There are drafts and notes.

Nothing in that packet gives me custody now.”

I looked more closely.

The seal was printed as part of the court form.

There was no signed order appointing him and no clear filing endorsement on the sheet I had mistaken for a completed proceeding.

We would still need someone qualified to explain the documents.

But one fear became narrower.

He had not secretly acquired a child through an order I somehow needed to obey.