A Moment of Weakness (43 page)

“In addition, aside from recounting his estranged wife’s extreme views, the plaintiff did nothing to prove any harmful behaviors on the part of Ms. Rudolph. For that reason, I have no cause to believe the child would be in danger if he was returned to his mother.”

Judge Wilder looked at her notes again, then gazed across the courtroom. “I was intrigued and troubled by the remarks belonging to former President George Washington. Rather than mourn the loss of religion, I treasure such a shift in our understanding and believe we are a better country today because of it. The deciding factor in this case then, was not ancient rhetoric nor the childish plea from the boy. Rather it was the First Amendment itself. Unless a child is truly in danger, this court must uphold the constitution of the United States and allow no ruling or law that would prohibit someone their right to religious freedom.”

Jade couldn’t breathe.

She sat there, still, her hands clenched together, sure she would shatter into a million pieces if she moved.

A million pieces of pure, unadulterated joy.

When Judge Wilder had started talking about the “deciding factor,” Jade had let herself believe for the first time that she’d won. Hope, wild and overwhelming, coursed through her. Tears spilled onto her cheeks, and when Tanner took her hand in his, she could barely contain herself. She focused her attention on the judge once more.

“Therefore, in a ruling that is against my better judgment, I am hereby overturning the decision in the lower court and ordering that custody be returned to Jade Rudolph.…”

Jade squeezed Tanner’s hand to keep from jumping out of
her chair and shouting her thanks to God. Ty would be hers in a few minutes. Tanner had told her that if she won, the bailiff would escort her to the room where Ty was waiting. The officer would then physically hand him over to Jade. No questions asked.

God … God, thank you! You are faithful beyond words
.

The judge was still speaking. “Furthermore, since Ms. Rudolph was the primary parent prior to the divorce petition, she will remain the primary parent of record. I have deemed an eighty-twenty split where custody is concerned so that the plaintiff will have the child every other weekend. Are there any questions from the attorneys?”

Jim’s lawyer was on his feet. “We’d like to file a motion for joint custody, a fifty-fifty split.”

“Duly noted.” The judge wrote something down.

Tanner released Jade’s hand, rose from the chair beside her, and nodded to the judge. “Your honor, I’d like to file a motion, but I must warn you it’s going to seem very unconventional.”

What was this?
Jade’s eyes followed Tanner as he moved closer to the judge. “Your honor, I’d like to file a motion severing the plaintiff’s parental rights in their entirety.”

Judge Wilder raised an eyebrow. “Do you intend to explain yourself?”

“Yes, your honor.”

Jade’s heart was pounding against her chest. What was he doing? Where was he going with this? Had he forgotten who was in the courtroom? Enough media to wipe out his law practice in the space of time it took to call in a headline.

“Go ahead, counselor.” Judge Wilder looked frustrated, as though Tanner were ignorant of some unwritten protocol.

“Your honor, I have prepared a brief with various documents proving that the plaintiff should not be entitled to any parental rights because—” he paused long enough to glance at
Jade—“the plaintiff is not the boy’s biological father.”

“What?”
Jim bounded up from his chair and had to be held back by his attorney. “He’s crazy! He doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”

Tanner remained calm. He retrieved a brief from Matt Bronzan and handed it to the judge. “Everything’s there. A DNA test has been performed, and the results will be available soon. At that time there will be no question as to the validity of this brief.”

For the first time that morning, Judge Wilder seemed speechless. Jade didn’t care. Her eyes were on Tanner, stunned by his admission and the fact that he’d prepared a brief on the issue. How could she have ever doubted him?

The judge sorted through the brief and then stopped, her eyes trained on an item near the back of the document. She looked up, fixing her gaze on Tanner. “You mean to tell me,
you’re
the boy’s father, Mr. Eastman?” There was mockery in her voice, and as if by cue, the members of the press moved a step closer.

“Yes, your honor. Ms. Rudolph and I were together that summer and … yes, your honor. There are a lot of circumstances involved, but Ms. Rudolph believed I had abandoned her. As a result, she agreed to a marriage proposal the plaintiff had made a year earlier.”

Jim glared at Jade and sank slowly into his chair. Their eyes met, and Jade saw anger and humiliation there. But not surprise. And in that moment it became clear to Jade that her longtime suspicions were probably true—he’d known about Ty all the time.

If that were true—if Jim had known Ty wasn’t his biological son—it was no wonder he had treated the boy with such indifference. Suddenly the custody battle made sense. Jim had
taken her in, thought she’d come to care for him, only to discover that the woman he’d always longed for had betrayed him. With another man. It must have been abundantly clear to him that she’d come out of need, not out of desire. And that had been her greatest betrayal of all.

This—the hearing, the push to take Ty from her—it was Jim’s way of paying her back for lying to him all those years. Jade felt a wave of remorse.

God, forgive me. Forgive me for bringing him such grief, such sorrow. Forgive me for whatever part I played in driving Jim into the arms of another woman with my dishonesty. He deserved a wife who truly loved him, Lord
.

Tanner was still speaking. “Either way, the information is all in the brief.” He shrugged. “Also for the record, when Ms. Rudolph’s divorce is final, I will be marrying her and claiming my rightful place as the boy’s father.”

Judge Wilder fell back against her chair and threw up her hands. “Why didn’t you say so in the
first
place? We could have avoided this hearing altogether.”

“Because Ms. Rudolph deserved to win this case as a way of protecting her constitutional freedoms. Now that this court has agreed with her rights, it must also know the truth before an accurate discussion of custody can be made.”

The judge’s face grew serious, and she sat up in her chair. “My decree regarding custody will stand until I have had time to review this brief and examine results from the DNA test. At that point all parties will be notified, and a permanent arrangement will be determined. Court dismissed.”

The judge disappeared, and the courtroom erupted in conversation and a push by the media toward Tanner and Jade. Jim and his attorney stood up and headed for the side door.

“Jim, wait.…” Jade worked her way past Tanner until she
was face to face with the man who had been her husband. “I’m sorry. You deserved to hear that from me. Not here, like this.”

Jim’s eyes were cool, almost indifferent. “I was a fool to love you, Jade. To think you ever cared for me. As for the boy—” he shrugged—“I knew from the beginning he wasn’t my son. I had an injury in high school, playoff football game my junior year. Doctor told me I’d never have children.”

What? An injury …?
“Then why …?”

The smile that tipped his lips was bitter. “You came to me, remember? I thought maybe if I didn’t say anything …”

An ache developed in Jade’s chest.
Dear God, what have I done to this man? Forgive me, please
. “I wondered if you knew, but I wasn’t sure. Not until a few minutes ago. I’m sorry, Jim. I never meant to hurt you.”

“You never meant to love me, either. You came to me pregnant, hoping I would give you security and a home for your child. I never knew who you’d been with, only that he was a fool to let you go.”

Jade saw the anger cool slightly, and in its place was deep and profound pain. Their marriage had never had a chance. Jade’s eyes remained locked on Jim’s. “And when you realized why I showed up that day, you determined to keep your distance.”

Jim nodded. “We should have split up a long time ago, Jade. Your silence about Ty’s father told me that whoever he was, you loved him the way you’d never love me. Problem was, I could never quite make myself stop loving you. But these last few years … well, I found someone who cared about me, and you didn’t seem to mind. Most of the time you never asked where I was.”

The media was moving closer, and Jade needed to get back to Tanner. He would join the bailiff in walking her to the private room where Ty was waiting for her. “You hate me, don’t you, Jim?”

His gaze was unemotional. “I don’t care enough about you anymore to hate you. This hearing was about what Kathy wanted. She thought Ty could be the son she never had.” He looked away. “The boy mattered more to you than I did. Right from the day he was born. If I got full custody of him, then it served you right.”

Jade felt a chill pass down her spine. If this man had won today, Ty would have been little more than a pawn.
Thank you, God.…

“I’m sorry.”

Jim’s eyes narrowed. “You won. But then, you always do. Ty wasn’t my boy; I didn’t want him anyway.”

Jade nodded. She knew Jim’s words were in part to conceal the hurt she’d caused him, but there was truth there, too. “I know.”

Jim ran his eyes over the length of her. “I’ll never forgive myself for letting you get under my skin, Jade. But don’t worry your Christian heart over me. I’ll be fine.” He smiled through cold eyes. “I got bigger fish to fry now. And don’t worry about the judge’s decision. I’m tired of fighting with you. You can have your kid back. I want no part of him. Or of you.”

She wanted to apologize once more, tell him she never meant to hurt him. But there was no point now. After ten years of marriage they were nothing but strangers. “Good-bye, Jim.”

Working her way back to Tanner, Jade saw the concern in his eyes. “What did you say to him?”

She held a finger up to his lips. “Later. Right now we have a little boy to pick up.”

Tanner took her hand, and they managed to sneak out a side door without answering a single one of the dozens of questions being hurled at him by the swarming members of the media. A bailiff ushered them down a hallway void of any reporters and into the correct room.

“Mom! Mr. Eastman!” Ty ran to her and jumped in her arms. “Well? Did we win?”

Jade wrapped her arms around her son and snuggled her face against his. “Yes. Your—Mr. Eastman was wonderful.”

Ty pulled back enough to grin at Tanner. “No offense, Mr. Eastman, but I knew we were going to win even if you bombed.”

Tanner laughed. “How so?”

“Because I was stuck back here by myself, and I was doing a lot of praying. About an hour ago I heard the Lord whispering in my ear.”

There was something unquestionably innocent about her son’s faith, something that made Jade’s heart swell with pride. She linked one arm through Tanner’s and drew him into their circle. They were a family now, and even if Ty didn’t know about Tanner yet, Jade was convinced everything was going to work out.

She kissed Ty on the top of his head. “And what did the Lord whisper to you?”

“It was really weird, a verse we read once in Sunday school. After that, I knew for sure we were going to win.”

Jade exchanged a curious look with Tanner. “What verse?”

Ty stood up straight and recited it perfectly: “I know the plans I have for you … plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Jade and Tanner were silent for a moment, and then their eyes met. Jade could read Tanner’s expression, perfectly and she nodded in response. It was finally time. “Ty, honey …”

Ty hugged her close, at peace with his world once again. “Yeah, Mom?”

“Mr. Eastman and I have something to tell you.”

T
HE FIRST
S
ATURDAY OF
N
OVEMBER PRESENTED ITSELF WITH
crisp, clear skies and an impending sense that soon—very soon—all would be right with the world. It was the kind of day when Doris Eastman didn’t mind her body’s weakness or the way her ailing heart slowed every move.

In some ways, she had waited all her life for this day.

She rose from bed and opened her Bible to 1 Corinthians, Chapter 13. Since giving her life back to the Lord, every word in Scripture was vibrantly alive and new. And there could be no better day to remember what God taught about love.

Patient and kind, not keeping a record of wrongs, not easily angered.

It was like a heavenly description of Jade and Tanner. Wherever they were that morning, whatever they were doing at this moment, they, too, had waited all their lives for this day.

Marti appeared with her morning water and pills. “Good morning, Mrs. Eastman.” The girl was in her late twenties and had moved to Los Angeles from Italy the year before. After her release from the hospital, Tanner had moved her across country, into a condominium not far from his law office. Marti came recommended by a pastor at Tanner’s church, and after a trial period, Doris and Marti became fast friends. The younger woman had moved into the bedroom down the hall from Doris’s and worked for her full-time.

“It’s the big day.” Doris allowed Marti to help her to her feet.

“Yes, ma’am. Mr. Tanner’s wedding day. He doesn’t know you’re coming?”

Doris felt a stab of fear. “No. He … thinks I’m too ill.”

“Well, the doctor, he said you should stay in bed as much as possible, Mrs. Eastman.” Marti’s accent was thick, but Doris no longer had trouble understanding her.

“Not today, Marti. I wouldn’t miss this for the world.”

“I am glad to go with you today. You will tell me if you get too tired, no?”

“Yes, Marti.” Doris appreciated the girl’s concern; she would not have been able to attend the wedding without Marti. The water shook in her hand, and Marti helped steady the glass. It was always an effort getting the pills down each morning, but Marti’s conversation helped pass the time.