One Dysfunctional Mess part 4

Chapter 5 Phone Calls

Turner Kirk had been Jason's friend since they were in tenth grade when they met at Annapolis senior high.  And recently he had become to his divorce attorney as he helped him with the dissolution of his marriage.   Something that Turner felt should have happened years ago.  The first time that she hit him should have been the end of their marriage in his opinion.   There should have never been any second chance.  The night she slapped him across the face she crossed a line that she that there was no coming back from.

But he did not leave her.  Not after the first slap, not after the second, or not after the tenth.  And not after she forced him to sit in a closet while she made love the twenty year old neighbor kid as some perverse form of punishment.  Despite his best efforts and the efforts of his other friends he stayed with her.  Kept going back to his abuser, taking the blame for her actions, saying he deserved it.

Turner was so happy the morning he called him to tell him that he had finally left.  And not only did he leave but he took with Jack with him.  Both he and his wife breathed a sigh of relief that the nightmare that their friend had been caught was over.

He just hoped that he never returned to her.  That he stuck to her guns and did not allow her to manipulate him into going back to her.  To giving her another chance out of foolish belief that they will change.

They never changed.  Maybe for a little but then something would happen to make them angry and they would be back to their old abusive self.

The forty year old man had lost count of how many of his clients he buried over the year because they believed their spouse had really changed this time.  That they were different, that they were truly sorry for what they had done.

That was his fear when he had gotten a call from Jason after dinner.  He had just sat down with his wife and their two kids under ten to watch movie when his phone rang.  He had felt a sense of dread when he saw that it was from Jason.  Please don't be going back to her he thought.

But that was not the reason for his call.  In a million year he would have never guessed why he was calling.  "You and Lauren had a son."  Turner said quite loudly from his den.  He imagined that his wife and children had turned their attention from the television to the door of his den.

"Yeah."  Jason said.  "He's fifteen."

"And she never told you."  Turner said incensed.

"Nope, she never told me."  Jason said.

"I can't believe that she would do something like."  Turner said. "I thought she was better than that."

"Let's not judge her too harshly."  Jason said.

"I'm your lawyer Jason."  Turner said. "Its my job to judge her harshly."

"She was also your friend."  Jason said.

"Yes but she is not my client."  Turner said. "You are my client and its your rights that I am looking out for."

"What are my rights?"  Jason asked.

"Well you have a right to petition the court visitation."  Turner replied. "Or to seek joint custody or even full."  He told him. "If you want to full custody I would petition for it in Virginia not Maryland.  Maryland does not have the best track record when it comes to father's rights."

"I don't want full custody."  Jason said. "Not if I don't have to."

"Then let's go for joint custody."  Turner said.  "I will file for petition in Maryland and Virginia for joint custody in the morning."

"I don't want to do that just yet."  Jason said. "I want to sit down with her and see if we can work out an arrangement without involving the courts."

"Yes, yes that sounds very nice but understand Jason without any legal backing any arrangement you come to can easily be broken by her."  Turner said.  "If she wants to she could easily keep John away from you for the next three years."