abruptly fired to make way for Jill, she must have started looking for something that would allow her to take revenge.
For her own sake, I hope she’s safely back in France.
The next part of the hearing is strangely subdued, as if nobody wants to start being bombastic when Lucy still looks as if she might burst into tears. The Lamberts’ barrister has clearly decided that the best thing he can do is to carry on as if nothing has happened. And after a while, it almost seems to work. Even I find myself wondering if what Lucy did really makes much difference. After all, trying to work out Theo’s wishes from one hastily scribbled drawing was always going to be a nonsense. And all the other factors—my drinking, the accusations against Pete, the fact Theo was thrown out of nursery on our watch—are still there.
But I can’t help feeling that, while things looked completely hopeless before, now we have a chance.
98
MADDIE
NEXT, MILES IS CROSS-EXAMINED by Anita. She’s good, but she makes little headway. He’s unflappable and courteous—the very model of a cooperative witness. And it’s hard to argue with the main thrust of his argument—that he and Lucy love Theo, and as his natural parents, believe they’re best placed to make decisions about his future. What loving parent wouldn’t want the same?
Then it’s Pete’s turn. The Lamberts’ barrister dives straight in. “Can you tell us why you became Theo’s full-time carer?”
“Because I enjoy it and I think I’m good at it,” Pete replies evenly.
“It wasn’t because you lost your job?”
Pete’s eyes widen slightly, but his voice stays calm. “No.”
“But you were made redundant soon after he was born? And then failed to find another position?”
Pete hesitates fractionally. “I went freelance.”
“And how many freelance commissions would you say you get each year?”
“Half a dozen?” Pete mutters.
“According to the National Union of Journalists’ database, last year it was three.” The barrister pauses for that to sink in. “Realistically, could the two of you afford for Ms. Wilson to give up her job?”
“Probably not,” Pete admits.
“So becoming Theo’s full-time carer was, ultimately, a decision forced on you by economic necessity?”
Pete takes a deep breath. “It was a choice I wanted to make, which also made economic sense. I’m aware I’m very privileged to be doing something I enjoy so much.”
“And yet,” the barrister says smoothly, “your privilege comes at a cost, doesn’t it—it deprives Theo of a full-time mother.”
“Your question seems to imply that a full-time father is inherently less competent than a full-time mother,” Pete says patiently. “I don’t think that’s the case. I think it depends on the individual.”
Good answer, I think.
The barrister smiles pleasantly. “What is your current ranking on the videogame Call of Duty?”
Pete blinks. “I’m not sure.”
“Let me refresh your memory. You are currently ranked number twenty-four thousand, two hundred and forty-seven of all players in the UK. Do you play often, to have achieved such a high position?”
Pete sighs. “Not often, no. I achieved that ranking before Theo came along. When I had a full-time job, incidentally.”
The barrister still looks skeptical. “Let me read a question you posted on the internet forum DadStuff, about the correct temperature at which to sterilize a baby’s bottle.” He reads out the post, then pauses. “That’s fairly basic information for a full-time parent, surely?”
“It was something I didn’t know. So I made sure I found out.” Pete grimaces. “Look, no parent gets everything right to begin with. Babies don’t come with a manual. But these days, they do come with the internet. And rather than assume I know all the answers, I think it’s better to check.”
He’s winning this exchange, I think. Against a professional inquisitor, Pete’s actually holding his own. I can’t help feeling proud of him.
The barrister says, “And speaking of the internet, do you look at pornography?”
Pete flinches. But he knows there’s no point denying something that’s now a matter of record. “I have, yes,” he says stiffly.
“And is that something the full-time parent of a small child should do?”
“I’m not proud of it. And I wouldn’t ever do it when Theo was in the house.”
“But the fact you might be tempted to rather defeats your argument that a mother and a father are interchangeable, doesn’t it?”
Pete opens his mouth to answer, but for a moment he can’t find the words. “It doesn’t make me a bad parent,” he says at last.
“What about child pornography? Would that make you a bad parent?” the barrister asks in