Martha reviewed it with Natalie before telling Gregory. The attorney's letter was advocacy, not a court finding, and many of its statements were either unverified or irrelevant to Sky's current safety. Still, it could complicate the placement review if the adults reacted carelessly. "Someone wants the court thinking about your reputation instead of her circumstances," Martha told him. Gregory's first impulse was to call Michael and demand an explanation. He looked at Terry, who was standing nearby with the phone already in his hand, and changed his mind.
"Tell me what we answer," Gregory said. Martha seemed pleased. "We answer what can be answered. We show the business license, the safety plan, the approved visits, and what the school and youth worker have actually observed.
We don't invent a motive for the private client until we can establish one." She paused. "And Gregory, whatever you do, don't make Sky feel she has to perform gratitude so the judge thinks you're wonderful. Let her speak about her own life."
Meanwhile Lucy and Jeff organized the evidence of the club's legitimate activities. They gathered tax filings for the garage, records of repairs for a local veterans' ride, insurance certificates, and the names of people who had supervised youth workshops in past years. Terry arranged for safety improvements at the property, including separating the supervised art area from the machinery and posting clear rules for visitors. It cost money they had not budgeted, and the men grumbled about the expense while doing the work anyway. To Gregory, each receipt was a statement that they were taking the child's needs more seriously than their pride.
The complaint letter reached Sky indirectly when another girl at school showed her a rumor circulating online. The message suggested that the bikers were using her to clean up their image. Sky read it once, then handed the phone back without responding. She had learned young that the worst lies were not always the ones that described impossible things. Sometimes they took something true, like the fact that she had painted a mural at the garage, and placed it beside a suggestion that made every good act sound suspicious.
At her counseling appointment the next day she described the rumor and asked why being helped always seemed to give people something to attack. The counselor, a woman named Dr. Nia Patel, did not offer a speech about staying positive. She asked Sky what she wanted from the adults around her that week.
Sky thought for a long time. "I want them to stop talking about me when I'm standing in the room," she said. "And I want somebody to tell me when something changes, even if it's bad."