20
Tessa
The day is finallyhere for the judge to rule on who gets full custody, and if Chris gets visitation. Emily is now a little more aware of the situation because the ad litem asked her some questions about it. My goal has been to keep her out of it, don’t let it affect her, but that’s out the window now. She has expressed her disinterest to stay with her father again and would rather stay with us, which is expected after what he has done. Hopefully, the judge will rule in our favor, and we can move on with our lives with no say so from Chris.
I put on my black pencil skirt and cherry-red blouse in case I end up going into work after. My boss has been very understanding with this whole situation and just asked that if I get done at a decent time to come into work, if possible. That’s all up to the judge. I’d imagine it would be at least a couple of hours for each lawyer to argue the case and bring up evidence, then the judge has to figure out his ruling.
My chest rises and falls. I’m ready to get this over with and stop worrying. Chris pulls up next to us, gives me the side-eye, and then heads inside the courthouse. Fuck you, asshole. You only want to make it appear like you want full custody. If you got it, she’d end up at your parents’ all the time. She’s much better off with me.
“You ready?” Damon says, his hand landing back on my thigh. “It’s a big day.”
Emily sits in the back seat with a new tablet Damon bought her and doesn’t even pay attention to our conversation. The way she answers the questions from the judge will have an enormous impact on his decision, and as her mother, I’m scared. Not that I’ve done anything wrong, but even after he kidnapped her, she still loves him and wants a relationship with him. Like any little girl missing her father.
I go around to her door and open it. “Today is the day. Remember Mama told you the judge is going to ask you some questions, and all you have to do is tell the truth. That’s today, sweetie. Randall is going to get you a juice box and a pack of peanut butter crackers to tide you over until you talk to him, okay?”
She runs off with him, leaving Damon and me on the steps. “What are we going to do if, by a miracle, this judge gives him visitation?” I say, walking into the courthouse. “I mean, to have to drop her off to him after he took her—how would I ever trust him to bring her back? Emily doesn’t want to stay with him, but she does want to see him.”
“Don’t get yourself worked up over something that hasn’t happened yet. Let’s focus on today, and then after the outcome is decided, we can figure out what’s next,” Damon replies.
He has been by my side through all of this and very supportive. Damon didn’t sign up for this when he met me, but the connection we have, the bond he shares with Emily has been real from the very start. There is no denying that. There will always be tough times, and it’s the people that are there for you through those times that are worth keeping in your life. He proved to me that he is a loyal person and will be by my side every step of the way.
I take a breath before walking into the courtroom when my nerves attack me. My hands start to shake. In the back of my mind, the fear of him having her is terrifying. It keeps looming over me, and I can’t make it go away. Remember, trust the judge. He won’t.
The judge does the opening spiel, and our lawyers are told to plead their cases. My lawyer warned me that his lawyer would probably say many things that were false, and not to let them get to me. The fact that we have proof of his wrongdoings will overshadow anything “good” his lawyer might throw at the judge and to trust him.
“Your Honor, Chris is a parent that just wants to be around his child. He has made attempts to see her, but the mother has refused that right since she was three. He believes she still holds resentment for him leaving her and taking it out on their child by withholding visits. We are here before you today to ask that you grant joint custody.”
You’ve got to be fucking kidding me. How can he lie like that? I start to speak, but my lawyer puts his hand on top of mine and shakes his head. He expects me to just sit here and let that imbecile lie about me and my intentions. I’m only doing what’s best for our child, and he should see that, but he’s too damn blind. Only thinking about himself and his image.
“No father should be kept from his child, especially one that wants to know their child. And that’s exactly what the mother is doing.”
I have to sit by while his lawyer keeps telling lies, to make Chris look good, but it won’t stick. We have worked tirelessly getting all the evidence and proof we could get from the last few years from cell phone companies and testimonials. He’s going down.
The judge calls for character witnesses and his lawyers bring up Chris’s parents. Are they going to lie on the stand? They know exactly what happened all those years ago, and lying under oath is a federal offense, not even they would do that for their son.
“Can you tell me how long it’s been since you’ve seen your granddaughter, Mrs. Blakely?”
She takes the handkerchief and wipes her eyes. “Over three years.”
“And have you witnessed your son trying to see Emily, only to get turned down by her?”
“Yes, many times. The holidays are about family, and she won’t let us see Emily. The last time we saw her she was a toddler, and look at her now.”
Emily has been brought into the courtroom and placed in the back by the doors, able to hear everything that is being said about both parents. Is she going to hate me for this when she gets older? Will she understand I only did it to protect her from getting hurt?
“No further questions for Mrs. Blakely, Your Honor.”
Time is passed over to us, and Randall looks a little on edge, like something is wrong. I nudge him, but he just looks at me before standing up and beginning his argument.
“Your Honor, we are asking you to consider no visitation rights or joint custody for Chris today. If you look over the evidence, it's proven that he is unfit to take care of Emily full-time, and after the arrest for him taking Emily without permission from school, we believe it could happen again. The abuse Tessa endured while being with him leads us to believe he is a dangerous man who should not be left alone with Emily at any time.”
The judge takes his argument into consideration and calls Emily up to the stand. He asks her some basic questions like who she would rather live with, does she get along with me, and is she getting good grades at school. The ad litem inspected both of our homes and even though I live with a man I’m not married to, it shouldn’t make a difference. She can’t live with him or be alone with him anymore. If the judge rules in his favor by some miracle, I’ll stay broke fighting for what is right. End of story.
The judge instructs her to step down and thanks her for her honesty and talking with him today, and then Emily leaves the courtroom. Next, he opens the folder and starts reviewing the paperwork inside while he continues.
“He did not reach out to the plaintiff for three years. It says here he took Emily without the mother’s permission, and she was later found alone in his apartment with no supervision while he was at work.”
There is no denying what a shitty parent he has been. The judge is now seeing the whole picture. Chris isn’t a father; he’s a deadbeat who only wants his daughter around when it is convenient for him. It’s a shame to think I actually loved that man once upon a time, and I’m damn happy I got away from him. Oh, what my life would be like now if I would have stayed with him all these years. Hard to imagine.