“Good. Mary, can you tell me what it was like at home? What was it like when Veronica was there?”
Mary was quiet for a long moment. Then, in a small voice, she said, “When Daddy was home… it was nice. She smiled and gave us good food.”
“And when your daddy wasn’t home?” the judge asked.
Mary’s voice dropped to a near whisper. “Everything was… different.”
“Can you explain to me how it was different?” Judge Davis prompted gently.
Mary’s gaze darted to her father. Marcus met her eyes and nodded slowly, mouthing the words, “Tell the truth.”
“She was… she was mean,” Mary whispered. “She would get angry about little things, like if I spilled my water or if James was crying. She said we were bad, ungrateful children.”
“What would happen when she got angry?”
“She would lock us in our rooms. For a long time. She wouldn’t let us out, even to eat.”
“Mary,” the judge said, “did she ever… did she ever grab you, or James?”
Mary nodded. “She grabbed my arm really hard. And she grabbed James, too, when he wouldn’t stop crying. She told me if I ever told Daddy, she would… she would send us away to a bad place, and we’d never see him again.”
The courtroom was completely silent.
“But I have to tell,” Mary said, her voice suddenly a little stronger. “Because… because James is too little. And someone has to protect him.”
Judge Davis looked at Mary for a long moment, her eyes full of a sad understanding. “Thank you, Mary. You are a very, very brave girl. You can go back to your daddy.”
Mary practically ran off the stand and launched herself into Marcus’s arms, burying her face in his chest. He held her, shaking with relief.
“Your Honor,” Michelle Williams said, standing up. “I must object. This is clearly a child who has been coached by a manipulative father…”
“Objection overruled, Ms. Williams,” Judge Davis said. “But before I…”
“She’s lying!” Veronica suddenly shrieked, jumping to her feet. All pretense of the victim was gone. Her face was red and contorted in rage. “That little… She’s lying! I was good to them! I was the only one who cared!”
“Mrs. Johnson, sit down!” Michelle Williams hissed, trying to pull her client back into her chair.
“Order!” Judge Davis banged her gavel. “Mrs. Johnson, control yourself!”
“No! I won’t be silent! I gave up my life for those ungrateful brats! He was never home! I was the one who had to deal with them! They needed discipline! They needed a firm hand!”
“Mrs. Johnson,” the judge said, her voice like ice, “you are in contempt of court.”
“I don’t care!” Veronica screamed. “He’s the bad father! He abandoned them! And you… you believed that lying little girl over me!”
“Bailiff,” Judge Davis said, “please remove Mrs. Johnson from my courtroom.”
As the bailiff approached, Veronica’s mask of sanity completely dissolved. “You’ll all be sorry!” she raved, as she was physically escorted out. “You haven’t heard the last of me! You’ll never get away with this, Marcus!”
The courtroom door slammed shut, leaving a stunned silence in its wake.
Judge Davis took a deep breath, her face grim. She looked at the empty chair where Veronica had been, and then at Marcus, who was still holding his daughter.
“I have heard,” the judge said, “more than enough. The photographs, the testimony of Mrs. Deborah, and the credible, brave testimony of Mary Johnson paint a very clear and disturbing picture.”
Marcus held his breath…
