“No, no, I’m nearly floating now.” Instead of relaxing, Louie sat up straight on the edge of a cushion as Elizabeth took a seat in a white wicker chair. “I’m surprised the hearing’s over. I thought it would go into a second day. Did Austin do the decent thing and withdraw his motion?”
“Austin and decency is an oxymoron,” Elizabeth said with a grimace. “Gina and I testified this morning, then he took the stand after lunch. Judge Hetherington—”
“Old Lock-’em-up Larry,” Louie muttered as he tossed what was left of his drink into the grass.
“You know him?” Elizabeth asked.
“I’ve watched him preside in a couple of high-profile cases,” Louie said, “but that was years ago. I hope he’s mellowed in his old age.”
It always amazed her how informed Louie was for a man who seldom left his house except to stroll over to hers. He had an opinion about politics, about social problems, about current faces in the news. It shouldn’t surprise her that he recognized the names of locals in the legal community. Judge Hetherington had been on the bench in Houston for over thirty years. Where Louie Christian had been for most of that time was a mystery. He was vague about his past, which was fine with her. She wasn’t one to pry into anyone’s past. It was the present that mattered where Louie was concerned. For one thing, he was the nearest thing to a grandparent that Jesse had, since Austin’s father was a cold fish and his mother lived with her second husband in Phoenix, Arizona, and had never expressed any interest in spending time with the little girl. Louie had an endless supply of anecdotes about his boyhood that enchanted Jesse. Elizabeth herself was charmed by his tales, so much so that she’d used a couple to illustrate themes in her books.
“Let’s pray that he has mellowed,” Elizabeth said now, plucking a spent bloom from a camellia. She’d have to think about getting her yard man to put in some petunias soon. And possibly some daylilies. The lantana would return on its own, flourishing in Houston’s heat. One of the perks of the climate was that her yard was alive with color year-round.
“Exactly what happened today, Liz?”
“Ryan Paxton was brutal to both of us on the stand. Then Austin lied outrageously when it was his turn. There’s no one to refute what goes on between two people in the privacy of their home, Louie, so he painted a picture of Gina that could have made even me wonder if she was an unfit mother. Maude did a good job trying to show that Austin was motivated by a self-serving need to give Gina nothing in the way of decent financial support, but what concerns me most is Austin’s claim that she is unstable.” She stared beyond the trees to the older man’s house, frowning. “She’ll be lucky to come out of this with equally shared custody, Louie. Even worse, it’ll be a miracle if she gets a pittance in the way of child support, too.”
“Hetherington will have to award her reasonable child support.”
“But what if he believes she’s unstable and primary custody goes to Austin?” she asked anxiously.
“Isn’t that what you think?”
She looked at him with surprise. “What?”
Louie was shaking his head. “You haven’t admitted it to yourself, have you? You’ve been Gina’s guardian angel since the two of you were prepubescent, Liz. You’ve watched her make crazy choices even as you begged her to be reasonable, you’ve stepped in to grease the way back when she’s been irresponsible, you’ve lectured and cajoled, you’ve sympathized and nagged. When are you going to insist that she grow up?”
Elizabeth was on her feet now, hugging her middle as if to arm herself against what he said. “That’s a little harsh, isn’t it? And somewhat judgmental.”
He muttered something she didn’t quite catch, then said, “But is it wrong?”
“Some people find it harder to overcome the hardships of childhood than others.”
“Yes, and she can thank the good Lord that you aren’t one of them. Pity poor Jesse-girl if both of you were as damaged as Gina. As it is, the child’s got you as a second mother figure and a stabilizing influence.” Louie gazed through the trees to the patio of his own house where the two children romped and squealed and Archie barked in joyful accompaniment. “The real fear here is that Austin might change his mind and renew their affair. She won’t be able to hold out if he does.”
The same thought was making Elizabeth’s nights long and sleepless. But it made her feel guilty and disloyal to discuss it. To be honest, it was Jesse’s welfare that concerned her more than Gina’s. After all, Gina was an adult, a fact she’d often reminded Elizabeth of when they got on the subject of her relationship with Austin.
Louie was looking at her keenly. “I don’t hear a denial, Lizzie.”
She rubbed her forehead with one hand. “Not this time, Louie. I think the possibility of getting back with Austin is hopeless. He’s tired of her at last and that’s the only way this whole miserable situation is ever going to end.”
“And now, all we have to worry about is what happens to Jesse.”
“Yes, that’s all.”
Seeing the enormity of her fear, Louie rubbed his chin and looked wise. “I wouldn’t be too worried about that, Liz. Frankly, I can’t see a man like Austin wanting the responsibility of a young child. That takes an emotional toll, not to mention time and energy. He’ll avoid all three like a bull avoiding a rattlesnake.”
“I know he’s not concerned about Jesse’s welfare. He never has been. If there had been any doubt about that, he proved otherwise when he tried to force Gina to put Jesse on the stand. He had no thought of how devastating that might be for a five-year-old child. He’s shameless!”
“And selfish.”
“Well, to Gina’s credit, she refused,” Elizabeth said. “What I worry about now is that he’s so vindictive that he’d separate Jesse from Gina and never even consider the heartbreak that would cause both of them.”
“And you.” Louie was looking at her with sympathy. “You have too much invested in this, Liz, and no control over the outcome. You need a husband and children yourself. You’d be a terrific mother, but you’ve invested so much emotionally in these two that you aren’t even open to the possibility of a family of your own.”
She had been once, she thought, watching a dragonfly settle on the back of a chair. And she’d believed herself so close to realizing that dream. Once. “I’m not past the age of possibilities yet, Louie,” she said dryly. “I’m thirty, not fifty. There’s still time for me to marry. In the meantime, I’m concentrating on doing everything I can to help find a happy ending for Jesse. And Gina, of course.”
“Hmm. Meanwhile, let’s be grateful that we’re finally seeing the end of that sorry relationship,” Louie said, adding in a wry tone, “if we’re lucky. And even though it’s Austin doing the walking. Hell, it’s years overdue, but now’s not the time to look a gift horse in the mouth.”
“It’s so frustrating.” Elizabeth watched the dragonfly lift off and fly away. “But the more I know about people in abusive relationships, the more I can see Gina conforming to type. I remember the first time I saw purple marks he left on both her arms. I insisted that she pack up, leave him and file an official report with the police. She didn’t have Jesse then. It would have been so much easier than now. You know what she said?” Louie still sat silent. Unable to stand still, Elizabeth began pacing. “She said she’d provoked him, that it was as much her fault as his. I couldn’t believe it. She was battered and bruised and I think he’d made a mark on her cheek that she’d tried to cover up with makeup, which meant he’d struck her in the face, for heaven sake.” Her arms were again tight around herself and her eyes had a suspicious brightness. “That was the beginning and it only got worse. Gina’s reaction was right out of a textbook. Sadly, you’re right that she’d go back today if Austin smiled and crooked his finger.”
“Well,