Returned to Sender - Scarlett Johansson

Part 6

Scarlett's POV

I don't think the gravity of this whole situation had sunk in until I sat in the back of the cab with Sawyer's head leaning against my shoulder on the way back to the set, soft snores falling from her lips every couple of minutes which reminded me this was all real.

Waking up with Sawyer's body wrapped around my arm was a shock. I wasn't expecting the small child to want any contact at all, let alone like this.

Still, I sure as hell wasn't going to complain about it. Cuddling with her this morning had been the best thing to happen to me since she was born, even if I was scared shitless the whole time that I was going to hurt her poor battered body. It reminded me so much of our few hours together after she was born. The same swirl of true love and fear mixed in my heart as I held her as tight as humanly possible. I can't believe I missed out on nine years of this.

When I had been dressing her earlier, I couldn't help but stare at all the bruises that covered her whole body, hating that I hadn't been there to protect her. Then there were the scars that covered her back. They stretched across her entire back, clearly the result of a brutal whipping of some kind. I don't know how old the marks were, but they were healed as best as they could, which sickened me further as the realisation of how young she must have been when they were inflicted hit me. The whole thought disgusted me and brought another wave of guilt crashing down on me. She has suffered unimaginable pain, and because of what? Because I was stupid and scared. I am going to spend the rest of my life to make this up to her, I swear it.

Miss Smith had talked to me briefly about her last foster home this morning while Sawyer was still asleep. I did not like what she had told me at all. I had left her, and she had suffered unspeakably since. The foster father Sawyer had been sent to after her adopted family had died was abusive, which explained a lot; the thought made my blood boil. Miss Smith explained that while the man had been jailed for abuse and sexual abuse of a minor, that latter charge making me plot how to kill him in my head, they still were unsure entirely what he had done to Sawyer, explaining that the child would never detail more than the bare minimum.

After hearing all this, I promised myself that I would die before I let Sawyer experience even a paper cut again. She deserves the world, and it's time someone gave it to her, and I plan on doing just that.

"We are here, Miss", the taxi driver's voice awoke me from my thoughts as I realised we were back on set. Thanking the man, I grabbed my bag and Sawyer's backpack, slinging them over my arm as I got out of the taxi, slowly trying to avoid waking the small child. My child.

Double-checking she had the pig blanket that I noticed her clutching earlier, I shut the cab door. When I saw her sitting there on the hospital floor, squeezing the blanket, my heart melted; the fact that she still had it all these years later and that she was seeking comfort from the item made me so happy. Until the guilt hit that the only thing I had ever given my child was a blanket and a crappy past.

Pushing those thoughts from my mind, I started my walk back onto the set, hoping I could get us both back to the trailer without bumping into anyone. Sawyer has been through a lot, and the last thing she needs is to be bombarded by everyone. I had still yet to tell anyone except Kevin about her existence, and even then, I didn't go into the details; plus, I was hoping to explain to the cast tomorrow morning after I had time to settle Sawyer into the trailer.

Of course, that is too much to ask for, though.

Unfortunately, luck was never on my side as I heard a loud voice yelling behind me, "Scarlett! You're back; where the hell have you been? We've all been worried!" Robert was walking towards me now, yelling in my direction, with the rest of the cast behind him. Taking a deep breath, trying to prepare for what was about to happen, I slowly turned to the whole cast, adjusting my grip on Sawyer to hold her a little tighter, making sure I didn't drop her, knowing her little body could not endure anything else. Please let her sleep through what is about to happen.