The judge adjusted his glasses, looked at the two boys sitting quietly in front of him, and asked the question that made the entire courtroom hold its breath.
“Ethan… Mason… who do you want to live with? Your mother or your father?”
Inside a crowded family courtroom in downtown Chicago, nobody moved.
Olivia Carter felt her chest tighten so hard she could barely breathe. Her hands were ice cold. She had been twisting the sleeves of her wrinkled blouse for so long that the fabric was stretched thin. The cheap makeup she bought at a pharmacy did nothing to hide the dark circles beneath her eyes.
Beside her, her exhausted legal aid attorney whispered softly, “Stay calm.”
But how was she supposed to stay calm when the man who had controlled and humiliated her for twelve years was seconds away from taking her children?
Across the room sat Jonathan Reed.
Millionaire real estate developer. Owner of luxury towers across Illinois. Navy suit. Silver watch. Perfect posture. The kind of calm smile powerful men wear when they already believe they’ve won.
And he hadn’t come alone.
Two expensive attorneys sat beside him. His mother, Victoria Reed, sat proudly in pearls near the front row. Next to her lounged his twenty-four-year-old influencer girlfriend, Savannah Blake, whose social media videos featured rooftop dinners and designer handbags worth more than Olivia spent on groceries in a month.
Olivia wasn’t asking for the mansion in Lake Forest.
She wasn’t asking for money, jewelry, or cars.
She only wanted one thing:
For her twin boys not to grow up terrified inside their own home.
Jonathan’s attorney stood smoothly.
“Your Honor, my client can provide financial stability, private education, medical coverage, and a secure environment for the children. Mrs. Carter, meanwhile, has no stable employment, currently lives with a cousin in a small apartment on the South Side, and has demonstrated emotional instability.”
