Chapter 21

Earth location and time: Miami Florida, Dade County Family Court, Monday, 9:40 AM, November 29, 2010 Eastern Standard Time

Aina time: 11:29 AM, day 47 of 1408 H.E.

"Mr. Connors, can I ask you a question?"

My lawyer's quiet question brought me out of a daydream. My daughter Isabelle was sitting in a chair on my other side. Her eyes were closed, but I sensed a subtle shifting of her head as she plugged into the conversation.

"Of course," I whispered. "What's up?"

"While you were still in Chile with your daughter... with all the national child-grabbing going on... Didn't you think it odd that Chile was forcing you to come back to the U.S. with Isabelle for a custody battle?"

I paused for a moment before answering. "Yeah, I guess. Several of the local lawyers I spoke with were surprised about it too. But it is the law. Isabelle and I are both U.S. citizens. I don't know why our applications for Chilean citizenship were never... Why are you asking?"

"I'm getting a really bad feeling about this case."

I sensed Isabelle shivering and nodding her head in agreement. Was I the only one in the dark? "What do you mean?"

My lawyer grimaced. "This hearing was scheduled for 9 AM. It's Florida State law that petitioners for child custody have to be physically present in contested cases, to be available for cross examination."

"Yeah, okay. So?"

"The docket is packed for today, especially with it being right after the Thanksgiving holidays. Yet this judge has been waiting patiently almost 45 minutes now for Isabelle's biological dad to show up. This is unheard of behavior. The only possible explanation is that we're in... well..." My lawyer was quiet for a moment, and then whispered, "... a show trial. I'm afraid we're just going through the motions..."

"What?!" I hissed as my counsel's words sank in. "Hell... The judge has been bought off?"

My attorney sighed. "I don't think money alone would account for something like this. This judge is owned by somebody. I think we're up against something we don't even understand, something nasty... Damn..."

"My gosh... What can we do?"

"The hearing hasn't started yet. I'm so sorry Mr. Connors. Maybe just walking out of here with Isabelle... It might be your only chance..."

"Christ!" I hissed again. I looked at Isabelle. She gave me a slight nod. I stood up and offered her my hand.

"May I ask where you think you're going?" the judge called from his bench.

"Uh, yes, your honor. I'm taking my daughter to a restroom."

"Sit down! Bailiff, escort Miss Perez to a restroom. Make sure she returns here."

Isabelle winced at being called her hated last name, but she was very brave. She gave me a hand signal that meant hang loose, and then walked off with the bailiff.

"Hell..." I whispered to my lawyer. "He can do that?"

"He shouldn't... but yeah, ever since the plague, there's been a lot of power shifting around. This would never have happened a year ago. We've lost so many of the good people..."

My lawyer looked completely dejected. He whispered to me, "Hell Gary, I think we've beien bagged. The only thing keeping this travesty going is that Isabelle's biological dad isn't here yet... I'll appeal of course... Objectively, we have a hell of a strong case... But for today... I can't see how you and Isabelle are going to leave this courthouse together... I'm so sorry..."

I felt numb, absolutely numb. I sat back into my hard wooden chair and tried to blink away my tears before Isabelle returned. My dear trusting daughter! I had talked her into the idea of coming here, and now I realized I had led her right into a lion's den. I felt like shit.

Isabelle came back more than ten minutes later, a little longer than I was expecting, especially for an unnecessary rest stop. For the first time in a long, long while, I saw Isabelle smiling. She returned to her seat next to me, and after a few moments opened her purse and hauled out her all-time favorite Lion beanie-baby to hug.

"Lumpkins?" I whispered. "I thought you forgot and left him at home..."

"Yes... Well, she's here now..." Isabelle whispered back with a smile.

"She?" I whispered. "Lumpkins is a... !!!" In a shock of recognition, I realized to whom Isabelle was referring. A'moth! Isabelle gave me a quick nod and then gave me another one of our coded hand signs, asking me to keep quiet. I signaled back that I understood.

The judge waited until 10:00 before starting the case without the bio dad. The hearing was a mockery of justice, clear and gross violations of the law. Juan Perez's lawyers made outlandish accusations about me having sex with Isabelle and petitioned the court that permanent physical and legal custody of Isabelle be granted to their client. Isabelle never even got a chance to speak.

And my presence on the stand was a joke. The judge was constantly interrupting to warn me not to perjure myself. All my lawyer's objections were overruled. The judge even referred to Isabelle as "that innocent violated little girl". I was outraged and embarrassed that Isabelle had to hear such sordid insanity, but there was nothing I could do about it. Mercifully, the whole hearing lasted less than an hour.

The judge awarded temporary custody of Isabelle to the State of Florida, and then became verbally abusive with me. Of course I felt like retorting, but then I felt Isabelle's hand lightly resting above my own, and I realized what was happening. The judge was trying to get me to explode, in order to find me in contempt of court and lock me up.

In other circumstances, the urge to take the bait after losing Isabelle might have been irresistible. But with A'moth near... I just sat back and stared at the judge with big eyes and let him make a fool of himself... I whispered to Isabelle, "Hotel lobby..."

The exasperated judge finally stopped his senseless diatribe, after looking around the courtroom and realizing everybody was staring at him. He ordered that Isabelle be escorted to one of the county holding pens, and I was ordered to leave the courthouse. The joke trial was over. I left without a word.