The Cost Of Winning

FIANNA'S POV :

"I'm pretty sure we're gonna have to make two trips , Mik !" , I say as we pull grocery bags out of the trunk of her car .

"Of course we will , since we found so many good deals ." , she answers .

I unfasten Bren from her carseat and lift her out of the car . She turns around as soon as I put her down and says , "Me help wif droceries , Mommy , I's big girl !"

"Yes , you are getting to be a big girl , Smidge !" , I reply , and hand her a package of paper towels .

We carry several bags into my apartment , and put up the cold items before we go back out for the rest . As we head back toward Miki's car , we hear a voice saying , "Oh , there she is !"

We turn around and see Mr . Frobisher , the elderly man who lives across from me , waving at me . "Fianna , dear , this gentleman has been looking for you ." , he says , pointing to a short , chubby , black man standing by his door .

"You Fianna Chandler ?" , he asks as he walks toward us .

Since Mr .Frobisher has already told him who I am , it seems kind of pointless to deny it . "Yes , I am . And who are you ?"

Instead of answering , he walks up to me , takes hold of my hand , and places an envelope in it . "You've been served ." , he says flatly , then lets go of me and walks away .

"What the hell was that ?" , Miki asks .

"Mommy , who him was ?" , Brenna inquires .

I rip open the envelope , pull out the paper inside , and unfold it . As my brain manages to process the words I'm reading , my knees give out and I slide down the side of the car until I'm sitting on the asphalt of the parking lot .

"Aunt 'Kaela , Mommy sick ?" , Brenna asks in a scared little voice .

"No , sweetheart , Mommy's just been out here in the heat too much . She'll be fine when we go inside ." , Miki tells her as she grabs my hand and pulls me upright .

We go inside , and I hand her the sheet of paper . She scans it , and I can see her jaw tighten , and she starts mumbling under her breath . As Bren stands next to me , patting my hand , Miki looks at me and says , "OK , I'm gonna go get the rest of the bags and bring 'em in . Then I'm going to make a couple of calls , and we're going to my place . Smidge , why don't you go grab Pickle , we're going to my house , OK ?"

"Otay !" , she shouts , and runs for the bedroom .

"I guess you were right last week ." , Miki says , "He IS gonna push this . I guess he doesn't expect anybody to push back . Bad idea !"

She brings in the rest of the bags , and I hear her talking to someone as she puts things in my cabinets . When she's done , she says , "All right , you two , let's go . Uncle Bill is meeting us at the house , and we're going to work on getting this shit straightened out !"

Brenna runs to the bookcase and brings back her yellow puppy - dog bank . "Aunt 'Kaela said a naughty ! Me gets a twarter !"

Miki reaches into her purse , pulls out a ten , and stuffs it into the slot . "Here you go , baby , I'm paying you in advance , because I'll probably say some more naughties today ."

Bren puts her bank away , grabs Pickle , and we go back to the car . As I'm buckling Brenna in , Mr . Frobisher walks over and says , "I'm sorry , dear , if I'd known he was here to start trouble , I wouldn't have pointed you out ."

"It's OK , Mr . F , if I wasn't here , he probably would've hunted me down at work ."

We get in the car , and Miki drives back to her and Ryan's house , and he's just getting out of his SUV when we pull in . He jogs up to the car as we get out , and says "What happened ? Why did you need me to come home now ? "

"Show him ." , she says , and I hand him the paper . He scans it , then reads it again more slowly . "Awww , crap !" , he moans . "He can't seriously think this is gonna work !"

"Apparently , he does ." , I say .

As we start to walk into the house , a big red Dodge Ram pickup pulls into the driveway , and Miki's uncle gets out . "Hey there , how's my favorite niece ? "

"Royally pissed off !" , she answers , snatching the paper out of my hand and handing it to him . He reads through it carefully , then suggests that we go inside .

As we enter the living room , Brenna turns to him and asks , "You play colors with me , Unca Webby ?"

"Not today , peach . I have to talk to your Mommy . Why don't you color a pretty picture for Aunt Pauline , and I'll take it home to her later , OK ?"

"I will makes Aunt Pawie a pitty futterbye !" , she replies , and goes off to her little table with Pickle .

We all sit down in the living room , and he holds up the paper and says , "So your ex has decided to sue you for custody of Brenna . How did that come about ?"

The three of us walk him through the situation , with him asking the occasional question to clarify things . When we finish , he asks me , "Fianna , do you have a dollar with you ?"

"Uh , yeah , I think so . Why ?"

" Because if you give me that dollar , that will be my retainer , I will then be your attorney of record , and anything we talk about will be confidential ." , he informs me .

I reach into my purse and dig out a dollar , and hand it to him . He puts it in his pocket , then says , "I need to ask you some questions , and I need you to answer them honestly . If this goes to court , his lawyer , or the judge , might ask the same questions , and I need to know what to expect ."

"Go ahead , ask anything you want ." , I say .

"First , just to get it out of the way , is there any chance at all that this man might NOT be Brenna's father ?"

"Absolutely not !"

"Do you have any sort of a police record ?"

"Dude , I've never even had a speeding ticket !", I say .

" Have you ever had a drug or alcohol problem ?"

"I have no use at all for drugs , and the only time I was ever drunk in my life was at a slumber party when I was thirteen , not too long after my dad died . My friend said it would make me feel better , but I threw up so much I pulled a muscle in my stomach , and it felt like somebody was reenacting the Battle of Helms Deep in my skull . So never again !"

"What about him ?"

"He drinks , yes , but I never personally had any knowledge of him using any drugs ." , I acknowledge .

"Was he ever abusive ?" , he queries

"He never hit me , if that's what you mean . He said that a man who hit a girl wasn't really a man ." , I say . "What concerns me is that he seemed to have the idea that what he wanted was all that mattered , and I'm not sure if he can get past that and figure out that he can't just go off at the drop of a hat and do whatever if he has a two year old to think about ."

"Brenna , hon , can you come here for a minute ?" , he calls across the room . She puts down her crayons and runs over to him .

"Here's me , Unca Webby !" , she says , as she grabs his leg .

"Brenna , do you know what a lie is ?"

"Dat's when Wogan telled Miss Kim dat Ivy bwoke the chair , but him did ! Dat's naughty !"

"That's right , so I'm going to ask you something , and I don't want you to lie . Brenna , is your Mommy ever mean to you ?" , he asks .

"Mommy nice ! Not a meanie ! She gives me lots of hugs , and wets me watch Pooh Bear and Dora on the TV ! I wuvs Mommy this big !" , she exclaims , holding her arms out as wide as she can . " Mommy is my goodest fwend !"

"That's what I thought ." , he says with a chuckle , and she lets go of him , runs over , and climbs into my lap .

"All right , I'll file a response first thing in the morning , and I'd say that his chances of actually winning the suit as is are basically nonexistent , but there is a chance that he could be granted visitation , so be prepared for that ." , he tells us .

"If I could be sure that he wouldn't wind up deciding that being a dad isn't as much fun as he thought it would be and bailing , I might not mind that so much , but I'm not sure if he will . I don't want her to get attached to him and then have him disappear ."

"Well , we'll have to deal with that if it happens ."

He gets up to leave , and Bren brings him not only the picture for Miki's aunt , but a picture of a blue and orange zebra for him , which he tells her he's going to hang in his office . She asks for a drink , and as I get up to go get her some juice , I see Mik handing him what looks like a book or folder before he walks out .

"What was that ?" , I ask her as she and Ryan join us in the kitchen .

"Just some stuff I got off the internet that I promised him ." , she replies .

"Fi , I'm sorry , I didn't mean to get this crap started !" , Ryan says .

"Dude , it's not your fault , you didn't know anything about us . It was just one of those weird things ." , I say , giving him a hug .

"Well , if we're lucky , Uncle Bill will finish it , and you won't have to ever deal with him again !" , Miki states .

"Somehow , I don't think you should count on that , Mik . I know I'm not ."

Notes