"They have presented their case to a judge and he gave them the green light."
Sindi looked at her confused. "We are going to court." Mandisa said simply and she sat down on her chair and took the summon paper and looked at it.
"We have to appear for a hearing next week where the judge will give us a court date." Mandisa looked up at her. "What can you tell me about Sizwe Kubheka?"
"Never met him in my life." Sindi said.
"Isn't he the family attorney?" She didn't wait for the answer but checked on the internet for information on Tebogo's lawyer.
"I don't think so." Sindi said, "I think their lawyer was a woman. They might have changed her. I don't know."
Mandisa came blank on Sizwe Kubheka. He was either new on the law business or he kept a low profile which didn't help her know how good he was in family matters. Mandisa hadn't recognized him even though she had known intuitively that he was a lawyer. She looked at the Summon again. The judge they were going to plead their case to was Dr. Ndzimande Ka Ndlovu. Him, Mandisa knew and that didn't make her feel any better. Judge Ndzimande Ka Ndlovu was ruthless, brutal but fair. He wouldn't agree to hear the case unless he believed that the Motsepe had a case. He didn't believe in wasting his time and if a lawyer brought to him a case that didn't seem to be substantial, Judge Ndzimande Ka Ndlovu refused to give it another thought.
Mandisa bit down on her lip. This was bad. She would bring a case to Ndzimande Ka Ndlovu any day of the week but not this time. This time she didn't feel ready or half prepared. All she had was Sindi and her word that the Motsepe had mistreated her. Her sister's word was good enough for her but not substantial to win the case if Mandisa couldn't prove it in court. She wondered what the Motsepe had. How had they convinced the toughest family court judge to hear their plea? Judge Ndzimande Ka Ndlovu wouldn't care about who had more money and who could afford what. All he cared about was the safety and emotional state of the child. There only way the Motsepe would get the judge to listen to them is if they had somehow convinced the judge that Sindi was an unfit mother and they worried about the safety of Joy.
"Our mother." Mandisa said standing up and putting her hands on her waist.