Impact (Suncoast Society #32)(62)

“Really. What’s your opinion?”

“Considering you’ve seemingly done the impossible and made the paparazzi look worse than they already are, I’d think he’s learned a valuable lesson.”

“Tell him he owes me ten bucks for the food he stole from me and we’ll call it even.”

Dale laughed. “Will do.”





Tilly awoke ready to do battle Friday morning. Her emotional pendulum had swung from near-depression to kick-ass-mommy-ninja-warrior.

Loren would stay behind at the condo with the baby. Landry drove, Tilly opting for the back seat this time, wanting to be able to think about how to maintain her composure without both Landry and Cris’ eagle-eyes on her.

She knew she couldn’t blow her cool, no matter what was said or even implied in court. All that mattered was that the judge ruled in their favor.

They met Dale Waters in the lobby of the courthouse and he sat with them to go over things.

“Let me do the talking unless the judge specifically asks you a question. Hopefully, they’ll sink themselves. I was able to get the CPS investigator who was there that night to come in, too. She’ll meet us up in the waiting area. If you’ve got a CPS investigator willing to state they saw a fit home, and a recent voluntary guardianship order, I don’t see how the judge will want to overrule it.”

“They can appeal, can’t they?” Cris asked.

“Sure. Anyone can appeal anything, but it’s doubtful it would be overturned on appeal. There’d have to be some mitigating circumstance involved.”

“Like a married couple living with a third guy?” Tilly quietly said.

“That’s irrelevant,” Dale told her. “The judge doesn’t care who’s living where, as long as where the baby is living is a safe and fit home.”

When they reached the waiting room five minutes before their scheduled hearing time, Tilly nervously felt for Landry’s hand and laced her fingers through his. She’d never seen Cris’ family. Any of them.

Never in her life dreamed she would.

Her biggest battle today might be not telling them off the way she’d longed to.

Tilly didn’t miss the way Cris stiffened when they walked into the room. Two elderly women, and an elderly man on oxygen, occupied three chairs at one end of the room. On either side of them sat several other people.

“Steady, loves,” Landry murmured so softly no one but Tilly and Cris could hear.

Dale Waters walked over to a man who stood and appeared to be their attorney. They shook hands and started talking. When the door opened again, Tilly glanced back, relieved to see Louisa Gonzalez there.

Tilly offered her a smile. “Dale,” Tilly said, pointing to the woman and introducing her.

He walked over and shook with her. “Ah, thank you for coming today.”

Tilly noticed Cris especially glared at the three elderly people before deliberately turning his back on them and focusing on Landry.

“Who is this?” the other attorney asked.

“She’s with CPS,” Dale said, smiling. “She’ll give her findings to the judge.”

“That’s not fair! My client hasn’t had a home visit.”

“Your client hadn’t seen his sister in how many years? Ms. Gonzalez went there as part of the probation home visit.”

“You never disclosed this.”

“You never asked, and there was no discovery.”

A bailiff opened the door to the judge’s chambers. “He’s ready for you.”

Dale hustled the three of them inside and asked Ms. Gonzalez to wait there. The other attorney brought in a man and a woman Tilly assumed were Cris’ cousin and the man’s wife.

Once they were all seated at the table, the judge looked over the paperwork. “Let me get this straight,” he said. “Just over a week ago, I issued a voluntary custody order at the request of the birth mother, and now the birth mother’s brother is contesting it?”

“That’s right, your Honor,” the other attorney said before launching into what Tilly thought sounded like a lot of pompous bullshit.

Seated between Cris and Landry, she reached under the table and caught Cris’ hand, squeezing. She was relieved when he squeezed back.

Once the attorney finished, the judge looked at Dale. “Response?”

“The birth mother, before she was taken into custody as a material witness in a case against the drug dealer who beat her, was being subjected to a home visit by her probation officer. As part of that visit, she had a CPS investigator accompany her. That investigator is waiting and willing to testify to her findings as to the home of my clients.”

“Call her in.”

Once she was seated and sworn in, Dale walked her through the circumstances and her findings.

“Frankly,” she said, “I wish more homes were that fit. It looked like they’d just brought home a bunch of new things from the store and were in the process of setting up the nursery, but I saw absolutely no problems at the home. In my opinion, it’s a perfectly safe and clean environment, and from what I observed, I believe the child’s named guardians appear to be fit as well.”

The opposing attorney asked several bullshit questions that Dale objected to, and the judge sustained. Finally, the attorney sat back. “No further questions, your Honor.”