Abandoned

16

Today was the day of the meeting that had been arranged to discuss what would happen next for Sienna.

Everyone involved would be attending; Zareya, the officers, the nurses and doctors, and the new social worker.

The plan that had been arranged between the psychologist and doctor waters would still be going ahead however they needed to be certain that it would be the best option for the girl.

Gathering all of her folders and paperwork surrounding the case, the psychologist prepared herself to hand Sienna over to officer Tage Reven. They had decided that Tage would be the better option as the girl was familiar with her.

"See you soon" Zareya called out as she left the room. Sienna was currently distracted by the night light that she loved, she enjoyed following the little butterfly lights around the room.

The psychologist made her way down to the conference room that had been booked out to her.
She opens the door and is greeted by an unfamiliar woman. Before she has a chance to speak the new lady introduces herself.

"Hello, I'm Laila Aaziz, the new social worker on Sienna Devoes case. Who are you may I ask?"

"Hello, nice to meet you Ms Aaziz, I am Zareya Von Klene, the psychologist on this case. I am aware that you have not yet had the chance to meet Sienna so this meeting will be beneficial to you. I know that you have been given Ms Hains notes but please feel free to create your own according to what you learn."

The two woman continue to make small talk until everyone needed in the meeting is present.
When everyone is settled in and has introduced themselves the psychologist begins the discussion. She starts with a brief introduction to the case for the sake of the new social worker before handing over to the police team for them to share their findings around the case.

Officer Marcus Blane starts. "Nine days ago we brought mr Sebastian Devoe in for his final questioning before his execution. During this time he gave hints towards our case of Sienna Devoes disappearance which allowed us to piece together enough information to have a solid lead. We were able to find various clues within the area of pooled forest including chests of small child's clothing and very disturbing diary entries which detailed what Mr Devoe would do to Sienna, these accounts were daily and the last entry was December last year."

Officer Canden Vance continues, "The entries essentially entail how mr Devoe wanted to make Sienna into the perfect child, how he wanted to beat the defectiveness out of her and strip her back to being mouldable, the child was 2 years old at the date of this entry."

"We also found what can only be described as a torture chamber. It's a tree hut but inside there were chains and all kind of weapons scattered everywhere as well as piles of human waste and blood. Test results came back as a positive match to siennas DNA."

The room was silent for a moment as everyone took in what they were hearing. This man truly was disturbed.

Officer Taylor Peters speaks up next. "When we found the house it looked normal at first and I guess if anyone was passing by they may have assumed that it was a normal abandoned house. We even didn't think much of it until I noticed the out of place litter tray.
The smell that arose when that door was opened is indescribable. It was a foul smell and I think we both knew then and there that we had found something."

The officers go in and on each taking turns to explain the horrid situations in which they found the poor girl. They explained how she reacted to the lights, the movements and to their presence in general. It was important that this was all detailed within this meeting so the new social worker could compile her own notes.

Soon it was Zareyas turn to speak. She started with what she witnessed the second she walked into the basement and explained how detrimental Ms Hains actions would have been if they were allowed to continue. She then started with her psychological notes.

"Sienna Devoe is 12 years old however is physically no larger than a 7/8 year old and she has the cognition of an infant. From what I have assessed she is non verbal and does not babble however tries to communicate her needs through sounds. Sienna seems to be very cautious of her surroundings and will be restless unless she feels safe. Due to her being unable to voice her needs or wants she may hit out when frustrated and can become very dis regulated quickly. During this time she is not able to react rationally as she does not know how to, causing her to bite and scratch at those around her.

Giving Sienna her comfort items which include her teddy bear and any soft materials are likely to help her regulate. As we have also established she has become comfortable within my presence and will seek comfort from me. This is a positive step for her considering what we can assume she has been through.

When interacting with Sienna it is important that we all remember that she has been locked away for the last 9 years of her life and does not know what is normal. I have said it before and I will say it again, you cannot act on something and expect her to be okay with it. It helps if you explain even if she doesn't have the understanding.

This brings me into my next point. Sienna is very infantile, she is diaper dependent, cannot walk and has the motor ability of a 6-12 month old. She also cannot chew or swallow solid foods, she has chocked twice no so I am putting her in a puréed diet until we can build that up.

And finally a lot of the traits that Sienna displays could be related to this infantile nature and the fact that she has been locked away for years however they also are very common traits in autism. She rocks and flaps her hands and holds little to no eye contact as well as the non verbal communication. I would like to spend more time with her before I finalise my opinions on this."

Everyone was stunned by how much this woman knew about the little girl in such a short amount of time.

Dr waters then spoke up with the rest of his treatment plan. "We have managed to clean all of her wounds and she is in the process of recovering, she will be on antibiotics until all of the infection has cleared. Throughout her stay in hospital it has been agreed that miss Von klene will stay to keep her comfortable and somewhat compliant. The next step is building up her immune system and introducing her to everyday things like foods, as Miss Von klene has stated already, and building a routine."

Laila Aaziz had been taking notes and was very pleased that this woman was working so closely with Sienna.
"Ms Von Klene, I admire your work. You have done so well to get to know the child in such a short time. I am pleased that you are working with her and that you have her trust. I don't have any further questions other than when l'd be able to meet her. With what you have just all shared and the notes from Miss Hain I think I have a solid profile in Sienna."

They all stand to leave the room one by one but just then another thought pops into the social workers head.
"Excuse me mr Vance," she calls for his attention once he looks at her she continues, "does Sienna have any family she would go to once she is discharged from hospital?"
Camden sighs sadly and shakes his head. "No. Sebastian murdered the whole family 9 years ago when Sienna went missing. I guess that's something we should've mentioned, she is going to end up in the system the poor thing. Please make sure she goes to a good home it's the least we can do for her."

The social worker smiled, she had the perfect home in mind already.