After Drew (Cameron Mathison) stooped to a new low in his quest to ensure that Willow (Katelyn MacMullen) came out on top in her fight with Michael (Rory Gibson) over custody of Wiley and Amelia on General Hospital, Willow took the stand on the June 10 episode of GH as the dramatic trial concluded.
Who’s Zoomin’ Who?
Under cross-examination from Diane, Willow reiterated her testimony that her children are her priority. Pressed Diane, “What matters more: Being with them or being with Drew?” Willow noted that Michael had asked her the same thing, “Only it wasn’t a question so much as it was an ultimatum.” She shared that Michael would grant her access to her kids, “but only if I left Drew.” Willow got emotional about how unfair it was that she should have to choose.
Diane shifted the topic “to the beginning of your affair,” asking Willow to detail “what had really happened” between her and Drew. Willow replied curtly, “We fell in love. It’s that simple.” She claimed that she “did try” to stay away from Drew, “but I just couldn’t.” Willow denied both that Drew had pursued her or that she had pursued him. Her voice tinged with sarcasm, Diane said, “Let me get this straight. The two of you just spontaneously fell in love one day for no reason. No one was responsible.” “Objection!” barked Ric, citing badgering. He was overruled by the judge.
Willow told Diane that she didn’t understand what her feelings for Drew had to do with her ability to be a mother to her children. Diane got Willow to say that her children had “no bearing” on her entanglement with Drew, then went in for the kill: “Even when you had sex with Drew on the floor of your children’s nursery?” Willow gulped to maintain her composure and tried to explain how the tryst in the nursery had taken place, insisting that it was unplanned. “Drew was very emotional. Sam McCall, the mother of his daughter, Scout, had just died.” Interjected Diane, “And the only way to comfort Drew was to have sex in the children’s nursery?” “It wasn’t like that,” Willow maintained.
Diane claimed that in that instance, Willow had put Drew’s needs ahead of her children’s. “How?” Willow asked. Diane was happy to clarify, reiterating that Willow had been intimate with Drew in the nursery, “a room reserved for your children — where they could have come in at any point and seen the two of you in flagrante delicto.” Ric rose to his feet as he objected again, once again on the grounds of badgering. This time, the judge sided with Ric. “Miss Miller, you’ve made your point. Move on,” she admonished from the bench.
Pivoting, Diane then called out Willow for barring Michael’s family members from access to him when he was in the hospital recovering from his third degree burns. Willow began to explain that she’d only done that because of Tracy, but Diane interrupted her, directing her to answer yes or no. Willow said yes, but again tried to give context to her decision. Diane jumped at that, asking, “So you weren’t sure about that decision?” She asked Willow what had convinced her to block Michael’s kin. “Drew,” announced Willow. “He helped me realize it was the only way to get my children back from the Quartermaines.”
Next, Diane wanted to know why Willow didn’t consult with Michael when she decided to take Wiley with her to Washington, D.C. for Drew’s congressional inauguration. Willow described how excited Wiley had been to make the trip and given that it would be a good educational opportunity for the boy to see the government at work, she and Drew “didn’t think that Michael would mind.”
Diane asked Willow to confirm that she had been frustrated by Michael’s decision to seek treatment for his burns in Germany, which Willow did. “Because you didn’t want him to get the best possible medical treatment?” needled Diane. Willow stated that she did want that for Michael. “I just didn’t think that Michael would abandon his children to do it.” Diane underscored Willow characterizing Michael seeking the finest treatment available overseas as abandoning his children, then brought up Willow moving Wiley and Amelia into Drew’s home, “Again, without consulting your husband.” “Their father was unreachable,” Willow said by way of defending herself. Diane reminded her, and the judge, that Michael was in Germany undergoing medical care for his burns. “Yes,” Willow agreed. “And Drew and I felt that it was best for the kids to have a stable home.”
Diane asked how Wiley and Amelia had felt about the move. “They love it there,” Willow claimed. Diane wanted to know if they had ever expressed “a desire to return to their own home.” Willow joked that the kids had expressed a desire to live at Disneyland. “Just answer the question,” said Diane. Willow testified that yes, the kids had asked to move back home.
On redirect, Ric asked Willow to share with the court why she was seeking full custody, rather than sharing custody with her soon-to-be ex-spouse. A heavy-hearted Willow said she loved her children and had wanted their father to be in their lives. “Past tense?” Ric queried. “Yes,” responded Willow, adding that “up until an hour ago,” she thought shared custody could be possible as Michael “seemed open to compromise.” She went on to describe how well they had gotten along the previous night, when Wiley and Amelia came to the hospital to meet their new baby sister. “The baby that he sired with his former fiancée and current family cook,” Ric noted, “that you didn’t know what that they were having until yesterday.” Now, it was Diane’s turn to object. Her objection was sustained.
Ric asked Willow what had changed. “Michael did,” was her rueful answer. “For whatever reason, he gave into his animosity toward Drew. She described how Michael had approached her before the hearing resumed and made it clear that he was not amenable to a joint custody arrangement, leaving her with “no other option” but to petition for sole custody. Willow said she had made mistakes as a parent and deeply regretted the way her marriage ended. “But you have to understand,” she added, “that when I fell in love with Drew, my marriage was already over. I just hadn’t come to terms with it yet.” Willow said that she and Michael had just been going through the motions at the time — they had just been unable to admit it. “But that has nothing to do with my love for my children,” she asserted.
Ric then emphasized that “for months, you were your children’s primary caretaker.” Willow affirmed that she had been Wiley and Amelia’s sole parent while Michael was in Germany. She praised Drew as “a godsend,” who helped them move into a safe home where together, they cared for the little ones. Despite the mistakes she had made, Willow said, “That doesn’t change the fact that I am Wiley and Amelia’s mother — and they belong with me.”
The judge then addressed the courtroom, noting that both sides had given her much to consider as she mulled over her ruling. She explained that while she would be weighing the question of the settlement, her priority would be “determining which parent will retain custody of the children.” With that, she announced, court was adjourned.
Willow made her way over to Drew, who embraced her as Nina looked on. “I tried,” Willow said. “You did more than that,” Drew assured her. “You were great!” Nina agreed.
Across the room, Carly asked Diane, “What do we do now?” “Now we wait,” replied Diane. “And hope that Judge Heran makes the right decision.” Michael shot a worried glance in his mother’s direction.
After making their way to the hospital, Michael observed to Carly, “Willow held her own. Better than I thought she would.” Scoffed Carly, “Willow may think she had the last word, but the judge will see right through her.” Michael hoped his mother was right. He then noted that something still didn’t make sense to him: Willow saying she had come to see him in Germany. Unaware that Drew had manipulated the situation to ensure that Willow and Michael did not get time together at the care center, Michael wondered if Willow had truly traveled to Europe. Carly was sure she had, as Jason had convinced her to go. “Then why did no one at the clinic tell me she was there?” Michael continued. Was his confusion over the matter poised to lead him to the discovery of Drew’s dirty dealings?
In the corridor outside the courtroom, Willow thanked her mother for the critical support she had lent during the hearing. “I would do anything for you, my daughter,” beamed Nina. Her eyes watery, Willow thought about Michael’s claim that Wiley had overheard Drew saying that Michael didn’t want Wiley now that baby Daisy was in the picture. She sighed that she still couldn’t believe Michael would lie about something Wiley said, but that it made her all the more confident in her decision to pursue sole custody. “As if Drew would ever say anything like that,” Willow grumbled, as Nina looked stricken.
Inside the courtroom, Ric told Drew that he hoped he and Willow got the outcome they wanted. “I did everything I could to make that happen,” Ric professed. “Yes you did,” Drew agreed. “And so did I.” Furtively checking to ensure that Willow was not within earshot, he continued, “By staging that little interaction for Wiley, I basically guaranteed that there’d be no compromise between Willow and Michael.” Ric said he supposed that when going up against the Quartermaines, “you have to pull out all the stops.” “Absolutely,” gloated Drew. “And because Willow stood strong, she’s gonna win.”
Who do you think the judge will rule in favor of when she hands down her decision? Let us know in the comments below!
