Chapter 4 - The Order of Protection
Judge Harrison was a woman in her late fifties with sharp grey hair and an expression that suggested she had heard every lie in the city of Chicago twice.
We sat at the petitioner’s table. Luca, his lawyer—whose name was Bradley—and Richard Vance sat at the respondent’s table. Wendy was not present, presumably still picking red frosting out of her vanity.
"We are here on an emergency ex parte petition for an Order of Protection," Judge Harrison began, flipping through the file in front of her. "Petitioner Jessica Miller seeks protection for herself and her minor child, Fiona Miller, against grandmother Wendy Vance and father Luca Miller."
Bradley stood up immediately, adjusting his tie. "Your Honor, if I may. This is a gross exaggeration of an unfortunate domestic dispute. My client’s mother had a minor verbal disagreement with the petitioner at a private family birthday party. The petitioner lost her temper, physically assaulted an elderly woman, and abducted the minor child—"
"Mr. Bradley," Judge Harrison interrupted, raising a hand. "I have the flash drive submitted with the petition. Let's look at the evidence before we hear your storytelling."
The courtroom lights dimmed slightly. A court clerk pressed play on a large monitor mounted on the wall.
Kelly’s video played in crystal-clear high definition.
The entire courtroom watched as Wendy lunged across the table. They heard the loud, wet CRACK of her hand hitting two-year-old Fiona's cheek. They heard her snarl: "You useless piece of trash, this girl has defective genetics!"
I glanced across the aisle at Luca. He was staring down at his polished shoes, his throat moving as he swallowed hard. His lawyer looked like he wanted to vanish through the floorboards.
The video played on. It showed me lunging across the table, knocking Luca’s glasses into his broth, and shoving Wendy straight into her cake. But more importantly, the audio picked up what happened after I walked out.
Luca’s voice boomed through the courtroom speakers: "Don't call the police yet, Mom. If she leaves tonight, she broke the peace first. We can use this. We can say she’s unstable. We can get sole custody of Fiona..."
Judge Harrison hit a button on her bench, pausing the video right on a freeze-frame of Luca wiping broth off his shirt with a cold, calculating smirk on his face.
The silence in the courtroom was deafening.
Judge Harrison lowered her glasses and looked straight at Luca. The look in her eyes could have melted steel.
"Mr. Miller," Judge Harrison said, her voice dropping into an icy register. "Is that your voice on the recording?"
Luca stammered, glancing frantically at his uncle Richard. "Your Honor... I was... I was trying to calm my mother down—"
"You were conspiring to use the physical abuse of your two-year-old child as leverage to steal custody from her mother," Judge Harrison cut him off cleanly. She turned her gaze to Bradley. "Mr. Bradley, do you have any evidence to present that contradicts this video?"
Bradley opened his mouth, closed it, and looked at Richard Vance. Richard, a seasoned veteran who knew when a ship was sinking, kept his mouth firmly shut and turned his head away.
"I didn't think so," Judge Harrison said.
She picked up her pen and began signing documents with sharp, forceful strokes.
"An emergency Order of Protection is granted immediately," Judge Harrison declared. "Respondent Wendy Vance is prohibited from coming within five hundred feet of Jessica Miller, Fiona Miller, their residence, daycare, or place of employment. Respondent Luca Miller is granted zero contact with the minor child pending a full evidentiary custody hearing."
Luca jumped out of his chair. "What?! You can't take my daughter away from me!"
"Sit down, Mr. Miller, before I find you in contempt!" Judge Harrison barked. "Furthermore, the Court grants petitioner Jessica Miller sole exclusive possession of the marital residence located at 1424 Elm Street, effective immediately. Mr. Miller, you have two hours to collect your personal clothing under police supervision."
"That's my house!" Luca yelled, his face turning purple. "My family helped—"
"Your wife's trust paid for that house, Mr. Miller," Judge Harrison snapped, slamming her gavel down with a sharp THUD. "We are adjourned."
Evelyn gathered her papers smoothly, turned to me, and gave me a rare, broad smile. "Step one complete."
As we walked out of the courtroom, Luca rushed over to us, his uncle trying in vain to hold him back. His face was twisted in rage, all pretense of the victim completely gone.
"You think you won, Jessi?!" Luca snarled, his voice echoing down the marble hallway. "You think you can just throw me out of my own life?! My mom has connections you can't even dream of! We will bleed you broke before this trial even starts!"
May you like
I stopped, turned around, and looked him up and down.
"Luca," I said softly, making sure everyone in the hallway heard me. "Your mother couldn't even keep cake off her face. Good luck with the legal fees."
