Question O

[Jonetta]

Following the rescue, Carson and his thug buddies are arrested, all being charged with first degree murder, including a former veteran cop. Is this the end of Carson? Will Jesse’s grandfather be able to put up a credible fight for his custody? Will Jesse be able to change his name? How will Sean and Lucy help him deal with Maddie’s death?

[Anita]

I think this is the end for Carson. Jesse's grandfather will put up a fight, but Jesse is old enough to have a say in where he lives. Sean should have taken steps to establish paternity as soon as Jesse arrived in Texas and Sean should have started proceedings in Texas to establish his rights. At the very least he should have retained a lawyer and mapped out a strategy for when Madison changed her mind about allowing Sean access. Sean and Lucy will be there for Jesse, and they will all move on from this as a real family.

[Robin]

I don't think we'll see any more of Carson. I'm betting Madison's father will take Sean straight to court so he can keep Jesse with him. Maybe grandpa will be throwing money around and hiring thugs like his son-in-law did. (Hey, maybe that's the next book!)

As Anita mentioned, Sean is going to need to establish paternity. I'm assuming Carson adopted Jesse when he married Madison, so they'll have to go to court over that. I'm assuming the court will take Jesse's opinion into account, but you never know.

[Charlene]

I think essentially the same as Anita and Robin on this. I doubt the custody issue is carried through multiple books; it should be resolved so that the stories go back to their work. [and family]

[Jonetta]

FYI, it was mentioned in this book that Sean made Maddie sign something acknowledging him as Jesse’s biological father so that’s done! He just didn’t have any custodial rights.

Carson is a moot point. He’s going to jail for life and it’s a closed book. He no longer has any rights.

Grandpa may have a lot of money but he’s more interested in protecting his name and reputation. Sean will threaten to expose Maddie’s complicity in illegal money laundering activities and conspiracy with her husband in human trafficking. Grandpa will make a deal right away. And Sean doesn’t issue idle threats.

Jesse’s definitely going to change his name to Rogan, which he already wanted to do. I’m sure he hates the name Spade right now.

It’s going to take some time for Jesse to deal with his mother’s death, especially knowing she was part of Carson’s schemes that ultimately led to her death. They’ve got a tough road ahead.