Cracks in the Sidewalk(59)

“Excuse me,” JT said in a cynical but much more even tone. “I thought you were supposed to be on my side.”

“I am on your side,” Noreen answered. “But it’s time to get real and work with what we have.”

“And what’s that?” JT asked.

“You’ve got a problem with your in-laws, so maybe we can get supervised visits that exclude them from seeing the kids. We can possibly limit the number of visits and the duration, but I seriously doubt we can win outright.”

JT said nothing for a long time. Then he told Noreen, “I don’t care what you think. I’m sticking with my plea for no visitation. None. Not for Liz or her parents. That’s it, end of story.”

Without any further discussion he hung up the telephone.



Friday morning, Dudley began his closing argument by thanking the court for interviewing Elizabeth Caruthers at her home.

“But perhaps I should correct myself,” he said, “since Elizabeth was not actually interviewed at her home. She was interviewed at her parents’ home. Unfortunately, after she was diagnosed with a brain tumor, her husband, Jeffrey Caruthers, the father of her children, the man she devoted her life to, would not allow her to return to their home. Because Elizabeth is unable to function independently, she was forced to go to the one place where she was welcome—her parents’ house. Even that measure of cruelty was not enough to satisfy Mister Caruthers’ quest for vengeance. He also took away the thing his wife treasures most—her children.”

Dudley’s words brought tears to Claire’s eyes and as she fished through her pocketbook for a handkerchief, Charles pulled his from his pocket and handed it to her. She wiped the tears from her eyes, then eased her fingers into the curve of Charlie’s hand.

“The saddest part of this story,” Dudley continued, “is that Jeffrey Caruthers’ primary motivation is to wreak revenge on a father-in-law who refuses to give him any more money. I say give rather than lend, because lend would infer there was some intention to repay the debt. Jeffrey Caruthers never had such an intention. Not only did he not intend to repay his one-hundred-and-ten-thousand-dollar debt, but he became enraged when Charles McDermott drew the line and said no more.”

JT and Noreen sat side by side at the defense table, him staring blank-eyed into nothingness, her scribbling notes as Dudley spoke.

“Ever since the day Charles McDermott pulled the plug on his funding of the defendant’s failing business,” Dudley said, giving JT an accusatory glance and then turning back to the judge, “no one in the McDermott family has been allowed access to the Caruthers children. Not even Elizabeth, the mother of these children. The truth is obvious. He is using Elizabeth’s love for her children to gain revenge against his in-laws.

“Jeffrey Caruthers claims he is doing this for one reason: because it is in the best interest of his children. How can any parent believe it to be in the best interest of their child to deprive them of their mother’s love as well as the love of their grandparents?

“Elizabeth Caruthers is a dying woman with a singular motive, which is to leave her children with a legacy of love. She is a devoted mother who wants and deserves to spend time with her children so they can approach adulthood with the knowledge of how much she loved them.

“In earlier testimony, Doctor Rupert, a highly-acclaimed child psychologist, provided this court with clinical study results indicating that children are less likely to blame themselves for the loss of a parent and have fewer long-term psychological problems when they understand the causative factors in the death of that parent. The same study indicated that the sudden and unexplained removal of a parent substantially increases the child’s risk of psychological problems.

“The defense would have you believe Elizabeth Caruthers is mentally incapable of spending time with her children—too bitter, they say, too maudlin. But it is easy to see that she is none of those things. She is instead a woman of great faith. A woman who wants to share her acceptance of God’s will with her children so that as they grow older, they can be free to celebrate her life rather than live with recriminations of her death.

“Your Honor,” Dudley continued, “this court has met with and interviewed Elizabeth Caruthers, so I need not go into lengthy detail about her sincerity and genuine love for the children. Although the defendant has taken from her that which she holds most dear, she bears him no malice and is not asking the court for redress. Elizabeth Caruthers asks only that you right the wrong taking place. She is well aware that this tumor has affected her motor skills and causes sporadic memory loss, but she is still quite capable of dealing with the emotional needs of her children. As for her physical infirmities, she has assured the court that one of her parents will be on hand to offer assistance whenever the children are present.

“In closing, Your Honor, we respectfully request that the court grant Elizabeth Caruthers visitation with her children four days each week. And in light of the uncooperative posture taken by her husband, Jeffrey Caruthers, we also ask that the court order these visitations scheduled for specific days and duration times.”

Dudley gave the judge a polite nod, then returned to his seat.

~

Noreen stood and smoothed her skirt, regretting that she’d dressed in a black suit that gave her the look of a hard-edged, uncaring person. This morning she’d thought it projected an air of professionalism, but now she wished she’d worn something a bit more feminine—a silk dress or a light-colored suit. With Dudley playing all those sincerity, goodness, and sympathy cards, she might come across as some sort of ogre if she launched an all-out attack on Elizabeth. Noreen took two steps forward.