Chapter One Hundred and Nine
The court room was suspiciously empty as Kelley and Milana sat down in the cordoned off area behind the desk where Mason sat with Lee and another woman. The woman, Hailey Michaelson, had met with Mason the previous day and discussed the case at length.
“Why isn’t Andrea here?” Milana whispered to Kelley.
He looked around the court room and noticed that Marcus Holt and his three attorneys were there, none of his other cronies had arrived yet and Andrea was a no show. Her absence didn’t sit well with Kelley and now he was sure something had happened to her.
An officer stepped through a door and stood in the middle of the room right in front of the raised dais where the judge would sit. “All rise.”
They all stood up and Kelley looked at the judge as he walked in. One of Marcus’s lawyer’s nodded his head at the judge and Kelley knew that Mason had already lost, no matter how good Hailey’s arguments were.
“Holt versus James case 459/5 presided over by Judge Donald McPherson.”
“Good morning, has the plaintiff and defendant reached an amicable agreement outside of this court room?” Judge McPherson looked at the lawyers in turn.
Marcus’s lawyer, Justin Rawley McDonald III stood up and cleared his throat. “No, Your Honor, my client, the plaintiff is here to establish paternity over his minor daughter, Grace. We’ve submitted the court ordered paternity test which shows that Marcus Holt is indeed the father of the minor child in question.”
“Thank you, Mr McDonald, what does your client want with regards to this suit?”
“He wants custody of his child, Your Honor, a child he didn’t know about for seven years until Miss Christie, the child’s biological mother, tried to blackmail him for alimony money.”
“I see and why is this case being defended?”
Hailey stood up and didn’t smile or change her features, like she knew she was on the losing team. “Your Honour, my client, Mason James, was told that he was the biological father of Grace James, a child he raised as his own for seven years. She was left on his doorstep with a note from her mother asking him to look after their child and that’s what he did. He’s invested in this child, Your Honor.”
“Is your client seeking custody of this child as well?”
“Yes, Your Honor, the child also stated that she wishes to remain with the father she knows, Mason James.”
“I see.”
The judge paged through the documents and Kelley could see Mason’s shoulders slump. He had realized the truth too. They were fighting a losing battle. Marcus was smiling at his lawyer and he glanced over at Mason with a smirk on his face.
“I’ve looked through the supporting evidence and this case is really clean cut. The integrity of a family unit is an important one. A child has the right to care and nurture from a parent. We’ve successfully established paternity and I was informed as well that the child’s mother hasn’t shown up for this hearing today, which in itself says a lot about her commitment to her child, a child she also left on a stranger’s doorstep. I commend you, Mr James, for caring for this child and loving this child but the facts however are that Mr Holt is the child’s biological father and he is willing to care for his child. It is always in the child’s best interest to live with a biological parent. With the absence of the biological mother I have no other choice but to give full custody to Mr Holt. There are a few conditions though, a welfare worker, that will be appointed by the court, will make weekly house visits to assess the physical and emotional condition of the child. Should the court find that the child is not cared for either physically or emotionally then the child will be removed from her primary residence and placed under the care of the state. This court is now adjourned.”
“Your Honor, I object!”
“To what exactly, Miss Michaelson? Did I miss some vital piece of information?”
“Your Honor, it’s in the best interest of the child to remain with the father she knows.”
“No, Miss Michaelson, the child has a father, one who wants to raise her, it’s quite easy to understand.”
The judge stood up and walked out of the court room and the whole thing took less than an hour. Mason slumped forward and Lee had an arm around his shoulder. Hailey slammed her briefcase closed and was muttering under her breath.
“I lost her, Lee, I lost her.”
“I’ll be by to pick up my daughter at noon. Have her ready, Mason, or I’ll have you arrested for contempt of court.”
“Piss off, Marcus, you’re only doing this as a power play. You don’t really want Grace.”
“Let me tell you a little secret, Mason. After today I’ll have Grace and there’s nothing you can do about it. I hear the boarding schools in Montoya are quite adequate with problem children.”
“You son of a bitch!” Mason lunged forward and grabbed Marcus by the collar of his shirt.
“I’ll sweeten your loss a little, James, I’ll send Andrea back to you. I’ve had my fill of her but the look on her face as she choked on my dick night after night will keep me warm.”
Marcus shoved Mason away from him and walked out of the court room. Mason was breathing deeply and he looked ready to self-combust. Mason let out a wild, animalistic sound that seared straight through the soul as it spoke of so much pain.
Mason stalked out of the court room and sped away. Kelley and Milana drove behind Lee and parked in front of Mason’s house. His car wasn’t there and Kelley got the feeling that he wouldn’t be returning to it any time soon.
Carey opened the front door and looked worriedly at Kelley. “What happened?”
“Marcus got full custody of Grace, he’s picking her up at noon.”
“No.” Carey’s legs gave out but Lee was there to catch her. Milana had been wiping tears from her eyes ever since the judge’s verdict.
