Neither of them looked at me.
That hurt more than if they had.
The bailiff called the case at 9:45.
I stood at one table alone. My parents rose beside their lawyer at the other. Judge Monica Carrigan peered down at us over rimless glasses with the expression of a woman who had given up being surprised by human behavior years ago and still found new ways to be disappointed.
“Ms. Sinclair,” she said, “you filed an emergency motion this morning asking the court to vacate a default judgment entered in an unlawful detainer action. Tell me why.”
I took a breath and felt it scrape all the way down. “Because I was never properly served, Your Honor. The service address used in this case is not my address. It hasn’t been my address in sixteen years. The entire eviction proceeding was obtained without notice to me and is based on forged documents.”
