If looks could kill, Kristina would've been reduced to nothing. She takes in Molly's scowl and crossed arms, Sam's similar posture, and Alexis's concerned frown before inhaling a sharp breath.
"What do you want me to say?" she asks, "I said everything on the stand already."
"That was a controlled environment," TJ replies, "There's more to this that you're not telling us."
"Why did you do this, Kristina?" Molly asks, "How could you do this?"
Kristina swallows hard as Molly's eyes cut her down. She glances between her and TJ before looking at Sam and Alexis. She stays quiet, expecting more, waiting for more.
"I already told you," she responds, "I wanted you and TJ to have the baby you always wanted. I screwed up, tried to fix it, and it just made things worse. I'm sorry."
"What was going through your head all these months?" TJ questions, "You didn't think to tell us the truth?"
"I did! Multiple times!"
"Then why didn't you act on it?"
"I…" Kristina clamps her mouth shut, frantically searching for the words, "I didn't want to break your heart. I didn't want you guys to experience another setback in becoming parents because of my mistake."
"And you thought giving your daughter to us was a better idea?"
"You guys wanted a baby!"
"We wanted a baby that came from our DNA, not yours," Molly snaps.
"I know, and I'm sorry."
"How many times are you going to say that?"
"As many times as I have to until you believe it's genuine, because it is."
"You kept quiet for a year, maybe almost two. Why should I believe you're remorseful?"
"Molly, I did all this for you, okay? You wanted a baby, you wanted to be a mother, and I told you I'd make that happen. I didn't want to break your heart by backing out. I didn't want kids yet, and when I found out I was pregnant, I was okay with letting you and TJ 'adopt' my baby. I didn't intend to get attached or realize that I wanted to keep my daughter, it just happened."
"You still should've been honest, Krissy," Sam crosses her arms.
"I get that, and I'm sorry I lied, but I didn't do this to hurt you, Molls," Kristina frowns when Molly looks away, "I never, ever intended to break your heart. You mean everything to me, Molls. You've done so much for me, and the least I could do was pay you back. I love you to pieces, and all I wanted to do was give you something the world took away. I didn't set out to hurt you, I didn't decide on a random whim to keep my daughter, nor did I make that decision with the 'hope' that you'd be devastated. And if you think I would ever be that way to you…" she shakes her head, tears gently stinging the corners of her eyes.
"It's not about what you meant to do, Kristina, it's about what you did."
She looks up to meet Molly's eyes, anger and sadness perfectly mixed in her brown irises.
"You let us fall in love with that baby. You let us believe she had our DNA. You had all the time in the world to fess up and not make things worse, but you couldn't help yourself. You know as well I do how selfish and impulsive you can be…no, how selfish and impulsive you are."
"Molly-" TJ attempts to speak up.
"We both know how hot-headed you get when you're mildly inconvenienced, so what did it this time, Kristina? Your ridiculous idea that I micromanaged you? That I wasn't 'respecting your bodily autonomy' because I was worried about the baby?"
"Molly-" Alexis cuts in, suddenly facing her youngest's heated glare.
"Don't, Mom," Molly snaps, "you've already done enough with making excuses for Kristina's past sins. And now what, you're going to defend what she did to TJ and I?"
"I don't think personal insults are necessary. You're angry about the situation; it's more productive to focus on that than to personally go after your sister."
"Seriously?! She lied, Mom! She knew that I physically couldn't have a baby, legally agreed to be our surrogate, and then took back her promise at the last second because, per usual, she couldn't commit and wanted to get me back for having the audacity to worry about who I thought was my daughter."
"This was not some long-term scam, Molly! Me deciding to keep my baby wasn't born from revenge or snap decisions," Kristina takes a step closer to her younger sister, "That birth nearly killed us! You have no idea how awful that whole experience was, how hard I was fighting for my life. I reached a point of no return from that, and I knew I couldn't keep this up and let something happen to her."
"And that's a good enough reason to pull the rug out from under us? Did you honestly think we'd be terrible parents that you just had to take Morgan away and keep her with you of all people?"
"I'm her mother-"
"You two share DNA, but you're not her mother, and after today, I doubt you ever will be."
"Molly," Sam grabs her shoulder.
"Oh, what, Sam? Are you going to lecture me about what I'm saying because you had some tough births?"
"I'm not defending Kristina," Sam puts her hands up, "What she did was wrong, full-stop. And yes, things were tough for me when I had Danny and Scout, so I can't really blame her for her state of mind. And considering everything that's happened, it'll be something that'll stick with her."
"And yet I'll be stuck with the moment my sister betrayed me and left me completely devastated. Every single time I look at Morgan, if her father even lets me do that, I'll be reminded of everything that's happened and the lie my sister thought was okay to sell. I just didn't expect my mom and eldest sister to take her side in all this."
"We're not taking her side," Alexis remarks, "We're being empathetic."
"Yeah, at my expense."
"Molls," TJ speaks up. She looks his way, "they have a point. Kristina lying was wrong, yes, but she went through a lot. I know you see her as some supervillain here, and you're trying to get us to agree, but that's just…it's not reality."
"She took our baby from us, TJ! She led us on and crushed our hearts just because she trauma-bonded-"
"It's not a trauma bond," Kristina replies, "I fell in love with my baby. I got attached like any mother would, and I realized that I couldn't be away from her."
"Why isn't anyone on my side?!" Molly proceeds to cry, "Why aren't I allowed to be angry at my sister for what she put me through?!"
"You are allowed to be angry, baby. No one's saying otherwise."
"Really?! Because everyone here is pretty quick to defend Kristina because she went through something 'traumatic' and suddenly that means she can't be held accountable?"
"You're acting like I'm some malicious bitch, Molly!" Kristina huffs, "That's the issue!"
Molly opens her mouth to speak, a text alert cutting her off. Alexis pulls out her phone, slightly flinching in embarrassment before reading the message.
"What is it?" Sam asks.
"Diane," the elder woman responds, "Looks like Dex made a quick stop before he left the courthouse."
"What'd he do?"
"...He changed the baby's name."
Silence instantly fills the courtroom. Molly and TJ blink in disbelief while Kristina and Sam look on.
"W-What did he change it to?" Molly stutters.
"Ciara Josephine Heller."
The silence returns, settling with a strong eeriness. Molly feels tears sting her eyes, TJ frowning at her posture. Sam looks to Kristina, who can only stare at her mother with a blank expression. She feels a million thoughts race through her head, none of which stick around long enough for her to form a response of any kind.
"He…" Molly hiccups, "He changed her name?"
"He's her father; he has the right to do so."
"She already has a name; why would he do that?"
"Molly-" TJ reaches for her. She smacks his hand away.
"No, stop, it's bad enough what Kristina did to us."
"Molly, don't," Kristina snaps gently, "Leave Dex out of it. You're mad at me, not him."
"I can be mad at multiple people."
"You heard the evidence. You know he didn't have a clue about this. And like Mom said, he's free to change her name."
"And even then, Molls, after what you did, I don't think you have a leg to stand on," TJ crosses his arms.
"I was just doing my job-"
"You brought up situations that had absolutely nothing to do with the case and tried to paint Dex as a sociopath. He's been nothing but good to you!"
"You're telling me you're okay with him raising what was supposed to be our daughter?"
"Yes, because Ciara's his daughter, and he's perfectly capable of raising her."
"Oh, really, it's just that easy for you to say her name now?! How can you be okay with this, with all of this?!"
"I'm not-" TJ runs his hands down his face, "I'm not okay with what Kristina did! She lied to me just as much as she lied to you, and it hurts that we lost a baby we believed was ours."
"Then why are you so up in arms for Dex? He's completely erased Morgan-"
"Morgan never existed!"
All eyes immediately snap to TJ, whose face is flush red with anger. He takes a deep breath, meeting everyone's gaze.
"Look," he sighs, "I know you're angry and hurting. I'm hurting too! I thought that I'd have a son or daughter that had my hair or your nose, that there would finally be a light at the end of this long, dark tunnel…but there wasn't. We were lied to, our hearts were ripped out and stomped on, and we have to live with that for the rest of our lives."
"And we have every right to hold this against Kristina-"
"Yes, against Kristina, not against Dex. Molls, he's a victim too. He lost out on almost two years of his daughter's life. He has to play catch-up on everything: her eating and sleeping habits, her favorite toys, what makes her smile and laugh. And that's putting aside how he has to jump right into teaching her how to walk and talk."
"TJ…" Molly mumbles, her arms crossed. He gently rests his hands on her shoulders.
"I know a part of you is still holding onto that baby. Deep down, you're wishing this is all some never-ending nightmare, and that when you wake up, we'll go home and she'll be there. But this isn't a dream: Morgan doesn't exist. Morgan never existed, and we have to find a way forward."
Molly doesn't respond, glancing between him, Sam, and Alexis. Kristina attempts to touch her shoulder and turn her around, stopping midway when the young woman looks her way. They lock eyes, a hard glare clashing with a present remorse.
"I'm sorry, " Kristina finally speaks up, "I just wanted to do the right thing. I didn't want to lose you."
"Well, you did."
Kristina gulps, wanting to question her response.
"It doesn't matter how much Mom and Sam empathize with you, or how deeply TJ sees everything as nuanced. I know how I feel about all of this, and I know that I do not want you in my life."
"Molls-"
"No," she holds a hand up, face flush with tears, "stop. You don't get to beg and grovel until I give in; I'm not going to give you an inch. You can stand there and argue that your lie was for my benefit, but at the end of the day, you hurt me. You hurt me in a way that I never, ever thought was possible."
"I'm sorry-"
"SHUT UP!" Molly's scream pierces everyone's ears, "You're not sorry you lied, you're sorry you got exposed for it! We trusted you, Kristina! We believed that you had our best interests at heart with our baby! And what did you do? You lied and misled us for almost two years, and you only admitted the truth because you couldn't cover your butt anymore. You don't get to cry and beg your way to forgiveness because you're never going to get that forgiveness."
"Molly, please-"
"I-I'm done," she shoves a hand in Kristina's face, turning away, "I'm done standing here and listening to your whining. I'm done subjecting myself to excuse after excuse while my family tries to play devil's advocate on your behalf for no reason whatsoever," she shoots Sam and Alexis glares, "and I'm done considering you my family. As far as I'm concerned, you're dead to me."
No one speaks as Molly marches towards the courtroom doors. She stops in her tracks, looking back at Kristina one last time, a wicked smirk crossing her tear-stained face.
"And for the record," she says coolly, "I hope Dex kicks you to the curb. I hope he decides to keep that little girl away from you forever. You should have to feel the way I do for the rest of your life, because that eternal suffering is the least of what you deserve."
A steady stream of tears tumble down Kristina's cheeks as the doors slam shut behind Molly. Sam and Alexis exchange looks while TJ averts his eyes.
"TJ-" Kristina begins, reaching for him. He pulls away immediately.
"No-" he chokes out, "You hurt me just as much as you hurt Molly, and I don't see myself having a relationship with you either."
"Please-"
"You've caused a lot of damage, Kristina, and to me, you can't come back from it. I mean…God, what were you thinking?"
"I wasn't-"
"Clearly! And this is your consequence for that. As far as I'm concerned, Molly's said everything that has to be said, even if her words were pretty harsh. But Dex…how could you do that to him? How could you hurt someone you love like that?"
"I-" Kristina tries to respond, stopping when TJ abruptly walks off, the door closing behind him.
"Mom…" Kristina sees her mother's blurred silhouette before her, her elder sister to the right, "Sam…please…"
"You did what you did, Krissy, and you just have to deal with it," Sam sighs. She reluctantly pulls the woman in for a hug, "If you need to talk, let me know."
Alexis frowns at her middle daughter as Sam exits the courtroom, saying nothing before she pulls her into a tight hug.
"I messed up," Kristina's cries break her heart in two, "I messed up, and I don't know how to fix it."
"I know," Alexis rubs her back, kissing the top of her head, "I know."
"What do I do?"
"You can think about your next steps after you take a breather," Alexis wraps an arm around her, walking her out of the courtroom, "Not that you have much of a choice, but you're staying with me tonight."
"Thank you," Kristina chokes out as they walk out of the courthouse. The women descend down the steps to Alexis's car, and as the elder woman gets them onto the surface streets, Kristina lets the weight of everything continue to break her into pieces, silent tears spilling down her face the closer she gets to Alexis's cabin, hoping to finally put the day to rest.