know this is all new to you, sweetheart but please be good." A soft, hesitant voice broke the silence from the driver's seat.
Please let this one work, Paige Fields thought with a worried and tired sigh. Being a social worker was difficult. Her profession involved seeing different families and children, often helping them solve problems or helping them in a crisis. Her work had always been challenging, but she wouldn't change it for the world. It helped her see the difficulties children and adults faced behind closed doors and opened her eyes. Paige was always taught not to grow attached to her clients, but Elisa Fayers was different.
They had heard of the girl's name more than once within social services. Social workers who had worked with her in the past would say how impossible she was to work with, how cold she was, how she hardly spoke, and when she did, it was sarcastic as anything. No social worker had stayed with Elisa and her case for more than a month, giving up on the child and deeming her hopeless. Stories of her circulated the workplace, which made others shy away from ever having to meet her. The day Paige was called in to meet said little girl, she was ready to turn down her case without even knowing anything about the child. She was ready to say no to her boss, who insisted she was the only person for the job. But the moment Paige laid eyes on the little girl who looked small and vulnerable in the metal chair holding onto a little teddy bear, all her negative thoughts flew out the window. How could she leave this child with lifeless eyes to the jaws of the world?
Elisa Fayers was a particular case and a special little girl who needed love. Who needed a family who loved her despite her odd character, who simply needed to be a child. Reading through her file tugged at Paige's heart as she read the papers which spoke of the little girls' life. The many families she had passed through. She swore to always be there for the lost girl, and eight years later she knew exactly how she functioned. Elisa was like a lot of little 16-year-old girls. But at the same time, she was not. Paige knew exactly what made the child sad, her triggers, and what made her angry and hurt. She knew that the child was patient, but if she wanted something, she would do anything to get it. Paige called this arrogance and stubbornness. But Elisa called it determination. Despite her little trouble-making ways and little tricks she loved to play, especially on Paige, she could not help but love the girl and praise her to her family every time Elisa had done something amazing. Whether it was speaking more than yes or no or just smiling at her, Paige was there for it all and was proud of every small achievement.
Finding a family for Elisa was the hardest. She lived happily with her mother Delilah until she was murdered in cold blood. They never found the killer, and Elisa never saw the incident as she was out cold when they found her, so they closed the case, helping the child move on and hoping they could give her the life she deserved. They had an inkling that Elisa knew or saw something as she would tense at the mere mention of her mother. But to help her heal from the loss, they simply put her into therapy and tried to help her focus on the future, something that didn't work for a girl who didn't want to speak.
She was only eight at the time- desperately needing a family. They had gotten in touch with her father, only for him to refuse to take her in. Paige could not understand what parent wouldn't want their child but knew it would break the little girl's heart, and so instead of telling Elisa that her father didn't want her, she told her that he wasn't able to look after her.
The girl had accepted it with no questions and did not seem to be too worried, so the topic of her father was never mentioned again. She was put into foster home after foster home, only staying for about four months before the foster family begged for her to be taken back. The longest stay she had ever had in a foster home was eight months. But even that eventually turned to ruins, and Elisa came crawling back into Paige's car. She could never understand the problem, and the foster families always refused to explain their reasons for giving up on the girl. Paige eventually gave up demanding an explanation and would just drive over, thank the family, and take Elisa to a new family. She could not tell how the little girl ever felt most of the time as she hid her feelings well. But when she could tell how she was feeling, which was rare, it was mostly anger at something she could not control.
"They are nice, I promise. The eldest is Alexander. He's 26. Your other brothers range from 25 down to 18. You're the youngest." Paige had been in the process of finding a new home for the girl when she stumbled across her father's file and found that Elisa not only had one sibling but 4 of them. All older than her, in fact, and all boys. They had been living with their father in England, while Elisa had been living with her mother in California. What confused the social worker was that there was no paperwork stating a divorce between the mother, Delilah Fayers, and the father, William West. They had been happily married with their five children but at some point during their marriage, they had separated with no hard feelings and seemed not to want to end their marriage despite not having any contact. It was strange and made her a bit angry that William had been looking after his sons but refused his daughter. Paige had immediately tried to contact the West family, and when she did, it wasn't William she spoke to. But Alexander West- the eldest of the West siblings. She found that Alexander had guardianship of his siblings as their father had gone missing and that he was more than willing to take in his little sister. She recalled the conversation they had over the phone and how shocked he was. She could hear the emotion in his voice and felt a wave of pity for the man who was a parent to all his younger siblings.
Rubbing her forehead slightly, she looked into the rear-view mirror, her eyes landing on the girl who had her cheek pressed against the window and held her phone tightly to her chest. Again, Elisa did not seem shocked at the news that she had siblings. Perhaps shocked at the amount but not shocked that she had siblings at all, which led them to believe that perhaps she had lived with her brothers for a while before her mother took her away. Paige didn't know what her brothers were like but wanted to put her at ease. She just needed stability; God knows what else she hides and refuses to talk about with her therapist.
"We're nearly there, sweetheart.... how are you feeling?" Her eyes met the smaller humans' eyes in the mirror. Her cold hazel eyes met Paige's bright green ones, emotion non-existent and hidden behind that mask she had grown with over the years. How could hazel look so cold?
"How should I feel?" Her soft voice was monotone and empty; it was how she always spoke. With no expression in her voice, as if she were a robot that hadn't been programmed to feel. Paige pushed back the heavy sigh threatening to escape her lips like it normally does when she was being difficult. Her lips twitched, letting Paige know that she knew she was pushing her social worker but honestly did not know how to feel. She was confused and, dare say, worried, but she wouldn't tell her social worker that; no, she would keep it to herself.
"I don't know, darling, only you will know." She spoke in a calm voice and nodded after a moment before returning her gaze outside and watching as the sky grew darker. Deep down, the older woman knew she was nervous. But she had this way of hiding everything behind a mask. The social worker did not know whether it was a gift or a curse.
They turned onto a side street that went through a small field before there was a lone house with deep woods surrounding the home. It unnerved Paige how hidden from the world it seemed to be, how isolated and cut off it was. The house was lovely; it looked cosy and well-lived in. There was a swing on the side of the house and on the other side seemed to be football posts set up. Small daisies and dandelions spread out and hidden amongst the grass, honeysuckle and Boston ivy climbing up the side of the house with small fruits and soft sweet scents permanently staining the air around the house. This was a complete change from what Elisa was used to. She had been in many homes, but most lacked a unique feeling and seemed quite bland. This was the home that she lived in as a baby. This was different. Paige felt worry build up in her chest like it usually did whenever she must drop Elisa off at a new home. She never knew how it would turn out, and she hoped each time it would go well. Elisa was like her own child, and she knew that she would do whatever she could to make sure she found her forever home.
Paige parked up in the driveway, hearing the gravel crunch beneath the tires before turning to look at the girl. For a moment, all they could hear was the heavy rain pelting against the window and the wind whistling.
"You ready, sweetheart?" Paige asked gently, not wanting to rush her. Elisa looked at her with a blank look before nodding stiffly, grabbing her rucksack and a small suitcase. She watched Elisa's every move, noting how she kept her eyes on her shoes and her shoulders tensed. Her small hands clenched, digging her nails into her palm. Paige frowned in concern; she had never seen the girl act like this. This was a lot of emotion from an emotionless girl, and she worried about how coming to her birth home would affect her.
Elisa walked silently, feeling as if she was walking into danger, which in her mind, she was. She was moving in with men she had to call brothers but knew hardly anything about. That's what made her twitch. She hated being unaware, in the dark. Elisa looked up at the woman who was the only constant figure in her life and watched as an encouraging smile was directed at her. Assuring her she would be safe. Happy. She didn't believe her. Happiness was scarce in her life, something she hadn't felt in a long while.
"You sure?" Paige asked the little girl once more, making Elisa shrug. Nothing she could do now but face whatever lay ahead for her. She looked up at the double oak doors letting out an annoyed sigh as if being there was a mere inconvenience. Say hello to Elisa West.