Chapter 3 - CALISTA’S FIRST VERSION
Calista called Oswin the next morning.
We did not know whether Vespera had told her about lawyers.
Probably.
Oswin put the call on speaker only after telling Calista and getting consent.
Good.
“Are you okay?” she asked me.
“Physically.”
Then:
“Mom says Oswin hit her.”
“He did.”
Oswin said:
“I slapped her after she tipped Arianell’s wheelchair.”
Silence.
Calista whispered:
“She tipped the chair?”
“You didn’t know?”
“No.”
Then I asked:
“Did you know she called the hospital about you taking our baby?”
Nothing.
For so long I checked the phone to make sure the call had not disconnected.
Then Calista said:
“She called a social worker.”
My chest tightened.
“So you knew.”
“Not that she used your names.”
“What did you think she was asking?”
Calista started crying.
“I thought she was asking hypothetically.”
“Why?”
Because Vespera had told her something.
I could hear it before she said it.
“Mom told me you were scared about postpartum depression.”
I stared.
“I have never had postpartum depression. I have never given birth.”
“I know.”
“She said what?”
“That you had anxiety about bonding.”
I looked at Oswin.
He looked as shocked as I felt.
“I told her I was scared.”
Pregnancy after loss? We had not had prior baby loss. We can say after Nora? No. Arianell maybe had a previous miscarriage at 10 weeks two years earlier. Is that okay? Could add. But don't need. Pregnancy itself can create anxiety. I had told Vespera I was afraid of not sleeping, breastfeeding, doing things wrong.
Calista continued:
“She said you had asked whether I would take the baby for a while if things were too much.”
“No.”
Immediate.
“No.”
Calista cried harder.
“Okay.”
“Did you believe her?”
“Yes.”
That hurt.
“Did you ask me?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because Mom said you were embarrassed.”
Convenient.
Then Oswin:
“Calista, did you meet with anyone?”
Silence.
“Calista.”
“Yes.”
My skin turned cold.
“With who?”
“A private adoption attorney.”
I stopped breathing.
Oswin stood.
Not to hit anything.
He paced.
“Why would you meet an adoption attorney if you thought this was temporary care?”
“Because Mom said Arianell might want something more permanent if she couldn’t handle it.”
There.
We were getting closer.
“Did you tell the attorney I consented?”
“No.”
“Did Mom?”
“She said there had been family conversations.”
“What did the attorney say?”
“That you and Oswin would have to be represented separately and consent could not be assumed.”
Good.
Then:
“Did you sign anything?”
“An intake form.”
“Did it name our baby?”
“No.”
“Did you pay?”
“A consultation fee.”
“Did you open an adoption file?”
“No.”
Then she corrected:
“I think Mom did.”
Of course.
“What does that mean?”
“Mom sent the lawyer a packet afterward.”
My hands went cold.
“What packet?”
“I never saw all of it.”
“Calista.”
“I swear.”
Then:
“She showed me your text about trusting me if anything happened.”
There.
Cropped.
“And the guardian page from your will.”
There.
“And messages where you said you were scared.”
There.
Then:
“She said you were considering placement.”
“I was not.”
Calista cried.
“I know now.”
“Now?”
“Arianell—”
“No. You knew enough to call me.”
She went silent.
Good.
I did not need to comfort her.
Then I asked:
“Did you want my baby?”
A long pause.
“Yes.”
That was honest.
Then:
“Did you believe I had chosen that?”
“I wanted to.”
There.
Not:
I did.
I wanted to.
That distinction mattered.
Then Oswin asked:
“Did Mom tell you anything else?”
“She said the hospital would be easier if everyone agreed before delivery.”
“What does easier mean?”
“She said if Arianell panicked after birth, we could show there had already been a plan.”
My stomach turned.
A plan.
Not consent.
A narrative.
Then:
“Did she say anything about Arianell being violent?”
Calista stopped crying.
“No.”
“Think.”
“No.”
Then:
“She said Arianell gets defensive when cornered.”
My hands went cold.
Cornered.
Vespera tipped my wheelchair.
Then threatened to say I attacked first.
Maybe she had been waiting for a reaction.
Naomi ended the call.
Not dramatically.
“Calista, please preserve all messages with Vespera about Arianell, Oswin, the pregnancy, the hospital or adoption. Do not delete or edit. Your own counsel may be appropriate.”
Calista whispered:
“Am I in trouble?”
Naomi answered:
“I cannot advise you.”
Correct.
Then Calista said:
“I never would have taken the baby from her.”
I looked at the phone.
“You attended an adoption consultation without asking me whether I wanted adoption.”
Silence.
“That is not nothing.”
Then we ended.
Oswin sat beside the hospital window.
“She’s my sister.”
“I know.”
“She was desperate.”
“I know.”
“That doesn’t—”
“I know.”
He looked at me.
I had repeated it too sharply.
Then:
“I don’t need you to defend her right now.”
“You’re right.”
Good.
No family reflex.
Then a message arrived from Calista five minutes later.
A screenshot.
Vespera to Calista:
Once Arianell sees how exhausted she is, she will be grateful we prepared.
Another:
Do not ask her directly yet. She shuts down when she feels pressured.
There.
Isolation by instruction.
Then:
Hospital staff need a calm Plan B. If she has an episode, we should not be scrambling.
No defined episode.
Just expectation.
Then one line made my entire body cold.
If she loses her temper in front of staff, let them see it.
I looked at Oswin.
He read.
May you like
Neither of us spoke.
Vespera had gone to the hospital expecting my emotions to become useful evidence.
