Artex
Chapter seven-custody battle
The following Saturday, we were at the kitchen table eating breakfast when there was a knock on the door.
"If that's Kimmy, tell her we've found a brain for her," Stephanie muttered.
Haley snorted into her cornflakes.
Emma answered it. It was a man but from the expression on Emma's face, I knew this had to be Piper's father.
"Is Piper here?" he asked.
Piper shrank into her seat.
"Yes. What can I do for you?" Emma asked, stiffly.
"I'm here to take her home," the man replied.
"Unfortunately, she won't be going home with you," Emma continued.
"Why's that?" the man asked, his tone hardening.
"Because we're going to adopt her. You abusing, cruel, sack of crap," Emma snapped.
The man lashed out and grabbed Emma's arm and pinned it behind her.
"I want my daughter," the man growled.
I stood up.
"Let her go," I growled.
"Give me my daughter," the man argued, pinning Emma's arm further behind her that she cried out.
"Let my wife go," I snarled.
Piper stood up.
"Let her go, Dad," Piper said. "I'll go get my things."
Piper headed upstairs and a few moments later, came back down with her stuff. The man released Emma and pushed her forward. Emma landed on Jesse's lap. The man grabbed Piper's hand and they disappeared down the driveway. Michelle got up and closed the door.
"You okay?" Jesse asked, concerned.
"Yeah. Fine," Emma replied getting up and coming over to sit by me.
"Are you really going to adopt her?" Haley asked, looking from me to Emma.
"Yeah. Your father and I talked it over last night," Emma nodded.
"That's great, Aunt Emma!" Stephanie gushed happily.
"Yeah…now, we've got to go to court to start it," Emma replied, quietly.
"Don't worry…I'm sure it'll be okay," Danny said, reassuringly.
I was getting a bad feeling that something awful was going to happen.
TWO WEEKS LATER.
Stephanie and I were sitting at the kitchen table eating a snack when Haley home. She burst into the kitchen and dropped her bag by the table. She looked panicked and sick.
"Haley? What's wrong?" Stephanie asked, concerned.
"Dad, Piper hasn't been in school for two weeks! The teacher said she had a bad accident and is in the hospital!" Haley cried.
I stood up.
"Are you sure?" I demanded.
Haley nodded, looking like she'd burst into tears at any moment.
"Alane Memorial Hospital?" I asked.
She nodded again.
"Okay. Steph? Go get Emma for me. You girls stay home here and fill everyone in for me okay?" I asked.
Steph hurried upstairs. Emma came back down shortly looking confused and shocked.
"What's going on?" Emma asked.
"Haley told us that Piper hasn't been in school for two weeks and that she's in the hospital and had some sort of accident," I relayed to her.
"My God," Emma said, putting a hand over her mouth.
"Let's go. She's in Alane Memorial Hospital," I said to Emma.
Emma nodded and we headed out of the house.
ALANE MEMORIAL HOSPITAL.
We arrived at the hospital shortly. We asked the nurses station where Piper was. She gave us the room and we hurried over to the elevator.
Piper was lying in a hospital bed with an IV and heart monitor hooked up to her.
Her eyes were closed.
We entered the room. A few minutes later, a nurse came in to check Piper's temperature.
"What happened?" Emma demanded.
"Apparently she was hit by a car. The father called the ambulance," the nurse said. "Who are you?"
"We're friends of hers," I said.
The nurse nodded before leaving. Emma turned to me.
"My God…did he hit her with his car?" Emma asked weakly.
"That's what it sounds like to me," I said, solemnly. "I can't wait to take her off of that mongrel's hands."
"I want to beat the crud out of him," Emma growled.
"I know. So do I," I admitted.
"Joey, what if she doesn't make it?" Emma asked as she pressed her face into my shoulder.
I gently tilted her chin up so our faces were inches apart.
"She will. Don't worry," I said, reassuringly.
EMMA.
I gave Joey a kiss before returning my eyes onto Piper.
We alerted the doctors and the police that we're filing for adoption for Piper.
The father wasn't too happy about it and I knew there would be trouble. I was right.
Stephanie and I took a drive to the movie theater. Piper had pulled out of the tough situation and was now stable. We stopped for a red light. I had the stereo on. We were singing along with Celine Dion's One Heart. Just then, Piper's father appeared and stood in front of the car. Stephanie and I froze. He pulled out a gun, clicked back the hammer and aimed it directly at us. Stephanie screamed. I grabbed her and pushed her down onto the floor.
I dove too. I heard the gun going off. Bits of glass showered us. Stephanie was terrified and huddled on the floor underneath the dashboard. After a few moments, the gunfire stopped. I slowly sat upright again, peering carefully out of the windows. Then, someone's arm broke through my window and grabbed a hold of my hair. I screamed as the figure began pulling me out of the window.
"Aunt Emma!" Stephanie cried.
Piper's father threw me to the ground outside the car. I could hear Steph's frantic cries. The father began beating me up…badly.
I felt my lower lip was bleeding, followed by a bruised jaw, and I began drifting in and out of consciousness.
STEPHANIE.
The man literally pulled Aunt Emma from the car and he began beating her up badly. She was lying on her back unconscious on the ground. The man then took off running down the block.
"Aunt Emma?" I cried as I pushed open my door and climbed out. I rushed over to her.
She wasn't moving.
Then, I remembered the cell phone that Aunt Emma had gotten. I ran back to the car and yanked open the glove compartment. I dialed home.
JOEY.
The phone rang. Michelle, Deej and I were watching an old episode of "Ranger Joe". Emma and I were scheduled to do a new episode again next week. We were going to film the new episode.
D.J. answered the phone.
"Tanner residence,"
There was a long pause, then:
"Oh my God…where are you?" Deej asked, alarmed.
Michelle and I looked at each other alarmed as well, before looking at D.J.
"Okay…we'll be right there," D.J. said as she hung up the phone.
"What's going on?" I demanded.
"That was Steph. She said some guy pulled Aunt Emma from the car and began beating her up. They're on the corner of Lorne and Srant," Deej said, frantically.
"Let's go," I said, as I grabbed my car keys and we headed out to my Toyota Corolla.
We arrived at the corner of Lorne and Srant. Stephanie was waving to us frantically as we pulled up. Emma was lying on the ground.
I quickly shoved the car in park and pushed open my door. Michelle and D.J. opened their doors as well. We hurried over to Emma.
"What exactly happened Steph?" I asked, gently stroking Emma's cheek.
"Some guy stood in front of the car and opened fired! We dove down and then he grabbed Aunt Emma and pulled her from the car!" Stephanie cried.
"It's okay Steph," Michelle said, throwing her arms around Stephanie.
I gently shook Emma. She groggily opened her eyes.
"What happened?" Emma asked.
"Some guy beat you up," Stephanie said, gravely.
"It was Piper's father," Emma winced, as I helped her get to her feet.
"What?" I asked, in a monotone.
"It was Piper's father," Emma repeated as we helped her into my car.
D.J. offered to drive Emma's car back home behind us. Michelle and Stephanie joined her. We climbed into the front seats of my Corolla.
I glanced into the rear view mirror and made sure that D.J. was behind us in Emma's car.
They were.
We began heading home.
"From now on, I don't want you going out alone," I said, firmly.
"Deal," Emma sighed. "He's a wacko!"
"I know. I do hope we are able to get Piper," I said, softly.
"Me too," Emma said, sighing.
EMMA.
Joey put a hand on my shoulder as we drove home. Once we got home, Danny, Jesse and Becky wanted to make sure I was okay.
The following week, we got a call from the hospital saying that Piper was okay and that we were scheduled for a court date to decide if we get to adopt her or not. It was more like a hearing.
Joey was nervous…I could tell. Tomorrow we film the new episode of "Ranger Joe".
SAN FRANCISCO COURT HOUSE.
Joey, Danny, Jesse, D.J., Stephanie, Becky, Michelle and I arrived at the courthouse. I was dressed in a navy woman's pants suit. Joey, Danny and Jesse were dressed in suits and ties. Stephanie, D.J. and Michelle were in dresses. Kimmy offered to baby-sit for the twins and keep an eye on Haley. I didn't want Haley there at the courthouse.
We entered the courtroom. Judge Natalie Morris was sitting in the judge's stand. A bailiff was standing off to the side. Piper's father was sitting on the Defendant's side. Joey and I took our spot on the Plaintiff's side.
We swore in. Michelle, Danny, D.J., Becky, Jesse and Michelle were sitting behind us in the spectator's seats.
"Okay. Let's begin," said Judge Harris as she ruffled some papers. "Mr. and Mrs. Gladstone. You are filing for adoption of a Piper Harris…is that correct?"
"Yes your honor," I replied, gently.
"Now, can you tell me on what grounds?" Judge Morris asked.
"Well, your honor, Piper told us that her father beats her regularly," I continued.
Judge Morris looked at Mr. Harris.
"Is that true?" she asked, sternly.
Mr. Harris snorted. "No,"
"Why don't we ask Piper herself?" Judge Morris said, shrewdly as she gestured to the bailiff.
He left the courtroom and came back with Piper. I grabbed Joey's arm as she entered the room.
She didn't look at her father as she passed him.
"Okay. Piper? Can you put your hand on the bible for me?" Judge Morris asked gently.
Piper nodded and placed her hand on the bible that the bailiff handed her.
"Do you swear to tell the truth and nothing but the truth so help you God?"
Piper nodded. "I do,"
Piper sat down in the stand.
"Okay, Piper. Please tell the court what you told the Gladstone's," Judge Morris said, kindly.
"My father beats me regularly. Especially if I get a wrong answer on the homework," Piper said, keeping her eyes off of Mr. Harris.
The courtroom gasped and whispers went around.
"He hit me with his car last week because I was spending time with the Tanners," Piper continued as tears formed. "He was mad at me. He grabbed me here."
Piper showed the courtroom the bruises on her arm. That was enough evidence to possibly get him on a guilty charge.
People shook their heads as she told this.
"That's a lie! They told you to say that!" Mr. Harris hissed.
Judge Morris banged her grovel.
"Silence!" she snapped. "Do you have anything to say, Mr. Harris?"
"No," Mr. Harris muttered.
"Jury, you've heard the testimony," Judge Morris said. "Ten minute break for your decision."
The jury left the room. I turned to Joey.
About ten-minute's later, the jury came back in with their decision.
"We've reached verdict," said a man dressed in a suit. "We find the defendant, Luke Harris, Guilty."
"You two are going to pay!" Mr. Harris snarled at us.
"I doubt it very much, Mr. Harris," I said, stiffly back.
"I'll kill someone you love dearly!" Mr. Harris snarled.
The bailiff handcuffed Mr. Harris and began dragging him out of the courtroom.
"As for the decision to adopt Piper Harris, granted," Judge Morris said, banging the grovel.
Joey and I cheered and hugged each other.
Piper ran over to me and hugged me.
Joey went to hug her, but she hesitated.
"It will take some time, but you'll see…Joey's not like that," I said to her kindly.
3 YEARS LATER.
Piper settled in beautifully. She and Haley were inseparable.
She slowly warmed up to Joey and saw that he wasn't like her father at all. No one in this family was.
I had no idea that devastation would hit the family.
Haley and Piper were now in Junior High School. D.J. had graduated college and was now working for a corporation. Stephanie was in college studying English, as she wanted to be an English teacher. Michelle was in High School. I eagerly waited for Haley and Piper to come home. The door opened. Piper came in with red stains on the front of her shirt. She looked like she was in shock. Haley wasn't behind her.
Danny and I jumped up and rushed over to her.
"Piper? What's wrong? Where's Haley?" I demanded crouching down in front of her and gently grabbing her arms.
I heard the swinging door opening behind me. I glanced behind me. Michelle and Stephanie were standing there.
"Why's there blood on Piper's shirt?" Stephanie asked, worriedly.
"Blood?" I demanded.
Alarms began going off in my head.
"Piper? Where's Haley?" I demanded.
"S-shot…some man s-shot her," Piper choked out.