Page 7 of Viper

“They’re always getting into trouble,” Archer snickers. “Uncle Shadow even has the guys pool money for when it happens again.”

It’s my turn to laugh. “Well, I definitely think they sound like fun then. And are you close to your Uncle Shadow?”

Archer nods. “He’s my dad’s best friend and they run their company together. I’m going to work there when I grow up,” he adds proudly. “I’m smart enough, and I’m going to be big like my dad too.”

“It’s always good to have a goal, and it sounds like your dad is a good guy. What about your mom?” Seeing as he hasn’t once mentioned her, I’m interested to see what his impression of her is.

I don’t have to wait long. The smile and laughter dies on his face, and in its place is a neutral expression that speaks volumes. This is a kid that clearly idolizes his father, but his mother, he’s not happy with. But usually, it’s because the father is the fun parent, while the mother is the one scrimping and saving to get buy. Surprisingly, though, he says politely, “She’s fine. I live with her most of the time. She’s not happy my dad is trying to have me spend more time with him though. She doesn’t think that he’s a good influence.” He scowls now. “It’s not true, and it makes me mad when she says stuff like that. And I really don’t like it when she says mean things about him. He never says that stuff about her. He always tells me to respect her because she’s my mother, and she loves me.”

Hmmm, well, it seems that whoever Dad is, he’s trying his best to be a good father-figure to his son. I respect that. The amount of kids I see around here that hate one parent over the other because of the things said is tragic. Still, I don’t want to dwell on that, so I ask him, “What about any brothers or sisters? How do you get along with them?” I start to staple some of the piles in my hands together to keep busy and hope to keep him at ease.

“Nope,” Archer says with a shake of his head. “I really want a baby brother, though. Then I could teach him how to ride a bike and play video games. Well, when he’s older I guess. He can’t do that as a baby.”

I chuckle. “That’s true. Well, maybe one day you’ll get one.”

“I like to play with Arya’s brother, Knox,” Archer says with a grin. “He’s just little, but he’s already walking and talking.” He gives me a charming wink. “Arya’s going to be my girlfriend.”

I pause stapling and look at him, a grin splitting my face. “Is she now?” I ask. “Are you planning on asking her?”

“I already kissed her. Twice, actually,” he says proudly. “She’s really smart and pretty, and she always pretends she doesn’t like me back, but she watches me when she thinks I’m not looking. Dad says girls can take awhile to make up their minds so it could be years before she finally agrees to be my girlfriend officially, but I’m patient and we can just be friends for now.”

I glance over at Annie who’s grinning in her seat too. Ah, young love. “I think it’s good to know you might need to wait,” I tell him. “Though she sounds like she’s a smart young lady and will keep you on your toes. We women like to know a guy wants us and will put in the work before we say yes.”

Archer nods seriously. “Dad said that too. He said if you want a woman in your life, you have to be willing to put in the work, even when it’s hard, and even when you’re not feeling like it matters or you’re getting impatient.”

“Your dad sounds like a very smart man, and I think you’re getting good advice from him,” I say with a smile. He almost sounds too good to be true, which makes me instantly suspicious. No guy can be that good with their children, or be that nice. All guys are assholes or have no substance. At least, in my experience.

Well, except for one, but sex is not a way to gauge someone as a person. You can be a damn God in bed and an asshole out of it in everyday life.

Before Archer can reply, there is a knock on the door and I look over to see Judge Brown walking in with a man and woman, who I have to assume are lawyers, considering the briefcases they’re both carrying. I give them polite smiles, and note that Archer instantly loses his smile and goes quiet. He fidgets once in his chair before he stills, and then straightens his shoulders before standing. “Your Honor,” he says politely, and seriously.

Judge Brown has a handful of grandchildren running around, and he takes his job with them very seriously. It’s probably why he’s one of my favorites to deal with. He looks at the chocolate bars in Archer’s hands and grins. “I see you already charmed her out of showing you her stash,” he says as he takes the chair that Annie moves toward him, and sits across from Archer. He grins at me. “I can never get her to show me where those are,” he teases.

“I only save them for the most charming,” I joke with a wink at Archer. Archer’s eyes widen as he stares at me.

Judge Brown laughs. “Don’t worry, son, Ms. Eden and I like to tease each other,” he assures Archer. “And maybe you can tell me how you charmed her out of telling you where it is.” Archer doesn’t say anything, just stares at him. Judge Brown looks at me quickly, and I quickly grab a pen and paper, knowing I’ll need to record this interaction for the court report. Thankfully, I have this down to a science, so when he starts talking, I’m already ahead of him. “Well, how about we get down to business then? I’m sure you know Gail and Hunter here.” Archer nods but says nothing. “They’re only here to observe, and won’t be saying anything, okay? You just need to talk to me, and pretend like they’re not here. Any questions I ask you, will you promise to be honest, even if it’s hard for you to answer?”

Archer eyes him for a moment, but then nods and says, “Yes, Your Honor,” in a subdued voice. I want to reach out so badly and hug him to reassure him he’s okay, but I don’t move a muscle, just continue to write.

“Good. I know you love both your parents, but your dad would like to spend more time with you. He would like for you to live with him half the time, and then your mother half the time. And you’re old enough now to voice your own opinion. What do you want to happen?” Judge Brown asks him, eyes direct.

Archer doesn’t answer right away, but I see his eyes glance over at the female lawyer and then back to the judge. Hmmm, something’s up there. I look at her out of the corner of my eye and see her gaze is boring into Archer hard. Anger burns in my gut. This bitch has clearly said something to him before, and she’s expecting him to do what she’s told him to. I don’t like that shit. Lawyers have a bad reputation already, and this doesn’t help. Thankfully, the judge is patient and lets him think about it and doesn’t push him to answer.

Finally, Archer says, “I love my dad and my mom, and I want to spend equal time with both of them.” His eyes flit to the lawyer, and I see her lips pinch and her eyes glare angrily at the boy. I shoot her a warning glare, and her face and expression instantly smoothes out, realizing she’s been caught. And I know this lawyer well enough to know she’s going to say something to Archer the moment they are alone. But I let her see on my face that she isn’t going to be doing shit or I’ll be letting the judge know she’s clearly trying to coax this boy into answering the way she wants him to answer.

Judge Brown nods. “And you think you’re safe with your father?” he asks Archer. “ I know you love your father, son, but are the people he spends time with nice to you? Like, do they ask you to do things that you know you shouldn’t, but you feel like you have to because you don’t want to upset your dad?”

Archer frowns at that. “No!” he says vehemently and his gaze turns angry as he glares at the lawyer and then back to the judge. I don’t miss the way Judge Brown’s eyes harden at that, but I know that’s more about the lawyer than the look from Archer. “They’re my family too, just like they’re his,” Archer says a little calmer, but he’s stiff in his seat and looks like he’s ready to bolt. I shift ever so slightly in case I need to grab him, but he has far more self-control than most boys his age because he doesn’t move as he continues. “They’re my uncles, and they’re the best guys ever. Shadow spends time with me, even if he’s too busy. And the guys show me how to fix bikes and they taught me that when girls say no, you listen the first time. That’s why when Arya tells me she doesn’t want a boyfriend yet, I backed off. I’m going to wait a couple of years until she’s ready.”

“Sounds to me like you’re taking some good advice. Women take a long time sometimes to make up their minds,” Judge Brown says with a wink. He sobers and continues, “And what kind of things do you do with your father when you’re staying with him? And what kinds of food and stuff do you guys eat?”

Archer smiles wide. “We do all kinds of fun stuff,” he says excitedly. “Dad is looking at buying me an old motorcycle to work on with him and fix up so that when I’m old enough and have my license I’ll have a bike of my own. And he says it will teach me to appreciate it because I did all the work instead of putting myself in debt to have one. So when I get old enough I have to get a job and everything, but that’s okay. I’m excited to have something to do with Dad. And Dad’s big on feeding me healthy stuff.” He makes a face. “Dad’s a health nut most of the time, except we have a tradition of getting takeout on Friday nights. That’s our one cheat meal. If we’re at the clubhouse and we have a BBQ, he always makes sure that I have something green on my plate.” His expression lets us all know what he thinks about that. Considering that Archer is a big kid height wise, he’s very fit, without an ounce of fat on him, so if all of that is true, it looks like it’s working.

“It sounds like you and your dad are close,” Judge Brown remarks. It certainly sounds that way to me too. And as I listen to the way Archer talks about him, it’s clear that he idolizes his father. Judge Brown asks, “Now, how about your Mom? You stay with her a lot of the time, so I assume you two are close.”

If I wasn’t watching him so closely, I probably would have missed the way his eyes cool, but he keeps his happy demeanor. Hmmm, something is going on there, and when I glance at the lawyer, I see her staring at him like she can somehow telepathically force him to say the words in her head. I pay more attention to Archer as he replies, “I guess so, yeah, but she doesn’t like all the stuff that I do, so it’s hard sometimes to find things to do together. She and her new boyfriend spend a lot of time together, so I mostly play video games and help out with chores when she asks me.” A typical child’s answer, but even now, my spidey senses are tingling.

“And how do you feel about her boyfriend? I’m sure it’s hard for you to see your mother dating someone other than your father?”

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