Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 60978 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 305(@200wpm)___ 244(@250wpm)___ 203(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 60978 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 305(@200wpm)___ 244(@250wpm)___ 203(@300wpm)
I refrained from pointing out if they’d waited until the morning, the child would have already been asleep. Just.
“I want my mommy,” Lily sobbed, fresh tears streaming down her pale face as she struggled against the officer’s gentle hold. “Cash! Make them let me go!”
The sound of her distress cut through me like a knife. I’d heard the same desperate plea from kids in the system, kids who disappeared into foster care and came out the other side harder, more damaged. Some never came out at all.
“Look,” I tried again, struggling to keep my voice even, “Ms. Thompson is a respected attorney with connections throughout the family court system. If you proceed without allowing her to review the order, you’re risking legal consequences of your own.” I winced. That might not have been the best route to go. And, honestly, I could just park my fucking bike between the car and any way they wanted to go for five fucking minutes.
“Are you threatening me, Mr. Kingston?” Ms. Winters asked, her eyebrow arching. “Because threats would be unwise, particularly given your history.”
The implication hung in the air between us. My record. My status. The power imbalance couldn’t have been clearer if she’d drawn a diagram.
“Not a threat,” I replied, keeping my voice carefully controlled. “Just a fact. Legal representation is both Eliza and Lily’s right.” I raised my eyebrows at Lily, for some reason hoping the six-year-old knew about shit like that. I mean, did they still have School House Rock or something?
The officer glanced toward the exit ramp, clearly hoping for some resolution to appear. “How long until the lawyer gets here?”
“Minutes,” I said, seizing on his hesitation. “She was leaving right behind me while she made phone calls.” I had to throw the whole phone calls bit in there because, why not? I’d already basically threatened the lady.
Ms. Winters checked her watch with exaggerated patience. “We’ve already accommodated more delays than reasonably expected. Officer Martinez, please put the child in the car.”
“Lily.” I gave the older lady a firm look. “Not ‘the child’. Lily. If you’re going to rip someone away from their mother while she screams and cries for you not to, you should at least know her name.”
Finally, something hit the way I wanted and Ms. Winters sucked in a breath, her hand going to her chest as if I’d fucking stabbed her. I knew she was doing a thankless job where she had to work too many hours and see very little improvement in society, but enough was enough.
Ms. Winters lifted her chin and I thought she might protest again, but instead she took a breath and shook her head slightly. “No. I’m sorry, but this is happening.”
Eliza made a small, broken sound and stepped forward, but Ms. Winters moved between them. “Ms. Jans, please don’t make this more difficult than it needs to be. You’ll have an opportunity to present your case at the hearing.”
I caught the officer’s gaze again. “Man to man,” I said quietly, “just give the lawyer time to arrive. Five minutes. You know this ain’t right.”
I could see he wasn’t on board with leaving. He held my gaze a long moment. “You know I’m a beat cop, right? I’m literally on babysitting duty with this. I’m the transport. Nothing more.” He shrugged. “I’m sorry, man,” he said, meeting and holding my gaze with an intent look. “She’s the boss on this run.”
I growled my frustration, already working on the other plan of using my bike to block the cruiser. This would be close.
Lily’s small body disappeared as the officer helped her into a booster seat and fastened the seat belt, her sobs muffled by the closing car door. The officer walked around to the driver’s side while Ms. Winters lingered, her expression unreadable as she handed Eliza a business card.
“The contact information for family services is here. Your supervised visitation will be arranged through this office, pending the judge’s decision.” Her voice was professionally detached, as if she hadn’t just torn a family apart. “I suggest you focus on cooperating with the investigation if you want a favorable outcome.”
Lily continued to cry, tears streaming down her face as she cried for both her mother and me. She pounded on the glass, trying in desperate fear to get someone to let her out.
Ms. Winters turned back to me, her face a mask of professional detachment and underlying satisfaction she didn’t bother to hide. Job well done and all that shit. “Once she gets her excuses ready and her story straight with her lawyer, they can discuss it with the judge,” she said, her voice dripping with false sympathy. “In the meantime, we need to get Lily to her new temporary home.” She wouldn’t even look at Eliza directly, as if the woman had already been judged and found guilty, not worth the basic courtesy of eye contact. My hands curled into fists at my sides, anger burning in my gut like acid.