A/N: I am in no way an attorney nor play one in any TV show or movie. My court scene was written by memory of watching Law & Order or Blue Bloods, so definitely not a professional.
All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc., are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. All mistakes are my own.
ENJOY!
10/12/2022
Chapter 18
BPOV
"How could you stoop so low, Phil? I honestly thought Iraised you better than this," Phyllis chastised Phil as they sat in their living room while mom and I were in the kitchen. I sat by the door listening.
Mom kept trying to get me to move, "Bella, now. If your father catches you, we're both in trouble."
"Don't worry, I can see them. I won't get caught," I said, looking back around the corner, witnessing Phil, yet again, drain another beer.
Mom crossed her legs, "What're they saying?"
I shrugged my shoulders, "The same thing Phyllis says every time he brings us over here. I hate that woman."
"Watch your mouth, young lady. We're lucky to have the stuff we have. Some people aren't as fortunate," mom said, uncrossing then recrossing her legs.
I huffed, "Momma, I'm ten, I'm not young, I'm old."
Mom actually giggled at me, "Sweetheart, if ten is old, then what does that make me? I'll be twenty-eight, soon."
"You're pretty, Momma; that's what you are."
"WHAT THE FUCKS GOIN' ON IN THERE?" Phil yelled from the living room. He must've heard Momma giggle.
"If you can't keep them in line, Phil, I don't want them in my house. I don't know why you don't just divorce her and send them back to her parents," Phyllis' hateful tone rang out, again.
Phil chuckled, "Who's gonna clean my house, if I do? Even so, I didn't marry her because I wanted to; her father forced us. I had no choice, or I would've gone to jail."
"You should've worn a condom, "Phyllis said. David sat quietly, not saying a word.
"Yeah, yeah just leave me alone about it, already," Phil said, getting up from the couch. I hurriedly moved away from the door and sat at the table with mom.
Phil came staggering into the kitchen, "Can't you two fuckin' listen?" He hissed, "I'm trying to have a decent visit with my parents and you two can't keep your damn mouths shut."
I looked down to my hands that were wringing together in my lap, "Sorry, sir."
Mom didn't get a chance to apologize before Phil grabbed her, then me, by the hair at the back of our heads, dragging us toward the backdoor. We stumbled making him pull harder until we made it to the car. He forced us both into the back seat before stomping around to the driver side and climbing in, "YOU FUCK EVERYTHING UP!"
We quickly buckled our seatbelts as Phil squealed his tires out of the driveway. Before too long, he pulled up to our house and parked in the back.
I was scared to death; I knew mom was, too.
Phil flew out of the car in a pissed off rage. He yanked open the back door of the car and reached in to try and get to mom. She moved away from his hand, only making things worse for her. I knew she was only trying to protect me.
He finally grabbed ahold of her feet and pulled her as hard as he could. Her head hit the side of the door, causing a loud thump.
"LET GO OF HER!" I screamed. I'm sure that was a huge mistake. It's not often that he lays a hand on me, but he does if I try to stick up for my mom.
When Phil reached into the car to try and get me, I opened the other door to evade him. I thought, in his inebriated state, he'd have trouble catching me, but I was wrong. He caught me by my hair and dragged me and my mom into the house. We were both yelling for him to stop, but he wasn't letting go, and as soon as he had us where he wanted us, he let go and drew back his hand," NO!"
"NO!" I screamed, sitting completely upright in bed. Edward jumped up as well, with a scared look on his face.
He pulled me into a hug, knowing exactly what was going on, "Another dream?"
"A memory. Another reminder of why I hate those people, so much."
After Phyllis and David were escorted off the property, I called Edward on our way to lunch. He was livid and apologized that he wasn't there for me. He was worried for me and the baby; afraid that my blood pressure would elevate and cause me to end up in the hospital. I was livid as well, but relatively calm, for the most part. Luckily, James and Victoria were there to help calm me down.
I knew their unwelcome visit would cause me to rehash on some of the memories I have of them. None are good, I might add. They never were and I knew the moment I closed my eyes to try and sleep, they all started flooding in.
It was hard to unlatch myself from Edward as we slept. He knew the reason, but didn't complain. He never would. That only added to the list of unselfish things to add to my list of many reasons why I loved him so much. He always put my needs before his.
"I'll get you some water. We still have a couple more hours of sleep before we need to get up," Edward said, scooting to the side of the bed.
I snuggled back under the blankets to wait for him. He was only gone for a couple of minutes and when he returned, he handed me a glass of water. I guzzled half the glass before he took it from me and settled in next to me.
We lay there quietly, listening to each other breathe, "I can't go back to sleep."
"Me, either," he said, rubbing his hand up and down my arm, "You nervous about today?"
"No...I know your mom will do her best. I hope she rips them a new one just because she can."
Edward hummed, "I'm sure she will. It's what she's good at. The best, actually. Well, besides being the best mom ever."
I lightly scraped my nails through the hair on his chest. There wasn't a lot; just enough to enjoy, "She is one of the best." I laid my hand flat on his chest and smoothed it down his stomach, "Next to my mom that is."
I was slowly but surely making my way down his stomach. I traced the indention of the right side of the V that led to where I wanted to be. I knew if I got him good and worked up, to put out for me, I'd be back to sleep in no time.
When I pushed two fingers under the hem of his sleep pants, the head of his cock poked out. It was being held back by the elastic; he was already hard and ready for whatever I was wanting from him.
I pushed the offending material down, freeing him completely. My breath hitched at the sight of it. Still, after so many times, being with him, it was hard to believe it fit inside of me. I'm being biased, but any other woman or man would be jealous of what I get whenever I want.
I traced my middle finger along the slit and down his shaft before wrapping my fingers around him, "In need of a sleep- aid?"
"Mmm..." I hummed. He knew me too well. I hadn't been sleeping too good lately. Mostly due to the protrusion of my stomach. After a good romp, I was usually fast to sleep.
Edward took my cue and reached down to the edge of my tank top and started pulling it up. I sat up and helped pull it off. I didn't sleep with a bra on, so now I was completely bare chested, "I love your tits like this," Edward said, reaching up and cupping both of them. He rubbed his thumbs over my hardened nipples, causing them to harden even more.
Once we were completely undressed, we didn't rush. I moved over him slow, at first, making sure to move my hips to hit that spot just right within me. Edward never had a problem finding it, and when I'm on top, every slight move sends the perfect jolt of euphoria through my body. There are so many different ways to describe how this man makes me feel, but none of them would be completely accurate. All I know is, we were created for each other and that's why we fit together perfectly.
I leaned back and braced myself on Edwards shins as I sped up my movements. I was so close to my release, and the way my husband was gripping my hips and assisting me with my movements, it was a matter of seconds before his orgasm peaks.
Edward sat up a moment later and wrapped his arms around me as I began to move faster over him. Seconds later, we were pulled into our pleasures of release. I contracted around him as he pulsated inside of me. A very intense moment that only gets better and better every time.
"Thank you; I needed that," I said, when Edward fell back to the pillows. I followed suit and leaned forward to kiss him with all my might.
Edward ended the kiss, "Let's get cleaned up, so we can get back to sleep. It's only five and we don't need to be up until eight."
Eight o'clock came around too quickly. We were due at the court house by nine- thirty. Everyone was meeting us there. My mom and dad drove down the night before, but stayed at Momma Whitlocks. Alice was coming, too, but she volunteered to hang out with Alex, Gracie and Maddie, while we were gone. Jasper was going be there, along with Emmett and the rest of the clan. All for moral support, of course.
At eight-fifty, Edward and I headed out the door. It would only take us about fifteen minutes to get to the city-county building, down town, so when we arrived, everyone was huddled in a group, waiting for us. Carlisle was the first to say hello, hugging me and placing a kiss on my cheek, "How's my granddaughter?"
About a hundred feet away, sat Phyllis and David. Their attorney was with them. How he felt that they actually had a case, was beyond me. Esme even scrunched up her face when she read over all the paper work. She figured their attorney was new blood and didn't know a hole in the ground, if he saw it.
"Active," I replied, smiling up at my father in-law.
David would occasionally glance our way, but wouldn't directly make eye contact with any of us. Mom wanted to walk over and give them her two cents, but Dad told her it wasn't worth the air to breathe and speak to them. I had my say to them the day before and hopefully after today, none of us would ever have to see them, again. As horrible as it sounds, and selfish, I didn't care that David was sick. To me, that's Karma and it's a killer.
About five minutes before we were due to go into the courtroom, the bailiff came out, requesting the attorney's for us, to meet the judge in his chambers. Esme had told us that she had requested a meeting with him before they entered the courtroom. She didn't want to prolong any of this for what it was worth.
Twenty minutes later, Esme and the attorney for the Dwyer's, came out. Esme looked very pleased, but the other guy, looked very pissed off. That only made me smile; it only meant one thing... Esme got her way. We must have gotten lucky with a judge that she's worked with countless times. "Okay, it's time for us to go in. It won't take very long. He's not arguing their cases very well, but the judge gave him another chance to redeem himself in the courtroom. It's all good. This isn't going anywhere, but Judge Clearwater wanted to get a point across to those two," Esme explained and I felt giddy that they were finally getting a piece of their own pie.
"Will any of us get a chance to say anything to them? I think I'd like to say a few words to those people. I just wanna let them know that they didn't break me and make me a shell of a nobody." I knew my mom wanted to say something; I only hoped she'd be able to.
Esme nodded her head, "Yes. I just need to request it before he begins his proverbial speech."
"Good, 'cause I'd like to say a few things, too," James said. Glancing over at the Dwyer's and sneering at them.
We were led into the courtroom. My mom and I had to sit with Esme at one of the tables on the other side of a dividing wall. Edward and the rest of our family, sat right behind us.
A few minutes later, the judge came walking out, "All rise," the bailiff said. He continued his saying, introducing the judge and then telling us to be seated.
"In the matter of Dwyer VS Swan. Mr. Jenkins, all parties have been sworn in. You, Mrs. Cullen and I have already spoken in my chambers. My honest opinion in all this is a waste of paper and everyone's time. Is there anything else you'd like to say in this matter before I continue with my verdict?" Judge Clearwater seemed to be a nice man, but also a hard ass. I wouldn't want to be on the other side of his wrath.
"Yes, Your Honor. As I've stated before, Mr. and Mrs. Dwyer feel that the case that they've brought against the Swans is justifiable. Isabella and Renee Swan were at the home in question, when Phillip Dwyer died. They feel that they were the cause of his death."
"Objection, Your Honor. Isabella was not at the home when Phillip Dwyer succumbed to death. She was with the Landers which is the next property over. It clearly states in the police report that the only occupants of the home were Renee and Phillip Dwyer."
"Sustained. Mr. Jenkins, if you can read the police report properly, which I have here in front of me, you can see it's clearly noted that Isabella wasn't in the home. Why are you even trying this case? And honestly, it's almost thirteen years after the fact that Phillip Dwyer was witnessed by the officers on duty, when he tried to kill Renee Dwyer, at the time. There shouldn't even be a case against them. Let alone, Isabella. She had nothing to do with it. Son, I think you're still wet behind the ears."
"Your Honor, the Dwyer's feel that Renee and Isabella are the cause of his death. Why else would Phillip resort to violence and try to kill Renee? He was clearly protecting himself in the matter." Mr. Jenkins obviously didn't know the whole story. The Dwyer's must've groveled and laid all blame on us; making it look like my mom and me were the bad guys.
"Objection, Your Honor. Renee and Isabella lived twelve years of their lives, being beaten, nearly to death by Phillip and the elder Dwyer's merely sat back and let it all take place. It wasn't often that Isabella received any sort of punishment, but Phillip made her watch or should I say, sit and learn a lesson, when he would beat Renee in front of young Isabella. Obviously, Mr. Jenkins doesn't know the whole story, or we wouldn't be here." Esme is definitely showing them who's boss in this matter.
"Sustained. Mr. Jenkins, you're not showing me any probable cause here. I've already explained to you, inside my chambers, that I would only give you one more chance to prove that Renee and Isabella had something to do with Phillip's death and I'm not hearing anything. You're only digging a hole deeper."
I looked over and saw Mr. Jenkins lean in and listen to what Phyllis had to say to him.
Esme noticed and leaned over to me and my mom, "They're at a dead end. He doesn't have anything else to argue over."
"Your Honor, Mrs. Dwyer feels that Phillip's actions were provoked which led to his conduct the night of his death."
"Not good enough. That falls under what you just tried to argue with. Self-defense and now being provoked. You're not sticking with the same story. Son, I'm done listening about the wrongful death of Mr. Phillip Dwyer. There's no evidence so, I've made my decision, and this case is dismissed."
Mr. Jenkins stood up, "Your Honor..."
"I've made the ruling; It's done." Judge Clearwater, retorted, taking his gavel and banging it on small wooden plate.
"Thank you, Your Honor," Esme said, stuffing the case files back into her brief case and pulling out the next.
One down; one to go.
"On to the next issue, the reversal of Isabella's inheritance. Considering this is almost thirteen years after the fact, this better be good."
"Your Honor, the Dwyer's feel that, considering Renee Dwyer, hated Phillip with a passion, they were rightfully entitled to the insurance policy that Phillip had taken out on himself. He was in the process of having the benefactor changed before his death."
"Your Honor, there's never been any evidence brought forth to prove otherwise. Renee received the insurance because Phillip named Renee as the beneficiary," Esme argued, "Which in turn, Renee signed all monies over to Isabella when she became of age. Renee felt that Isabella had a right to all the monies involved and didn't want anything to do with it. She didn't want anything from Phillip."
"She should have given it to us, then; Stingy whore!" Phyllis said loudly.
The judge picked up his gavel and slammed it down on the small wooden plate, "Excuse me. I will not allow talk like that in my courtroom. One more outburst like that and you're outta here and I'll hold you in contempt. Understand me Mrs. Dwyer?"
"She does, Your Honor," Mr. Jenkins spoke for Phyllis. She looked like she could chew nails.
The judge picked up a few papers and flipped through them, "I see here that everything was done legally, and there isn't anything stating that Renee wasn't entitled to the insurance policy."
"Your Honor, the Dwyer's feel like they're entitled to at least half of the policy, considering he was their son. They also feel like they're entitled to half, if not all, of the money that was left to Isabella. They had no inclination that there was a private account set up for her. They feel that it was purposefully hidden from them."
"Objection, Your Honor; that private account was solely for Isabella, for college. It says so in the documentation that she received from the bank when she received the monies. Her mother wasn't even entitled to any of those monies."
The judge sighed heavily, "Sustained. Mr. Jenkins, Mr. and Mrs. Dwyer, I don't know what game you're playing at. This is all a real big joke and I've got better things to do then sit here and listen to two people try and take money from a grandchild that you should have been protecting from her abusive father. Instead, you two sat back and condoned it. It was like a circus show for you, two. You encouraged your son into his hateful behavior. You two honestly need some mental help. So, here's my opinion in this matter. Sell your home, any extra cars that you have, and then you'll have money. You're not getting a dime from Isabella. This was all a waste of my time and in my personal opinion, you two are money hungry and bled yourselves dry, thinking that in the long run, you could always take Isabella to court and get something that you felt was rightfully yours, but you're very wrong. What Isabella chooses to do with that money, is her prerogative, not yours."
"That's bullshit!" Phyllis yelled, "That money should have been ours. Those two were nothing but a thorn in my son's side; caused nothing but trouble."
"Mrs. Dwyer, you're done. I hold you in contempt. You were warned. Bailiff, see to it that Mrs. Dwyer is brought to a holding cell." Judge Clearwater just made my day.
I glanced back, over my shoulder at my family, and they were all smiles.
For some reason, David just sat still. He hadn't said one word about anything. It's like Phyllis was the one who was the ring leader in all this.
"Your Honor, before Mrs. Dwyer is escorted out of the room, could you grant a couple of people the chance to speak to the Dwyer's."
"By all means. Bailiff, Mrs. Dwyer can sit back down until what needs to be said, is said." The Judge had a sinister look on his face. It was almost like he was expecting this to happen.
Esme leaned over to my mom, "Okay, Renee, this is your chance then James will get his."
"Mrs. Cullen." Esme and I both looked up, but the judge pointed to Esme, "Who's the first person to speak?"
"Renee Swan, Your Honor." Esme stood, along with my mom as she turned toward the Dwyer's, "Go ahead, Renee."
I thought mom would appear nervous, but she looked confident in what she was about to say. "There are so many things I wanna say to you two. It's hard to believe that God allows people like you to be able to roam this earth. You made me feel worthless for years. Although, you two never touched me, your words did more damage than the physical pain your son caused me. I'm not a worthless person. I'm good and I learned from you two how to not treat people. I learned to treat people the way I wanted to be treated; with respect and honor. My daughter didn't deserve to grow up around you two and as harsh as this may sound to you, I'm glad things happened the way they did or I would have never met the love of my life. I would probably be dead by now, by the hands of your son. Forgiveness is something that needs to be earned, but in the eyes of God, I should foresee that and forgive, but I'll never forget. So, I forgive you for being the uncaring, selfish people that you are. You didn't break me. I have the best family there is and I thank you for that chance to find them." Mom turned toward the judge, "Thank you, Your Honor, for giving me a chance to speak."
"You're welcome, Mrs. Swan." He looked over and Esme, "Mrs. Cullen, who's the next person to speak?"
"James Dwyer, Your Honor." Esme motioned over her shoulder to where James sat next to Victoria, then motioned for him to approach. James walked through the low swinging doors and stood next to me.
"Your Honor, I'm James Dwyer. I'm the grandson that these people tried to pay my mother, to get rid of."
Judge Clearwater nodded, "You may proceed."
James turned and faced the Dwyer's, "My mother Melissa was one of your son's victims. She survived him and led a life that she was meant to lead. You tried to pay my mother to abort me and not press charges against your son for beating her until she nearly miscarried me. I was the only good thing that came from their relationship. My mother still has scars, to this day, that remind her of what your son did to her. You are two people who weren't meant to procreate. You should have never had a child. And I'm sure Isabella is in agreement with me when I say this; I hope to never lay eyes on you two ever again. You two will leave this earth with nothing. You'll die alone. You've lost your chance at a real family. A loving family and I'm lucky to have a sister that has accepted me for who I am. We're a product of evil, but we were brought up to be good people and taught how to love. It's both of your losses to not be a part of our lives and we couldn't be happier. May God have mercy on you when your time comes."
James finished and turned back to the Judge, "Thank you, Your Honor."
"You're welcome Mr. Dwyer." Again, he looked over to Esme, "Anyone else need to say anything?"
"No, Your Honor, we rest on both cases," Esme replied.
"In that case, I deem both of these cases dismissed. Mr. and Mrs. Dwyer, I highly recommend professional help. Bailiff, you can take Mrs. Dwyer back to a holding cell. Mr. Dwyer, I advise you to go ahead and go to your hotel, your wife won't be released until tomorrow morning."
Phyllis turned in our direction, "You'll pay for this! You're both thieves!"
The judge banged gavel, again, "Contempt, again, Mrs. Dwyer. Mr. Dwyer, make that two days. You'll be allowed to visit with your wife. Then at the end of her luxurious stay with us, you can pay her contempt fees at the receptionist desk, out front."
"Can't you just learn how to keep your mouth shut, for once, Phyllis?" The judge let David's comment to Phyllis, slide. He actually smiled at his words.
"Court adjourned. You're all dismissed," Judge Clearwater said as he stood from his seat behind his podium.
It was finally over, so we all agreed to a hearty lunch for celebration. Mom called Alice to have her meet us with Alex, Gracie and Maddie.
During lunch, my accountant showed up, per my request, with the check I was handing over to James. He still didn't know. It was a surprise and I hoped he would take it and not allow his pride to override him.
After my accountant left, I stood from the table to get everyone's undivided attention, "Can I get everyone's eyes up here, please? James, can you join me? I have some stuff I wanna say and I need you up here."
James looked at me quizzically, and reluctantly, got up from his seat and joined me, "What's this all about?"
"You'll see," I deadpanned, wrapping my arms around him, hugging him tightly.
I straightened back up and turned to face everyone, "I wanna thank everyone, first of all, for being here for me and my mom. We finally never have to see those people, again, but my main reason for standing up here, right now, is because of James. He was an innocent child in all this chaos, along with me, but he got nothing from it. I'm thankful that James turned out to be one of the good guys and I'm glad he's my big brother. In a short time I've grown to love him and his family. I only wished they lived closer. I'd like to be able to see them anytime I wanted to. So, one night within these last couple of weeks, something dawned on me. According to all the paperwork, I was Phil's only child, but I wasn't and I think it's only fair that I share with James, what I think is rightfully his. So, I had my accountant cut a check for James, for half of what I received from Phil's insurance settlement." I reached down and picked up the check and handed it to James, "This is for you. You can't turn it down. I don't care what you do with it. It's yours to do with what you please. Waste it, donate it, put it into your company, but you can't refuse it."
James took the check from me and when he looked down at it, his knees buckled out from underneath him. Emmett was the first to jump up and grab him before he hit the floor, "Whoa, there buddy. Here, sit down."
Victoria glanced over at what was in James' hand and gasped. Her hand flew to her mouth and tears immediately started falling from her eyes, "6.5 million Dollars! Isabella, you didn't!"
"I did, and I'd do it again in a heartbeat." I smiled and looked between James and Victoria. Maddie was bouncing up and down on her lap.
"I don't know what to say. Th...tha...thank you. I'm overwhelmed right now. Thank you." James stood up and pulled me into his arms and hugged me tightly. "I would have never thought his policy was that much. I just thought a few thousand dollars." Victoria joined him and Maddie wrapped her tiny arms around my legs. She didn't know what was going on, but she didn't want to be left out.
Edward spoke up, "You can take that trip to St. Thomas now. You don't even have to work."
Everyone laughed and cheered. They all praised James for being there and welcomed him and his family into our homes, anytime.
We all finished up with lunch and made plans to have dinner the next night before James and Victoria had to leave and head back to Florida. I really wished they lived near us. It would make my whole family complete, if they did.
Thanks again,
Reason