Chapter 14 - Friday Morning
The courthouse smelled of wet coats and old coffee. My hands were steady until I saw Celia across the hallway in the same cream suit she'd worn Sunday.
She stood beside Eamon Reece, her attorney, holding a tissue against dry eyes. Frank waited at the opposite end of the hall. Tessa sat with Dana. Ben arrived alone and took a chair near the wall.
"Remember," Lila whispered, "we answer questions, we don't perform for the crowd."
Inside, Celia claimed I was emotionally unstable and had isolated Lucy from a loving grandmother. She described the barbecue as a misunderstanding. She said Ben had once feared my exhaustion would affect my parenting.
Eamon presented the earlier statement Ben had signed. Then Lila introduced his correction.
The judge looked toward Ben. "Did you sign both documents?"
"Yes, Your Honor."
"Which reflects what you actually observed?"
Ben swallowed. "The second. I signed the first because my mother threatened to demand repayment of a family loan. I understand now that was no excuse."
Celia stared at him as if he had slapped her.
Lila presented the urgent-care note, the family services contact, the contested school pickup form, and the original video. The judge watched the full recording in silence. I watched Lucy's chair kick backward again, this time on a courtroom monitor.
I wanted to reach through the screen and catch her sooner.
Eamon went still. When the wider backyard footage played, he asked for a moment to consult with his client.
Celia shook her head fiercely.
"She provoked me," she said, loud enough for the gallery to hear. "That child is just like her mother."
The judge told her to stop speaking out of turn.
Frank confirmed under questioning that he'd witnessed the pantry incident and had failed to intervene. Tessa described how the recording had been made and preserved. Nobody had to shout for the testimony to hurt.
By late morning, the judge denied the request to place Lucy under Celia's emergency guardianship, finding the evidence insufficient for such extraordinary relief. The judge made clear that the parents' separate custody issues needed to be resolved through the appropriate family court process.
I exhaled for what felt like the first time in days.
Celia didn't look defeated. She looked busy.
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As people began standing, my phone lit up with a message from Mrs. Hart at the school.
BEN'S MOTHER IS HERE DEMANDING TO PICK UP LUCY. SHE SAYS SHE HAS A COURT ORDER.
