Page 33 of Stilettos & Whiskey
“He didn’t give a rat’s ass when I was eight, why would he now?”
Jim Bob smiled, showing his pearly white teeth. “In prison he joined Alcoholics Anonymous, and he wants to make amends.”
“Right. And how does suing my parents for ten million dollars accomplish that?”
“Your adoptive parents illegally took his custodial rights away from him,” Jim Bob responded.
“Raul Garza kicked me out of his trailer when it was one hundred and ten in the shade and told me not to come back until dark. I was hungry, hot and lost when Alexander Stone found me. My grandfather was arrested for child abuse and assaulting a police officer.”
“That’s not quite true,” Jim Bob declared. “Raul Garza was only trying to protect you from a dangerous intruder.”
Lucas snorted. “My father identified himself as a police officer and Garza threw the first punch.”
“All your grandfather wants is to spend time with you and get to know you again,” Jim Bob stated.
I laughed. “Again? I spent one night locked in an insect-infested room, without a bed, food or water. He was a stranger then and he’s a stranger now. I want nothing to do with him. You keep coming around and I will get a restraining order.”
“That would be a mistake,” Jim Bob stated ominously.
Mom stormed into the room. “Are you threatening my daughter?”
“Just stating a fact, ma’am.”
“Get him out of here,” Mom snapped.
Lucas dragged the lawyer out of the room.
“You are only delaying the inevitable,” Jim Bob called over his shoulder. “I will get his custodial rights restored.”
I bristled. “I’m an adult, you moron. He has no control over me.”
“I will petition the court for a mental competency hearing,” Jim Bob shouted.
Mom yelled back, “And we’ll get you disbarred for fraud, harassment and criminal misconduct.”
“I’ll see you in court.” The kitchen door slammed shut.
I slumped on the bed. “This is crazy. What does Papa Garza hope to gain from all of this?”
“I don’t know.” Mom sat next to me. “He made no effort to block your adoption.”
I grimaced. “This reeks of a setup. I wouldn’t be surprised if Roger Evans and his family are behind this.”
“A good possibility. We’ll do a deep dive on Jim Bob and see what comes up.”
My stomach growled loudly. “What’s for dinner?”
“Your father hired Bitsie’s food trucks to come in and feed all the officers in the task force.”
“Seriously? After the food poisoning incident?”
Mom laughed. “Lucas thoroughly vetted the trucks this time.”
“I just bet he did.”
Chapter Nine
Dad was still trying to find out who posted Jim Bob’s $500,000 cash only bond when I received a subpoena to appear in Superior Court for an emergency competency hearing tomorrow morning. Jim Bob claimed I was mentally incapable of caring for myself and Raul Garza was seeking immediate guardianship over me. The idiot lawyer had just made the biggest mistake of his life. The Alpha Dogs had never lost a court case.
