15. Everett
Everett
“Repeat that for me again?” Despite my best efforts, my words still come out low and harsh.
Calm. Stay calm.
“The rest of the videos are fantastic evidence, but the one that’s audio only is inadmissible in court,” Charles, the head lawyer on this case says.
Thankfully, my foul temper hasn’t sent him running for the hills, though I’m sure the ridiculous amount of money I spend to keep him and his firm on retainer is a big reason why.
“Inadmissible? Gina Sterling admitted quite clearly that Andi didn’t throw her down those stairs. Shouldn’t that count for something?”
“‘Should’ is relative,” Charles sighs. “Unfortunately for us and fortunately for her team, California is a two-party consent state. This was recorded in Gina Sterling’s own home. There are laws in place that require consent for recordings in spaces with reasonable expectations for privacy.”
I scrub my hand down my face, pacing back and forth in front of Charles, who remains seated, waiting patiently as ever for me to get my shit together.
Tomorrow can’t come soon enough.
It’s the big day.
The hearing where the judge will evaluate whether or not the emergency conservatorship over Andi becomes long-term, and who will be her conservator.
Each and every day that’s passed—each hour, minute, second—seems to have some sort of reminder about how much control I lack in this situation.
“Forgive my French,” I mutter, “But that sounds like a terrible load of bullshit.”
“It is,” Charles sighs. “I will not argue with you there. Especially considering the evidence Gina has put together, which includes videos of Andi growing up.”
“Highly edited videos made to make Andi look bad,” I add. “Why doesn’t the two-party consent law apply to that footage?”
“Because it was all filmed under the guise of Gina’s reality TV show.”
“A show Andi never truly wanted to be on!” I scrub a hand down my face.
Calm. I have to stay fucking calm.
My inner mantra doesn’t seem to be working as well these days.
“Technically, because Andi was a minor at the time, Gina was the one who would have consented to her daughter being filmed for the show.”
“So what you’re saying is Gina’s whole strategy relies on ‘rules for thee not for me’?”
“Essentially, yes.”
“This is ridiculous.”
I stare out the floor to ceiling windows of my corner office, but the view of downtown LA holds nothing of what it originally did for me. The pride of my achievements, the hopes and dreams I harbored when I was younger—when I was Andi’s age—pale in comparison to the emotional reality of my present.
The skyscrapers represent a cage of glittering glass and twisted metal. This luxury is built upon the back of a system that allows for innocent omegas like Andi to be locked away under the guise of “helping her.”
“Like I said earlier,” Charles says, running a hand through his neatly trimmed, snow-white beard. “The other videos your omega sent are excellent evidence. We should be able to prove that Gina isn’t fit to be a conservator over Andi.”
Part of me wants to say that she’s not my omega. Not yet, anyway. The last thing I want to do is assert any form of ownership over her without her explicit consent in a moment where she’s not in fight-or-flight mode.
The other part of me knows why he said it. Because the acknowledgment of my baser instincts—the ones that scream at me that she’s mine and I’ll spend my days up until my last breath ensuring that she’s happy—send a wave of calm determination through me.
“To be frank with you, when I watched those videos with the others last night, I let my hope get the best of me. I thought the case was open and shut. That now that we had this evidence, Andi would be set free completely.”
“I… can’t say I completely understand, because that would be a lie…”
“Understandable. This is a ridiculous situation.”
“It is. Truly. In all my years practicing law, I’ve never seen a case like this one. My point is, that I sympathize with your efforts, Everett.”
Charles is trying to help. I know he is.
But sympathy gets me nowhere.
They get Andi nowhere.
Sympathy is the kind of thing people feel when looking at something tragic before walking away.
“Just… make sure Andi gets out of that hellhole tomorrow.”
“I will.” Charles nods. “At the very least, the application to have me appointed as her council has gone through. I’ll show up at Gina’s residence to ensure that Andi gets to the courthouse, in case Gina decides to do anything to prevent her from being present.”
“Keep us updated,” I sigh, running a heavy hand through my salt and pepper hair. “I will have to break the news to the others that this won’t be an open and shut case.”
“I hope that goes well,” Charles says, extending his hand for a shake.
The courthouse looks simpler than I thought it would, considering the gravity of the case.
The drab carpet that likely hasn’t been changed for the past two decades is a muddy green with a textured pattern I’m sure is supposed to help hide dirt.
The judge’s stand looms over the rest of the room, empty for now.
The rest of the room is split into two sides, with one larger table on the left and two smaller tables on the right.
Edison is already seated with his lawyer. He insisted on keeping his own lawyer separate from the firm I hired, even though they’ve worked together extensively on the case.
I’ve spent enough time around Andi’s father to notice the slight tension he carries, concentrated around his right shoulder, despite the calm expression he’s wearing. I meet his gaze and he offers me a slight nod.
The five of us sit in the pews right behind where Andi should be.
“Beck, calm down,” I murmur, my breaths shallow as his caramel scent swirls around in the air, burnt with his stress. The last thing I’d want is to create a feedback loop of intense hormones.
“Yeah, sorry,” he mumbles, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. “At least Andi will know I’m here, if she’s not allowed to turn around to look at us.”
“We’d like her to know we’re here to support her,” Leo says, offering Beck a small reassuring quirk of his lips that doesn’t match the way he’s gripping his slacks over his knees.
Beck nods eagerly, clearing his throat. “The last thing we’d want is for Andi to stress out about us.”
“She has enough on her plate to worry about,” Cameron adds softly, his notebook balanced on his knee. We’re not allowed our phones out during the proceedings, and it seems his journalist background is rearing its head.
The doors swing open, and the five of us fall eerily still.
Gina Sterling marches into the room, her stiletto high heels making the veins in her feet stick out.
She’s wearing an impeccably tailored white pencil skirt and matching blazer.
I’m sure it’s supposed to exude innocence and confidence, but I can’t help but feel like the belt and accent earrings she’s wearing are tacky.
Following behind her is a whole team of expensive lawyers. I know they’re expensive because the first thing I did was hire a private investigator to research the team Gina has put together to try to keep Andi locked away.
They’re a money-hungry group prepared to represent any case as long as their astronomical fees are paid.
Eli shifts from beside Beck at the end of the pew, and I have to shoot him a sharp look. The last thing we need is him losing control and launching himself across the room to tear her apart.
Though to be completely honest, I’m sure all of us are thinking of some variation of that fantasy right now. Even Beck.
Gina’s clacking footsteps falter the moment she catches sight of Edison.
Because we’re so close to the main floor of the courtroom, we can scent the sour, cloying twist of her wine perfume from here.
There are so many layers to her scent, it’s hard to pick apart her emotions, despite the intensity. But all of them are negative.
Edison, to his credit, keeps his expression as neutral as he can. There’s a profound sadness around his eyes that I’m sure can only form when the omega you thought was your soulmate turns out to be evil.
Gina makes it to her seat, along with her lawyers. She starts whispering sharply to them, gesturing wildly.
“She seems upset,” Cameron murmurs.
“More like she’s throwing a temper tantrum,” Eli snorts, his voice low.
This is the closest I’ve ever been to Gina Sterling, but from the sounds of things, these sorts of emotional outbursts are pretty par for the course. Honestly, compared to the video Andi sent over, this seems rather tame.
“Did she not expect Edison to be here?” Leo comments softly, his foot tapping rapidly against the floor.
“Maybe she didn’t expect him to actually show up,” Beck says.
“That’s a definite possibility,” I add. “If she surrounds herself with yes-men like I’m pretty sure she believed, this would be an open and shut case. I hear from Charles that she even threw a tantrum when he showed up to help escort Andi to the hearing.”
“When will Andi show up, by the way?” Beck asks, wringing his hands in his lap.
“Soon,” I say, keeping my eyes on the doors at the back of the courtroom.
No sooner than a minute after I spoke do the doors open once more. I catch sight of Charles’ white hair as he holds the doors open for someone following behind him.
Andi.
My breath catches in my throat at the sight of her.
Despite the lingering effects of Gina’s torture, Andi is holding her head high and her shoulders back. The navy blue pantsuit is a little loose on her, but it still makes her look put-together and confident.
I’m normally better at gauging clothing sizes in person than I am through photos. Especially photos where she’s standing next to people I’m unfamiliar with, so I don’t have a good reference point.
“Getting her clothes was a great idea,” Cameron murmurs, his eyes locked on Andi as she makes her way up the aisle with Charles to the main floor of the courtroom.
“It was Leo’s idea,” I say, my eyes also locked on her.
“You chose the outfit, though,” Leo says.