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  Stephanie rose. “Objection, Your Honor, as to relevance. This isn’t a contract dispute, in which we need to determine the intent of the parties. It’s irrelevant whether the parties had a meeting of the minds about when the custody arrangement should end. The only inquiry today is what is in Emily’s best interests.”

  Franklin turned to the judge. “Your Honor, it’s relevant because it shows that Dr. Scanlon was more than willing to entrust Emily to Danielle and Bob completely. In fact, he signed an agreement that essentially gave them full custodial rights for an indefinite term.”

  Stephanie scoffed. “Your Honor, as it states in my brief, Dr. Scanlon didn’t intend to transfer his rights to his daughter forever. He trusted his brother-in-law to act as his lawyer with respect to the custody agreement. Moreover, Dr. Scanlon testified that he had faith in the care provided by the Ridgeways. Our position is that it was only temporary.”

  Judge Shield nodded. “I’ll grant your objection, Ms. Bergen. Mr. Franklin, the contract is moot at this juncture. Please, move on.”

  “Thank you, Your Honor.” Franklin pivoted neatly toward the witness stand. “Mr. Ridgeway, moving on, please tell the court about your relationship to Emily.”

  “It’s wonderful. I love her, and I’ve been, in all practical effect, her father. She treats me like a father and she calls me Daddy.”

  Mike cringed. Stephanie wrote on a legal pad in block letters, RELAX.

  Franklin cocked his head. “Mr. Ridgeway, does Emily call Dr. Scanlon Daddy?”

  “No, and she doesn’t really know him. She cries every time he holds her and always has.”

  Mike reddened because Bob was right. Stephanie began tapping the eraser end of her pencil on the table.

  Franklin nodded. “Mr. Ridgeway, who paid Emily’s expenses during the considerable time you and your wife gave her a home?”

  “We did, all of them.” Bob frowned again. “I make an excellent living from my practice and I’m happy to do it. Mike said he’d pay us back, but I wouldn’t accept it. We’re her parents, for all intents and purposes.”

  Mike was kicking himself. He hadn’t had a chance to settle up with them yet, and he should have made it a point.

  “Mr. Ridgeway, while Emily was in your and your wife’s care, did she incur any accidents or injuries?”

  “No.”

  “Did you ever fall asleep while babysitting her?”

  “No.”

  Mike swallowed hard. It still killed him that he’d fallen asleep on Emily. Next to him, Stephanie wrote, DON’T WORRY, THIS IS GOING NOWHERE.

  “Mr. Ridgeway, are you presently or have you ever had any problems with drugs or alcohol?”

  “No.”

  “Are you presently or have you ever had any issues regarding anger management?”

  “No.”

  “Have you ever been arrested or charged with any crime, including but not limited to assault?”

  “No.”

  Stephanie rose. “Objection as to relevance, Your Honor. Again, we have no quarrel with the level of care that Emily has been given while her father was deployed. Our position is that her father is willing and able to care for her, and he has presumptive custody. In the interest of saving this court’s time, especially in a snowstorm, we’d be willing to stipulate as much.”

  Franklin hesitated, facing the judge. “Your Honor, this line of questioning will give the court a much fuller factual basis on which to base its decision, snowstorm or not.”

  “I’m going to grant that objection.” Judge Shield twisted his chair to the witness stand. “Mr. Ridgeway, as a lawyer, you’re sophisticated enough to know that you are not on trial here, nor is your ability to care for Emily. In addition, weather aside, the last thing I would do is give short shrift to a matter of this magnitude, where a child’s safety and welfare are concerned.”

  Bob nodded. “I understand, Your Honor.”

  Franklin said, “Thank you, Your Honor. I have only one question left. Mr. Ridgeway, why do you think that you and your wife provide a better home for Emily than Dr. Scanlon?”

  Stephanie rose. “Objection, Your Honor. The witness’s opinion on the ultimate question in this matter is irrelevant.”

  Franklin opened his mouth to respond, but Judge Shield cut him off with a wave. “Denied, Ms. Bergen. You’re probably right as a technical matter, but I’m inclined to hear what Mr. Ridgeway has to say.”

  “Thank you, Your Honor.” Franklin turned to the witness stand. “Mr. Ridgeway, please finish your answer.”

  Bob nodded. “I’m not trying to take away anything from Dr. Scanlon, but facts are facts. He’s had a hard time since he’s been back, and the war definitely changed him. Even though that’s understandable and he’s getting help, we can’t pretend that it doesn’t affect Emily.”

  Mike looked down. The war had changed him. He was different now. He knew it inside.

  Bob continued, “Emily is happy with where she is, and we don’t have any problems like that. Danielle is always home with her, so she had the best possible care, and my wife is her aunt, a blood relative. The truth is, no woman on the earth loves Emily more than Danielle does.”

  “Thank you.” Franklin turned to Judge Shield. “I have no further questions of Mr. Ridgeway, Your Honor.”

  Stephanie remained standing. “Your Honor, I have no cross-examination of Mr. Ridgeway.”

  Franklin’s head swiveled around in surprise, then he recovered. “Okay, then, Your Honor, if I may, I’d like to call Mrs. Danielle Ridgeway to the stand.”

  Danielle rose and walked to the witness stand as Bob was excused, and Mike sensed the energy in the courtroom change, perceptibly. Judge Shield seemed to ease back in his chair, his long fingers going to his chin, and the court clerk smiled in a reassuring way. Danielle climbed the steps to the witness box, and when the court officer came over with the Bible, she looked nervous as she placed her hand on its pebbled cover.

  “Do you swear to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God?”

  “I do,” Danielle answered, her voice sweet and soft.

  Mike found himself looking at Danielle with new eyes, maybe because she was out of her typical context, and she had never reminded him of Chloe more powerfully than at this moment. She exuded a vulnerability and kindness that she shared with Chloe, and he could feel his heart ache for her, which both surprised and confused him.

  Franklin didn’t approach the witness stand, implicitly according Danielle a stage. “Mrs. Ridgeway, please tell us something about the care you’ve been giving Emily, on a full-time basis.”

  Danielle smiled, faintly. “I don’t understand. Are you asking me what I’ve done, as a mother? Are you asking me what a mother does?”

  Stephanie wrote on the legal pad, SHE DIDN’T KNOW THE FIRST QUESTION WAS COMING? But Mike felt a pang, because he had messed up his first question, too, and he understood what Danielle was saying.

  Franklin paused. “Mrs. Ridgeway, let me clarify something before you answer. Both you and your husband use the term father and mother, but you’re well aware that you’re not Emily’s father and mother, isn’t that right?”

  “Of course.” Danielle’s face fell. “Emily’s mother will always be my little sister Chloe. I loved my sister and I would never try to replace her. It was Emily who started calling me Mommy, and I think of myself as her mother, but these are semantics. To me, I always think about what’s best for Emily, and if it makes her more comfortable or more like the other kids to call me Mommy and Bob Daddy, then I’m fine with that. It’s always about what makes her feel happiest and most secure.”

  Mike felt petty for having quibbled with Danielle about the terminology. Stephanie wrote on the pad, DON’T WORRY, THAT DOESN’T MATTER, LEGALLY.

  “Mrs. Ridgeway, please tell us briefly the tasks you perform when you take care of Emily.”

  Danielle nodded. “I don’t regard them as tasks, that’s the main point to make here. I’ve kn
own Emily from the day she was born and I’ve raised her from when she was seven months old. If I listed the tasks, we’d be here forever, and they wouldn’t really tell you what it’s like to raise her, nor would they tell you what it’s like to be Emily and live in our home, as part of our family.”

  Mike flashed on Sara’s memorial service at school, with Danielle, Bob, and Emily sitting with the other families. He couldn’t help but think that Danielle was making sense, though he’d never heard her articulate it before. Maybe he hadn’t given her the chance.

  Stephanie was writing, STAY CALM. I WON’T OBJECT BECAUSE IT DOESN’T MATTER.

  “Mrs. Ridgeway, can you describe for us your relationship to Emily?”

  “I think that, like any mother of a young child, I’m her world.” Danielle’s tone grew even softer, almost with reverence. “Emily looks to me for all of her basic needs, but that’s only a fraction of what children, especially young children, need from mothers. I think those early years are so important. It’s not only when a child learns how to walk, talk, and feed herself, but more importantly, it’s when a child learns who they are, whether they can trust the world, and whether they’re loved.”

  Mike felt riveted as Danielle spoke, but Stephanie wrote, STOP FROWNING. NONE OF THIS HURTS US. THEY’RE LOSING.

  “A mother gives a child self-esteem by being there for her every day, by loving her every day, by taking care of her every day. It’s that continuity that makes Emily’s life experience so good in our family, especially because she lost her mother.”

  Mike swallowed hard. Danielle’s words rang true, and he understood how important everything she’d been doing for Emily was, and how well she’d been taking care of her.

  Franklin asked, “Mrs. Ridgeway, what did you observe about Emily and her emotional state after her mother’s death?”

  “Emily cried a lot, she didn’t sleep. Didn’t want her bottle. She was too young to talk, but she would look around a lot, twisting her little head, and I knew she was looking for her mother. I even made some changes in myself, so that she would feel that her mother was still with her, in some ways.”

  Franklin cocked his head. “What changes did you make in yourself, to benefit Emily?”

  “I usually dress more conservatively, but I started to relax my style and wear clothes like my sister’s, just to make Emily feel happy and ease her through her grieving process.”

  Mike hadn’t realized she’d changed her style intentionally, to help Emily. Stephanie wrote, CHEER UP! THIS IS TOTALLY BESIDE THE POINT!

  Franklin paused. “Ms. Ridgeway, do you think that you provide a more stable, loving, and consistent home for Emily than does Dr. Scanlon?”

  Danielle’s expression fell into resigned lines. “I know that Mike loves Emily, but the truth is, I believe that Bob and I provide Emily with a family, and in particular, since she is a little girl, I think it’s really important that she have a mother.”

  Stephanie jumped up. “Objection, Your Honor. Under section 5328-b, it is clear that the court may not grant a preference to either party in a custody dispute based upon gender.”

  Franklin turned to Judge Shield. “Your Honor, Mrs. Ridgeway isn’t making a legal argument, and as you say, let’s not be overly technical. She’s the only person in this courtroom who has hands-on, twenty-four/seven, experience with Emily, and it’s valuable for this court to have factual input from her. As Ms. Bergen pointed out, there is no jury present, and Your Honor is more than qualified to determine the weight he would give such testimony.”

  “Ms. Bergen, I’m going to deny the objection.” Judge Shield turned to Danielle. “Please continue, Ms. Ridgeway.”

  “I was just saying that Emily looks to me for a lot of girly things, like she plays with my makeup and she’s beginning to wear my jewelry. Yesterday we played dress-up, which was really cute.” Danielle smiled. “I’m not making a legal argument, I’m just telling you how it is between a mother and a daughter. It’s very special.”

  Judge Shield chuckled. “I have three daughters, so I know exactly what you mean.”

  Mike had to look away, breaking a sweat on his forehead. He understood Danielle’s point, and it wasn’t something he could give Emily, no matter how good a father he was. She was a little girl and she needed a mother, no matter what the law said. It wasn’t just common sense, it was truth.

  Franklin paused. “Ms. Ridgeway, knowing Emily as well as you do, can you predict the effect it will have on her emotional well-being if she’s removed from your care?”

  “Objection.” Stephanie rose, but Judge Shield waved her back into her seat.

  “Counsel, I’ll permit it, on the understanding that Mrs. Ridgeway is not an expert in child care or pediatric psychology, but rather the person with the most knowledge of Emily.”

  Danielle frowned. “Honestly, knowing Emily as I do, I really fear for her if she loses us. I’m not saying anything negative about her father, but even if he were the best father in the world, it would be devastating to Emily to take her from our care.”

  Stephanie ignored the testimony, writing, DON’T WORRY. WE’RE WINNING.

  Franklin asked, “Ms. Ridgeway, what makes you say that?”

  “Emily loves us, and she has finally resettled, after her mother’s death, in a new house that she has come to know as her home. I think there would be another round of sleepless nights, nervous upset, and difficulty eating. She’d be miserable. I think she would experience losing me just like losing her mother, as another death.” Danielle paused. “Here’s what worries me, for Emily. What does it do to a child to lose two mothers in two years?”

  Mike held his breath. He’d never thought of it before, but it was true that Emily would experience it as a death, as profound a loss as Chloe, maybe more so, because she remembered Danielle better. He couldn’t picture the scene where he walked away with Emily. She’d be hysterical. She’d freak. She’d throw up, like she did before. She’d never stop asking for Danielle.

  Danielle testified, “I think it would take her years to recover, especially because at such a young age, it’s so hard to explain things to her. I want to do everything in my power to not let it happen, because I want to save her from that trauma.” She turned to the judge, her blue eyes shining with sudden tears. “Your Honor, I know you have the power, but I’m begging you, for Emily’s sake, please don’t take her from her family and her home.”

  Mike’s entire body ached, and he felt sick to his stomach. Stephanie wrote, THIS MAKES NO DIFFERENCE, AS A MATTER OF LAW.

  Judge Shield pursed his lips. “I know this is difficult, but I will do the best job I can for Emily, consistent with laws of the Commonwealth. I assure you of that.”

  Franklin cleared his throat. “Ms. Ridgeway, my last question is this. Dr. Scanlon has said that if he were granted custody today, he would consider having you as Emily’s babysitter. Would you do that?”

  “Yes, of course. I would continue as Emily’s caretaker in any way, shape, or form, because I think I’m essential to her happiness. I would do it for no pay, anywhere.” Danielle sniffled, recovering. “I would do anything for Emily. I love her, and she loves me.”

  Stephanie wrote, WE WIN. THE END.

  Franklin turned to Judge Shield. “Your Honor, I have no further questions.”

  “Your Honor, I have no cross-examination,” Stephanie said, rising. “However, I would like to put my client on the stand for a very brief rebuttal, if I may.”

  “You may.” Judge Shields gestured at the witness stand. “Dr. Scanlon, if you will, please take the stand.”

  Chapter Seventy

  “Dr. Scanlon,” Stephanie said, facing the witness stand. “Please tell the court why you, as Emily’s father, would provide her with a better and more loving home than Mr. and Ms. Ridgeway.”

  Mike paused, stunned. Time stopped, and everyone froze in place, like figures sketched by a courtroom artist. Stephanie looked expectant, anticipating his answer. Judge Shield was readi
ng some papers, awaiting a self-serving response. Only Bob and Danielle were riveted, their expression horror mixed with resignation, an acceptance that the worst thing you could imagine was about to happen, right before your eyes. He had seen that expression before, but not on them. He’d seen it on Chatty, just before the grandfather threw the grenade. He realized that his answer was about to explode Bob and Danielle’s world, and worst of all, Emily’s world.

  Stephanie cleared her throat. “Dr. Scanlon, did you hear the question? Feel free to tell the court why you, Emily’s natural father, would give her a better and more loving home than her aunt and uncle.”

  Mike’s thoughts raced. If he really thought about what was best for Emily, there was only one answer to the question. Bob had been acting as Emily’s father, a role he shouldered with confidence and ease. Danielle had been acting as Emily’s mother and deserved all the credit for the great kid that Emily was growing up to be. Emily loved them both and didn’t know him at all. If he told the truth, he would say that he didn’t know himself anymore, either.

  The war had changed him, not just by taking his arm and his livelihood. He was a different man now. He abused opiates. He saw explosions where they didn’t exist. He felt pain in an arm that wasn’t there. He nodded out on the floor and almost killed his own daughter. If he ever got a flashback when he was driving with Emily, he would crash as surely as Chloe would have, when she’d been drinking.

  Stephanie smiled, lightly. “Dr. Scanlon, I should have known you’re not the type to toot your own horn, and you don’t have to. Please, feel free not to answer.” She turned quickly to Judge Shield. “I have no further questions, Your Honor. Let’s get home before the snow hits.”

  Judge Shield was frowning in confusion, shaking his head.

  Franklin jumped up, waving a hand. “Your Honor, I’d like to cross-examine.”

  Stephanie scoffed. “Your Honor, there’s no testimony to cross-examine.”

  Franklin strode to the dais. “Your Honor, I’d like to explore why Dr. Scanlon didn’t answer the question. It seems like a simple question for somebody who filed emergency papers, bringing us all to court.” His gaze shifted sideways to Stephanie, sternly. “Unless he’s content to let his lawyer do his talking for him.”