Valeria's hands were shaking as the sedan weaved through traffic, and Nick ended up taking one hand off the wheel to hold hers.

“You need to calm down, troublemaker. It's not going to help anything if you get like this.”

Valeria shook her head vehemently as she bit her lip and held back tears.

“You have no idea what it means to lose a child. Alice is my whole life; I can't let them take her from me—”

“Calm down, calm down, that's not going to happen. Connor is very good, I'm sure he can help us.”

Valeria didn't say another word until they arrived at Sheffield & Lieberman Associates. An assistant was already waiting for them at the door and immediately directed them to Mr. Sheffield's office.

“How exactly did you meet a family court attorney?” Valeria asked curiously, as they rode up in the elevator.

“I had the bright idea that I wanted to be emancipated at the age of fifteen. I refused to study and claimed my father's inheritance,” answered Nick. “Connor was my mother's lawyer.”