This website was evil yesterday and wouldn't let me sign in, grrrrrr.

So today you have a two for one. :)

…

Kendall was fuming with anger as she paced back and forth outside the courtroom door. How dare that crusty old judge throw her out like that!

One of the guards who had escorted her from the room had taken up a station in front of the door and was watching her impatient pacing cautiously.

Kendall took a deep breath to try and tame her temper; it wasn't going to help Bianca. Maybe she should give her sister a call and find out what had delayed them. Kendall reached to grab her phone from her purse and let out a silent curse. Her purse was still sitting on her seat in the courtroom along with her jacket. She wasn't going to be able to talk to her sister without her phone and she couldn't go home without her car keys.

Kendall looked back at the guard. Would he let her in to retrieve her purse? Probably not. He was eyeing her up as if waiting for her to create another scene.

Kendall let out a big sigh, a bit of a loss at what to do next. She was stuck, at least until the judge called for a recess. Kendall turned to find somewhere to sit and wait. As she looked down the bench lined corridor she saw someone unexpected.

Kendall approached the blond haired figure perched on a heavy wooden bench.

"AJ what are you doing here?" she asked taking a seat beside the little boy.

AJ looked up at her, he looked nervous and withdrawn.

"I've come to testify." he said.

"Excuse me, who are you?" asked a brusque woman in an ugly brown suit who was sat beside AJ. She had been reading a magazine but looked up as Kendall approached.

"Who are you!" exclaimed Kendall in return, feeling an instant dislike for the woman.

"I am a court appointed official," said the lady pointing to a plastic I.D. card pinned to her chest. "And I must ask you to please step away from the child."

Kendall narrowed her eyes at the woman.

"Well I am a woman with very little patience." said Kendall bluntly in reply, "I am also family; AJ here… well he is practically my nephew. I'm not going anywhere."

A smile appeared on AJs face at her comment.

"Nether the less…" began the woman, but Kendall ignored her.

"AJ, how did you get here? Does your mother know you are here?"

AJ shook his head.

"This lady came to collect me from school. Daddy's lawyer came and spoke to me. He told me that I had to talk at daddy's hearing. I have to wait here until they are ready for me. I haven't seen mommy yet to tell her."

"AJ," said Kendall incredulously, "They can't just take you out of school without parental permission."

"I have all the required consent forms." said the woman in the brown suit. "This is all above board."

Kendall stared back at the woman, she looked so buttoned up and officious she couldn't imagine her breaking any rules. Okay she had the official paperwork but who on earth would sign the consent form? Adam… Dixie..?

"What do they want you to testify about?" asked Kendall, noticing once more the nervous expression on AJ's face.

"He is not allowed to talk about the case." interrupted the badly dressed court official.

Kendall's frayed temper was being severely tested by the bureaucratic woman in the brown suit. She just wanted to round on her and give her a piece of her mind. She noticed however that the woman was giving furtive looks towards to guard at the door. He looked about ready to escort Kendall right out of the building, possible right out of the state.

Kendall buried her temper; it had only caused trouble so far today. AJ looked like he was in desperate need of some friendly company. The poor kid had been through so much these last few months. She couldn't leave him alone with that humourless woman.

"Fine. I shall just sit here and we shall talk about something else." said Kendall, flashing the annoying woman a breezy smile, to go with her new breezy tone.

Kendall wracked her brains for a suitable topic of conversation for an eight year old boy; something to take his mind off of the waiting courtroom.

"So AJ, Spike tells me you are a Super Mario Karts Supremo…"

AJ's grinned proudly. Kendall smile back.

Time past quite pleasantly as Kendlal learnt more than she ever knew needed knowing about moustachioed plumbers, king lizards and spotted mushrooms…

…

…

As Dr Stanhope left the stand Judge Marshall turned to McCoy.

"I understand you have another witness."

"Yes your honour, the defence would like to call Adam Chandler the third to the stand."

The court room door opened and a little blonde haired boy was escorted in by a woman in a hideous brown suit.

"AJ." gasped the pretty young woman the judge now knew to be Marissa. "What are you doing here?"

She leaped her feet and was instantly by the boy's side.

"He is my son and he is here as my witness." said the defendant standing up and turning towards her. This was the first words JR Chandler had spoken all through the hearing. Judge Marshall noticed instantly that McCoy put a warning hand on his client's arm, trying to shush him.

"But… you just took him out of school?" asked Marissa a confused look on her face. "You should have asked."

"Why." said JR coolly, pulling his arm from McCoy's grasp. "He isn't your child."

"We have joint custody."

"Only if I'd actually bothered to ask my lawyer to change the custody arrangements. I didn't. I am still his sole guardian. You are nothing to him. You have no rights at all. You are not his mother."

"I don't need a piece of paper to tell me that I'm AJ's mother." Marissa cried back, her arm still protectively around the boys shoulder. The little boy clung to her side.

Judge Marshall banged his gavel on the desk to regain order in the courtroom.

"McCoy, quieten your client. Miss Tasker please retake your seat this isn't the appropriate time for a domestic. And young man." He said, giving a smile to the nervous looking blonde haired boy, "Why don't you come and sit up here beside me."

Marissa took a moment to smooth the boy's hair and kiss his forehead before reluctantly taking her seat. JR was still on his feet as the boy walked to the stand. AJ didn't look at him, keeping his eyes to the ground.

AJ climbed into the seat.

"Hello young man, do you know why you are here?" asked Judge Marshall.

"I have to tell my story." the child said quietly.

"You have to tell the truth." corrected the judge kindly, "Do you know the difference between the truth and a lie?"

"A lie is when you make things up that aren't true."

"That's right. So when you are asked a question, answer it with the truth and if you aren't sure of your answer say so."

AJ nodded.

"Mr McCoy, you may proceed." said the judge once he was pleased AJ understood.

McCoy got a big smile on his face, and started speaking in the patronising voice that people with no real experience with kids think make them look friendly but just makes them look like idiots.

"So AJ how old are you?"

"Seven, I'm almost eight."

"Almost a grown up!" said McCoy still grinning like a fool, "Now AJ, a couple of months ago you ran away from home I want you to tell the court why you did that."

"I have to tell the truth?" asked AJ turning to the judge, "All of it?"

"All the parts you think are relevant." said the judge.

AJ squirmed in his seat a little before he began to tell his tale.

"I ran away because I didn't want to stay with my daddy anymore. I wanted mommy to be with Bianca and Gabby and Miranda in our new house. I didn't want her being with daddy again because daddy made her sad."

"No AJ, I want you to tell us, what was the last straw that made you decide 'tonight's the night, tonight I'm running away'?" asked McCoy.

AJ squirmed in his seat.

"Daddy was acting crazy. He was in his study and he was yelling and he threw a bottle at the bookcase and it smashed. Only there was no one there to yell at. He told me later that he was on the phone but there was no phone. He smelt funny, of his drink, which I knew was bad… he was yelling that Marissa wasn't my mommy. It scared me."

"Did you daddy hurt you?" asked McCoy.

"No he scared me, yelling and smelling and shouting at someone who wasn't there. I decided to run away then."

"You honour," said McCoy turning to the bench, "This incident happened over a month ago. This proves that my client has been suffering long term with this condition."

Jackson got up from his seat.

"I take it that it is my turn." He said giving AJ a grin.

McCoy went to sit back besides JR.

"Well Buddy," said Jackson , "I must say you are doing an excellent job, you should be very proud of yourself. I have a few questions of my own which I would like you to answer, okay."

AJ licked his lips nervously and then nodded his head.

"Now you told us about JR's behaviour after the shooting at the mansion, but how was he before that. How did he feel about Marissa and Bianca?"

"He hated them. He said mean things and shouted and he tried to take me away from mommy. I didn't realise that was what he wanted… I didn't want him to be mean. I wanted him to be nice to mommy and Bianca so we could all be a family and be happy and have fun; but he wouldn't be nice."

"You said 'he said mean things'. What kind of things?"

"He said that I shouldn't want to be with my mommy any more, that she had left us, but she hadn't left me. He told me I should hate her for lying to us when she said we would be a family. I was sad mommy and daddy wouldn't be together but I was happy that she liked Bianca because I really like Bianca too. And when they get married Miranda and I could be real twins not just birthday twins." AJ turned to the judge, "Miranda's my best friend."

"Did your daddy say anything bad about Bianca before the shooting?"

"He said he hated her. He said she had stolen my mommy away from me, which was daft, Bianca would never steal anything… and… he called Bianca a… skanky lesbo." AJ spoke the last two words in a nervous whisper as he knew they were naughty words.

"Thank you AJ. I have one last question. Why didn't you tell anyone about your daddy talking to himself?"

"He told me he was on the phone when he was shouting, that I was being silly. He told me he wasn't drinking he was just angry. He was holding my arms tightly and he was scaring me. I didn't want him to be mad at me; I didn't want him to hurt me, so I didn't tell."

"You thought your daddy would hurt you?"

"I don't know; I was just scared." said AJ looking across to his daddy for the first time since he entered the room.

JR was staring at his son a painful expression on his face. Perhaps he was finally realising that a bit of paper really didn't matter, he had already lost his son.

…