Chapter 5 - The Safe Haven
Two hours later, the courtroom had cleared, leaving only the quiet hum of the air conditioning.
I sat on the wooden bench in the hallway, holding Maya tightly against my side. She had her head buried in my lap, her small shoulders finally resting after the terror of the morning. Barnaby the rabbit, now gently stitched back together with a piece of blue thread from the bailiff's emergency kit, sat safely in her arms.
"You did so well, Maya," I whispered, kissing her curls. "You saved us."
"I was so scared, Mommy," she murmured. "Aunt Vanessa told me that if I cried, the bad men would come. But I knew you wouldn't let them."
Marcus walked over, holding a stack of court-certified protective orders. "The locks on the Boston townhouse are being changed as we speak, Clara. Julian and Vanessa have been ordered to stay at least five hundred feet away from you, Maya, and the property. The state police are escorting them to retrieve their immediate clothing, and then they are locked out."
"And the baby?" I asked, looking down at my swollen stomach.
May you like
"The custody petition Julian filed to declare you unfit has been thrown out with prejudice," Marcus said, a triumphant smile on his face. "You have sole legal and physical custody of Maya, and the same will apply to the baby the moment she is born. Julian is facing up to fifteen years in federal prison. He won't be filing any more petitions."
For the first time in eight months, I felt the tight, suffocating band around my chest loosen. I looked at the beautiful, brave little girl beside me, and I realized that the family Julian had tried to destroy hadn't broken. It had simply gotten smaller, cleaner, and infinitely stronger.
