Presumption of Guilt (11 page)

“Yes, Beth,” Phil cut in. “Get me what I asked for and I'll run it. You have my word.”

She let out a heavy breath and dropped the phone in its cradle. What was she going to do?

She closed her eyes and asked herself if she had the guts to do what was necessary. The right thing never seemed that easy, and it had an awful lot of conditions attached.

But she had spent the last three years trying to make something of herself. She had found a church, and now she went every Sunday. She tried hard to live by the Ten Commandments—don't lie, don't covet, don't commit adultery. In fact, some people thought she followed God's laws to a fault, but she figured she had enough sin in her life that it would take fifty years of walking the straight and narrow to get to the point where she'd come close to making herself worthy of God.

But this was hard. Writing this story Phil's way meant digging deeper than she'd wanted to dig, exposing things she hadn't wanted exposed . . .

And it meant that she would need advice about the law.

She picked up the phone and dialed the number of Lynda Barrett's law office. Lynda, a devoted Christian and respected lawyer, was one of the teachers in Beth's Sunday school class.Maybe she could help.

Paige, Lynda's secretary and another friend from church, put Beth right through to Lynda.

“Hi, Beth. What's up?”

“Hi, Lynda. Uh . . . I'm sorry to bother you. I just . . . I wondered if you could come by and see me today. It's pretty important.

I need some advice, and I need it quickly.”

“Legal advice?”

“Yes. It has to do with a story I'm working on. It involves a little boy. I'd rather tell you about it in person, if you have time, and I'd rather not come there.”

“I could come right now. I was supposed to be in court this afternoon, but it was postponed, so I'm free.”

“Great. Oh, and bring Jake if you want. My little friend might like to meet him. Kids love pilots.”

CHAPTER TWENTY

S
tella let the truck idle at the corner near the post office. “All right, Lisa. Take the package and go. Put it in the Express Mail slot. Then hurry back to the truck. Try not to talk to anybody.”

Lisa got the package from under the seat. It was S heavier than it looked, but she dared not complain. She got out of the pickup, clutching the package against her chest, and backed into the door to close it.

Walking rapidly, she hurried toward the post office door. Shifting the package to one arm, she tried to open the door, but it was heavy and she almost dropped it.

A man came to the door and opened it for her. “There you go, honey.”

“Thank you,” she said almost inaudibly. She stood inside the post office, looking around at the boxes and stamp vending machines and slots. Through some glass doors were the postal workers, and a dozen people waited in line.

The package was getting heavier, so she shifted it again, trying to get a more comfortable hold on it. Stella had said to put it in a slot. She saw the slots marked “local” and “stamped” and “metered.” He'd said to put it in Express Mail, but she didn't see that one.

It was too heavy for her to hold any longer, so she went to the “metered” slot and tried to fit it through the small opening. It wouldn't fit.

“That's not where you want to put that, pumpkin,” one of the postal workers walking through told her. “That'll have to go in Express Mail over there.”

“Oh.” She headed across the room to where he pointed, and looked up at the lever, which was too high for her.

“Here, sweetheart, I'll get it,” the postman said. He opened the small door and took the package from her. The weight surprised him. “Boy, this is heavy. Whatcha got in here, anyway?”

She tried to speak, but her voice wouldn't come. Clearing her throat, she tried again. “A book for my grandma,” she said just under her breath.

He smiled and let the door close. “I'll just take it on back, pumpkin.”

She only stood staring at him for a moment, not sure what to do. Finally, she decided she'd better get back to the car before Stella left her. “Thank you,” she said again, and walked quickly to the door.

Stella was still waiting at the corner. Lisa ran up the sidewalk and climbed into the pickup. “What took you so long?” Stella demanded.

“I don't know.”

“Well, did you put the package in the Express Mail slot?”

Lisa thought of telling her about the man, but a dread came over her that she might be punished for giving the package to him.

“Yes,” she said.

“Did you talk to anyone?”

“No.”

Stella breathed out a sigh of relief as she turned the corner and headed back to the home. After a moment, she muttered, “I oughta get hazard pay for this.”

Lisa turned around and looked out the back window, wondering if the man had really mailed the package, or if he'd opened it and looked inside. She hoped it wasn't anything too awful.

She sat back down and tried to console herself with the thought that Jimmy might be back when she returned to the home. Wouldn't he be proud that she was smart enough to work for Bill now, too?

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

B
eth poured two cups of coffee and brought them to the table where Lynda sat, filling in the notes she had made as Beth told her of the allegations she was about to make concerning the home, and what Jimmy's part had been in it. As Jimmy and Jake sat on the floor playing with the puppy, Beth quietly popped the question she had been waiting to ask.

“I wondered, Lynda, what kind of responsibility Jimmy and the other kids who've worked in Bill Brandon's crime ring will have. In other words, are they accountable for something they were forced to do?”

“You mean, can they be prosecuted?” Lynda asked.

Jimmy looked up, and she knew he'd overheard. She wished she hadn't asked.

“Well, breaking and entering is definitely a crime,” Lynda said, “and under ordinary circumstances, a child Jimmy's age who committed a crime like that would be sent to the detention center, depending on the judge's disposition and the number of offenses against the child. But these are extenuating circumstances, and I find it hard to believe that any judge or jury would blame Jimmy or the other kids for being victims of Brandon's control.”

Beth looked down at the coffee cup in her hand. “There's someone I know, who I might try to interview. She's someone who was in Brandon's home a few years ago. She's an adult now, and I'm hoping she'll corroborate what I've already uncovered. But she might be worried that she'll be prosecuted if she confesses. Would she?”

“Well, that depends. How old was she when she stopped committing the crimes?”

“Eighteen. She stopped when she left the home.”

Lynda blew out a breath, and shook her head. “That's a tough one. A jury might say that she was old enough to know right from wrong.”

“But if she'd been doing it since she was ten, and she was scared to death of him, and she knew that she had no choice but to do everything he said . . .”

“It would depend on her lawyer, Beth, and what kind of case he laid out.”

“But you think she would
need
a lawyer? That there would be charges against her? Isn't the statute of limitations in Florida three years?”

“Well, yes. Has it been longer than that?”

“Just barely,” Beth said. “Does that means she'd be clear?”

“Yes, she would. But any of those legal adults who stole for Bill within that three-year period would be at the judge's mercy.”

“What about loopholes? Is there any way they could ignore the statute of limitations and prosecute her anyway?”

“It's possible that they could get her for something else.

Something like withholding evidence or aiding and abetting.”

“But she hasn't aided or abetted. Not since she left the home.”

“Still, just by keeping her mouth shut she was allowing the crimes to go on.”

“But that isn't fair! How much can someone be accountable when they've never had free will? When their every thought has been controlled by that man? When they're totally dependent on him for food and clothing and shelter, and they're afraid of his discipline if they don't do what he asks?”

“It may not be fair, Beth, but that's the justice system.”

“ Well, if that's the case, then it wouldn't be worth her while to talk, would it? Anyone would be better off keeping their mouth shut, even if they were outside the statute of limitations. And even then their reputation could be ruined—future job opportunities, credit, housing . . .”

“Technically, yes. But there's a moral issue that might outweigh all that,” Lynda said. “There are children being abused and warped. Without
someone
stepping forward, it'll never end. Is it

worth her reputation? I can't answer that. All I know is that God honors those who honor him by doing the right thing.”

“When?” Beth asked, staring at the lines of her palm.

“When what?”

“When does God honor the person who honors him? How much of a sacrifice does he demand first?”

Lynda looked a little surprised by the question. “That depends on the person, Beth,” Lynda said. “To one man Christ said to sell everything he owned. To another, he just said to go and sin no more. It all depends on what dark thing is in a person's heart, separating them from him. Mostly all he wants is confession and repentance.”

“Yeah, that's the part I have trouble with,” Beth said. “There are some buried things in life that you just don't want to dig up again.”

Lynda's eyes lingered on her for a moment. “Confession is risky, all right. No question. But it's cleansing, Beth. Tell your source that the release that she feels afterward will overshadow anything the justice system can do to her. After repentance, she still might face consequences of some kind, but she won't be alone. God will walk with her and provide for her in all of that.”

Beth tried to let it all soak in, but she wasn't sure she bought it.

“So when do you think the story will come out?” Jake asked from the floor.

“Tomorrow, if I can manage to get everything finished. It really has to be tomorrow. We can't wait any longer.”

“My sister's there,” Jimmy explained.

Lynda and Jake looked fully at Jimmy and saw the concern on his face. “Are you worried about your sister, Jimmy?” Lynda asked.

“Yes. He warned me. He said, ‘The sins of the brothers are visited upon their siblings.' He knows the Bible real good.”

“That's not in the Bible, kiddo,” Jake said.

“I told him that,” Beth said. “But Brandon always misquotes Scripture. He rewords verses and gives them a perverted, sinister meaning, and uses them like weapons against the children.” She hesitated. “I've heard that from several people.”

“Well, the more I hear, the more I think you need to get this story finished no matter what you have to do. Why don't Jake and I take Jimmy to stay with us while you work?”

Jimmy looked hopefully up at her.

“Sure,” Jake said. “We could do some guy stuff.”

“But we haven't reported finding him. I'm not sure what the police would do. We were just going to hide him until the arrests are made.”

Jimmy sprang to his feet. “Please? It'll be all right. Nobody'll see me.”

Beth gave Lynda a narrow look. “Are you sure you wouldn't feel compelled to report him?”

“Of course not,” Lynda said. “I agree with you. It's best to hide him quietly for a while, as long as HRS knows.”

“We could go out to the airport and take him up.”

“In an airplane?” Jimmy asked, his eyes huge.

“Sure, in an airplane. Unless you know some other way to fly.”

“Can I, Beth? That would be so great! None of the other kids would even believe it!”

Beth couldn't help laughing. “I guess that's all right, if Jake promises he won't crash.”

“I beg your pardon,” Jake said, insulted.

“It's not like you haven't done it before.”

Jake gave a smirk. “It'll never happen again. Jimmy's not scared, are you, Jimmy?”

Jimmy looked a little less exuberant now. “You crashed?”

They all laughed. “It's a long story. We'll tell you about it on the way.”

Beth walked them all to the door, said her good-byes to Jimmy, and watched them drive away.

For a moment, she contemplated what Lynda had said, trying to draw it into the core of her heart, her faith. It was too great a risk—yet all those children had no one fighting for them, no one to make things right.
Somebody
had to talk.

She looked through her Rolodex and found her old friend's number. All of the “graduates” of Bill Brandon's home kept unlisted phone numbers and very private addresses, so he couldn't reach them. They all continued to live in fear, to one degree or another. But Maria had trustingly shared her number with Beth, who had never expected to use it for a favor like this.

She picked up the phone and dialed Maria's number at home.

Maria had gotten pregnant shortly after leaving the home, and was

now the mother of twin two-year-olds. She had a sweet, supportive husband—ten years her senior. Beth hoped that Maria was happy; she hated to drag all this up now. But Maria was her best chance for getting cooperation.

“Hello?”

Beth smiled at the sound of her voice. “Maria, hi. It's Beth Wright. I mean . . . Beth Sullivan.” It had been a long time since she'd used that name.

“Beth! It's good to hear from you. How are you?”

“I'm great,” she said, but couldn't manage to work any enthusiasm into her voice. “Listen, I was wondering if you'd have time to meet me for lunch today. I know you have the kids and all. I could pick up hamburgers and meet you at the park or something so they could play. I just need to talk to you about something.”