Chapter 3 - The Boardroom Audit
By Monday morning, the fallout from the country club had ceased to be a private family disaster and had transformed into a professional catastrophe for Julian.
At 9:00 AM, my attorney, Clara Mercer—a formidable family law attorney with thirty years of experience in Cook County—called me into her office downtown. Clara was sixty-two, wore tailored wool suits, and spoke with the quiet, devastating authority of someone who had seen every legal trick in the book.
"Sit down, Sarah," Clara said, handing me a fresh cup of tea. "And take a look at this."
She slid a thick white folder across her mahogany desk. Inside were printouts from three major legal blogs and the local business journal.
"Word travels fast when eighty percent of the county bar association is present at a wedding," Clara said, a faint, cold smile touching her lips. "The managing partners at Vance, Holloway & Sterling held an emergency executive meeting at seven this morning."
I scanned the headlines.
Ethical Concerns and Partner Conduct Shadow Vance Holloway Expansion.
Prominent Family Law Attorney Faces Internal Review Following Public Dispute.
"Is Julian being fired?" I asked.
"Not yet," Clara said. "They can't easily fire an equity partner without a buyout, but Victoria’s father, Arthur Vance—who happens to be the founding partner’s brother—has officially withdrawn his real estate holdings from Julian’s management portfolio. That’s a three-million-dollar annual loss for the firm."
Clara leaned back in her high-backed leather chair. "Furthermore, Julian’s defense in your child support contempt hearing was based on his claim that his income had decreased due to market shifts. But when he stood in front of two hundred people on Saturday night and bragged about 'choosing the life he deserved' while wearing a fifty-thousand-dollar Patek Philippe watch, he gave us everything we needed."
"What are we doing, Clara?" I asked, my hands clasped around the warm tea mug. "I don't want a circus. I just want Noah to be safe and for Julian to pay what he legally owes."
"We are going for full legal and physical custody," Clara said firmly. "No more joint decision-making. No more waiting on the porch for a man who doesn't show up. We are asking the court to restrict his visitation to supervised visits at a family center until he completes a court-ordered psychological evaluation and parenting course."
I took a deep breath. A year ago, the thought of stripping Julian of his joint custody would have terrified me. I would have worried about being labeled vindictive, bitter, or alienating. But seeing Noah’s calm, resolute face on the porch yesterday had cleared away every lingering trace of self-doubt.
"Do it," I said.
At 11:30 AM, as I was walking out of Clara’s office building on LaSalle Street, my phone rang. It was an internal number from the Cook County Chancery Court.
"Sarah Whitaker?" a professional female voice asked.
"Yes?"
May you like
"This is the judicial assistant for Judge Arthur Holbrook. Judge Holbrook has requested a preliminary conference in chambers regarding the custody modification filing submitted by your counsel this morning. He has ordered both parties and their legal representatives to appear tomorrow at 8:30 AM."
I stood on the crowded sidewalk, watching the yellow cabs splash through puddles left by the morning rain. Judge Holbrook—the elderly man who had stood up at the country club and ordered Julian to shut his mouth—was taking the case himself.
