“Uh, well, my sister died four days ago, and she left me guardianship of my baby nephew.”
“Oh, I’m real sorry to hear that. My condolences.” He pulled out a legal pad. “Tell me about your situation. You employed? Got stable housing? Any criminal background I should know about? I’m not judging—just need to know what we’re working with.”
“I’m employed, clean background. As for housing…” I glanced at Jason. “I’ve been renting the same apartment for two years now.”
Mr. Stanton nodded, making notes. “Now, Mr. Georgiou mentioned a Colter Briggs—he’s filed a petition too? What’s his relationship to the child?”
“He married my sister after the baby was born. He’s not on the birth certificate as the father.”
“That complicates things some. Judge’ll want to know why your sister didn’t list him, and they’ll look real hard at his fitness as a parent.” He set down his pen. “What can you tell me about him?”
“He’s the Grave Sons president. He was abusive to my sister.” I suspected this man knew who they were without adding “motorcycle gang.”
Beau’s expression immediately darkened, and he set down his pen. “Colter Briggs and the Grave Sons.” It wasn’t a question. He leaned back in his chair, the folksy demeanor shifting to something harder. “Well, that changes everything. You got any documentation of that abuse? Police reports, hospital records, witness statements?”
I shook my head, feeling defeated.
“Don’t worry none. With the Grave Sons involved, half this town knows what kind of man Colter is. Problem is, the other half’s too scared to say anything on record.” He paused. “This is gonna be a little tougher than I thought, but not impossible.”
He rubbed his jaw thoughtfully. “Let me check something.” He picked up his phone. “Hey, Sarah, check tomorrow’s docket for me. Williams’ custody case… Judge Martinez? All right, thanks.” He hung up.
“Looks like you’ll be in Judge Martinez’s courtroom. She’s seen plenty of cases involving that crew, and she’s got no love for them.”
Just then, my phone chimed. “I’m sorry. I left it on. Ms. Chen, the CPS worker, said she was going to send me an email with information, and I didn’t want to miss it.”
I pulled it up and glanced over it. Some of it I understood, but I’ll admit some of it had me questioning my intelligence. Instead of reading it off, I handed Mr. Stanton my phone.
“They’re going to let you meet him before the court hearing. This says all you have to do is call, and she can set it up. Ms. Chen seems to be encouraging that. I’d make it happen if I were you.” He looked up from the email. “They’re asking for temporary guardianship pending the hearing. That’s standard when there’s a will naming a guardian, but there’s also a competing claim.”
He handed my phone back. “CPS will be present at that meeting. They’ll want to see how you are with the baby so they can relay that to the judge. The visit could work highly in your favor.”
“Okay.”
Mr. Stanton smiled. “It’s okay to be nervous. Just be yourself. Love on that baby. Show them the kind of parent you’re going to be. That’ll go a long way to helping you. Since the judge knows what the Grave Sons is capable of, hopefully that knowledge plus seeing that you’re capable of providing the baby a good home will make it easier to grant you temporary custody.”
“Thank you,” I said and stood with Jason.
The lawyer jumped to his feet. “If you need anything, just holler, all right? I’d be happy to take the case if you need me.”
“Yes, sir. Thank you.”
As we reached the car, the weight of everything settled over me. A court hearing, Maya’s funeral, and somewhere in this small Texas town, a baby who didn’t know his life was about to change forever.
Just like mine already had.
Chapter Four
CORA
Both of myknees were bouncing. My hands were sweaty. Across the street, inside the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, was my nephew. Ms. Chen had practically bent over backwards to give me a chance to visit with Elias. Of course, it took a little setting up.
I kept picturing a tiny version of my sister. A mass of fine dark hair covering his small head. Dark eyes. Dimples. Ten little fingers and ten little toes. All for kissing and a little neck for blowing raspberries.
I hadn’t even met him yet and I already loved him.
My baby, my heart whispered. My head listed the host of new responsibilities and then promptly agreed with my heart. I didn’t care what he needed or how often, I just knew I wanted to be the one who took care of him and loved him.
I’d tell him about Maya. Make sure he knew she loved him. I’d already decided, no matter what, I wouldn’t even disparage Colter. I wouldn’t lie to Elias, or sugarcoat his father’sshortcomings, but the days of making nasty comments were over.
