Always in Her Heart (16 page)

“Mr. Longly, do you have any questions for either of the Lesters?”

“No, Your Honor.”

“Let's go to Mrs. Morgan, then.”

Suddenly she was being sworn in.
Last chance.
The words kept echoing in her mind.
This is your last chance.

Judge Carstairs was looking at her, waiting for her to begin. Annie could feel the intensity of Frank's gaze on her face, as if he willed her to say what he wanted.

She swallowed, trying to find her voice. “I love Marcy.” As soon as the words were out, her tight
throat eased. “My sister and I were very close. I was there when Marcy was born—I was the first person to hold her after Davis and Becca. I've been taking care of her since Becca's death, and I'm sure Becca would expect me to continue to do so.”

She came to a halt, not sure she could say anything else. What else was there to say? She loved Marcy for herself, not for anything that came along with her.

“Ms. Marshall?” The judge recognized the Lesters' attorney.

“I have a few questions for Mrs. Morgan, Your Honor.”

The judge nodded.

Annie braced herself. The woman was going to ask about their marriage. Frank was giving her the opportunity to take the deal he offered.

“Mrs. Morgan, isn't it a fact that you and Mr. Morgan only married in order to gain control of the child and her inheritance? Isn't it true that the two of you have no feelings for each other, and that this is simply a marriage of convenience, undertaken to fool the court?”

Chet was on his feet in an instant, objecting to the question, but Annie barely heard him.

All she could really focus on was her own heart, and suddenly she could do so more clearly than she had in her entire life.

She'd been telling herself that loving Marcy and being loved by the child was enough for her. But that was cheating. She'd longed all her life to be loved,
but she'd never been willing to take the emotional risk needed to deserve it.

“Mrs. Morgan?” Judge Carstairs prompted her. “Will you answer the question?”

“Yes, Your Honor.” It was suddenly very clear. No matter what Link had done, no matter what the future held for them, all she could do was tell the truth.

Father, give her the wisdom to see into my heart as clearly as You do.

“It's true that Link and I married when we did because it seemed best for Marcy.” She said the words slowly and clearly, knowing she was laying her heart out for all to see. “But that doesn't mean we have no feelings for each other. I love my husband with all my heart.”

There. It was done.

L
ink's breath caught and his heart seemed to twist. Annie—his Annie—had sat there and told the world that she loved him. Through a tumult of emotions, he could barely hear Chet arguing something with the opposing attorney. He couldn't seem to concentrate on that—on anything.

One thing stood clear in his mind. Annie wouldn't lie. She was telling the truth. She loved him.

Exultation swept through him, closely followed by a hard sock of reality. Annie might love him, but she still faulted him for making that decision without talking to her. She thought that meant his loyalty wasn't to her.

All of a sudden the answer that had always seemed right—that he'd done what he thought was best for all of them—didn't sound so right anymore. What had
been so important that he had to make that decision without her?

He knew the answer to that. The company. He hadn't even considered the possibility of doing something that would affect his stake in the company.

Doc's words, when he'd talked about Frank, echoed in his mind again. Doc had held a mirror up to Link without even knowing it. In that mirror, Link saw a man consumed with the facade marked “acceptance” and “success.”

It was time to call a halt to that. If God looked at his heart, he didn't want Him to find a hollow shell.

Annie had just done the hardest thing in the world for her to do. She'd opened her arms and taken the risk of offering love with no certainty that her gift would be welcomed.

If only he could talk to her—but he couldn't. Already he was being sworn in. All he could do was reach out and take her hand, not sure whether he was offering strength or asking for it.

“Would you like to say a few words, Mr. Morgan?”

“Yes, Your Honor.”

Annie had been willing to sacrifice her vulnerable heart. He knew what he had to sacrifice to make this right.

He cleared his throat. “Your Honor, I still believe what I said the first time we met here. My wife loves Marcy more than anything. She's the best person to have custody of this little girl.”

He glanced at Frank, trying to overcome his dislike. “I realize that Frank, as Davis's cousin, feels that he has a claim on the child, too.” He felt Annie's hand jerk in his. “So I'd like to propose a compromise.”

He looked at Annie, hoping that she could read the love in his eyes. “I haven't had a chance to talk this over with my wife, and I'm sorry about that.”

Annie squeezed his hand, as if encouraging him.

“What is this compromise, Mr. Morgan?” Judge Carstairs studied him, her expression giving nothing away.

He took a breath and murmured a silent prayer that he was doing the right thing. Frank only wanted the company, not Marcy. If given a piece of it, he might be content to leave Marcy alone.

“I'd like to propose that Annie be granted custody of Marcy, and that Frank Lester be named as a trustee, with Doc Adams, to control her share of the company until she is of age.” Doc Adams would protect Marcy's interests, and maybe that was the best he could hope for.

In the silence that followed, all he could hear was the sound of Annie's indrawn breath and the beating of his own heart.

 

Annie tried to get her mind around Link's words, and she couldn't quite manage.

She thought several people started to speak at once, but all she clearly heard was the sound of crying. Marcy was crying.

Annie turned, half rising, to see the door to the judge's chambers open. Mrs. Bradshaw came in, carrying Marcy.

The woman murmured something that might have been an apology. She put the baby down.

“Nan!” Marcy toddled unerringly right into Annie's arms.

Annie lifted her, holding her close, murmuring softly. Link's arms were around the baby, too, his hand gentle on her back.

“Hush, sweetheart, it's all right.” He stroked Marcy's blond curls. “Link and Nan are right here.”

Marcy's tears vanished. She squirmed to a sitting position on Annie's lap, tilting her head back to give Link a ravishing smile.

“Here,” she said proudly.

“Your Honor, this is unfair.” The Lesters' attorney shot to her feet. “Mrs. Bradshaw's actions in bringing the child in could prejudice your decision.”

“I'm sorry, Your Honor.” Mrs. Bradshaw came forward, her eyes bright behind her glasses. “The baby started crying so hysterically that I felt I had to do something.”

Judge Carstairs gave the social worker a long look. “That's strange, Enid. I've never known you not to be able to comfort a child.”

Ms. Marshall was still standing. “Really, Judge Carstairs, you can't let yourself be influenced by the actions of a small child. I mean, naturally Marcy ran to
the people who've been taking care of her for the past month. If my clients had more time with her—”

“That's enough, Ms. Marshall. I understand your position.” She looked from one to the other of the people in front of her, as if she weighed each of them in the scales of justice.

Annie's heart seemed to stop as she watched the person who could wrest Marcy away from them. Link's hands were strong on hers, helping her hold the baby, but all the strength in the world wouldn't help if the court decided against them.

“Any custody case is difficult,” Judge Carstairs said slowly. She tapped the tip of one polished nail against the folder on her desk. “A judge always feels like Solomon in a situation like this.”

Link's hands tightened on hers, and his warmth flowed into her.

“I'm not making my decision based on the child's reactions, Ms. Marshall. I'm sure you'll be happy to hear that.”

“Yes, Your Honor,” the woman murmured.

“I'm making this decision based on the recommendation of the social worker and on my own observations. Luckily they happen to coincide.” She rapped on her desk. “This is a very good vantage point. I can see everyone's face from here. When Mrs. Bradshaw brought Marcy into the room, I could see the love and concern on Mr. and Mrs. Morgan's faces. All they wanted to do was get to the child to comfort her.”

She turned to level her gaze at Frank and Julia. “Unfortunately for your clients, Ms. Marshall, all I saw on their faces was annoyance at the interruption.”

Ms. Marshall opened her mouth as if to protest, then closed it again.

“Like Solomon, I know that a child belongs with those who are willing to sacrifice for her.” Judge Carstairs smiled. “Your particular sacrifice will not be necessary, Mr. Morgan. I'm granting unconditional custody of the minor child Marcy Conrad to Lincoln and Anne Morgan.” She brought down her gavel. “That's all.”

Through a haze of tears and happiness, Annie was aware of the congratulations and handshakes around her. All she could do was hold Marcy close. It was over. No one could take Marcy away from them.

The room cleared out quickly. Suddenly she realized that they were alone—Link, and Marcy, and her.

She looked at him with tear-wet eyes. “Link, I don't know what to say. You were willing to give away control of the company—” She stopped, choking on tears.

He took her hands in both of his, his gaze intent on her face. “I thought you might be mad at me all over again for making that decision without you.”

“No. I understood what you were sacrificing. So did the judge.”

“Annie, there's something I have to say, right now, before I lose my nerve.” He brushed a tear from her
cheek, his fingers very gentle. His eyes were wet with tears, too. “I thought I didn't know how to have a family. I'd pretty much decided that was never going to work for me. And then, all of a sudden, God gave me you and Marcy.”

She nodded, unable to speak. God had brought good out of tragedy for her, too.

“I thought the company was the most important thing in my world—my ticket to acceptance.” He gripped her hands, and his voice roughened. “Now I know how little that means in comparison to having you and Marcy in my life. If you weren't telling the truth about your feelings for me, you'd better say so now. Because otherwise, you and Marcy are going to be stuck with me forever.”

She managed to smile through the tears that blurred her sight. Everything she'd longed for was being handed to her, just when she'd thought it was lost completely. Link had been in a corner of her heart for eight years. Now he occupied it entirely.

God had taken down all the barriers. He'd turned their sham wedding into a real marriage in His sight.

“I always tell the truth,” she said, and she and Marcy went into his arms.

S
eptember had come again. Annie never saw September without a lingering sadness, even though the sharp pain of Becca and Davis's loss had muted after two years.

She sat on the deck of the new house, holding a mug of tea cupped in her hands, and looked across the lake. The hills had begun to show a hint of yellow and orange, a reminder that fall was here and winter not far behind.

After much discussion, she and Link had decided to move into one of the new homes Link had built on the lake—a home that they could make their own.

They'd rented the Conrad house to an older couple who doted on it. That house had been in Marcy's family for generations. She could decide what she wanted to do with it when she was old enough.

At the sound of voices Annie leaned forward, look
ing over the railing. Link and Marcy were walking up the path from the lake, back from their usual Saturday morning trip to feed the ducks. Link claimed those were the only ducks in the world that knew which day of the week it was.

She and Link were Mommy and Daddy to Marcy now. The change had come gradually, once Marcy entered nursery school and heard the other children talking about their mommies and daddies. It gave Annie a pang of sorrow from time to time, but she made sure Marcy didn't forget Becca and Davis, looking at their pictures and talking about them often.

“Mommy, we saw a million ducks.” Marcy raced across the deck and pressed against Annie's knee. “Daddy says we'll have to take more bread next week.”

“Maybe not a million.” Link leaned over the back of Annie's chair and dropped a kiss on her forehead. “How's my girl?” He put his palms on her growing belly. “And how's my little boy?”

“Both grand. He's kicking up a storm.”

“I want to feel baby brother, too.” Marcy put her small hands next to Link's big ones. She erupted in giggles when the baby, seeming to know she was there, kicked hard against her palms.

Annie shared a smiling glance with Link, her heart overflowing with happiness. From the deepest of sorrows, God had brought them lives filled with more blessings than they could possibly count.