12. Jade
— ? —
Jade
The courthouse is a circus.
Media everywhere. Cameras flashing. Reporters shouting questions as Damian guides me through the crowd, his hand firm on my back, his body shielding me from the worst of it.
CONVICTED FRAUDSTER SEEKS CUSTODY OF MILLIONAIRE’S DAUGHTER
CASTILLO FAMILY DRAMA EXPLODES IN COURT
SISTER VS. SISTER: THE FIGHT FOR NOVA
I don’t look at the headlines. Don’t listen to the questions. Just keep walking, one foot in front of the other, until we’re through the courthouse doors and into the relative quiet of the lobby.
“You okay?” Damian murmurs.
“No.” I manage a shaky smile. “But I will be.”
***
The courtroom is packed.
I walk in with Damian at my side and find my seat at the petitioner’s table. Across the aisle, Donald sits with his lawyers, looking everywhere but at me. Vivian is beside him, immaculate in a cream-colored suit, her expression carefully composed.
And Nova...
Nova is in the gallery.
My breath catches when I see her. She’s wearing a blue dress with a white collar, her hair in two braids, clutching a stuffed rabbit like a lifeline. She looks scared. Confused. Too young to understand why so many people are staring at her.
My baby. My baby is right there.
She glances around the room. Her eyes pass over me without recognition.
Just another stranger.
I force myself to look away. To focus on the judge, on the lawyers, on anything except the small face that haunts my dreams.
Focus. You have to focus.
***
The hearing begins.
Lawyers speak. Evidence is presented. I sit rigid in my chair, trying to follow the legal jargon, trying to understand what it all means for my future, for Nova’s future.
“The petitioner’s fraud conviction has already been vacated in light of the digital forensics report,” the judge says, reviewing the documents. “On that point the record is clear - Ms. Moreno was wrongfully convicted.”
Hope flickers in my chest.
“However,” the judge continues, “I cannot make a custody determination based solely on the allegations against Mrs. Castillo, which remain under investigation by the District Attorney’s office.”
The hope dims.
“Additionally, the child has been in the care of Mrs. Castillo for four years. Removing her from the only home she’s known requires careful consideration of her psychological well-being.”
I grab Damian’s hand under the table. Squeeze until my knuckles turn white.
“Therefore, I am ordering a thirty-day evaluation period. The court will appoint a child psychologist to assess Nova’s best interests. We will reconvene at that time for a final determination.”
Thirty days.
Thirty more days.
The gavel comes down. “Court is adjourned.”
***
I don’t remember leaving the courtroom.
One minute I’m sitting at that table, watching the judge gather her papers, watching Vivian’s satisfied smile across the aisle. The next I’m in a hallway somewhere, Damian’s hands on my shoulders, his voice in my ear.
“Jade. Jade, look at me.”
I look. His face swims into focus.
“Thirty days,” I whisper. “She gets to keep my daughter for thirty more days.”
“It’s not a denial. The judge didn’t say no - she said she needs more information.”
“It’s not a yes either.” My voice cracks. “Every day Nova spends with her is another day she forgets I exist. Another day Vivian poisons her against me.”
“That’s not going to happen.”
“You don’t know that.” I pull away from him. Wrap my arms around myself. “You can’t promise me that.”
He doesn’t try to argue. Just watches me with those dark eyes, steady and patient and somehow exactly what I need.
“I need to find a bathroom,” I say. “I need a minute.”
“I’ll be right here.”
I nod. Turn. Walk away on legs that don’t feel like mine.
***
The bathroom is empty.
I push through the door and lean against the sink, staring at my reflection in the mirror. Pale face. Red eyes. A woman on the edge of falling apart.
Thirty days. You can survive thirty days.
The door opens behind me.
I spin around.
Vivian walks in.
And beside her, clutching her stuffed rabbit, is Nova.
***
We freeze - all three of us - like figures in a painting.
Vivian recovers first. That smile spreading across her face, sharp and satisfied.
“Jade. Funny running into you here.”
I can’t speak. Can’t move. Can only stare at Nova - at my daughter, three feet away, close enough to touch.
Nova is looking at me too. Head tilted. Curious.
“Mommy, who’s that lady?” She tugs on Vivian’s skirt. “She keeps looking at me.”
Mommy.
The word is a knife in my chest.
Vivian crouches down to Nova’s level, still watching me with those predator’s eyes.
“That’s nobody, sweetheart. Just someone Mommy used to know a long time ago.”
“She looks sad.”
“Some people are just sad, baby. It’s not our problem.”
I find my voice. “Nova.”
Nova blinks. “How do you know my name?”
“I-” My voice cracks. “I know lots of things about you. I know you were born on March 15th at 3:47 in the morning. I know that when you were born, your hair was so dark-”
“Enough.” Vivian straightens, gripping Nova’s hand. “Come on, baby. Let’s go find Daddy.”
“Wait.” I step forward. “Please. Just let me talk to her. For one minute. Please, Vivian.”
“There’s nothing to talk about.”
“She’s my daughter.”
“She’s my daughter.” Vivian’s voice goes hard. The mask slipping. “I’m the one who stayed up with her when she had nightmares. I’m the one who taught her to read. I’m the one who held her when she cried. Where were you, Jade? Oh, that’s right. Prison.”
“Because YOU put me there!”
Nova flinches. Her lip trembles.
I force myself to lower my voice. “I’m sorry, baby. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to yell.”
Nova shrinks closer to Vivian. Grabs her leg.
“Mommy, I want to go home.”
Vivian scoops her up. Holds her close. Shoots me a triumphant look over Nova’s shoulder.
“See? She doesn’t want you. She doesn’t even know you.”
“Because you made sure of that.” The words burn coming out. “You stole four years from me. Four years I can never get back.”
“I gave her a good life. A stable life. Two parents who love her.” Vivian’s smile is razor-sharp. “What could you have given her? A prison cell?”
“I could have given her the truth.”
“The truth?” Vivian laughs. “The truth is that I’m her mother now. The truth is that she loves me. The truth is that no matter what happens in that courtroom, she’s always going to remember me as the one who was there. And you’ll always be the stranger who showed up too late.”
I’m shaking. Tears streaming down my face.
Nova is watching me. Those big eyes - my eyes - confused and scared.
“Mommy?” she whispers to Vivian. “Why is the lady crying?”
Vivian strokes her hair. “Because she’s not a happy person, sweetheart. Some people just aren’t happy.”
“That’s sad.”
“It is. But it’s not your fault, okay? You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Okay, Mommy.”
Mommy. Mommy. Mommy.
Each time Nova says it, something inside me dies.
Vivian shifts Nova on her hip. Heads for the door.
“When are we going home?” Nova asks, playing with Vivian’s necklace.
“Soon, baby.” Vivian’s voice is soft. Maternal. The perfect mother. “Very soon.”
She walks past me. Close enough that I can smell her perfume. Close enough that I could reach out and touch Nova’s cheek.
I don’t.
I can’t move.
The door swings shut behind them.
And I crumble.
***
Damian
I find her on the bathroom floor.
Crumpled against the wall, knees pulled to her chest, sobbing so hard her whole body shakes. I drop to my knees beside her, pulling her into my arms.
“Jade. Jade, look at me.”
She can’t. Can’t see anything through the tears.
“What happened?”
“She called her Mommy.” The words come out broken. Jagged. “She asked when they were going home. She was scared of me, Damian. My own daughter was scared of me.”
I hold her tighter. “That’s not your fault. None of this is your fault.”
“She doesn’t know me. She doesn’t want me. Even if I win - even if the judge gives me custody - she’s going to hate me. I’ll be the stranger who took her away from the only mother she’s ever known.”
“That’s not true.”
“It is true.” She’s sobbing harder now. “You didn’t see her face. The way she clung to Vivian. The way she looked at me like I was a monster.”
I cup her face. Force her to look at me.
“Listen to me. She’s four years old. She doesn’t understand what’s happening. But children know the truth, Jade, even when they can’t articulate it. She’s going to figure out who really loves her. Who really fought for her. And when she does, she’s going to know it was you. It was always you.”
“What if she never forgives me for taking her away from Vivian?”
“Then we’ll deal with that. Together. But you can’t give up now. You’re so close, Jade. So close to getting her back.”
“I don’t know if I can do this.”
“You can. You’re the strongest person I know.”
“I don’t feel strong.” Her voice breaks. “I feel broken.”
“You can be both.” I wipe her tears with my thumbs. “You can be broken and still keep fighting. You’ve been doing it for four years.”
She stares at me. At this man who keeps showing up. Who keeps believing in her when she can’t believe in herself.
“Why?” she whispers. “Why do you keep doing this? Why do you keep saving me?”
“Because you’re worth saving.” I press my forehead to hers. “Because you’re the only real thing in my life. Because I-”
I stop. Swallow.
“Because I can’t imagine my life without you in it.”
She kisses me.
Not desperate or hungry. Just soft. Gentle. A promise.
When she pulls back, I’m looking at her like she’s the most precious thing in the world.
Because she is.
“We should get back,” she whispers. “The hearing...”
“Are you okay?”
“No.” She takes a shaky breath. “But I will be.”
I help her stand. She looks at herself in the mirror. Red eyes. Smeared makeup. A mess.
She splashes water on her face. Fixes what she can.
When she looks again, she doesn’t see a broken woman anymore.
She sees a mother who’s going to fight for her child.
“Let’s go,” she says.
***
We walk back to the courthouse lobby together. Hand in hand.
My phone buzzes.
I check it. My blood runs cold.
“What?” Jade asks, seeing my face. “What is it?”
“Vivian just cleaned out the joint accounts. All of them.” I look up, jaw tight. “She’s booking a private flight. Tonight.”
Jade’s face goes white.
“She’s going to run.”
“She’s going to try.”
Across the lobby, Vivian emerges from a hallway, Nova on her hip. She catches Jade’s eye.
And smiles.