Chapter 8 - The Courtroom Drama
The family court hearing was a slaughter.
Julian walked in looking ten years older. His custom suits had been replaced by a cheap off-the-rack jacket; his arrogant swagger was gone, replaced by a nervous twitch. He had hired a bargain-bin lawyer who looked like he was regretting taking the case.
Julian tried to play the victim. He wept on the stand, claiming he was a dedicated father who was being kept from his newborn son by a vindictive, hormonally unbalanced wife.
Evelyn didn't even raise her voice. She simply brought out the timeline.
"Mr. Vance," Evelyn asked, projecting a large photograph on the screen. It was Julian’s Instagram post from Cabo—the two cocktails. "Can you read the timestamp on this photo?"
"July 12th. 4:00 PM," Julian mumbled.
"And can you tell the court where your wife was on July 12th at 4:00 PM?"
Julian swallowed hard. "In the hospital."
May you like
"Yes. Giving birth to your son. While you were drinking tequila with your mother, ignoring six emergency calls, having abandoned her at thirty-nine weeks pregnant." Evelyn turned to the judge. "Your Honor, Mr. Vance abandoned his heavily pregnant wife to go on vacation, while simultaneously embezzling millions from her trust. He is a flight risk, a documented fraud, and a danger to my client's stability."
The judge looked at Julian with a mixture of disgust and pity. Full physical and legal custody was awarded to me. Julian was granted zero visitation until his federal criminal trial was resolved.
