When Dakota had first met Cam, he’d come off as a happy-go-lucky bachelor who played a friggin’ game for a living. He didn’t cook for himself. He obviously didn’t clean. He seemed like a boy in a man’s body. But over time, he’d proven himself to be a good friend to both her and Zinny. He’d taught Zinny to swim, brought back rocks for her, given Dakota her dream job and was even helping her hone her skills as an athletic nutritionist. She couldn’t really recall having a friend like him who had her back no matter what life threw at her.
And he kissed like…
No. She wouldn’t think about that. That was a mistake and was not going to happen again. She’d been distraught and vulnerable and weak. She needed to remind herself that if they had sex, it would—pardon the pun—screw up everything, and she had enough on her plate what with Ellen threatening her with legal action.
She shouldn’t have been surprised when Cam arranged for her to meet with a top-notch family law attorney, Wendy Zhang, the very next day.
“She comes highly recommended,” Cam said.
“You’re amazing.”
He waved off the compliment. “I have a charity thing after practice,” he said, “but it should be okay if I cut out early. I can meet you at her office. The appointment’s at one.”
“Cam, no. Don’t do that. Zinny’s my responsibility. You don’t need to get involved in this mess.”
“Dakota, I have news for you, I’m involved up to my neck.”
“I think it’s sweet that you’re so concerned, but I hate the idea that we’re disrupting your life.”
“It’s not a question of responsibility. I’m asking you if you’ll please let me come along because I want to be there. Please.”
He seemed so earnest, and truthfully, she really wanted the moral support, but the line between employer and employee was growing more blurred by the minute and that worried her. Not enough to refuse his offer though.
Promptly at one o’clock, a receptionist brought them to a nicely appointed conference room—fresh flowers on the table—and it wasn’t two minutes before the attorney joined them.
When Cam had first mentioned finding a lawyer, Dakota had imagined a gray-haired little man with round eyeglasses and a gruff manner but Ms. Zhang was in her early forties, tall, with straight black hair and a firm grip.
“Please sit down,” she said. “Would you like something to drink?”
“Your receptionist already offered us something. I’m fine,” Cam said.
“Me too,” Dakota said.
“Very good. Now tell me what I can do for you.” Zhang had a pen and legal pad ready.
Dakota explained the situation, using a bullet-pointed list she’d prepared ahead of time. This entire venture was going to cost a bundle, and the less of the lawyer’s time she took up, the cheaper it would be. Zhang took copious notes and carefully read the letter from Ellen’s attorney, Farrell Kingsley.
“All right,” Zhang said, putting her pen down and folding her hands. “Here’s the deal. As you can tell by the letter, Ellen is threatening to go to the authorities if she doesn’t get a signed custody agreement.”
“What exactly does that mean? The police? Because I’m not a prostitute.”
Zhang nodded. “If you retain me as your legal counsel, it will be my job to help you develop a strategy that will allow you to continue in your role as Zinnia’s guardian. Whether Mrs. Caruthers’s allegations are true or not is irrelevant.”
That seemed pretty strange, but in the American legal system, even criminals got lawyers.
“To answer your question,” Zhang went on, “the authorities are Child Protective Services.”
“Oh, CPS. When I trained with the school district, they told me I was a mandated reporter.” She turned to Cam. “That meant if I suspected a child was being abused or neglected, I was required to call them and report it.”
“That’s right,” Zhang said. “Did you ever need to call?”
“No. So I don’t really know much about it.”
“CPS’s job is to investigate claims of child abuse and act in the best interests of the child, should they find anything unlawful. In this case, Zinnia’s grandmother is threatening to claim that you…” She picked up the letter. “You live a ‘questionable lifestyle of solicitation of sexual acts for compensation.’ If Mrs. Caruthers follows through and makes her allegations, CPS will investigate further by looking through your place of residence and interviewing possible witnesses to this behavior and Zinnia herself.”
“Well, they’re not going to find any witnesses to my prostituting myself because it never happened and it never will. I cleaned houses in my underwear. That’s all. There was never any touching involved. Ever.”
Cam laid his hand over hers. “Easy there.”
“I’m sorry,” Dakota said. “It just makes me so flipping angry.”
Zhang nodded again. “If I may continue… CPS will investigate. Should they deem it necessary to remove Zinnia from the home, they will do so. If unlawful activity is identified, they will turn the case over to the police.”
“Oh my God,” Dakota exclaimed, “Zinny would die if she went to a foster home. We can’t let that happen.” She grabbed Cam’s hand and squeezed it hard. “Under no circumstances can we let that happen.”
Cam gave her a thin smile as he squeezed back. “What are our options, Ms. Zhang? How should we proceed?”
Zhang folded her hands. “Before I can give you any advice, we need to discuss my fee schedule. If it meets with your approval and you officially retain me as your counsel, then we will come up with a game plan.”
Zhang left the conference room while her associate came in. Dakota listened, secretly appalled at how much money lawyers made. Some of the charges she understood. Meetings and phone calls…of course she’d be billed for that. But photocopies? Come on. The woman was making enough money to foot the bill for some damned Xeroxes.
And yet, she got a good vibe from Wendy Zhang, and Cam’s agent had recommended her. Not only that, but time was of the essence. Dakota couldn’t shake the feeling that a guillotine blade was hovering over her head and that if she didn’t act soon, people with power would come steal Zinny away from her forever.
The assistant eventually left Dakota and Cam alone to discuss things.
“What do you think?” Cam asked.
“It’s so much money,” she said.
“Don’t think about that,” he said. “This might sound over the top, but how much money are you willing to spend to ensure that Zinny stays with you? Like, say Ellen was up to taking a bribe. How much would you pay?”
“That’s a horrible way to think about it. Just on principle, I object to the idea of her benefitting from—”
Cam held up his hands. “Okay, you’re right. Stupid scenario, but really we need to put a monetary value on it.”
“Zinny is priceless. I love her. Rose and Thomas trusted me to take care of her and make sure she grew into a wonderful person and I’m not going to let them down.”
“Okay,” he said. “Do you trust Ms. Zhang to guide you in the right direction?”
Dakota glanced around. They were thirty something stories high in the heart of downtown. If it hadn’t been foggy, she would have been able to see the sparkling waters of the San Francisco bay and the Golden Gate Bridge. To be able to afford this kind of office space, Wendy Zhang had to be very good at what she did. Ironically, one of Ellen’s favorite quotes was, “You get what you pay for,” and Dakota thought it definitely applied to lawyers. But aside from that, Wendy Zhang came off as capable, quick, and probably the most intelligent person Dakota had ever met. On their way in, they’d passed several diplomas, one of which was from Harvard.
Having googled Farrell Kingsley, Dakota knew his offices were also downtown. He had graduated from Stanford, drove a Tesla and liked to vacation in Aruba. If Dakota knew Ellen, the woman had probably shopped around for weeks to find the perfect attorney before settling on Kingsley, which proved something Dakota had always suspected—that Ellen had money. She lived very frugally in a modest neighborhood, but Thomas had said things that made Dakota believe Ellen was just cheap.
“I think so. Yes.”
“Then let’s do this. And don’t worry about the legal fees. I’ll loan you whatever you need.”
Dakota hated being in debt, but if she had to choose between losing Zinny and owing Cam money, she’d choose the latter every time.
After Dakota signed the contract and got her copy, Wendy reentered the room.
“So, what now?” Dakota asked.
“First, I need to know if you’re willing to enter into negotiations about sharing custody with Mrs. Caruthers.”
Dakota almost laughed. “No. No way. Are you kidding? Not after this.”
Wendy nodded. “I completely understand. That’s your prerogative, but I need to warn you, if we call her bluff, and she reports you to Child Protective Services, they are obligated to investigate. The first phase will be a visit from a social worker, who will look at the child’s designated space, bathroom facilities, the cleanliness of the kitchen—”
Dakota and Cam exchanged a look. The kitchen was spotless all the time now.
“If that social worker finds cause for concern, the case is turned over to the State’s Attorney for further investigation. This is when it becomes intrusive and unpleasant. They will look for evidence of drug and/or alcohol abuse, look at bank and phone records, tax returns. They’ll talk to your business associates, coworkers, bosses. You might even be required to undergo a psych evaluation or a drug test. If it is then determined that the child is being abused or neglected, they will assume custody of her.”
Dakota felt her insides freeze at the idea that people could come and rip Zinny out of her life. It reminded her of some movie that came out years ago about people’s organs being harvested against their will. She imagined that’s what it would feel like. Instinctively, she reached for Cam’s hand.
“Are you still living in Mrs. Caruthers’s house, Dakota?”
“No. I threw everything I owned into my car and took Zinny to Cam’s house two nights ago.”
“Good. But this means the social worker will come to your house, Mr. Bowes.”
“I have nothing to hide and neither does Dakota.”
“Very well. I will draft and send a letter to Mr. Kingsley, informing him that you will not be granting Ellen Caruthers custody of your niece, nor are you willing to enter into negotiations regarding partial custody. After that, we will have to play it by ear. It’s possible that Mrs. Caruthers was just testing the waters to see how serious you are. She might have thought you were amenable to absolving yourself of your responsibilities regarding your niece. I’ve seen that happen. People don’t realize what’s involved in raising a child and they reconsider.”
“That’s not the case here,” Dakota said firmly.
“So, it’s possible that she won’t take any more action and our letter will be all that’s necessary. On the other hand, it might not have been a bluff. She might be just as determined as you are, so you’ll need to be prepared for that CPS visit.”