Chapter 12 - The Trial Begins
The courthouse hallway was packed the morning the custody trial began.
Mark's business scandal had attracted attention.
Chloe's attorneys were present.
So were reporters.
Leo's mother hated every second of it.
Mr. Sterling leaned closer.
"Do not react to anyone."
She nodded.
"What if Mark speaks to me?"
"Keep walking."
She entered the courtroom wearing a charcoal-gray suit.
Mark was already seated.
He looked thinner.
Chloe sat behind his legal team.
Apparently, whatever war existed between them had temporarily been suspended.
Mr. Sterling noticed.
"Interesting."
"What?"
"They still need each other."
The judge entered.
Everyone stood.
Mark's attorney spoke first.
He described a father desperate to remain involved in his son's life.
He described a mother who had abruptly removed a child from a luxurious, stable home.
He mentioned her new business.
Her smaller apartment.
Ethan.
The argument was polished.
Reasonable.
Almost convincing.
Then Mr. Sterling stood.
He did not begin with Chloe.
He began with Mark.
He showed missed visits.
Canceled visits.
Messages sent without asking about Leo's health.
Financial delays.
Surveillance.
The threatening photograph delivered by Chloe's friend.
Mark shifted in his chair.
Then Mr. Sterling called Ethan.
Ethan walked to the witness stand.
Mark stared at him.
"What is your relationship with the petitioner?" Mark's lawyer asked.
"Neighbor."
"Friend?"
"Yes."
"Romantic partner?"
"No."
"Have you spent time with her son?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because we live across the hall from each other and sometimes people help their neighbors."
A few people smiled.
Mark did not.
His lawyer tried another direction.
"Do you believe Mark is a bad father?"
Ethan paused.
"I don't know Mark well enough to judge his heart."
Mark looked surprised.
"But I know a child notices who shows up."
The courtroom became quiet.
After Ethan stepped down, Mark watched him sit beside Leo's mother.
Not touching her.
Not claiming her.
Simply being present.
The contrast hurt.
Mark had possessed a family and neglected it.
Ethan had no legal obligation to them and kept showing up anyway.
May you like
Then Mr. Sterling called Daniel Reyes.
That was when Chloe stopped smiling.
