Cracks in the Sidewalk (22 page)

“Sure it made me angry, I’m only human.”

“Is that anger why you finally decided not to allow the children to see Elizabeth or her parents?”

“Of course not,” JT answered indignantly. “I decided that the children shouldn’t be around Liz for their own good.”

“What prompted you to come to that decision?”

JT raised his hand to his chin and sat like he was deep in thought for almost a full minute.

“It wasn’t a sudden decision,” he finally said. “It was just a bad situation that eventually decided itself. Liz got so much worse, and I could tell it was painful for the kids to see her that way. Then in December she had an incident where she forgot about being paralyzed and took an ugly fall in the hospital. Claire was upset and called and said I ought to get over there. She said the IV had been torn loose from Liz’s arm, and there was blood all over the room.”

“Did you go?”

“I couldn’t. There was nobody to stay with the children, and I certainly wasn’t going to let them see their mother like that.”

“Is that when you decided it would be better for the children not to see Elizabeth anymore?”

“I suppose so. They hadn’t seen her since October and they weren’t asking to go.” JT gave a forced chuckle. “You know kids, out of sight, out of mind. Anyway, I figured for the time being it would be better for them not to go, I didn’t want to have them walk in on something horrible like what had just happened.”

“Over time, Elizabeth started to show some improvement. What happened then?”

“The improvement was very slight, and the diagnosis was still the same. She was dying. By then the kids had stopped asking to visit her, and it seemed as though they’d begun to accept her absence. I figured it would be better for them to leave it that way.”

“But wasn’t Elizabeth asking to see the children?”

“Sure, because that’s what would make
her
happy. Me, I was more interested in doing what would be best for the kids.”

Noreen said she had no further questions and turned him over for Dudley’s cross-examination.

~ ~ ~

“Y
ou claim you visited your wife in the hospital and brought the children to see her,” Dudley said. “Can you recall how many times?”

“How many times I visited her?” JT asked.

“Yes,” Dudley answered. “During the  period when your wife was hospitalized, how many times did you visit her?”

“It’s difficult to remember.”

“Would you say it was more or less than fifty?”

“Probably less.”

“More or less than twenty?”

“I don’t know,” JT answered impatiently.

“Would it surprise you to know the actual count was nine?”

“Yes,” JT said, fumbling to pull his thoughts together. “It would surprise me. I figured it was more. Of course, I had problems with getting someone to watch the store and paying a babysitter, so I guess that’s why I didn’t—”

“On those nine visits, do you recall the number of times you brought the children to see their mother?”

“No, but I’m sure you’re going to tell me,” JT answered flippantly.

“Six,” Dudley replied. “Three times prior to Christian’s birth, once to see him in the nursery, once the day he was released into your care, and once when the primary purpose of your visit was to elicit your wife’s assistance in asking your in-laws for a loan. Six times in almost eighteen months. Is that your idea of devotion?”

“Objection,” Noreen called out. “Counselor is badgering the witness!”

“Mister Caruthers is a hostile witness,” Dudley countered, “and I’m trying to clarify the issue of visitation brought up in direct.”

“I’ll allow it,” Judge Brill said.

“You went to visit your wife on three other occasions,” Dudley said. “Do you recall the reason for any those visits?”

“Hmm,” Jeffrey said, stalling for an answer. Suddenly his expression brightened.

“Now, I recall. There was a conference with Liz’s doctor. I was going to visit anyway, but I was able to time it so that I could be there to talk with the doctor.”

“That’s right,” Dudley replied. “You were there for that one conference. But you missed all of the others, didn’t you?”

“What do you expect? I was working at the store all day and taking care of the kids all night!”

“Right, you mentioned that,” Dudley said sarcastically. “But let’s move ahead to your next visit. That one was solely for the purpose of asking Elizabeth to sign for the second mortgage you wanted to take out, wasn’t it?”

“No.” JT glared at Dudley.

“Elizabeth refused to sign that mortgage application, because she was concerned about her children not having a home. Aren’t those the same children you claim to be protecting?”

“I
am
protecting them!”

“And on another of your so-called visits wasn’t your intent solely to ask Elizabeth, who had just been diagnosed with a brain tumor, to play upon her father’s sympathy and suggest he give you the necessary funding for your store?”

“I didn’t want him to
give
me the money,” JT answered. “I wanted a loan.”

“A loan?” Dudley repeated. “A loan like the other loans he’d given you? But doesn’t the word loan infer that it’s something to be repaid?”

JT’s mouth curled into a hateful sneer.

“The answer is yes,” Dudley said. “Yet on five previous occasions you obtained loans from Charles McDermott, loans totaling one-hundred-and ten-thousand dollars, and never repaid one cent of that money. Isn’t that true?”

“I intended to,” JT said defensively. “That’s why I needed another loan, so I could keep Caruthers Couture afloat. Without that store, I can’t repay anything.”

“But didn’t your store operate at a deficit from its opening?”

“Only because I didn’t have the money to expand the way I should have.”

“Wasn’t that ongoing deficit the reason Charles McDermott refused to give you the loan you asked for last September? Wasn’t that also the reason he suggested you consider some other line of work?”

“He doesn’t know squat about fashion!” JT shouted. “What right does he have to tell me what business I ought to be in?”

“So,” Dudley said, jumping on the opportunity, “Charles McDermott’s comments made you quite angry, didn’t they?”

“Yeah, they made me angry. Anyone would get angry if somebody ran them down the way he did me.”

“In fact, you were so angry you decided to get even, didn’t you? You decided to stop Charles McDermott, his wife, and his daughter from ever seeing your children again, isn’t that true?”

“No, it isn’t!” JT shouted.

“I think it is. I believe you used your children as a weapon to inflict pain and heartache on the family that you blamed for all your problems, a family already burdened by their own sadness. You got even by refusing to allow Elizabeth or her parents access to the children. You did it because you were driven by the desire for revenge!”

Despite Noreen repeatedly shouting, “Objection!” JT bolted from his seat.

“You’re friggin’ nuts!” he screamed. “I didn’t want Liz or her parents around because I felt it was better for the kids! That’s all, better for the kids!”

“Mister Caruthers! Sit down and refrain from such outbursts,” Judge Brill warned. “We can take a short recess if you need to compose yourself.”

JT sat down and said nothing.

“Mister Caruthers, do you blame the McDermott family for your problems?” Dudley asked.

“I don’t hold them one-hundred-percent responsible, but it wouldn’t have killed Charles to help me out financially. Maybe then I wouldn’t have lost the store.”

“So you don’t blame them for your problems?” Dudley waited for JT to shake his head.

“Well, then, can you explain why you told Doctor Peter Belleau, the court-appointed psychologist, that the McDermotts were responsible for all of your problems, including the gene that caused Elizabeth’s illness?”

“I didn’t mean it. I suppose I was just venting.”

“Were you? Or was Charles McDermott’s refusal to lend you the money the final and most influential factor in your decision to keep the children away from Elizabeth’s family?”

“I said it had nothing to do with it.”

“It didn’t? You’ve already told the court that you brought the children to see Elizabeth six times at the hospital. After she was released from the hospital and forced to move into her parents’ home, did you ever bring the children to visit her?”

“No, but that’s just a coincidence.”

“Do you honestly expect this court to believe it’s coincidental that you decided it would be harmful for the children to see their mother and their grandparents just days after Charles McDermott refused to give you yet another loan?” 

“Believe what you wanna believe, but I’m telling the truth.”

“Then please tell the court exactly what did prompt you to decide it would be harmful for the children to see their mother?”

“Do you not understand dying?” JT said antagonistically. “Liz is dying! She’s gonna be out of their life soon enough, so why would I want the kids to get more attached to her? The more attached they get, the harder it’s gonna be losing her.”

“But aren’t the children already attached to their mother?”

“Less now than when she first went into the hospital. When she was first hospitalized, they cried all the time asking when Mommy was coming home. Now they don’t do that anymore.”

“What about as the children grow older? Isn’t it quite possible that they’ll wonder why they never had a chance to say goodbye to their mother? Don’t you think that even after she’s been removed from their life, they might take comfort in knowing how much she loved them?”

“I’ll deal with that when the time comes.”

“You heard Doctor Rupert’s earlier testimony. He feels that when a parent is taken away from a child without adequate explanation or understanding, the child often experiences a sense of rejection. Have you considered that possibility?”

“I don’t agree with his opinion.”

“But Doctor Rupert is a professional, whereas you’re—”

“I’m their father!” JT cut in sharply.

“Yes, you are,” Dudley answered. “And Elizabeth is their mother. If you have the right to decide what’s best for the children, shouldn’t she be allowed to have her say about seeing them?”

“No. I’m not dying; Liz is. I’m the one who’s gonna have to take care of those kids after she’s gone, so what I say is what counts.”

“You said earlier, and I quote, you ‘need to get on with your life.’ Does getting on with your life include having a lady friend who spends quite a bit of time at your house and with your children?”

“Why? Is there a law against my having a friend?”

“There’s no law against it, but I question whether this woman is a factor in your decision to keep the children away from their mother.”

“No,” JT answered angrily. “She’s not!”

“So you say,” Dudley replied. “What about Charles and Claire McDermott? What’s your reason for not allowing them to see the children?”

“I said it before,” Jeffrey answered. “It’s going to be hard enough to raise three kids on my own without having some busybody in-laws bad-mouthing everything I do or say. The McDermotts don’t like me. They never did like me. They don’t trust me, and I don’t trust them. So the bottom line is I don’t want my kids exposed to that kind of negativity.”

“You claim the McDermotts have never liked or trusted you, yet Charles McDermott gave you loans totaling over one hundred thousand dollars and he never once asked you to sign a note.  Isn’t that trust?”

“He only did it because of Elizabeth.”

“But Elizabeth had no ownership of Caruthers Couture. That store was owned by you and you alone, correct?”

“Yeah,” JT answered begrudgingly.

“If Charles McDermott were to reconsider your loan request, would you allow Elizabeth and her parents to spend time with the children?”

Noreen bolted from her seat. “Objection!”

“Sustained,” Judge Brill said. He gave Dudley a look of annoyance.

“No more questions,” Dudley stated and resumed his seat.

~ ~ ~

“A
ny re-direct?” Judge Brill asked Noreen, but she answered no.

“Judging by the testimony we’ve heard over the past two days, I must tell you this is an extremely complex case with many side issues. Therefore, before we proceed with summations, I personally would like to interview Elizabeth Caruthers, since she will be a key factor in my decision.”

Dudley stood. “Your Honor, with all due respect, Elizabeth would find it extremely difficult to make an appearance in court.”

“I understand that,” Judge Brill answered. “So I’ll interview her at the McDermott home. Ten o’clock tomorrow morning. The attorneys can be present, but you will not be allowed to question the witness and there will be no other participants.” The judge turned to his clerk. “Make arrangements for a stenographer.”

Moments later the judge stood, and the clerk announced, “Court is adjourned until ten a.m.”

In Elizabeth’s Words

D
udley arrived first at the McDermott house. By the time Noreen rang the doorbell he’d already downed a cup of coffee and explained why Claire could not sit in on the judge’s interview with Elizabeth. Judge Brill and a young dark-eyed court stenographer arrived minutes before ten, then all four of them—the two lawyers, the judge and the stenographer—disappeared into Elizabeth’s room, closing the door behind them.

Realizing he couldn’t do anything, Charles headed to the office. Claire, however, stationed herself at the kitchen table to catch what was said through a vent she’d left open.

The interview started with Judge Brill thanking Elizabeth for her cooperation and promising to keep the session brief as possible.

“The primary purpose of our being here,” he explained, “is to provide you with an opportunity to explain your side of this case. Respecting the fact that your stamina is rather limited, I will be the only person asking questions. The attorneys are here as observers. If either attorney feels they have a pertinent issue, they have been instructed to direct the question to me and I will decide whether or not to pursue it.”

“Okay,” Elizabeth answered and gave a right-side-of-the-face smile. Wearing gray slacks and a light blue sweater that matched her eyes, she sat atop the bed with her back propped against a pile of pillows.