Page 5 of Viper

When we finally head into the courtroom, It’s one of the smaller of the ones in the courthouse, and also the one we used once before a few years ago when Maggie brought me here for more child support. I agreed at the time, even though it meant a hit to my finances, but I wasn’t going to argue about it as long as the money went to Archer; though we all know now that wasn’t how it ended up. Still, I have to hope this will turn out better than last time.

I take my place next to Hunter, and we take our seats waiting for the judge. Archer is behind his mother and her lawyer with Tony, and I clench my hands into fists on my lap when I see the bastard trying to get close to my son, even when he scoots away, wanting space. I force myself to look away, even though all I want to do is jump out of my seat and pound on the son of a bitch while telling him to keep away from my son. Hunter glances at me and I give him a subtle shake of my head, letting him know it’s fine. He nods and then we face forward and wait patiently for the judge.

Finally, after a few minutes, the judge enters and we all rise. A woman with bright blonde hair follows him and takes a seat behind a small looking typewriter looking thing. The bailiff calls everyone to order and then steps back as the judge looks at both myself and then Maggie. He takes me in with sharp brown eyes, though he doesn’t give anything away in his expression, before they move to Maggie and her lawyer. I do see a flare of annoyance when they land on Maggie’s lawyer, Gail Judson. I glance over at Gail, and see her lips pursing in displeasure for a brief second before smoothing out.

Gail is pretty enough, and in her late fifties, with bright white hair and sharp green eyes. She’s fuller figured, and always wears snappy looking pantsuits whenever I see her. Her acrylic nails are done in a dark blood red this time, and her stiff posture and stacks of paperwork in front of her tell me she’s come prepared for everything she can think of. I just have to hope that Hunter can get this done, and the judge is on our side.

“Counselors,” Judge Brown says briskly by way of greeting. Then he turns his head and looks at me. “Mr. MacKenzie, I see you were the one who requested this hearing.”

“Yes, Your Honor,” I reply calmly.

“And this matter was not able to be settled out of court?” Judge Brown asked, still speaking to me.

“Your Honor,” Gail tries to interrupt.

“I’m not addressing you, Counselor,” Judge Brown informs her coldly. “I’ll address you when I’m good and ready.” Then he looks back at me expectantly.

“No, Your Honor,” I reply again.

He waits for a moment and then says, “Hmm, normally this is the point where the Plaintiff tries to tell me everything and hopes to sway me. I admire your restraint, Mr. MacKenzie.” Then he turns back to Gail and Maggie, and out of the corner of my eye I see Hunter give me a small thumbs up under the table to let me know we’re off to a good start. “Now, Ms. Bell, you are not in agreement with Mr. MacKenzie’s request, is that correct?”

“Yes, Your Honor,” Maggie says tightly. “He’s trying to take away my son and I’m not going to stand for it.” That last part is punctuated with a stomp of her foot, and Gail gives her a warning look.

The judge doesn’t look impressed either. “You may think that, Ms. Bell, but you will control yourself in my courtroom,” he orders her sternly. He looks at Gail and asks, “I asked for Mr. Archer MacKenzie to be in the courtroom today. Where is he?”

Gail steps aside slightly so she can show that Archer is there. I glance at my son who stands and nods to the judge politely. Maggie’s boyfriend doesn’t so much as make a move to stand, just sits there glaring at the judge. “He’s here, Your Honor.”

Judge Brown gives Archer a smile, making his stern face look more friendly. “Good afternoon, Mr. MacKenzie,” he says to Archer.

“Hello, Your Honor,” he says politely with a smile.

“Thank you for being here today, though I’m sure you don’t want to be out of school. For this next part, I don’t need you in the room, however I would like to speak with you. I’m going to ask the bailiff to take you to a back room where I will speak with you shortly.” Archer nods and then the Judge looks at me then Maggie. “We have an excellent court appointed guardian he’ll be with until I’m ready to speak with him.” I nod.

“Can my boyfriend go with him?” Maggie interjects before the bailiff can collect Archer. “I don’t want him to be alone. What if someone tries to take him?”

I want to roll my eyes but manage to keep my composure. The judge frowns at her. “And you think the person appointed to oversee him isn’t capable? Or is it that you don’t trust the court’s judgment?”

Maggie must realize what she’s done because she quickly tries to backpedal. “No, no, it’s just that I don’t want him to be with a stranger and get scared,” she says quickly.

The judge says nothing, just regards her and then looks at Archer. “Would you like someone to go with you, son?” he asks him.

Archer quickly shakes his head. “No, I’ll be fine.” He glances at his mother, who scowls darkly at him, but says nothing. I glance at the boyfriend, who also looks pissed. Alarm bells are ringing in my head, but I bite my tongue and watch as my son is escorted out of the room with the bailiff.

Once Archer is gone, the Judge looks at us both and says, “Before we get going, I will not have anyone shouting over the other, and I expect everyone to act like adults. When it comes to the wellbeing of children, my job is to ensure they are receiving the best possible care, and I take that very seriously. So, let’s begin.” He looks over at myself and Hunter. “Mr. MacKenzie, I assume you have appointed Counselor Darton to speak on your behalf?”

“Yes, Your Honor.”

“Good. And Ms. Bell, you have appointed Counselor Judson to speak on your behalf?” the judge asks.

“Yes, Your Honor,” Maggie answers.

“Good. Counselor Darton, you have the floor.” The judge sits back and listens quietly as Hunter argues my position. I’ll give it to the man, he knows what he’s doing. He’s smart as a whip, and he knows how to speak so that he doesn’t sound like he’s trying to accuse Maggie of anything. He lays it out plainly that I want joint or full custody of Archer, and I want my child support payments adjusted to reflect that change. He adds in that I will submit to a drug test, and also to have Maggie submit one as well. Sorting out once and for all the drug question, though I don’t have any doubts. Maggie gasps out angrily at that requirement, but quiets when the judge gives her a warning look. When Hunter finishes, the Judge doesn’t reply, and instead says to Gail, “Now you have the floor, Counselor.”

Gail wastes no time letting the judge know how ridiculous she and Maggie feel this whole case is. That I’m trying to shirk my responsibilities, and I’m a terrible example to my son. She goes into my history and how I’m in an MC, so I have to be up to all kinds of illegal things. She even brings up my service record that shows I’ve gone through things and could possibly be suffering from PTSD. Despite the fact that I’ve been out of the service for over a decade and have already gone through all those tests for previous court appearances with no issue. I manage to keep my mouth shut and not lash out to defend myself, and I don’t even bat an eye when Gail tries to tell the judge I should be paying more child support and have supervised visitation with Archer instead of what I have currently. Or react when I see Maggie smiling at me smugly out of the corner of my eye.

Finally, when Gail is finished, I wait as the judge looks up from the notes he’s been silently taking and then looks over at me. “Mr. MacKenzie, a lot of the allegations that are being made toward you are pretty large. Perhaps you would like to tell me your thoughts?”

“Your Honor, if I may,” Hunter begins.

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