She comes to me, and I sit on the edge of the bed as I read the papers. Those motherfuckers are really fucking suing her. “What did your lawyer say?” I ask, and the only thing that pops in my head is that I don’t trust him. I don’t trust anyone, but the one man I know would have my back, no questions asked. She sits next to me sideways, her legs crossed and leaning on mine.
“He said it’s rare that grandparents are awarded custody if one of the parents is still alive.” She swallows and looks at me; her beautiful face in so much pain, her brown eyes filled with tears, “I can’t lose them.” She shakes her head. “I won’t.”
My hand cups her face, my thumb catching a tear that runs down her face. “You won’t lose them.” I swallow and look down and then up again. “I need to tell you something.”
She looks at me, hanging onto my every word, trusting me so fucking completely. “My father is the best family lawyer …” She shakes her head.
Getting off the bed, she says, “I can’t do that,” as she paces in front of me. “I can’t ask him that.” I reach out my hand and stop her, bringing her to me. She stands between my open legs, her hands resting on my shoulders. “I won’t do that to him or to Hailey.”
“You need the best,” I tell her. “That’s him.”
“I don’t know, Blake,” she says softly. “It’s already weird that we are talking, and all this,” she says, looking down and then back up, our eyes meeting. “How did this happen?” she asks, and I don’t know what she’s asking.
It’s a loaded question. My hands go to her hips. “Someone told me once that everything happens for a reason.” I smile as she finally smiles just a bit. “Maybe it was fate.”
She shrugs. “Do you think he would listen to my case?” she asks me.
“I think there is no reason we can’t ask him,” I tell her, and I notice not for the first time today it’s a we—not a you, not a me, an us. “After you put the kids on the bus tomorrow, we can drive down and see my father.”
“I want to change one of my answers,” she tells me. “One thing I would change is Eric being the father of my girls,” she says, closing her eyes and shaking her head. The need to bring her on my lap is so strong my heart aches, and the need to put my hand on her face and drag her lips to mine makes my hands heavy, so heavy. Her eyes open, and I’m stuck here, my body almost as if made of stone.
I can’t move, and I can’t breathe; the only thing I can do is blink my eyes and take her in. The woman who was the cause of Hailey’s hurt, the woman whose house we came to and demanded answers. The woman who slowly, ever so fucking slowly, got stronger and stronger, and even more gradually has made a home in my broken heart.
“I thought of taking the girls and moving,” she says softly. “Get away from here. Somewhere no one knows us. Somewhere I don’t feel out of place walking into a grocery store.”
“What do you mean?” I ask her.
She looks down and then up again. “My in-laws know everyone, and ever since they stopped talking to me, it’s just been weird. I’m afraid to meet them in public, so I don’t make eye contact with anyone, and I have everything delivered just so I don’t cross paths with them or anyone they know.”
“You never told me that,” I say and think about this house. No wonder she is changing everything; it’s her fucking prison.
“I didn’t want to talk about it,” she says, “but, yeah.”
“Let’s tackle one thing at a time. Let’s get your girls safe, and then we’ll work on getting you out of here.”
“You really think everything is going to be okay?” she asks me.
“No, I don’t think; I know.” I look at her and see the tiredness fall through her. “Why don’t you go to sleep? I’ll go sleep on the couch and leave before the kids get up, and we’ll go see Dad after.”
“You can just lie here; the door is locked, and if the girls wake, you can hide.” She smiles and goes to her side of the bed. I look over my shoulder at her. “I got a new mattress,” she whispers. “It’s Eric free.” I shake my head and laugh. I lie on the top of the covers while she gets under. She is softly snoring even before I get comfortable, and I lie awake for a long, long time as so many things race through my head, so many things that I need to say, so many things I need to finally come to peace with.
“Wake up, sunshine.” I hear her voice, but I swear I think I’m dreaming. I open my eyes and see her on the bed on her knees. “The kids just got on the bus.”
“I must have slept through it,” I say, blinking as she turns to hand me a cup of coffee.
“I told them I just washed the carpet in the room and not to go in.” She smiles. “I guess they bought it.”
I smile, taking a sip of the hot coffee. “Carpet cleaning?”
She throws her head back and laughs. “Lame, right?”
She gets up, and I see she’s already dressed. “Are you ready?” I ask her, and she nods. I get up, going to the bathroom, and then come out. “Let’s go,” I say, happy to get this all over with.
“Bring everything, even the picture of Hailey and him and his letter.” She nods and grabs the letter and the picture. She looks down when we walk out of the house to my truck almost as if she’s hiding herself. I fucking hate this; she should be walking proud, walking with her head held high.
The drive is quiet, and when we stop for gas, I call my father.
“Hello?” He answers on the second ring.
“Hey, Dad, are you at the office?” I ask him. Usually, he is there, but sometimes he works from home.
“I am. What’s up?” he asks.
“I need your help,” I tell him. “I’ll be there in about an hour. Will you have time for me?”
“Yes,” he says and doesn’t bother asking questions. I disconnect when she walks out of the gas station with two waters in her hand. Her walk now is more sure, more comfortable than when she walked out of her house.
When we pull up to my father’s office, I shut off the truck. I look over and see her hands shaking. “It’s going to be okay.” I grab one, and she just shakes her head and swallows. We walk in, and I smile at Beatrice.
“Look at this handsome fellow,” she says, smiling at me. “Oh, and you brought a lady friend.” I laugh; they are so old school.
“Hey, my dad is expecting me,” I tell her and then look over at Samantha. “You ready?” I ask.
“No,” she says, “I think I’m going to be sick.” I can see she is shaking.
“Let’s go.” I grab her hand and walk to the back where his office is. I knock on the door, and he yells for me to come in.
I turn the handle and open the door, seeing him sitting behind his big oak desk with pictures of us all around the room. He takes his glasses off and stands up when he sees me with Samantha.
His eyes go to me and then her; the silent questions are about a mile a minute, and I give him a nod, telling him we will talk.
“Dad,” I say when he looks at me again. “This is Samantha, a friend of mine.”
He extends his hand to shake hers with a smile, walking around the desk. “Nice to meet you, Samantha,” he says, and she smiles at him. “Please, come sit.” He points at the sitting area away from his desk in the corner. Samantha sits on the loveseat, and I sit next to her. My father sits in the single chair. Looking at us, he asks, “What can I do to help?” I hand him the paper from the lawyer. He opens the letter, reading just the first couple of lines, and his eyes snap up.
“Dad, this is Samantha Schneider,” I say, and his mouth opens.
Samantha
Samantha
I know right away when his head snaps up that he knows who I am. I sit next to Blake, trying to bask in his warmth, and I end up shaking.
“Dad, this is Samantha Schneider,” he says, grabbing my little hand in his, and his father’s mouth opens and closes.
“Blake,” he says, turning to look at him.
“I know what you’re thinking, Dad,” he says, “but she neede
d the best, and you’re the best.”
He puts the papers down and then gets up and goes to his phone. “Beatrice, call Joanne and tell her to come in please.”
Then he looks at me. “I’m sorry, but I can’t keep this from my wife.” And I smile and look at Blake, knowing right away that is where he got it from.
“I don’t mind,” I tell him and then look at Blake. “Killing two birds with one stone, right?” I push his shoulder, and he looks down and smiles.
“Would you like something to drink while we wait?” he asks while he looks at me. This man, whose daughter was broken and treated so unfairly by Eric’s family, who were mine, is standing there offering me something to drink instead of telling me to take my things and fuck off. I shake my head. “Before your mother gets here, can you answer a couple of questions?” he asks me and Blake.
“What in the ever-loving fuck is going on?” He sits down, crossing his legs. “Blake?”
I laugh at him; such a gentleman and he throws out the F bomb. “I went to visit her with Crystal right before Hailey decided to leave. Then I called and checked on her, and we’ve been friends ever since.” I know it shouldn’t bother me that he said we’ve been friends, but my stomach burns. I smile at him and then look down, trying to hide my eyes. I hear women’s voices and then the door opens and a beautiful woman walks in. Henry gets up to greet his wife who looks like she sped here.
“I got here as soon as I could,” she says breathlessly to her husband and then turns to look at us, her eyes taking in that Blake still has my hand in his. “Blake,” she says and then looks at me. I get up, putting out my hand.
“Mrs. Williams, my name is Samantha.” She smiles as she takes my hand.
“Samantha, it’s a pleasure to meet you,” she says, and Henry finally tells her to sit down.
“So what is this meeting about?” she says as she sits in the chair where Henry was sitting. He now sits on the arm of the chair.
I look at Blake, and then I look at Henry. Both of them are unsure of how to start things, so I do what I need to do. I take a deep breath and squeeze Blake’s hand.
“My name is Samantha Schneider,” I say, and her eyes suddenly go big. “I was married to Eric,” I start, and the tears spill over. “We have two girls. Two beautiful girls, beautiful girls,” I say, and the tears don’t stop, no matter how many times I blink them away. “I was a ward of the state and have no family. None. I was a crack baby,” I tell them, and Blake lets my hand go. I look at him, expecting to see his judgment, but instead, he puts his arm around my shoulder, bringing me closer to him and kissing my forehead. I know I have to continue. “When I was nineteen, I met Eric and fell in love with him. His family became my family. They welcomed me with open arms.” My hands now come together as I get nervous. “They were the family I always dreamed of. I finally had a mother and father who loved me, and two brothers who would do anything for me. A husband who gave me a family,” I say, smiling through the tears. “But then he died, and his box of secrets came out. I didn’t want to sit at the table while they put him on a throne.”
I look down while I continue, “I couldn’t do it, and then it was like I was shunned. They stopped calling, they stopped coming by”—I look up—“and suddenly, I was back to being alone, but this time, I had my girls.” Blake’s mother has tears running down her face as I’m talking, Henry’s hand is holding her shoulder. “They didn’t like the changes I was making. I repainted the house, and I was moving on. To them, I was trying to erase Eric from the home we shared.” I reach forward and grab a Kleenex from the table. “How can I erase him from our lives when my girls have his eyes?” I say on a sob. “How can I erase him from my life when every single time I turn around, his memory is there?”
I don’t know how I go on, but I do. “They said if I was woman enough, he wouldn’t have done what he did. That if I was more supportive and less demanding, he would have stayed with me.” I hear a hiss and expect it to be from Blake, but it’s from Henry.
“Yesterday, they served me with court papers,” I say, crying out now, the sobs too much to keep down. “They want my girls. I can’t let them have my girls.” I can’t go on because I’m in Blake’s arms. My face is against his chest as he whispers to me that everything is going to be okay. I force myself to stop, force myself to face the music.
“Oh my God.” I hear Blake’s mother whisper. I look up at Blake and then turn around.
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t bring this to you. I know that my in-laws have done some despicable things to Hailey, and I just want you to know I had no idea.”
“You poor, poor child,” his mother says. “It almost killed Hailey, but she had us, and you had no one.” She shakes her head and gets up. Coming to my side, she grabs my hand. “Henry, what can she do?” she asks her husband.
I look and see that Henry is reading the court papers. “I called another lawyer yesterday, and he thinks I have a shot, but I would need character witnesses to show the judge how Eric was. I have a letter he wrote me that I found when I was cleaning out his closet.” Blake hands the paper to him, and he opens it and reads it. His hand squeezes the paper so tight that his knuckles turn white.
He gets up and calls Beatrice. “I need you to photocopy this, and I need you to call the lawyer and set up a phone meeting with him. See if he’s available now,” he says to her and then turns to look at me. “There is no fucking way those children will go to these people,” he says, using the F word again.
“I need to use the bathroom,” I whisper to Blake, who gets up and leads me to the washroom, where I wash off my face. Walking out, I see him leaning against the wall. “You didn’t have to wait.”
“I know”—he looks at me—“I wanted to.”
He leads the way back to the office, and I hear Henry’s voice rise. “You really think you have a leg to stand on?” His voice gets louder. “You’re as delusional as your clients are,” he says and then looks up. “See you in court.” He hangs up. “So it seems that your in-laws are out for blood. Do you have a savings account with just your name?” he asks, and I nod my head. “Transfer everything to that one. Do it now.” He looks at Blake. “I hope you know what you’re doing, son, because this isn’t good.”
I swallow as I look at him. “What is going on?” I ask him, my heart racing.
“You need to transfer all your money now because if I know this type of lawyer, they are already freezing everything that you own with Eric.”
“Fuck,” Blake says, and I turn to look at him. “Come with me,” he says. I follow him to Beatrice’s desk, and he asks her to get up. “Do it now.”
I log on and make all the transfers to the one account no one knows about because I just opened it. “Done,” I say. He nods, and we walk back into the room. “All done.”
“Is it just in your name?” he asks again.
“Yes, I just opened it when I went to the bank.” I shrug. “No idea why.”
“Okay, so I’m going to give it to you straight,” he says, and I stand here with Blake on one side of me, and now his mother on the other. “We have a court appearance in two days. The court is going to assign a social worker to talk to the girls.”
“But …” I shake my head, but I stop when I see him look at me.
“We need to get sworn statements from the kids’ teachers. Was Eric present?” he asks me, and I look at him.
“He lived here half the time,” I reply. “He didn’t even know what grade they are in.”
“Good, that will work. I’ll call the school today,” he says. “Now, I’m going to ask you some questions, and I want the truth. Don’t sugar coat anything.”
I nod at him. “Are you with anyone?”
“No,” I say, but I look down. “Blake is my only friend.”
“Are you on any type of drug?” he asks, and I almost step back. “If they test you, will you be clean?”
“Yes,” I say to him. “I barely take Advil.”
“Have
you ever beaten the children, slapped them, sent them to bed without supper? Anything?”
“Dad,” Blake hisses.
“Never,” I say, and he nods. “I would never. I was a social worker before I got pregnant,” I tell him.
“When can I meet the girls?” he asks, and I look at him. “I need to talk to them.”
“Tonight,” Blake says. “We can get them and make it in time for dinner, then we can drive back.”
“Perfect,” he says. “Now that all this is out of the way, I need to have some lunch.” He looks at Mrs. Williams. “You going to take your husband to lunch?”
She looks at him like he hangs the moon and the stars. “You bet I will.” She smiles, and Blake groans while I laugh and turn to block the sound in his arm.
Blake
Blake
We make it home with a couple of minutes to spare, and she runs in the house, grabbing their pjs and packing it. “They can fall asleep on the way back,” she says. “I’m going to follow you, so you don’t have to come back and then go home.”
“Not a chance in hell are you driving back in the dark after what happened today,” he says. “I’ll be fine. I’m off all week, so I’ll sleep tomorrow.”
“What do we tell the girls?” She turns to ask me.
“The truth,” I tell her. “I mean, not about Hailey and all that, but that her grandparents want to take them away from you. They might not get it, but don’t let them scare you.”
She nods her head and then walks out of the house, going to the bus. She walks in a couple of minutes later with the cutest kids ever. They sure do have Eric’s eyes, but that’s it; they are just as gorgeous as their mom.
“Girls,” she says, “this is my friend Blake.” The girls look at me; Daisy almost hides her face with Lizzie standing beside her mother. “His family invited us over for dinner, isn’t that fun?”
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