Babs’ New Year’s Resolution 83. © Copyright, Beverly Taff April 2021

List of Characters.

Lola Smith Bab’s adopted trans daughter.
Callista Denton (Callie). Transgendered Duchess of Denton.
Margaret Denton (Maggie). Callie’s wife.
Molly Denton Callie’s grandmother
Ellie Denton Callie’s mother.
Bab’s Barbara Smith. Lola’s adoptive ‘Nana’
Olivia Smith Bab’s adopted daughter. (Excellent Artist.)
Angela Smith Bab’s newly adopted daughter
Erica Bab’s foster daughter.
Sergeant Bridie Davies Lady Police detective protecting the girls.
Sergeant Brian Davies. Bridie’s twin brother.
Inspector John, Heading up the anti-rape-gang operation.
Gareth Jenkins, Police office trained in firearms and protection.
Belinda Harrington Lola’s university girlfriend.
Aaron Talbot Surgical registrar – married to –
Shirley Talbot Lecturer at Local university.
Mickey Talbot Aaron and Shirley’s oldest son.
Jessica Talbot Aaron & Shirley’s middle daughter.
Bianca Talbot Aaron & Shirley’s youngest daughter.
Henry Denton Callie’s only son.
Charlotte Denton Callie’s only daughter.
Beverly Callie’s maternal great aunt (Ellie’s paternal aunt)
Wendy Smith Beverly’s Operations Manager for Hull
Louisa Wendy’s Daughter
Griselda & Mia Wendy’s younger twin daughters.
Susan Harvey Prosecution counsel advocating for Erica in court.
Han’s The German policeman’s son whom Erica really fancies.
Uncle Phillip CIA Agent.
Emily Jackson. Texan girl Kidnapped to Holland & Turkey
Sandra Jackson Sister to Emily kidnapped in Texas as a hostage.

Chapter 83

Outside the visitors room, Peggy asked to talk in private to the Jacksons so the British girls and Babs continued chattering back in Lola’s private ward. There, they invited the police guard to share a second round of coffee and cookies.

Meanwhile, Peggy took the Jackson family into a side office that the escorting police guards used and sat the four Texans down. Mr Jackson spoke first.

“They seem to be an ‘ornery bunch of kids.”

Peggy frowned as she began to explain.

“Yes, indeed Mr Jackson; ‘ornery might seem like a good word but before you judge, those girls let me explain a few things.”

“The girl Erica suffered every sort of cruelty that your daughter Emily had to endure at the hands of the kidnap gang. Additionally Erica has endured a childhood of privation stretching back to childbirth. She hardly knew her mother before getting shifted around from foster care to children’s homes to a failed adoption and anything else that can befall a kid born into the poverty trap. She was born an addict thanks to her drug addicted mother, so before you judge; try and consider her situation.

When Emily was eventually returned to you, I need hardly comment on whatever actions you had to undertake to return her to some sort of normality but I’m quite sure they put a tremendous strain on your family?”

“Well of course!” Mrs Jackson replied, “She was in a dreadful state! I mean the guilt we felt for letting her down. It still hurts all of us.”

Peggy wagged her head vigorously.

“You didn’t let her down Mr Jackson. I’ve seen kids with far better circumstances than your Emily’s fall foul of these gangs. The techniques and traps they employ are truly insidious, or worse, invidious. They cause families and children to break up with distressingly simple techniques, and the damage seems irreparable as both children and parents often feel betrayed and let down. It sometimes takes months or even years of therapy to restore reparative, familial relations.

Your daughter Emily has been lucky that you are such understanding parents and the process seems to have moved quickly.

Your younger daughter Sandra has also been lucky to have your support as well, so you need not beat yourselves up.”

Peggy paused to let her words sink in before carrying on.

“Now, the situation concerning all those British kids is completely different. None of them come from a typical family back-ground, all of them come from broken homes. None of them have enjoyed parental support until they were placed by the Social Services with that white haired old lady Barbara.

She’s of a considerable age and normally, would never have been considered a fit person to adopt children.

It was only by accident that Babs’ came to the attention of the Social Services in England when she was forced to report to the police that she had found the girl Lola,
bound in a large plastic sack and drowning in a frozen stream. She had to climb down into a steep icy gully and help the girl climb out while using a rope. All this in the pitch blackness of a winter’s night when Babs’ was in her late seventies! Lola had been bound and dumped by a transphobe who lost his temper and tried to kill her when he discovered she was a pre-op transgender.

It happened early on New year’s morning and Social services were so stretched, they could not respond immediately. Babs nursed her by the fireside of her cottage until the police could finally attend. When the situation finally came the attention of social services, Lola expressed her wish to stay with Babs’ because she had learned that Babs’ was like her, namely transgendered. Ever since, Lola lives with Babs’ as an adopted daughter.”

A surprised gasp went around the Jackson parents and Sandra Jackson as this was revealed; but to their credit, they accepted it. Emily Jackson had already learned of Lola and Babs’s story and her swift warning glance to her family pre-empted any objections.

ooo000ooo

“So she’s walked the walk,” Mr Jackson observed.

“Very much so, she’s a tough cookie and a bright one as well.”

“Can we go back to them, now?” Mrs Jackson asked. “We don’t went to leave under some sort of cloud.”

“Are you taking Sandra home with you?”

“No, we’re coming back tomorrow morning. The psychiatrist wants to give her trauma therapy. She also wants to repair the rift with the British girl Lola. They fell out at first when Sandra was rescued, she didn’t know the exact circumstances until the police explained.”

“Okay,” Peggy agreed, “I’ll chat with the hospital and put the two of them in a shared ward. It will make it easier for the police to guard them anyway. I’ll check with Lola first.”

So saying, Peggy went to Lola’s ward and told her the plan.

“She want’s to apologise properly and it’ll be easier for the police to guard you.”

“She’s already apologised but at least I won’t get bored, yes, okay.” Lola agreed.

Peggy called the Jacksons into the room and Sandra paused at the door.

“Hi again Lola; I’ve come to wipe your arse!”

For a second there was a deafening silence before Lola remembered the joke and burst out laughing. As Sandra joined her in a mutual giggle everybody else stood puzzled and nervous.

Babs’ was the first to break the painful embarrassment.

“What’s this about girls?”

Between staccato laughs, Lola explained.

“Private joke Nana. Tell them Sandra.”

Having truly broken the ice, it was Sandra’s turn to get fully involved.

“It was in the ambulance, I offered to shake hands with Lola and apologise but she couldn’t use her hand. The first responder told me I’d be a better friend if I helped her wipe her arse until her hands were better. So here I am.”

Her words broke the tension and everybody chuckled until Mrs Jackson advised her younger daughter.

“We don’t use words like arse darling, it’s not polite.”

“No! We use ass!” Mr Jackson guffawed.

The room descended into laughter until Mrs Jackson scolded her husband.

“Desmond! Don’t be crude!”

Babs’ quickly moved to prevent any further faux-pas.
“It’s alright Mrs Jackson, there’s no doubt that all the children have heard a lot worse. I think I see the surgeons coming down the corridor so shall we leave these two to become friends while we go for a meal?”

“Well I’d like to hear what the surgeons have got to say.”

“So be it. Let’s wait in the visitors room while they check them out.”

The surgical check-up visits were virtually formalities and the surgeons agreed to release both girls the following morning. After a brief return visit by all the visitors, Lola and Sandra were left to complete their overnight stays and the parents took their girls for the meal they had agreed to. In the two-bed ward the pair chatted at length.

It was not long before curiosity got the better of Sandra and she plucked up the courage to ask Lola about transgenderism. The subject in the southern states was often a contentious one and Sandra was very nervous as she rustled up the courage to broach it.

“Can I ask you something Lola?”

‘Here it comes,’ Lola smiled inwardly; ‘Let’s see what she’s really made of.

“Go on.” Lola replied almost casually.

“Why did you choose to be a girl?”

“I didn’t choose. I’ve always felt I was a girl from quite young.”

“How young?”

“Hard to say,” Lola revealed, “somewhere between four and eight I suppose. It wasn’t like some blinding biblical revelation. Things just seemed kind of wrong and stuff sort of crept up on me.”

“Did you play with dolls and things? The say that’s often a sign.”

“Not a lot, I used to play a lot with puzzles and dexterity games, you know, juggling balls, cat’s cradles, even knitting, Then I eventually got interested in computers. Didn’t have much chance to use one though until one of the care-home social workers finally listened to me and got me one. It was a lap-top.”

“What, in a care home?”

“Yeah. I had to guard it with my life and I never brought it out unless the social worker was present. Then I used to ask him to lock it up for me at night. Too many of the older kids had their eyes on it.

We pretended he made me surrender it up to him each night but truth was, I wanted him to protect it. Several times, the older kids tried to force me to lend it to them when I had it out but I put a password on it and they couldn’t get into it.”

Then I was put into foster care but they lied about tolerating transgenderism. I ran away when I was sixteen and sofa surfed with some other street-kids. Then I thought I’d found somebody who would look after me but he turned out to be a transphobe on the first night. He punched my lights out then ‘gaffer-taped me into a huge plastic body bag and threw me down into a stream in some woods. I used a cigarette lighter to try and see where I was but it was hopeless. I was in a sort of small ravine with a freezing flooded stream. I couldn’t get free of the tape and I was beginning to suffer from hypothermia.

Then this crazy, doddery old woman with a torch comes slip-sliding through the icy mud and rocks and cuts me free. It was Nana Babs’. I was really lucky that she’d seen the glimmer of flame from the lighter.

We both had to struggle to climb up the ravine but she’d tied a rope to a tree at the top of the gulley. It was Babs’. After that, I never looked back. Highschool then university, - Cambridge an’ all. I owe Babs’ everything.”

Sandra looked intently at Lola and smiled uncertainly.

“I don’t get it. You’re really pretty. D’ you have a boy-friend.”

“No, I've a girl-friend; she’s up at uni with me.”

“Oh! A girl-friend?”

“Yeah. How’s that for weird?” Lola grinned.

ooo000ooo