Heartbeat || A Good Girls Fanfic

Chapter 10

The last thing Charlotte wanted to do was rush to her sister's apartment. Much less to pray that she was able to get there before the case worker arrived and saw Sadie's finger cut and bloodied. The whole way there, she had tried calling Annie's phone. Begging whatever higher power in the universe that she would pick up and somehow was already at her apartment making sure she kept her daughter's custody.

But clearly, no one heard her prayer. As she knocked on the stained door of her older sister's home, Sadie was the one that opened it, a fake smile plastered on her face. "Aunt Charlie," she faked enthusiasm, her eyes motioning behind her. A blonde woman in a sweater and slacks sat on the sofa, curiosity evident in her eyes. "What are you doing here?"

"Hey, Sads," Charlotte smiled. "I was just in the neighborhood and thought I'd pop by. I completely forgot today was the custody evaluation. I'll get out of your hair."

"Oh, please, stay," the woman smiled. "It would be good to know more about Ms. Marks from someone close to her."

"Sounds good," she grimaced internally. "I'm Charlotte Marks, Annie's younger sister."

"Claire Davis. Nice to meet you."

"Likewise." Charlotte's brain was grinding its gears. From the corner of her eyes, she could see her niece's finger wrapped in a paper towel and a ponytail band. The paper was pink in hue, the blood seeping through the fabric faster than it was stopping it. "Um, I do have to go to the bathroom first. Sads, could you go with me for a sec?"

"Sure," Sadie smiled comically. "Excuse me."

Charlotte and Sadie left the case worker sitting on the couch and spoke in whispers in the hall. The woman took her niece's finger in her hand, examining the bandage. Blood continued to soak through, with almost no white left on the paper.

"You might need stitches, bud," Charlotte hissed. "We at least need to wrap this up better while that lady's there. Have you been able to get a hold of your mom?"

"No," she groaned. "She promised she would be here on time, but of course, she's not."

"I know, bud. I'm sorry," Charlie sighed. "Let's at least see if your mom has some gauze or band-aids in her room."

"Don't! There are no band-aids," Sadie quietly exclaimed. "You can't go in there."

"Why not?"

"Well, the apartment's technically clean 'cause I stuffed everything in there."

"Sadie, that lady is gonna want to check the room," Charlie said. "Look, you keep talking to her and stall. I'll try my best to clean in here. Hopefully, your mom is not too far."

"Okay," she smiled. "Thanks."

As soon as Sadie was out of view, Charlotte opened her sister's bedroom, swallowing a loud gasp that was threatening to spill. Everything that was normally spilled all over the home had been stuffed into the small room. There was no way she could clean everything up, but she could try to make it look livable at least.

"Where did your aunt go?" Charlie heard Claire ask. "She's been in the bathroom for a while."

"Oh, she has GI problems," Sadie answered, making Charlie cringe from the room. "It'll probably take her some time to finish up in the bathroom."

"No worries," Claire chuckled. "My sister has IBS so I definitely understand."

Great. Now, not only was her sister late but the case worker thought that Charlie was stuck in the bathroom with gastrointestinal issues. But she couldn't dwell much on the fact that Claire Davis thought she was stuck on the toilet at that moment, there was an insane mess in the room she stood in and very little time to make it appear livable.