Author's Note: Sorry that it's late guys. After coming home from a nice little vacation to see a friend, I instantly got into a screaming match with my father. Needless to say, haven't been in the mood today to post. But a promise is a promise! :) I would like to thank soaps-fan for aptly naming what we are now heading into: Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to my version of May sweeps! Hang on tightly and please keep all hand inside the vehicle at all times! LOL
Enjoy!
~JP
True North
By Jaclyn Parker
"It doesn't exactly feel like a shock, but it's all new to me, and I'm taking it in as it comes."
~Eminem
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Monday morning came too soon for all of them especially since the rest of the weekend following the Fourth of July had been a blur for those involved with the custody case. Abigail had flown in on Saturday evening in time to meet up with them for fireworks and a happy reunion with her father's side of the family. Just before they had all said their goodnights, she had volunteered to keep Sage and the other kids entertained while the court proceedings were going on.
John Richardson, the lawyer that was going to defend Lee in the proceedings, had flown in early Sunday morning. A relatively handsome man in his late fifties with a gray hair, a beard and blue eyes, he looked not unlike a slim version of Santa Claus. He was very friendly, but had also wasted no time in getting down to business.
Lily had reserved one of the Lakeview's conference rooms for them to do all of their preparation work and it became a revolving door of people going in to go over their possible testimony in case they were called as witnesses. Since this was a custody hearing and not a criminal trial everyone had the potential to be called on either side, from Mattie to Parker and even all the way down to Emma if the court deemed her a necessary witness.
And, as one could imagine, tensions were running high as they all assembled in the courtroom late Monday morning.
As Richardson and Lee took their places on the defense side of the courtroom, the others followed behind to sit in that section of the public gallery. Holden slid into the second bench followed by Lily, Emma, J.J, and Jack. Carly sent him a grateful smile at the subtlety with which he had left the first bench, and coincidentally the one with the most leg and stomach room, open for the rest of them. She slid in first, with Molly right behind her. As Parker and Mattie went to follow, the sound Mattie's full name caused everyone's eyes to shift to the voice.
"Matilda? I can't believe that's you. My God, Luv, you look just like your mother."
Chris Turner's eyes swept over her and his voice was sickeningly sweet. He made a move to step towards her and Mattie stepped back, nearly losing her balance in her haste to get away from him.
Parker stepped in between the two of them and glared at the approaching man, his hands curled into fists at his sides.
"Get away from her." He growled and Turner's eyes narrowed.
"I have every right to say hello to my daughter, mate."
"Over my dead body." Parker said back, his entire body rigid and ready to attack if necessary.
By now, Holden, J.J., and Jack were also standing, Lee was being held back by his lawyer, and even Carly looked ready to assault the man if warranted.
"Mr. Turner," Molly spoke up quickly, attempting to diffuse the situation before it escalated out of control. She had her one arm protectively around Mattie's waist from when the girl had stumbled back into her earlier and she could feel the young teen trembling against her. "We understand that you want to see Mattie, but court is about to start soon and I think it'd be best if you went over to where your lawyer is waiting."
Chris Turner's eyes traveled up and down Molly's body slowly and she resisted the urge to shudder. Instead she met his leer head on with a determined stare and after a moment, he smiled slowly.
"You're right. There will be plenty of time for my daughter and me to get acquainted later on." Turner said, nodding and then winked in Mattie's direction. "See you later, Luv."
As he walked away, they all let out a collective sigh. Richardson let go of Lee and the man immediately rushed over to Mattie and Molly. Pressing a kiss to his girlfriend's head, he reached out to pull Mattie into a hug.
"You okay, Sunshine?" He asked and she gripped him tightly as she shook her head.
"No." She whispered and then pulled away. Her eyes were glassy and she looked pale. "I think…I think I'm gonna…"
Letting go of Lee, Mattie bolted for the courtroom door with her hand over her mouth. Parker went to go after her but, reaching out to stop him, Molly shook her head.
"You can't go where she's going, buddy." She said, giving him a small sad smile. She cast a quick look to Carly, who placed a hand over her stomach and nodded, before slipping out of the bench and jogging after her.
"I fucking hate that guy." Parker said, sitting down hard on the bench and glaring at the end of the courtroom where Turner was conferring to with his lawyer.
"Hey, careful." Carly admonished for his language, sitting down next to him and smoothing her hand over his hair.
Parker sighed loudly and shook his head. "I'm sorry, but…look at him! He didn't so much as glance at her when she ran off like that. He obviously doesn't give a rat's ass about Mattie so why does he want her back so badly?"
"Sometimes…" Jack said, having switched places with Emma so that he was now seated behind his son and Carly. "Sometimes it's more about possession and sticking it to the other person than love during a custody battle."
"And the judge will see that." Carly added reassuringly.
But when Parker looked at her, she could tell that he didn't believe her. Pressing a quick kiss to his forehead she exchanged a look with Jack and he gave her a weak smile, both knowing that they barely believed her words either.
But they didn't have any time to dwell on them as the bailiff suddenly stood.
"All rise, court is now in session. The honorable Judge Henry Miller presiding."
Everyone stood and watched as the judge took his seat and picked up the packet of court documents, reading over them slowly. After a minute or two, he looked up and nodded.
"Be seated."
They did, with Carly barely containing the sigh of relief as she placed a hand on her aching back. It was getting harder and harder for her to make those quick up and down movements. Not mention, she probably looked like a beached whale every time she tried, she thought she thought moodily. Shaking it off, she focused again on what the judge was saying.
"…today to hear the case of Turner versus Reynolds in regards to the custody of the minor known as Matilda Grace Williams."
"Your honor, if I may?"
Everyone looked at Turner's lawyer who stood and pulled his lapels down on his dark blue pin striped suit. He had black hair that was slicked back and he had a smarmy look on his face. If this had been a feature film, he would have been easy to pick out as one of the bad guys.
"Yes, Mr…" Judge Miller said, glancing down at the court papers and back up again. "Polk?"
"Your Honor, the original paperwork for Mr. Turner to release his parental rights was found to be erroneous and therefore Matilda's adoption is not legal in any sense. We would like to petition the court to have the child referred to as Matilda Grace Turner, during these proceedings, as it is her legal name."
"What?" Lee exclaimed loudly, but Richardson quickly shushed him.
"Pick your battles, Lee." His lawyer advised and even though a tiny part of him withered on the inside, Lee held his tongue.
The judge watched Lee carefully before nodding. "For the purpose and duration of this custody hearing, the child shall forthwith be known as Matilda Grace Turner on all transcripts and official documents."
Unfortunately, Molly and Mattie returned to the courtroom just as the judge was finishing his sentence.
"No!" Mattie cried out and all eyes flew to the shaking teen in the back of the room. The girl looked as if someone had knocked all the wind out of her and as Molly held her up, she prayed that the girl wouldn't throw up in the middle of the aisle.
"Matilda, I presume?" Judge Miller asked and slowly Mattie nodded. "Come forward, child."
Clinging to Molly like she was her salvation, Mattie stepped forward, trying to stop the flow of tears that started down her cheeks.
"My ruling just now is only in reference to what you will be called during this hearing. It does not mean that it is my official ruling as to who has custody or that it gives Mr. Turner any sort of advantage over Dr. Reynolds. It is just a legal technicality that comes with the job. Do you understand?" Judge Miller said, his eyes not unkind as he explained what had just happened. He smiled gently at her, as Mattie took in a shaky deep breath and nodded back. "Good. Now, I'm going to have to ask that if you are going to stay in this courtroom, you are going to have to control yourself and any outbursts that you might have. Can you do that?"
"Yes." Mattie said, quietly. She cleared her throat and then wiping the tears off her cheeks, she lifted her chin determinedly. "Yes, your Honor."
"Good, have a seat and let's get on with today's proceedings." Judge Miller said and Molly slid in to sit next to Carly, letting Mattie squeeze in between her and Parker.
Opening arguments were quick and to the point, both lawyers stating the basics of what they would be arguing over the course of the week; Turner's biological right as a parent versus Lee's emotional right.
"Mr. Polk, call your first witness." Judge Miller said, after jotting down some notes on a legal pad after their statements.
"I'd like to call Mr. Christopher Turner to the stand." Polk said and after Turner had reached the witness box, the bailiff made the customary motions of swearing him in.
"Mr. Turner, you were quite young when you met Matilda's mother, weren't you?" Polk asked and Chris nodded.
"Lisa had turned 17 the week before and I was just about to turn 18."
"How would you describe your courtship of Lisa Reynolds?"
"Between us, it was great. Lise and I loved each other at first sight. But her dad and brother made it difficult for us." Turner said.
"How so?"
"Well, I would go to take her out and she would be grounded for no reason at all. I would call the house and they would say she wasn't home even though I could hear her in the background."
"Why do you think they did that?"
"They didn't like me. I guess they thought I was beneath them because I didn't come from a better background." Turner said, his eyes flickering to Lee with what was an obvious look of disgust.
"Objection, your Honor. Speculation!" Richardson said and Polk shook his head.
"This is the way my client felt around Dr. Reynolds's family, your Honor. He can't help it if he felt belittled."
"Objection over ruled." Judge Miller said, but frowned. "Point made, Mr. Polk. Move on."
Polk nodded and sighed, leaning against the witness box railing. "What happened when you found out that Lisa was pregnant?"
"Her dad completely lost it. He threatened to kill me with a shotgun and then made Lisa decide to go with me or never see me again."
"And what happened?"
"She loved me and we were gonna have a baby." Turner said, shrugging. "Lise chose me."
"Yeah and you beat the crap out of her!" Lee shouted, his chest heaving at even hearing his beloved little sister's name on the man's lips.
"Mr. Richardson, control your client!" Judge Miller shouted back, banging his gavel down angrily.
"I'm sorry, your Honor." Richardson said, pressing a calming hand on Lee's shoulder. He firmly whispered something in Lee's ear and Lee's took a deep breath, but other than looking like he wanted to strangle Chris, he stayed silent.
"Actually, let's touch on that." Polk said, his face turning insultingly pensive. "Is this true?"
Turner looked down at his lap and frowned. "Yes, unfortunately it is."
When he looked up again, Turner's face was contrite but there was an element of something underneath that made Carly frown. If anything, his face was too apologetic, if that made sense.
"You have to understand, we were so young and I didn't know how to handle everything. All I had ever been taught was to be physical when emotions became too much. It was how my dad raised me and even though I know it's not an excuse, I…did what I had seen all my life."
"What happened on May 16th, 1994?" Polk asked.
"It was the day that I'll regret until I die. I had come from a really bad job interview and was so upset that I just reacted when Matilda started crying. I didn't mean to hit her, I swear I didn't. But Lisa wouldn't listen to me. She just kept screaming at me and then took Matilda and left." Chris said, his eyes tearing up and he turned to look at the judge and he shook his head. "That was the day I realized that I needed to get my life together. I found them a couple months later at her dad's house and when I asked to see them, her brother started to beat me up."
"Unprovoked?" Polk clarified and Turner nodded.
"I just wanted to see my kid."
Lee looked like he was going to open his mouth again, but Richardson clamped his hand down on Lee's shoulder. He knew that Turner was lying and they would have their chance to prove it upon cross-examination. Richardson just shook his head slowly and Lee let out a deep breath, running a frustrated hand through his thick brown hair. He hated that Turner was lying through his teeth on the stand but he had to trust that his lawyer knew what was best.
"Why did you end up leaving the fight?" Polk asked and Turner sighed.
"Lisa was begging us to stop and that's when I looked up to see Mattie in the window. I knew I didn't want her to see me like that, so I left."
"What happened then?"
"I got myself into a six month anger management program and after treatment I found a good job and went to go get my family back." Turner said.
"And what did you find?"
"I went to her dad's house one day, about a year later, and there was Matilda, sitting on the steps waiting. It was almost as if she knew I was going to be there. I was about to get out the car when I saw this guy pull up to the house. She jumped up and ran into his arms. I heard her call him Daddy."
Turner looked at Mattie who frowned and looked away, causing Parker to glare at him and wrap his arm around his girlfriend. Why should she feel guilty for loving the man who, to her, had been her father?
"So that's why you gave up your parental rights?" Polk asked and Turned focused on him again.
"Yes, I figured that if she was happy with him, I wasn't going to disrupt her life. I had to do what was best for my daughter."
"So why do want custody now?" Polk asked, sneaking a glance at the judge to make sure that he was paying attention.
"When I found out about what happened with her mom and everything, I went to find her. But by then Lee had taken her to Sydney and then out of the country. Even Lisa wouldn't tell me where she was!" Chris said and Lee's eyes widened at the thought that Turner had gone to see Lisa and she hadn't told him. "I figured that she is old enough to know that people change and I want a chance to get to know my daughter. It's bad enough that it took me over a year to track her down."
"What makes you think you can provide a better life for her than Dr. Reynolds's can?" Polk asked and Chris narrowed his eyes.
"While Matilda has settled here for a while, Australia is still her real home. It's where she was born and I think she deserves a chance to finish growing up there. Plus, I have a 9 to 5 job waiting for me back in Australia with a well known construction company that is actually headquartered in the United States. I know that Lee has a better job with more money, but can he say that he is there half the time when Matilda gets home from school? I don't want my teenaged daughter left alone in a house for all crazy hours. I even found out that he lets that boyfriend of hers come over and stay with them sometimes, even if he is not there! But then again, he got one woman pregnant and is already dating someone else. How do I know that he won't impregnate this woman and then drop her and go find someone else?"
"Objection, your Honor! Slander!" Richardson jumped to his feet, his face showing his shock that Turner had been allowed to even start his rant.
"Objection sustained." Judge Miller said and sent Chris a look. "Please calm down, Mr. Turner."
"I'm sorry, your Honor, it's just…" Turner said, shaking his head with an overly displayed look of horror. "Is that any kind of role model for a sixteen year old girl? While I understand that Lee might love my daughter very much, I just wonder if he's cut out to be a father to her in these difficult years."
"That's not true!" Molly said, jumping to her feet. "Lee is a perfect gentleman and a great father!"
All eyes swung to the brunette who was now standing in the middle of the public gallery, glaring daggers at the man in the witness box.
Molly recognized her mistake the second she stood up, but she couldn't just sit there and let that man torpedo Lee's reputation like that. She knew that she had to help him but for the life of her, as she shifted on her feet nervously, she realized that she didn't have a clue as to how.
Not a moment later the judge gave her the opportunity she was looking for as he banged the gavel for attention and pointed a finger at her, his face stern.
"Who are you, young lady, and why are you disrupting this court?"
Molly froze, her mind going a million miles per hour as she tried to think of something to say; anything to say. When the idea came into her head, Molly knew it was insane and hesitated until she glanced down the row to where Carly sat. She was looking at her, with one eyebrow perfectly arched in expectation. That special bond they had was working full steam, because by the surprised yet resigned expression on her cousin's face she seemed to somehow know exactly what Molly was about to do. Carly gave a nearly imperceptible nod of encouragement and gathering a deep breath Molly smiled reassuringly at her before lifting her chin proudly.
"My name is Molly Conlan, your Honor."
Judge Miller made a face that clearly stated for her to elaborate and Molly briefly threw a look in Lee's direction before refocusing on the judge.
"I'm Dr. Reynolds's fiancée."
Silence filled the courtroom for a moment before pandemonium broke out. Turner and his lawyer began shouting; as the judge continued to bring his gavel down to maintain order. In the chaos, Molly found that something was nudging her in the side and she looked down to see Carly push something into her left hand. Opening it slightly, her eyes widened at the sight of a diamond and sapphire ring gleaming back at her. She looked quickly at Carly, her eyes asking a silent question. But Carly shook her head and her eyes flitted behind her in Lily's direction. Molly looked at Lily in surprise, but Lily just winked and then carefully turned her face back into a look of fake surprise and confusion like everyone else's in the courtroom.
"Ms. Conlan?"
Molly looked up at the sound of her name being called and she noticed that Turner was now sitting back down at the prosecuting table and the bailiff was standing by their bench.
"Yes, your Honor?"
"Would you please follow the court's request and take the witness stand?"
She could tell by his tone of voice that the "request" wasn't really a "request" at all and nodding, she made her way to the witness stand. Just before she turned to face the courtroom, Molly stealthily slid the ring on her finger and when asked to place her left hand on the bible, it was there for all to see.
After being sworn in, Polk wasted no time in getting to the heart of things.
"When did this convenient engagement happen, Ms. Conlan?" Polk asked, sneering at her.
"Lee and I have talked about it for a while, but with this custody issue, we didn't want anyone to think that we were only getting engaged because of it." Molly said, nicely side-stepping the original question. She instead looked at Lee and he grinned, his eyes giving her all the proof she needed that he was behind her 100 percent. It might not have been the way he would have proposed but, then again, their relationship hadn't been normal since they started dating.
'I love you.' He mouthed and she grinned, before focusing again on a furious looking Polk.
"And we're just supposed to believe that isn't the reason now? By all accounts, you've only been dating the man for less than four months." Polk scoffed. Richardson looked like he was going object but Molly spoke before he could open his mouth.
"But we've known each other for almost a year. Besides, despite what you might think, Mr. Polk, love doesn't have a set time table." Molly said, her blue eyes shining. "Lee, Mattie, and I are already a family in every sense of the word. We are just going make it legal when this is all over."
"But you hardly know Mattie. She's only been staying with you for a few months!" Polk tried to interject and Molly glared at him.
"Oh yes, I do! I know that while she loves to get under the hood of those old muscle cars, if you show her something pink and sparkly, she goes crazy. I know that unless she has work, you better not wake her up before nine-thirty in the morning or be prepared for the consequences. I know that she loves Coco Puffs but hates Coco Krispies. She says that she loves horror movies, but will only watch them with her face buried in a pillow or on Parker's shoulder. I know that despite the fact that she can barely boil water, she somehow makes a mean Western omelet."
Molly's hands gripped the railing of the witness box, the diamond ring on her left hand blazing in the courtroom lights as if every word she was saying made it shine brighter.
"I know that she likes to fall asleep to the sound of the ocean and that sometimes early mornings are the best time to gather your thoughts." Molly said and her eyes found Mattie's face.
The girl had silent tears flowing down her cheeks and a smile on her lips. Molly returned that smile with a loving one of her own and looked back to Polk, who in contrast, looked as if he was about to explode with rage and frustration.
"I love Mattie and I want what's best for her. We all do. That's why we are here today. And I know, in my heart, that what's best for Mattie is for her to remain here in Oakdale, with Lee and I, in the home that we can provide for her."
Molly looked at Turner and then back to Polk, her eyes fierce. "Can your client honestly look at the family we've created here and say the best thing would be to take her away from us?"
"Objection, your Honor!" Polk said and Judge Miller raised his eyebrow.
"She's your own witness, Mr. Polk."
Polk scowled and waved a hand in the air. "No further questions."
"Your witness, Mr. Richardson." Judge Miller said and Richardson stood, barely able to contain the grin on his face.
"No questions at this time, your Honor. But we retain the right to recall the witness."
"Very well then. We'll take a ten minute recess and then, Mr. Polk, you need to call your next witness." Judge Miller said and banged the gavel down hard.
After sending Molly and Mattie a wink, Lee leaned over to confer with Richardson about what had just happened.
Mattie turned to Molly and hugged her tightly. "Even if this doesn't work out, I will never ever forget what you did for me today."
"So I take it, you're okay with it?" Molly asked and Mattie just hugged her harder.
"Of course I am! You don't even have to ask. I just…I really hope that you didn't rush anything because of me."
"Mattie, what I said up on that witness stand was true. Your uncle and I have talked about it before. We just didn't think it would happen quite this soon or this way." Molly said and pulled back. "So no worries."
Mattie laughed and wiped a tear from her cheek. "You already sound Aussie-fied."
"What can I say? I've got two great reasons to love the 'land down under'."
Molly turned and began to tug the ring off of her finger to give it back to Lily, but the other woman reached out to stop her.
"Keep it," Lily said and then catching the disbelieving look from her husband, rolled her eyes. "For now. When this is all over you and Lee can pick out a real one to replace it."
"Lily, I…" Molly started to say, also looking at Holden, but Lily waved her off.
"It wasn't one of my favorites anyway."
Holden made a noise in his throat but smiled down at Molly and nodded as he pulled his wife back into his embrace.
"Well, one witness down today and one more to go, right?" Emma said, brining their attention back to the fact that the day wasn't over yet. They all frowned and looked around.
"Do we know who it is?" Jack asked, his eyes darting from one person to another.
"Yeah."
Carly spoke up and when all eyes turned to her, she gave them a small shaky smile.
"Me."
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On The Next Chapter of True North:
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"Ms. Tenney, do I have to remind you that you are still under oath?" Polk said and moved swiftly towards her. "Was your cousin engaged to the father of your child before today in this courtroom?"
At his words, Carly's eyes were brought back to Mattie's innocent face and the obvious fear she wore that she was going to ripped away from the only family she had left. In that moment, Carly knew what she had to do and just prayed silently that they would all forgive her when it was done.
"No, she wasn't." Carly said softly and everyone gasped quietly. Polk started to walk away, an ugly sneer of satisfaction on his face. But Carly's words stopped him in his tracks.
"Because Dr. Reynolds isn't the father of my baby."
TBC