Finding Lilibeth

Jasmine was sat in an interview room with two police officers. She had her head hanging low and the high was all but gone from her drug hit earlier. She watched her daughter be loaded into the ambulance. Her unconscious body was beaten and she had a drip inserted into her arm. She heard the words of the paramedics while they worked on Lilibeth. "Beaten, ripped out of the socket, likely snapped. Split lip, bruised torso" they were on repeat in her head.

"Right, Ms Murray care to tell us what happened?" The officer who had introduced himself as Officer Brad Jones asked. Jasmine raised her head "I'll tell you everything if you tell me how Lilibeth is" she replied. Jasmine hated herself for what she had done but she needed to know how her daughter was. "Lilibeth is in surgery as we speak. You did a number on her. You dislocated your daughters shoulder and elbow. You also snapped the bone near her wrist" officer Jones spat out. He hated child abusers.

Jasmine winced at the harshness of the officers words but she knew she deserved them for what she had done. Jasmine nodded her head in understanding and then straightened her back ready to talk. She looked at officer Jones before saying "please tell her I'm sorry" causing both officers to scoff at her apology. The amount of force that woman used on the child who was already under weight and under height for her age made it clear the woman in front of them had been abusing that child for years. This time sorry wouldn't cut it. These officers were not going to rest until this woman was firmly behind bars.

Jasmine again looked at officer Jones and said "I want my phone call now. I want to ring child protective services and give Lilibeth up. She deserves better and I'm no good for her. All I do is hurt her. I'm an addict and when I am coming down from a high, I take it out on Lilibeth" Jasmine stated firmly. She knew she had to do this for Lilibeth, she wasn't a good mother and all she did was hurt the little girl. If she didn't do it now she would chicken out and make promises she had no intention of keeping to change and be a better mother. She knew the cycle and she had done it for years but nothing ever changed expect Lilibeth learning to hide better.

Officer Jones headed to the door and ushered a man in to the room. The man looked to be in his early 30s with black hair and round glasses sitting on his face. He was average looking but around his neck was a pass saying child services with the name 'Mark Little' written on it. "Ms Murray, this is Mark Little. He is Lilibeth's social worker with child protection" the officer introduced. Jasmine nodded and Mark took the seat the officer vacated.

"Right. Jasmine do you mind if I call you Jasmine?" Mark began. "That's fine" Jasmine replied. "I am here to discuss Lilibeth. She will not be returning to your care. She was found by the officers here after a neighbour called in saying they heard a child screaming for help and a woman screaming and lots of banging. This isn't the first time that the police have been called out to your residents Jasmine" Mark began.

"Look, I will sign her over to you. I won't fight it. I know what I did and keep doing is wrong. I use drugs, I hurt my daughter coming down from those drugs. I have been doing it since she was born. Her father Darren Staples paid me to get rid of the baby. I was 19 and a stupid kid thinking he would come after me and the baby. I let that man use me and seduce me with promises of what our life would be like. I believed the man loved me even though most mornings he would disappear before I woke up. I was wrong he never did love me or come back for us and I was stuck with a child who I blamed for my poor choices. She deserves better then me. Just make sure she goes to a good home, she deserves it. I don't want her in foster care. I will sign adoption papers, I owe her that much for the damage I have caused her" Jasmine stated confidentiality.

Mark and the officers were shocked with what Jasmine had just said. Usually parents made promises to change, beg for help, plead for them to not take there children. But Jasmine didn't, she wanted to sign her daughter away as long as she went to a decent home. Mark nodded his head and pushed papers towards the woman who signed them immediately and then turned away from him.

Jasmine wanted to be alone. She felt guilty but was also mourning the loss of her daughter which she felt she had no right to do. She had done this and deserved the pain but Lilibeth was still her daughter and the last bit of family she had. That little girl looked after her when she couldn't look after herself. Lilibeth loved her mother and told her often even after what Jasmine had done to her. "I will get Lilibeth into a good home Jasmine, that I promise you" Mark told the woman seeing the pain in her eyes and the guilt. He left the room looking back at the woman seeing she too was a victim of what an older man had done to her when she was a child.

Once Mark left the station he got to work on tracking down Darren Staples to get him to sign the paper work so Lilibeth could be placed up for adoption. Until then she would remain in hospital and then be placed into emergency foster care. Lilibeth would be out of surgery by now and Mark still needed to visit her to explain to her what would be happening. He would do that after speaking with Darren Staples.