The Billionaire Playboy’s Secret Family
Chapter 55

Regina anxiously sat in her seat on the defendant's side. How long had it been since the kids were taken? A day? Two? A week? She was no longer sure. One day blurred into another. She couldn't remember the last time she slept. Behind her, her mother and sister sat nervously glancing at the petite brunette sitting beside the opposing lawyer.

Ulima in particular stared at the woman in fear of the memory of the day the children were taken. She would never forget that woman's horrid face or the helplessness she felt watching them drag her grandchildren away. Facing Regina when she came back home was even harder than she expected. Regina broke down completely at the news and hadn't spoken more than a couple words to either her mother or sister. She was a shell of her usual self.

The social worker sat smug in the seat next to the lawyer hired to present their case against Regina glancing over her shoulder now and again. Renata followed her gaze to see another woman seated in the back trying not to attract attention. She was dressed in a business suit and Renata briefly wondered if she was some sort of supervisor though at a second glance the woman did seem familiar but for the life of her she couldn't remember where they might have met.

The kids were waiting in a small conference room. They had been allowed a few precious moments with them before the hearing. Gabriella spent the entire time in her mother's lap quietly whimpering while her siblings gave a full report of what happened after they were taken. Apparently they had been split up. The boys had been sent to one foster home and the girls to another. It was a small comfort that Savannah had been able to watch over her sister and make sure she took her medicine.

At the very least it seemed as if the foster families they were sent to were kind. The girls stayed with an older lady who liked to bake. She had found Gabriella's medicine while helping them unpack and had been surprisingly insistent about her taking it whenever she gave Savannah a difficult time. In fact she had shown Gabriella all her own medication to inspire her to take her own. The boys on the other hand were sent to a couple already looking after two other boys. The couple was nice enough though not particularly attentive.

The news did little to comfort Regina who clung tightly to them wanting nothing more than to run away with them immediately. Now she sat pensive and silent. She barely glanced at the opposing counsel or the worker. If she looked at them nothing would stop her from beating the woman senseless for interfering with her family. Though it would be satisfying it probably wasn't the best impression to make.

The silence was broken as the door opened and her lawyer arrived. She marched in confidently shaking Renata and Ulima's hands before joining Regina. Giving Regina's shoulder a squeeze she set her briefcase on the table. The lawyer seated with the social worker suddenly stood his mouth so wide it practically hit the floor.

"Tracy? What are you doing here?"

"I'm here for my client, naturally," she shot him a grim smile.

"But...there's no way they could hire you!" he stuttered.

"Just what is that supposed to mean?" Tracy demanded. "My clients have a lot more connections than you figured. You're going to regret this fight, I guarantee it. So sit down."

Tracy took her own seat whispering words of encouragement to Regina. Even if Sarah hadn't called her as a personal favor Tracy would have happily taken the case. At one glance it was clear CPS was rushing the process trying to bully Regina for reasons that were unknown...at least publicly.

Tracy was grim as she recalled her first interview with Regina. Sarah had given her the address and she had gone to hear her side. They sat at the table in awkward silence for several minutes before Tray finally broke the ice.

"Miss Torres, my name is Tracy Conroy. Your mother works for a friend of mine who asked me to look into your case but if I'm going to do this I need to know everything, any detail could help even if you think it is small. You need to trust me. As my client you are protected by client confidentiality. Everything you say to me will be kept in strict privacy and will not be divulged. So let's start at the beginning...tell me about your children..."

It had taken quite a bit of coaxing but Tracy finally got Regina to talk and her mind was still trying to process the revelations. It must have been so hard for Regina to live with such secrets but Tracy understood why she never confided in anyone, even her family. After all she went through with Ava and the kids Tracy fully understood the fear that could eclipse everything else in a mother's mind when she was set on protecting her children.

But now Tracy had a fair idea who was prodding CPS into rushing procedures. Her hunch proved correct the moment she glimpsed the woman at the back of the courtroom but if they thought they found an easy target Tracy was set to prove them wrong. They would regret starting this fight.

"All rise, the honorable Judge Matthews presiding."

They stood watching the older man enter and take his seat.

"Be seated," the judge gestured. "Let's see. The state of New York versus Regina Torres. They claim she is an unfit mother. This is a preliminary hearing..."

"That's right, your honor," the CPS lawyer stood trying to recapture his confidence before Tracy's entrance.

"Very well," Judge Matthews gave him a disgruntled look for interrupting. "You all understand you are under oath. Proceed, Mister Cozbi."

"Thank you," he said not seeming to pick up on the judge's irritation. "I call Miss Madison to the stand."

The social worker stood and made her way to the witness stand where she took a seat with a smug smile.

"Miss Madison, in your own words, tell us what happened on the afternoon of May tenth and what led up to it."

"We received an anonymous complaint that several children were living in deplorable conditions. The complaints alleged they were being neglected and their mother unfit. So I got an emergency order for removal and called the police for back-up." "Police back-up?" her lawyer asked.

"Because it was a dangerous neighborhood. No one should be living there let alone children."

"And what did you replace when you got there?"

"Well, first of all the elevator was broken. And the apartment was crude. She had four kids crammed into a single bedroom."

"So it was not an appropriate place for children?"

"I wouldn't even let my dog set foot there. And there were drugs, of course."

"Drugs?"

"Pills. Disgusting. How that woman can call herself a mother is beyond me."

"I see," the lawyer smiled like he hit the jackpot. "Was Miss Torres there at the time?"

"Of course not. She was probably at her job messing with her clients."

"Clients?"

"Yes. We were informed she works at a strip club and she has a habit of bringing men home with her. Children should not be exposed to such things."

Renata and Ulima shared confused glances. Regina cringed in her seat and felt her face warm but Tracy was unmoved knowing the truth. The opposing lawyer gave her a triumphant smile but his smirk disappeared at the sight of her calm.

"No further questions," he said. He had taken the case expecting an easy win but he didn't count on Tracy's arrival and her certainly didn't expect her so calm now.

"Would the defense like to cross-examine?"

Tracy stood sliding toward the stand with a smile. Outwardly it seemed friendly but it still made the social worker nervous.

"Let me see if I got this straight," Tracy said, "you received a complaint and petitioned for an emergency order to remove the children sight unseen. Is that correct?" "Well I..."

"Is that correct?"

"...Yes."

"So CPS doesn't do their own investigations anymore?"

"Well, no. Of course we do."

"But you found it unnecessary?"

"Well, the complaint came from a very reputable source."

"I thought you said it was anonymous."

"Um...yes...Well......."

"Would you like to hear your previous testimony read back to you?"

The social worker shifted uncomfortably.

Tracy let her squirm in her seat before saying, "Maybe that was too difficult for your first question. How about this...When you arrived at the Torres's residence what did you observe?" "Pardon?"

"Was Miss Torres there?'

"Of course not she was..."

"Let's leave speculation out of it, shall we?" Tracy asked. "So she wasn't home. Was there an adult on the premises? Or were the children minding themselves?"

"No. Their grandmother was there."

"And what was the condition of the apartment? Was it covered in filth? Cockroaches everywhere?"

"No."

"And the children, were they covered in filth? Unwashed clothes? Covered in bruises? Malnourished?"

"No."

"So let me see if I have this correct... You received a complaint that my client wasn't taking care of her children. When you went to her home you found it clean, the children clean and fed and properly supervised...is that correct?" "Well..." "Is that correct?"