Chapter 5 - The War for Custody
Defeated at the corporate level, Jessica and her mother shifted their strategy to the most ruthless arena possible: family court.
Forty-eight hours after the meeting at the architecture firm, David was served with emergency divorce papers and an ex-parte petition for sole custody of seven-year-old Emma, claiming David was an unfit, emotionally unstable father who had abandoned his wife and exposed his child to dangerous, low-income relatives.
That evening, my lawyer, Fiona Vance—a brilliant family law attorney who was known for tearing arrogant socialites to pieces in court—sat in my living room with David and me.
"Ex-parte petitions are dangerous because a judge signs them based solely on one party's sworn affidavit before a full hearing can be held," Fiona explained, sipping her tea. "Jessica is claiming that you, Rachel, created a violent public disturbance at the birthday party, and that David allowed you to endanger Emma."
"I have the venue security footage!" David pleaded, his eyes red from lack of sleep. "I have twenty witness statements from the parents who were at the party! They all saw Jessica slap the plate out of Ava's hands and drag her across the floor!"
"We need more than just the party footage, David," Fiona warned. "Evelyn Vance has hired Arthur Sterling—the most expensive, dirty-playing custody lawyer in South Texas. He’s going to depict Rachel’s home as an unsafe environment for Emma, focusing on her modest library income compared to the Vance family’s wealth."
Ava walked out of her bedroom, holding her worn stuffed rabbit, and sat quietly on the couch beside me. She looked at Fiona, then at her uncle David.
"Uncle David?" Ava asked softly. "Is Emma going to have to go live with the mean lady again?"
David pulled Ava into a tight hug, tears spilling over his cheeks. "No, baby. Uncle David is never going to let anyone hurt Emma or you ever again."
"Fiona," I said, looking my attorney straight in the eye. "What do we need to do to hit them back?"
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Fiona smiled a thin, predatory smile. "We file a counter-suit for full custody based on physical child abuse and emotional endangerment, using the video of Jessica striking Ava at the party as Exhibit A. In Texas, a parent who physically assaults a child’s cousin in front of minors can be stripped of custody rights under family safety statutes."
"Do it," David said without a single second of hesitation. "File it tonight."
