I brought the boys to the table and faced the bench. “I apologize for arriving late, Your Honor. The boys asked to come with me today.”

The judge studied them. “Children usually shouldn’t be present during proceedings like this, Mrs. O’Connell.”

“I understand, Your Honor,” I said. “But their father has already told them that I abandoned our family, that I have no way to support them, and that they’ll soon be living with him and Ms. Delancy.

I didn’t want them to hear only one side.”

Barrett straightened and frowned. “That’s an unfair accusation, Loretta.”

I didn’t look at him. The judge asked a bailiff to seat the boys nearby — far enough from the legal teams, close enough to see both parents. Once they were settled, she let Douglas continue.