Cracks in the Sidewalk (23 page)

“Why don’t we start with you telling me a bit about yourself?”

Elizabeth laughed. “I suppose what you see is what you get. You already know that I have three children and a husband who’s fighting to keep them from me. I live here with my mother and father because Jeffrey won’t allow me to come back to our house. Oh, and I also have a tumor in my head that’s squeezing the life out of me.”

“Well, that certainly cuts to the chase of things,” Judge Brill said. “But I’d like to hear a bit more about the children and why you feel it would be beneficial for them to spend time with you.”

“Have you ever lost someone close to you?” Elizabeth asked. “I have. I’ve lost all four grandparents, and I never even knew them. My father’s parents lived in England, and my mother’s parents died in a car crash two months before I was born. So my whole life, I’ve wondered about them. All of my friends had grandparents who loved them, but not me.

“Something like that can make a child feel terribly insignificant. I don’t want my babies to feel that way. I want their little hearts to be filled with the knowledge of how much my parents and I love them. I want them to understand that I didn’t just disappear from their lives, our Lord and Savior called me home.”

Judge Brill leaned closer soaking up every word. “But do you think it’s possible that your children might be too young to understand such a concept?”

“Not if they have a chance to experience it with me, to be part of what’s happening, to see death through my eyes and understand it’s not something fearful. It’s part of God’s plan for our life. Every person who lives is destined to someday die. It would be awful for the children to go through life seeing death as some ugly monster that snatched away their mother without a word of goodbye.”

What started out as trial testimony turned into a conversation—a conversation between two people well acquainted with the most heartbreaking aspects of life. Noreen and Dudley stood silently at the far side of the room. During a few lulls in the conversation the only sound came from the stenographer’s machine.

“Do you have any thoughts on why Jeffrey is fighting so hard to keep the children away from you and your parents?”

“Jeffrey can’t deal with life, let alone death. He believes that this situation is life’s way of getting back at him. He’s angry because he lost the store. He’s angry with my dad because he didn’t get the money he wanted. He’s angry with Mom because she loves me, and he equates that with disliking him. But most of all, he’s angry with me. Jeffrey hates broken things, and to him I’m not only broken but I’m also to blame for getting sick and forcing him into a situation where he has three kids to look after and all these financial problems.”

“But, why would he—”

“Jeffrey’s not a man of faith.  He wants to believe he’s got a better plan than God. When his plan fizzles, he’s got nowhere to go and no one to turn to.”

“Have you spoken with him about—”

“Many times. But Jeffrey’s set in his way. Something is either perfect or it’s broken, and if it’s broken he wants to get rid of it.”

Elizabeth allowed the right side of her mouth to curl into a sad smile. “One time I told Jeffrey, ‘Nothing’s perfect. Life is like a sidewalk leading to heaven. We’re bound to come across a few cracks in it.’ Know what his answer was?”

Judge Brill shook his head.

“He told me, ‘When you find cracks in the sidewalk, it’s time to look for a new house.’”

“And how do you view those cracks in the sidewalk?”  

“They’re God’s way of moving life’s cement. He’s giving us a chance to let something new grow.”

A long minute passed before Judge Brill asked another question. “Do you feel you’re physically able to handle all three children at one time?”

“I doubt that I could do it by myself. But my parents are almost always nearby, and they’re happy to lend a hand.”

“That might not be the ideal situation, since your husband believes the children will be adversely affected because of your parents’ dislike for him.”

“He might think that, but it’s not true. They’re disappointed because of the way Jeffrey’s treated me, but Mom and Dad are not vindictive people and they’d never dream of saying something negative about Jeffrey in front of our children.”

Judge Brill continued chatting with Elizabeth, first about her years of living with Jeffrey, and then about her relationship with her parents. After that exchange he asked what type of visitation she wanted.

“Unfortunately, I have no way of knowing how long I have, so to me every day is precious,” Elizabeth said. “If I could be with my babies every day, I’d be deliriously happy.”

“But you realize that probably won’t happen, right?”

“Yes, but you asked what I wanted, not what I thought might actually happen.”

Judge Brill laughed. Then he tenderly placed his hand over Elizabeth’s, promised to be fair, and said goodbye. As the small entourage left the McDermott house, the judge told the attorneys that he would hear their summations Friday morning at ten o’clock.

Noreen winced. That gave her one evening for preparation, hardly enough time to structure an argument to convince herself, let alone Judge Brill, that spending time with this woman could be harmful to any child. Noreen had anticipated finding a frail, dreary-faced woman, a pathetic person too irrational and far too morbid to be with impressionable young children. Unfortunately, Elizabeth Caruthers was exactly the opposite with gentle words and crystal clear reasoning. Even in the face of adversity, she appeared strong and sensible. Worse yet, she was genuinely believable. Elizabeth had convinced the judge that she was a loving mother deeply concerned about the wellbeing of her children.

Noreen’s hopes for a plaintiff who would rant about her hatred of the defendant were gone. Elizabeth Caruthers had expressed sympathy for him and nothing more. She’d left no loopholes and pretty much slammed the door on most of the closing arguments Noreen had in mind.

~ ~ ~

A
s soon as Noreen arrived at the office, she called Jeffrey Caruthers to explain the details of Elizabeth’s testimony. Jeffrey was ready for war long before Noreen suggested they agree to supervised visitation twice a month.

“I’ll agree to nothing!” JT shouted. “Nothing!”

“I’m not suggesting you give in,” Noreen argued. “But if we’re forthcoming with a reasonable offer of terms for visitation, there’s a good chance Judge Brill will go along with what we’re proposing. On the other hand, if we remain confrontational, there’s a distinct possibility he’ll issue a visitation order the way Elizabeth requested it.”

“How’s that?”

“She told Judge Brill she wanted to see the kids every day, and judging by the look on his face I got the impression he was listening.”

“You gotta be kidding!”

“I’m not.”

“What kind of half-baked lawyer are you?” JT screamed. “You’re supposed to win this, not give in! I told you what we were up against and you said we could win! You said—”

“Knock it off, Mister Loud-mouth!” Noreen finally yelled back. “I’m sick of hearing about what I said. You told me your wife was a half-dead invalid, incapable of thinking or caring for her children. That, my friend, is a gigantic, bold-faced lie! Elizabeth Caruthers is very much alive. She’s also likeable and articulate! Face facts, your wife was a very credible witness. Whatever argument we had regarding her rationality is gone, vanished, down the drain!”

“Excuse me,” JT said in a cynical but much more even tone. “I thought you were supposed to be on
my
side.”

“I am on your side,” Noreen answered. “But it’s time to get real and work with what we have.”

“And what’s that?” JT asked.

“You’ve got a problem with your in-laws, so maybe we can get supervised visits that exclude them from seeing the kids. We can possibly limit the number of visits and the duration, but I seriously doubt we can win outright.”

JT said nothing for a long time. Then he told Noreen, “I don’t care what you think. I’m sticking with my plea for no visitation. None. Not for Liz or her parents. That’s it, end of story.”

Without any further discussion he hung up the telephone.

F
riday morning, Dudley began his closing argument by thanking the court for interviewing Elizabeth Caruthers at her home.

“But perhaps I should correct myself,” he said, “since Elizabeth was not actually interviewed at her home. She was interviewed at her parents’ home. Unfortunately, after she was diagnosed with a brain tumor, her husband, Jeffrey Caruthers, the father of her children, the man she devoted her life to, would not allow her to return to their home. Because Elizabeth is unable to function independently, she was forced to go to the one place where she was welcome—her parents’ house. Even that measure of cruelty was not enough to satisfy Mister Caruthers’ quest for vengeance. He also took away the thing his wife treasures most—her children.”

Dudley’s words brought tears to Claire’s eyes and as she fished through her pocketbook for a handkerchief, Charles pulled his from his pocket and handed it to her. She wiped the tears from her eyes, then eased her fingers into the curve of Charlie’s hand.

“The saddest part of this story,” Dudley continued, “is that Jeffrey Caruthers’ primary motivation is to wreak revenge on a father-in-law who refuses to give him any more money. I say give rather than lend, because lend would infer there was some intention to repay the debt. Jeffrey Caruthers never had such an intention. Not only did he not intend to repay his one-hundred-and-ten-thousand-dollar debt, but he became enraged when Charles McDermott drew the line and said no more.”

JT and Noreen sat side by side at the defense table, him staring blank-eyed into nothingness, her scribbling notes as Dudley spoke.

“Ever since the day Charles McDermott pulled the plug on his funding of the defendant’s failing business,” Dudley said, giving JT an accusatory glance and then turning back to the judge, “no one in the McDermott family has been allowed access to the Caruthers children. Not even Elizabeth, the mother of these children. The truth is obvious. He is using Elizabeth’s love for her children to gain revenge against his in-laws.

“Jeffrey Caruthers claims he is doing this for one reason: because it is in the best interest of his children. How can any parent believe it to be in the best interest of their child to deprive them of their mother’s love as well as the love of their grandparents?

“Elizabeth Caruthers is a dying woman with a singular motive, which is to leave her children with a legacy of love. She is a devoted mother who wants and deserves to spend time with her children so they can approach adulthood with the knowledge of how much she loved them.    

“In earlier testimony, Doctor Rupert, a highly-acclaimed child psychologist, provided this court with clinical study results indicating that children are less likely to blame themselves for the loss of a parent and have fewer long-term psychological problems when they understand the causative factors in the death of that parent. The same study indicated that the sudden and unexplained removal of a parent substantially increases the child’s risk of psychological problems. 

“The defense would have you believe Elizabeth Caruthers is mentally incapable of spending time with her children—too bitter, they say, too maudlin. But it is easy to see that she is none of those things. She is instead a woman of great faith. A woman who wants to share her acceptance of God’s will with her children so that as they grow older, they can be free to celebrate her life rather than live with recriminations of her death.

“Your Honor,” Dudley continued, “this court has met with and interviewed Elizabeth Caruthers, so I need not go into lengthy detail about her sincerity and genuine love for the children. Although the defendant has taken from her that which she holds most dear, she bears him no malice and is not asking the court for redress. Elizabeth Caruthers asks only that you right the wrong taking place. She is well aware that this tumor has affected her motor skills and causes sporadic memory loss, but she is still quite capable of dealing with the emotional needs of her children. As for her physical infirmities, she has assured the court that one of her parents will be on hand to offer assistance whenever the children are present.          

“In closing, Your Honor, we respectfully request that the court grant Elizabeth Caruthers visitation with her children four days each week. And in light of the uncooperative posture taken by her husband, Jeffrey Caruthers, we also ask that the court order these visitations scheduled for specific days and duration times.”

Dudley gave the judge a polite nod, then returned to his seat.

~ ~ ~

N
oreen stood and smoothed her skirt, regretting that she’d dressed in a black suit that gave her the look of a hard-edged, uncaring person. This morning she’d thought it projected an air of professionalism, but now she wished she’d worn something a bit more feminine—a silk dress or a light-colored suit. With Dudley playing all those sincerity, goodness, and sympathy cards, she might come across as some sort of ogre if she launched an all-out attack on Elizabeth. Noreen took two steps forward.