Unintentionally, Lucas slammed the door behind him, causing a gunshot-like sound to resound throughout the silent house. With her breath in one hand and Jason's school bag in the other, Lorna winced in the hallway.
He growled, "You didn't stand up for us."
"I told the truth," she said, her hands shaking but her voice firm. "I took the necessary action."
Like an untethered man, Lucas paced the living room. "He might leave us."
"We didn't," she gently reminded him. "Michael was not granted complete custody."
However, the words did not calm him. They only made the pain behind his eyes worse.
The courtroom had been alive with excitement earlier that day. Everyone anticipated a decision that would end the war and influence the life of a young child who was unaware of the mayhem going on around him.
The judge had spoken in a clear, unflinching voice.
This court rejects the plaintiff, Mr. Hudson,'s request for full custody in light of the facts. The court does, however, grant Mr. Hudson supervised visitation rights with Jason Madden due to the biological connection and proven intent. Weekly meetings will start right away.
There had been no visible reaction from Michael.
But from the other side of the room, Lorna had sensed the change in him. Something in between a breaking point and a silent vow.
He refused to give up.
Jason was incredibly focused that night as he sat on the floor of the living room, constructing Lego towers. From the doorway, Lorna watched him, her heart heavy as a stone.
"Mom?"
"Yes, dear?"
"Is my other father actually Mr. Hudson?"
She gasped.
Bright-eyed and inquisitive, Jason blinked up at her, utterly oblivious to the storm he had entered.
She whispered, "Why do you ask that?"
He gave a shrug. He gave me a familiar look. As if he truly knew me.
As she knelt next to him, Lorna brushed his hair off his forehead. "There are times when adults don't always act morally. However, they work to correct their errors.
With a slow nod, Jason accepted the response—for the time being.
However, the inquiries would only increase.
Michael sat by himself in his penthouse across the city, gazing at the judge's words in black and white.
rights of visitation.
Insufficient.
However, it was a beginning.
He was holding a framed picture of Jason and Marjorie laughing together by the beach that Henry had surreptitiously taken while they were on vacation. His son. His blood.
A boy who was unaware of the reality.
Michael muttered into the quiet, "I'm not done." "I'm going to make up for all the parts of him that I lost."
He spoke in a sorrowful, steely voice.
The conflict had not ended.
Nor was his affection for Lorna.