Wild Ride - The Alternative Version (Book 2)

Chapter 51~The Fight For Abigail

Jimmy's POV

Tuesday morning, I was so nervous that I was shaking like hell as soon as I got out of bed. I took a shower and got dressed in a daze, not really noticing anything around me or hearing Elise when she tried to get my attention. She'd noticed that I didn't look so good and asked if I was ok, and I told her I'd be fine because I didn't want her to think that I was doubting that we could keep Abbie. I wasn't really, but I was scared and worrying about what would happen if we didn't. I didn't know what to expect from this woman, Elise was right, I don't know what she's capable of and it kind of sounds like maybe Elise isn't sure either. How could she be when she hasn't even spoken to her mother in nine years? Maybe she's been planning this from the start and we just didn't know it. We're going into this completely blind and unknowing of our enemy, and that's a huge disadvantage for us because we have no clue of what to expect.

We slept in this morning since Abbie wasn't going to school today anyway, and we let her sleep until eight so she'd have plenty of time to get dressed and eat, because we have to be to the courthouse by ten and we can't be late. We were originally planning on having my parents as our witnesses, but I wasn't sure that I wanted to get my parents dragged into this mess, not knowing Elise's mother. So, we decided that we would have Brian as our witness. I knew I could count on him. Other than that, we didn't really know what else to do because we weren't prepared for this. This was really short notice, and we've never even considered what we should do if we had to go to court because the thought was just non-existant. Everything about this still felt really off though, like something wasn't quite right, but either way we couldn't miss it or be even a minute late. The last thing we need is to look bad with the situation we're in.

While getting breakfast ready, everyone was dead quiet. Abbie sat at the bar, staring downward without making eye contact with either of us. I knew that she was terrified, and I don't blame her. We were terrified too, so there wasn't much we could say to comfort her.

We ate just as silently, the three of us spaced out and lost deep inside our thoughts. All I could think about was what would happen inside that courtroom. Obviously, in some way we're being framed because we're both very sure we've been lawful parents.

After eating, we got Abbie's bags into the trunk of the car and got ready to go. We'd quietly packed everything with her last night while assuring her that it was just in case we lost, but we were going to make sure that didn't happen. Of course, there was quite a bit she would have to leave behind, like her three guitars because Elise knew there was no way her mother would allow Abbie to have them and she'd destroy them as soon as she got the chance.

The ride to the courthouse wasn't any less quieter than when we were making and eating breakfast. Abbie sat in the backseat, staring out the window and listening to music on her iPod while Mr. Quacks sat in her lap. I was driving, and I just focused on the road and tried to block out the fearful thoughts in my mind. Elise was staring out the window too, the side of her head resting against the glass. We all looked like we were being sent to a death sentence. 

Though we all told ourselves that the worst wouldn't happen and we'd prove ourselves innocent of doing anything wrong, I know that both Elise and I still had a bad feeling about this whole thing. Being Abbie's parents, it's probably just nerves and we can't help it. Abbie was scared because she didn't want to go with some woman she didn't know that she's heard horrible things about, all the way across the country where we can't come running to help her. If she gets taken from us, we won't be allowed to see her. 

When we got there, before Abbie would be taken to some room somewhere that she'd be kept busy for a little while until the session was over, we attempted to assure her and ourselves at least one more time before we go in there and go against Elise's mom. I don't even want to know what's going through that little girl's mind right now, I can already tell just by looking into her eyes that she's incredibly scared. She knows that there's a possibility that the next time she sees us, it's to say goodbye, and that's what really makes her so scared.