Chapter 8 - Marcus asks Leo to choose
Marcus’s supervised visits continued.
For three weeks he followed every rule.
No insurance talk.
No court talk.
Then he made a mistake.
At a supervised park visit, Leo asked:
“Will I live with Sarah forever?”
Marcus answered:
“I hope you’ll get to choose.”
Not prohibited.
Then:
“You know I want you home.”
Still okay.
Then:
“Your mom wanted us to stay a family.”
Problem.
Supervisor redirected.
Marcus stopped.
Later Leo told me:
“Mom wanted me with you.”
I asked:
“How do you know?”
“She told me.”
“When?”
“When she was sick.”
This was the first time Leo said Rachel personally told him.
“Exactly what did she say?”
He became angry.
“Stop making me prove stuff.”
I froze.
He was right.
Every adult asked him exact words.
Court.
Guardian.
Therapist.
Me.
I said:
“You don’t have to.”
Then I called his therapist, Dr. Elise Porter.
She told me:
“Sarah, you are turning your need for certainty into questioning.”
That hurt.
“I’m trying to protect him.”
“Yes.”
“Marcus is trying to become his guardian.”
“Yes.”
“And the court cares what Rachel wanted.”
“Then let adults prove that from adult evidence.”
There.
I stopped asking Leo about Rachel’s instructions.
At the guardianship evaluation, I admitted the mistake.
Jessica Rowan wrote:
Sarah demonstrates appropriate concern but can become overfocused on extracting clarity when anxious.
Great.
Marcus’s report had flaws too.
He continued framing Rachel’s final decisions as illness-driven.
Jessica asked:
“If Rachel’s will names Sarah, why should the court disregard it?”
Marcus answered:
“Because I was Leo’s father in every way that mattered.”
Jessica:
“Did Rachel agree?”
Marcus:
“Until the last months.”
“Why did that change?”
“Sarah.”
There.
He blamed me.
Then:
“Did Rachel ever ask you to adopt Leo?”
“No.”
“Did you pursue adoption?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Daniel’s survivor benefits and legal paperwork were complicated.”
Not exactly.
A stepparent adoption after biological father’s death was legally possible if Rachel consented.
They never did it.
Marcus said Rachel preferred keeping Daniel’s name and legal connection.
That was understandable.
But it meant Marcus had chosen emotional fatherhood without formalizing legal parenthood.
Now he wanted court to bridge the gap after Rachel’s death.
Could it?
Possibly through guardianship based on best interests.
Then Leo told Jessica:
“I want to live with Aunt Sarah.”
Also:
“I want to see Marcus.”
Both.
No need to choose love.
Then Rachel’s house.
Marcus’s ninety-day occupancy would expire in six weeks.
He requested extension until guardianship decided.
Estate objected.
Judge allowed thirty-day temporary extension with fair-use payment to estate, because forcing him to move mid-litigation served little purpose.
No one instantly threw him onto street.
Then First Ridge Trust formally appeared.
It had no position on guardian identity except conflicts affecting Leo’s property.
It would manage trust assets regardless.
That fact weakened Marcus’s claim that Sarah wanted guardianship for money.
I would not control it.
Good.
Then the special master filed notice:
May you like
The recovered audio was potentially relevant and not privileged.
The hearing date arrived.
