Chapter 5 - The Emergency Custody Battle
At 9:00 a.m. the following morning, the Oakridge Family Courthouse was packed with reporters, corporate lawyers, and city officials.
The story of the barefoot girl running through the blizzard with a baby had already exploded across social media. Headline banners flashed on the newsroom monitors inside the lobby: BILLIONAIRE VS. FATHER: THE BATTLE FOR BABY EMMA.
Inside Courtroom 302, Judge William Callahan hit his gavel with a loud THUD.
“Quiet in the court!” Judge Callahan ordered. “We are here for an emergency hearing regarding the temporary custody of Emma Brooks and Sadie Brooks.”
Derek Voss sat at the plaintiff’s table, wearing a borrowed suit, looking like a victim. His lawyer, Vance, stood up immediately.
“Your Honor,” Vance began dramatically. “This is a clear case of corporate overreach and kidnapping. Ethan Cole is a powerful billionaire who has used his vast wealth to intimidate hospital staff and unlawfully detain my client’s child. Mr. Voss is a grieving father who simply wants his baby back!”
Judge Callahan turned his gaze toward the defense table, where Ethan sat alongside his lead corporate attorney, Victoria Cross—a fierce litigation legend known across the Midwest.
“Ms. Cross,” Judge Callahan said. “How do you respond?”
Victoria stood up, placing a thick stack of audited bank records onto the judge’s bench.
“Your Honor, we are filing for emergency protective custody under the Child Exploitation Prevention Act,” Victoria declared calmly. “We have clear evidence that Mr. Voss was preparing to sell the guardianship rights of baby Emma to an offshore medical trust in exchange for a cash payout of $2.5 million.”
The courtroom gasped.
Derek jumped out of his chair. “That’s a lie! That money was for her medical care!”
“Sit down, Mr. Voss!” Judge Callahan barked.
Victoria pushed a button on her tablet, projecting a clear audio recording onto the courtroom speakers.
It was a wiretapped phone call recorded twenty-four hours earlier between Derek Voss and an Aethelgard representative:
“I’ll have the baby signed over by tomorrow,” Derek’s recorded voice rang through the court. “Just make sure the wire transfer hits my offshore account before the mother’s funeral costs are finalized. I don't give a damn about the older kid—put her in state care.”
The courtroom went completely wild. Reporters scrambled to write down every word.
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Derek’s face drained of all color. He looked around the room like a trapped animal.
Judge Callahan struck his gavel three times in rapid succession. “Order! Order in this court!”
