Chapter 6

Foster

Given the emergency nature of our custody dispute and the parties living on opposite sides of the United States, the Allegheny judge assigned to the case set up the hearing to be held via Zoom. This is apparently done in many court cases for expediency and to save on travel.

I’m sitting in a conference room at my attorney’s office. Brienne had me hire Jared Cole because he’s made quite the reputation for himself by championing single dads seeking full custody. The historical stereotype that only mothers can care for their kids is quite the barrier to many men and Jared, a single dad himself, is ruthlessly dedicated to the cause.

However, he doesn’t just take any case. He actually vetted me when I first called him, as he wanted to make sure I was the best choice for Bowie Jane in these particular circumstances. I respect that.

We’re sitting side by side, his laptop before us, and the Zoom session initiated. He’s chosen to keep the camera and sound off until the judge enters, so we don’t have to stare awkwardly at Sandra and her attorney, an older man with a bow tie and black-rimmed glasses.

Unlike us, they’ve kept their camera on, and even with their sound muted, it’s clear Sandra is peeved to be sitting here. She keeps checking her watch and while I can’t hear what she says, there’s irritation on her face when she asks her attorney something. She doesn’t seem to like his answer either.

Then she looks off camera and says something, and to my surprise, I see Chet lean in to kiss her cheek. He says something that seems to reassure her as her expression turns bland.

“And that’s why we keep the camera off,” Jared says with a chuckle. “We know that Sandra’s already on edge.”

My attorney has me well prepped so when the Honorable Hoyt Templeton joins the meeting, along with his clerk, I know my role is to sit back and keep my mouth shut unless Jared specifically tells me to talk. I also know to keep a neutral expression and my hands clasped on the table, the perfect picture of calm maturity.

“I want to thank you all for being here.” The judge, with his charcoal-gray hair and trim beard, glances down at his desk, then up again. “I’ve read the father’s, Foster McInnis, petition for custody as well as the mother’s, Sandra Tanner, response and I believe I understand the issues before us.” Jared had me read over the petition before he filed it and it’s a good piece of reading. He was succinct in laying out my concerns with Sandra, something he assured me that this judge appreciates. He wasn’t big on drama or overreaching. “Do either of the parties wish to add anything?”

Jared pipes up first. “Your Honor, we believe our petition is clear that Mr. McInnis has a genuine concern for his daughter’s welfare and is vehemently opposed to her leaving the country. We’ve attached character witness statements from family, friends and co-workers, notably including Brienne Norcross, the owner of the Pittsburgh Titans. The only other thing I’ll add is that Mr. McInnis has secured a full-time nanny with impeccable credentials to care for his daughter when he is traveling and is fully prepared to accept full physical custody after the hearing today.”

The judge nods. “Anything from your client?” he asks the other attorney.

The man starts to shake his head, but Sandra elbows him in the arm, leans toward him and whispers harshly, clear enough so everyone can hear, “I would like to have my say.”

Her attorney’s shoulders sag and he makes a motion toward the camera. “Your Honor, my client would like to say a few words.”

The judge looks respectfully interested as Sandra begins what can only be termed as a rant. I keep my ears open as she talks about the injustice of choosing between a job and her daughter and how, in this day and age, she should be able to have both. But my eyes remain on the judge whose open expression shutters when she says, “I’ve been waiting my entire life for a big break like this and I deserve it. It is an opportunity I can’t and won’t pass up.”

I somehow manage not to laugh at the absurdity and when she’s done, the judge says, “Thank you, Ms. Tanner. I’ve noted your concerns.”

He then looks directly into the camera. “If neither side has an objection, I’d like to talk to Bowie Jane. I believe my clerk asked that you have her present but not in the room at this time.”

Sandra’s attorney nods. “She’s in my paralegal’s office.”

“Does anyone object to me talking to her privately? I will have all of you, other than my clerk and Bowie Jane, temporarily disconnect from this meeting.”

Jared looks at me. “That’s fine.”

Sandra’s attorney looks at her and she seems indecisive, but eventually nods.

It takes a few moments for them to get Bowie Jane, who sits beside Sandra as the judge introduces himself over the Zoom session. He asks her, “Would you mind if you and I talked privately? Neither of your parents nor their attorneys would be with us. Just my clerk.”

Bowie Jane looks uneasy but nods her assent. “Okay.”

“I promise I’ll be quick and only ask the easiest of questions,” the judge says kindly, giving her a wink. “Okay… Mr. Cole, if you and your client will disconnect. I’m going to ask everyone in the room with Bowie Jane to step out, close the door and give her complete privacy so we can talk.”

It’s not a good feeling when Jared complies immediately by disconnecting us from the meeting. The screen goes dark and I have no clue what’s going on. I trust Bowie Jane to handle herself just fine, and I’m sure the judge wants her take on things. I have no qualms with him asking her, mainly because I know she doesn’t want to go to Singapore. She confided in me on our last call but she’s also sad to be separated from her mother.

We wait in Jared’s conference room, chatting about hockey until he receives an invite to re-enter the meeting. When we do, Sandra and her attorney are back on camera and Bowie Jane is not in sight.

“I appreciate everyone’s efforts today in providing me the details necessary to evaluate this case. There are no cut-and-dried custody issues before this court and it’s my solemn duty to look at all angles and take into account all the positives and negatives before me. Mostly, though, my duty is to the child, in this case, your lovely daughter, Bowie Jane. I will not divulge what she told me but I can tell you that what she said did not weigh into my decision at all. I merely wanted to make sure she could adjust to her life being uprooted from California.”

The judge pauses and my ears start to ring as he continues. “It is my belief that it is in Bowie Jane’s best interests not to be taken out of the country and given Ms. Tanner’s adamant assertions that she is not going to pass up this opportunity in Singapore, I’m going to award temporary full physical and legal custody to her father, Foster McInnis. Should Ms. Tanner come back from Singapore and wish this court to reconsider a change in my custodial order, I’m happy to hear further arguments. This order is in effect immediately and Mr. McInnis, I’m charging you with the cost and burden of collecting your daughter from California.”

“I’ll be on the first flight out,” I reply, so deliriously happy that I’m afraid I might bust out in song and dance.

“This isn’t fair,” Sandra screeches, and her attorney puts a quieting hand on her shoulder. She shrugs it off, leans forward and glares into the camera. “I demand an appeal because you got it wrong.”

The judge is completely nonplussed and sounds vaguely bored. “You’re certainly entitled to appeal my ruling. Your attorney knows the procedure.” Then he leans forward, bringing his face closer to the camera so there’s no mistaking he’s talking to only Sandra. “But until such time, I would strongly suggest that you follow my order, Ms. Tanner. I’m also going to include in the order that nothing about this decision is to be taken out on your daughter and neither parent is to do anything to make her feel bad or regretful about a decision that she had no control over. Am I clear?”

“We’re clear, Your Honor,” Sandra’s attorney says, pulling her back.

“No,” Judge Templeton says. “I want to hear it from your client. Ms. Tanner… do you understand me?”

“Loud and clear,” she grits out.

The judge smiles. “Good. I will email my signed order within the hour to the attorneys. We’re adjourned.”

His screen goes blank along with his clerk’s. Jared says to Sandra’s attorney, “I’ll give you a call in a bit so we can arrange transfer of custody.”

“Sounds good,” he replies, and then disconnects from the Zoom meeting.

Jared does the same and turns to me, holding his hand up for a high five. I slap it hard, grinning at him. “I cannot thank you enough.”

“I didn’t do anything but present the facts. The judge made the right call.”

I start to stand from my chair. “I’ve got to book a flight and get packed.”

Jared puts a hand on my forearm. “Let’s just hold on that until I can talk to her attorney. Also, you need to be prepared that she might appeal as she threatened.”

“She could change her mind and not go to Singapore,” I muse, the thought not settling well. I’d already committed to becoming the full-time custodian for Bowie Jane and my heart is set on her coming to live with me now.

“Even if she does, that doesn’t change the judge’s order. He’s transferred custody so she’s yours now. But things could change if Sandra wants to fight it. Just be aware it could get ugly and costly.”

“I’m not worried about the cost,” I assure him, but a darker thought tightens my gut. “I just don’t want this to be a roller coaster for Bowie Jane. I want her settled. So once she’s with me, I’ll fight to keep her at all costs.”

“What about visitation? We didn’t address that but I’m glad to negotiate something with her attorney.”

“She can visit her anytime she wants, with notice, of course. But not out of the country.”

The attorney scribbles a note. “Got it. Anything else?”

“That’s all I can think of,” I reply, rising as Jared does. We shake hands. “Call me once everything’s settled so I can book a flight.”

He walks me out and once I’m in my car and the Bluetooth connects, I prioritize the two calls I have to make.

First, I call Callum and he answers with, “Please tell me you got custody.”

“I got custody,” I yell with glee.

“That’s fucking awesome, man. I’m really happy for you.”

“My plan is to fly out tonight but I’m not sure about the return trip. I don’t know if Sandra is going to make it difficult, but I’ll let you know when I get there. Regardless, I’m not going to make the two home games this week.”

“I talked to Coach already and it’s good. You weren’t going to get much playing time anyway.”

That’s a good thing to hear, because if they were worried about how I stacked up against some of the others invited to camp, they’d want me out on the ice during those games. I think Callum is telling me on the down low my position is good, but I take nothing for granted. “I’ll be ready to kick ass Friday night in Columbus.”

“If you need to miss that game too, it’s fine,” Callum says. “We have two more preseason games next week. I know you probably have a lot to do to get Bowie Jane settled in.”

“I should be good but I’ll keep that in mind,” I say, leaving myself the out in case things go wrong in any way. I don’t trust Sandra not to try to fuck this up, especially seeing how mad she was over the judge’s ruling. “I’ll call you tomorrow after I have a better idea of my return timing.”

“Sounds good. Congrats again, Foster. I know you’ll be an exponentially happier man having your daughter here.”

“Got that right,” I murmur. “Talk later.”

As soon as the line disconnects, I scroll my very short Favorites list to the bottom where I added Mazzy Archer’s name after she called to accept my offer last night. I figured we’d be talking and texting a lot over the coming months—assuming the custody hearing worked out in my favor—and her number would need to be at the forefront. Hell, I probably should move her to the top, seeing as she’ll be the second-most important person in my life starting tomorrow.

As Bowie Jane’s nanny, she’s far more than a babysitter. She’s going to be protector, nurturer, disciplinarian, chief hugger and teller of bedtime stories, cook, playmate and to some extent, a surrogate mother. Mazzy will be caring for the most precious thing in my life, so she too will be precious to me.

I tap her number and bop along to some pop song I vaguely know on the radio. “Hello,” Mazzy answers almost hesitantly, as if she’s fearing the worst news.

“Looks like you’re officially employed,” I say.

She whoops a cheer. “Oh my God! Congratulations, Foster. That’s wonderful news. I mean, yes, I have a job, but I’m really happy for you.”

“Thanks.” I’m beaming from ear to ear. “I’ll fly to San Francisco hopefully tonight. I’m going to wait a day though before bringing her back. Give Bowie Jane some time with her mom.”

“That’s very kind of you,” Mazzy says.

“My daughter loves her mother. This isn’t going to be easy on her so I want her to have that time, but I also want to get her back here. The sooner I can get her into a routine with you and school, the better it will be for her.”

“Agreed.”

“Would you like to move your stuff in while I’m gone? If so, you could come by and get a key and I’ll show you around. We also need to figure out the best way for me to pay you and handle taxes and all that shit.”

“I can direct you on how to do that,” she says with a laugh. “And yes… I’d love to come by and get a key so I can get my stuff moved in. If you leave me with Bowie Jane’s favorite things to eat, I’ll make a grocery run for you.”

“Perfect. I’ll leave you a credit card to use for stuff like that.”

Mazzy laughs. “Look at us working the teammate action!”

“I suppose we are sort of teammates when it comes to caring for Bowie Jane.”

We make plans to meet in a few hours and after we hang up, I take a moment to digest the monumental change my life is about to undergo. It never once occurred to me that I would be Bowie Jane’s primary caretaker. Her mom always had that role and was fucking fantastic at it. However, when push came to shove, I knew deep down I have what it takes. It might not be the same conventional lifestyle my kid is used to—having a mom take you and pick you up from school, cook all your meals, help with your homework—but the one thing my kid is is resilient and I know she’ll adjust.

I can only hope she makes a genuine connection with Mazzy, who will be the glue holding all our worlds together. If those two are right with each other, everything will be just fine.