Trouble

TWELVE

TWELVE

The lawyer Dixie called in, Tobias Donovan, was quick to tell me I needed to get the DNA test done on Abigail. If there was even a slight chance she wasn't Shane's, we had to take it, and cooperating now would look better if we had to fight him beyond that.

Donnie, as he insisted we call him, was from Boston. He was very polished, and was everything you'd expect a hot-shot lawyer to be, except he was a genuinely nice guy. I could see why Emily had trusted him. Abigail seemed to at least tolerate him, although she insisted on calling him Tobias.

The results came back positive, not that I'd had any doubt. That was when Sellie filed the paperwork to take my creature away from me. That was also when Shane finally met his daughter.

He saw her from a distance at first. "My God," he said. "She's beautiful."

I could see how much he wanted to know her. The other McMahons might have bad plans for her, but Shane just genuinely wanted to take care of his daughter.

"Abigail, this is Shane," I said as she joined us.

"Hello, Abby," Shane said.

Abigail glared at him. "My name is Abigail," she corrected him harshly. I tried not to laugh. It was nice not to be on the creature's shit list anymore, but Shane had just put himself at the top.

"I'm sorry," Shane said quickly. "I just thought-"

"You assumed that your biological claim over me gave you the right to call me by a nickname, but nicknames are for people who know each other. You are a stranger, Shane."

His jaw dropped. Okay, so maybe I should have warned him that he'd fathered a creature and not a child, but I have to admit, this was more fun. If he couldn't handle her, he didn't deserve her.

"Also, your given name is Shane, and that is what I'm going to call you. I don't have a dad and I don't need or want one. I'm in good hands here with the people Mom wanted me with. You can go now," Abigail dismissed him.

Shane was stuttering as he tried to form a coherent response. He failed. Abigail had that effect on some people. It was Sellie who broke the awkward silence.

"Nice try, Kid, but your father has the right to take you into his custody. Legally, you belong with him, and I think you know that," Sellie said.

"When couples get divorced, if a child proves to be mature enough, their choice is heavily factored into deciding where they end up," Abigail countered. "My mother wanted me to stay with Michael, and I approve of her choice."

"This isn't a divorce. It's different when a parent passes away."

"She died. Don't say that to make it sound prettier and happier. My mother was murdered. She didn't pass to some better place because she needed a change of scenery or because some God wanted her as an angel or any of that. I'm seven, not stupid."

Sellie nodded. "I like you, Abigail. You don't beat around the bush. When one parent dies, but one remains, the court generally feels it's best to leave the child in the care of the living parent."

"Shane is a complete stranger. He's not my dad."

"He didn't know about you because your mom never told him. If she had, he would have been there for you. Shane wants to get to know you, Abigail."

"No, what Shane wants is to take me away from the people I know and love, regardless of what's best for me. I don't want to be another shiny McMahon for them to show off at parties. I don't want to inherit shares of a corrupt company like WWE. I don't want to leave Michael and James and Dixie and Jeff and TNA. This is my home. This is where I belong."