Love In a Small Town (30 page)

"Why didn't Lynn come?"

"Well, she would have had to wait outside, because juvenile matters are confidential and only parents, legal guardians and lawyers are allowed."

David pulled the truck into a parking space in front of a plain and unassuming, one-story, brick building. It didn't look like a place where life and death decisions were made, but the sign indicated it was the Carroll County Courthouse. He helped Sarah out of the truck and held the door for her as they entered.

The walls and floor of the small lobby were the same 'government gray' color as the Eureka Springs police station.
As though people weren't depressed enough having to be here,
David thought uncharitably.
Colored paint cost the same as gray. Couldn't they paint the room something cheerful?

Brown folding chairs circled the room, lined up tightly against the walls, indicating that a lot of people must wait here sometimes. He envisioned the room crowded—everyone watching everyone else, wondering what crime they had committed that required their presence here. Today the room was all but empty, for which he gave thanks.

The lone person in the room, a young woman seated at a desk, behind a half-wall divider, looked up when they entered, smiled, and started to speak.

The sound of the door opening behind him made David turn. A short, rotund man wearing a business suit and carrying a fat briefcase entered from the outside. The overhead fluorescents gleamed off his bald head. Ah, his lawyer. Not too impressive in appearance, but recommended to him as one of the most capable juvenile attorneys in Arkansas.

"David? Sorry I'm late. Never could find my way around this part of the state." He gave Sarah a smile, and extended his hand. "You must be Sarah. Your dad talks about you all the time. Good things, of course."

She held out her hand, first wiping it on her skirt, clearly conscious of how it must feel to him because it was sweaty, but too polite to not greet him.

He gave her a wink to reassure her. The pathetically grateful expression on her face tore at David's heart.

"Now, don't you worry about a thing, little missy. Your dad's told me all about it and I think we're in good shape here."

Sarah eyed him suspiciously, reacting, David knew, to being addressed as 'little missy.'

To the woman at the desk, the lawyer said, "Roy Beard, ma'am, representing Sarah Graham and her father, David Martin."

"Judge Arthur is waiting for you." She picked up the phone, and pushed a button. "Judge, Graham and Martin are here with their attorney." With a nod of her head to point them toward a short hall, she said, "Judge Arthur will see you now."

David's firm hand on Sarah's shoulder pushed her along, toward the door at the end of the hall. With each step she took he felt her trying to become smaller. Never had he envisioned that fatherhood included scenes like this. Damn it, he wished Lynn were here.

When David knocked, a voice called 'come,' and he opened the door. The room was surprisingly spacious for such a small building, the walls and carpeting gray. Judge Arthur sat in a high-backed, burgundy leather chair, behind a large partner's desk. He didn't look much older than David, but his expression was grim and forbidding.
Sarah must think he looks like an executioner.

Behind him, a bookcase covered the wall, filled with reference books all the same, red, tan, and black with gold lettering on the spines—the obligatory collection present in every law office, intended to impress or intimidate hapless offenders.

Table height, glass fronted cabinets, filled with books lined the two sidewalls, except for one heavily draped window.

David glanced at Sarah as he tried to view this from her perspective. Her eyes were fixed on the array of stuffed ducks on the cabinets—trophies of a killing spree, no doubt—some with wings spread in flight. Probably shot during a frantic effort to escape. Poor kid, he knew the feeling.

"Roy Beard, Attorney, your honor." The lawyer's voice stirred the formal atmosphere.

His honor nodded and, settling his gaze on Sarah, said, "I've heard a lot about you, Sarah Graham." He inclined his head toward the three matching armchairs in front of the desk. "Sit there, please."

Sarah sat and David saw that the chair was too big to allow her feet to touch the floor. It made her look so vulnerable, he wanted to scoop her up and get her out of the room, away from the fear.

Realizing the problem, she slid forward on the slippery leather and sat on the very edge, hands clenched in her lap. The tension in the air was like a smothering, invisible fog. Silence rang in their ears. They waited while the judge read the file in front of him. He leaned forward, his hands and arms on the desk.

"You were apprehended for shoplifting." His voice boomed like a shotgun blast, causing Sarah to jump, and reminding David of the dead ducks. "Do you have an explanation for this behavior?" He looked directly at Sarah.

Her face was an open book. She was terrified, unable to speak, but met his gaze, clearly trying to glean what he thought of her, but having no luck. In despair, she turned to David, then back at the judge, undecided about what to say.

Well, of course
, David thought, having been in this situation with his own father. When an adult in charge looked at you that way, it meant no matter what you said, or how you said it, they'd think you were smarting off.

She began in a wavering voice, "I was really stupid, sir. I thought the girls I was with were my mains but they weren't. I should have seen what they were doing and dipped, but I didn't and I got merked along with them."

"Are you claiming that you are not guilty?"

David startled.
Oops. Suspicious hostility. Big mistake.
With childhood memories on his mind, he felt as though he were sitting in the chair.

"No, sir. I did it, but they really tricked me into it. I didn't know what was going on."

The judge was still frowning. Apparently everyone was guilty until he decided they weren't.

Sounding eager to please, Sarah said, "I know, just by being there, I was helping them. Chief Hadley calls it 'aiding and abetting.'"

The judge focused on her face, pondering silently as the minutes dragged by.

Sarah paled visibly and swallowed.

Oh, please,
David prayed,
not sick again.

Finally Judge Arthur leaned back in his chair. "It's fortunate I have a teenage daughter, Miss Graham. I frequently have to ask her to translate so I can understand what she's telling me, so I actually understood what you've said here." The smile was so brief; it could have been imagined. "I gather you were the victim of a nefarious plot concocted by your 'mains,' which you thought were your main friends but now you know better."

"Uh, yes, sir."

"You are a very lucky young woman. Even though a witness saw you taking the stolen items out of the store, two of the girls who were with you admitted you really didn't know what was going on. Fortunately for you, they confessed to a scheme to get revenge as payback for…" he paused for emphasis, "an argument about a boy?" A raised eyebrow indicated his opinion about that.

"Uh, yes sir. Ashley was crushing on Jim Holder, and thought I was trying to hook-up with him, but I wasn't. I have a boyfriend, Logan Biesterman. She did this to get even."

"Although a newcomer, you seem to have some real friends in the community. Your English teacher thinks highly of you and the school principal is also complimentary. I understand that you're working hard as a volunteer for the Humane Society, and Lindsay Keith has become a mentor. I know Miss Keith. She is well thought of hereabouts." He paused. David had a bad feeling about what might come next. "However," he returned to grim, "stealing is against the law."

Sarah caught her breath, but before words could escape, he raised his hand, halting her effort to speak.

"You didn't steal, but you were present when your friends did, and made no move to stop them."

Sarah shrank into the chair. She looked at David, and he could hear her unspoken question
. "Was he going to send her away?"

His heart broke for her, but he smiled and nodded encouragingly. He and Roy Beard both watched the judge.

"Nevertheless," he paused "this one time, I am going to offer diversion, with the expectation that I never see you before me again."

"Uh, diversion?"

"That is less than probation, with no records to be expunged when you're eighteen. But understand, I'm also warning you that this will be granted only once. You appear before me again, young lady, and you will bear the full consequences of breaking the law.

"You are to continue your volunteer work for the community, at least a few hours a week, for another six months, and I want a two-hundred-and-fifty word essay on why shoplifting is wrong by, say, the first of next month. That's three weeks from now. If you do that, this incident will be forgiven."

Sarah sat, wonder and relief on her face. "I can stay here with my dad?" She grabbed the arms of the chair and smiled at the judge, through tears.

"Sarah," David prompted gently.

"Uh, thank you, Your Honor. I promise I'll not be in any more trouble." Her voice wavered, but she had control.

"I hope not, Sarah. You seem like a fine young lady who associated with the wrong people." He stood, dismissing them, and she bolted toward the door, opened it, and walked as fast as she could, without running, down the hallway. David and Roy Beard followed close behind, as she shoved her way through the front door, not stopping until she reached the truck.

"Thanks for coming, Roy," David said. "I wasn't sure if I would need a lawyer, but I wanted to have it covered."

"Anytime, David. Glad to do it."

"Sarah, how about I drop you off at school? I'm taking Roy to lunch."

"Sure, Dad. Logan and the rest of the gang will want to know how this turned out. Don't forget. I have to be at the hotel by six tonight to get ready for the show."

"Sounds good. Roy, meet me at the Kensington. You have a room there. It'll be more convenient for you. I'll have to stop at the school to get Sarah signed in."

When they arrived, David saw lunch hour was in progress. Sarah's friends were outside the school, waiting for her.

He followed behind as she hurried up to them. Karen saw her and squealed with excitement.

"It's Sarah. She's back and she looks happy. What happened?"

Logan put his arm around her. She sagged against him, too tired to stand up by herself.

"It's over. Everything is okay," she said, letting her breath out in relief.

"Was it awful?"

"What did the judge do?"

"Are you on probation?"

"Can you still do the show?"

"OMG, Sarah. We were so worried."

This last remark from Emily touched David's heart. He looked at each one. Their faces showed such affection and concern, and relief. He felt humbled and grateful beyond words. They were friends that she'd have for the rest of her life—not a catch phrase, but truly Best Friends Forever.

"The judge said I have to keep doing community service and I have to write an essay on why shoplifting is bad."

"Uh-huh," Anthony said, "You got diversion. I knew that's how it'd turn out."

"The judge said they admitted I was set up, and I didn't steal anything."

"I bet it's going to be worse for Madonna and Tiffany. They haven't heard yet," Emily said. When they looked at her, questioning, she added, "Audrey told me. Did you hear about Ashley?" When they all shook their head in denial, she said, "Ashley was sent to Florida to live with her aunt. She won't be here anymore."

Karen sighed. "I'm glad it's over. Now all we have to worry about is the show. I am so not ready for this."

"It's going to be great," Sarah said. "Delon wants you and Emily to come to his place right after school, so he can do your hair. Mine's too short for much, so he'll just mousse it a little, when he comes to do makeup."

"Are you picking up the tuxes this afternoon, Mr. Martin?" Dakota asked. "We're going to dress at your house, right? And then come to the show?"

"Yeah," Logan said. "We have to be there an hour ahead. Lynn decided, since we were dressed formal, we'd escort all the models onto the runway, so we'll be busy the whole evening."

Emily sighed. "You guys are going to look so sick. I'll bet all the girls talk to you, Dakota." The wistful note in her voice brought a blush to Dakota's face.

"Yeah, Dakota," Anthony said. "You're going to be eye candy."

"Cut it out, you guys." Dakota's embarrassment was heating to anger.

"Stop teasing him," Sarah said. "You all are going to be handsome, and if any of you so much as look at another girl, we'll pay you back, big time."

"I can't wait." Emily was bursting with excitement. "I'm so glad we moved here. This is the most fun I've ever had."

"Where is Lynn?" David asked. "I tried calling her at her place this morning and at the Kensington, but she didn't answer."

Emily replied. "I talked to her this morning before ten o'clock."