Adele felt like she wanted to vomit. Her birthday had already been one emotional rollercoaster ride after a another. The ups and downs of the day were enough to make her sick to her stomach. But nothing had prepared for this! The folder she held in her hand, with the information Travis Jr gave her, made her more nauseous than she'd ever felt in her life. She could barely form words, let alone a sentence to ask questions.
Travis Jr booked it from Okaloosa County to Adele house in record time. With no details as to why she was so adamant about him being there, he came prepared for the worst. Even though he himself couldn't imagine what could be worse than the shit in that folder.
By the time he got there, Adele wasn't mad anymore like she was on the phone. She was empathetic, explaining to him what happened. And when he informed her of what he knew now, it made Ivi's outburst much more clearer and gut wrenching at the same time. Seeing Adele distressed and unable to talk, he went ahead and explained to help her process.
"When you figured out that Ivi might be from Louisiana, I reached out to my connect in the system. They put me in touch with Louisiana's State DA office, to see if they could find any court proceedings for me on Ivi; they did."
He cleared his scratchy throat slightly. "Her life seemed to be normal in the beginning. Military brat, born overseas and came back to the states when her father discharged. But her parents divorced when she was 6. There was a custody battle. Her mom tried to keep Ivi away from her father as much as possible. When she turned 10, her mom moved them to Atlanta, where she's originally from. As far as anyone can tell, Ivi hasn't seen her father since then. She doesn't talk about her family much so you can only assume."
Adele sat motionless but full of emotion, allowing him to continue.
"From there it gets...ugly. And it's only more assumptions. Especially with...that." Travis Jr trailed off. He was feeling the puke rise up too. "Louisiana's DA put me in touch with Dekalb County's DA, Atlanta. That's where Ivi was living when.." Detective Chalmers had to clear his throat to keep from choking up.
"...No one really knows what happened. Nothing was investigated to bring charges to anybody because Ivi never talked about it to anyone. Never said who she was with. She was put in foster care eventually for a year because they didn't deem her mom fit with their living situation and the unknown circumstances surrounding what happened and all. The DA's office reached out to the foster parent and case worker for me. According to them, Ivi was a mute the whole year she was there. Didn't say one word...about anything."
Adele sighed, letting the tears flow. "Who could blame her!" she said shaky.
Travis Jr nodded. "Her first charge came while she was in the hospital for attacking a nurse. They think the nurse was demeaning Ivi. Saying slick shit, assuming, and Ivi snapped. Had her first manic attack then."
"Dear God!" Adele whispered, touching her shaky fingers to her lips, trying to control her sobs.
"From there it spiraled, if you could say that wasn't enough. Her mom moved them here, to Florida, after she put on this act to the case worker and everyone else, that she was a fit mother. Because she knew she had fucked up in Atlanta, she basically left to avoid any charges, like neglect or child endangerment. Their relationship became even more rocky than before."
Aleen and I usually talk with liberties we aren't suppose to because Ivi is a special case. Ivi's shared with Aleen that her mom blames her for everything. Ivi ended up turning to the streets for support because she wasn't getting it at home. That's how she got her misdemeanor charges. Trying to fend for herself."
Travis Jr chuckled humorlessly. "Aleen warmed me that Ivi had a lot of hang ups and issues. And I've shared the details with you about the situation that landed Ivi in jail but.." He shook his head. "...Aleen never told me about this." he said pointing to the folder again.
