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- Bonds of Trust
-- Part XIV
Next day…
Bo is sitting at his desk when the office door opens and Rex
walks in. “Hey, partner. How goes it?”
-
- Bo barely looks up, turning
his attention back to the file in front of him. “Hi, Balsom.”
-
- Rex sits in the chair in
front of Bo’s desk. “Did you meet with McBain yesterday?”
-
- “Yes.”
-
- “And?”
-
- Bo doesn’t look up.
“He’s going to talk to Hugh about a deal.”
-
- Rex leans forward, snapping
his fingers in front of Bo. “Hey! Why so grumpy?”
-
- Bo sets down his pen. “Sorry,
long night last night.”
-
- “What happened?”
-
- Bo shakes his head, getting
up to get a cup of coffee. “Family stuff.”
-
- “Are Nora and Matt okay?”
Bo nods. “What’s happening?”
-
- “Matt is upset about
an article Kallie wrote for the school newspaper on domestic
violence. That’s what set him off last week when we were
arguing.”
-
- “So, what, he thought
you would hit Nora?”
-
- Bo shrugs. “I guess.
Still not sure I buy that. He’s been around our arguments
long enough to know they’re just words.”
-
- “Come on! Of course
he knows you would never hit Mrs. B.”
-
- Bo sighs. “I thought
he knew that. I’m not sure what’s going through his
head these days.”
-
- Rex nods. “I asked him
about Stevie’s dad when I drove him to practice yesterday.
He was very fidgety and he didn’t answer my questions.”
-
- “He acted the same way
with me. Do you think he knows about Nathan’s illegal activities?”
-
- “Not sure, but talking
about Stevie’s family made him really nervous.”
-
- “Stevie’s mom stopped
by Nora’s office the other day wanting to know why Matt
hasn’t been to their house lately. Matt claims he’s
been busy and that’s true, but I’m wondering if there’s
more to the story…”
-
- Matt is walking down the
hallway when he hears someone calling his name. He turns to see
Stevie jogging up to him. “Hey Buchanan, wait up.”
-
- “What’s up?”
-
- “Are you ready for the
dance tomorrow night?”
-
- “My mom is picking me
up after school to go shopping for a tie.”
-
- Stevie grins. “A matching
tie?”
-
- Matt rolls his eyes. “Don’t,
okay. Now that she’s letting me go, she has all these ideas
of what I need to get. What are you wearing?”
-
- “I’m going open
collar. No tie required.”
-
- He chuckles. “My mom
would never go for that. And neither would Kallie.”
-
- “Well, Danielle is cool
with it.”
-
- She walks up to them. “Cool
with what?”
-
- Stevie puts his arm around
her. “It’s nothing, babe. Let’s get to class.
See ya later, Matt.”
-
- Nora is in her home office,
working on a file, when there is a knock at the front door. She
gets up and goes to the door, smiling as she pulls it open. “Hugh,
what a nice surprise. I haven’t seen you in a while.”
-
- He holds up a takeout bag.
“I brought a late lunch. You have time for an old co-worker?”
-
- “Of course. Come on
in.”
-
- Hugh walks through the door.
“I’m sorry I didn’t call but I just decided to
try my luck.”
-
- Nora leads him back toward
the kitchen. “I’m working on some files at home today.
That’s the bonus of being a pro bono lawyer – you get
to set your own hours. But I must admit, I skipped lunch so the
subs are a welcome sight.” Hugh sets the takeout bag on
the table as Nora opens the fridge. “I have soda or water?”
-
- He pulls out a chair. “Water
is fine.”
-
- Nora sets the water bottles
on the table and takes a seat. “So, what brings you by?”
-
- “I wanted to run something
by you.”
-
- Nora digs into the bag, handing
a sandwich to Hugh. “Okay, shoot.”
-
- He grabs a bag of chips.
“This is hypothetical, of course.”
-
- “Of course.”
-
- Hugh takes a bite of his
sub, trying to decide how to approach his question. “Say
someone came to you to make a deal – first time offender
but deep in a pile of crap.”
-
- Nora grins. “Okay.”
-
- “And you’re being
asked to cut this guy a break as a favor to someone…”
-
- “Do you owe a favor
to the person asking?”
-
- Hugh nods. “Kind of.
This person gave me a break a while back but this is a big favor
in return. The perp has been caught dead to rights on receiving
and passing stolen goods.”
-
- “What’s the deal?”
-
- “Perp gives up accomplice
and fence in exchange for us going easy on him.”
-
- “Are they bigger fish
than the perp?”
-
- Hugh grins. “You know
all the right questions to ask. I knew I came to the right place.”
-
- Nora digs into her chips.
“I enjoyed my time as prosecutor, but I don’t miss
all the dilemmas it caused. What’s your gut saying about
this deal?”
-
- “My gut says the guy
is guilty as sin and we can get him, but he has a family and
no priors. Upstanding guy, really. For whatever reason, he’s
chosen to go over to the other side. To answer your question,
I’m not sure the others are bigger than this guy. I’m
being asked to cut him a deal without knowing all the particulars.”
- Nora shakes her head. “I’d
get the names first. Why would you be pressured to give immunity
prior to the bust?”
-
- “That’s where the
favor comes in. I’m being asked to trust the person asking
for the immunity that what the perp can give me is bigger than
the perp.”
-
- Nora finishes her sandwich
and tosses the wrapper back in the bag. “That’s a tough
one. Do you trust the person asking for the immunity?” Hugh
nods. “Well, then I think you have your answer. Sometimes
it’s better to let one go for the opportunity to return
a favor and stay in the good graces of someone you may need down
the line.”
-
- Hugh nods, taking a sip of
his drink. “That makes sense. Did you ever let someone off
and regret it later?”
-
- “Is that what you’re
afraid of? You said the guy’s a first timer. You think he’ll
be a repeater if you give him a slap on the wrist?”
-
- “Maybe. There’s
no way of knowing – but we have this guy. It’s more
a ‘bird in hand’ kind of dilemma. I can nail this guy.
I have no idea what kind of case I could make against the other
two.”
-
- Nora nods. “My hunch
is that if someone is asking for a favor, they know the other
two are worth more than the guy they have. It’s always a
leap of faith, Hugh.” She glances at the clock on the microwave.
“Oh, no. I’m late. I have to get Matthew at school.”
-
- Hugh stands. “I’m
sorry I kept you.”
-
- Nora shakes her head as she
follows him out of the kitchen. “It’s okay. I enjoyed
the shop talk. Good luck with your case.” She walks him
to the door and pulls it open.
-
- Hugh steps onto the porch,
turning to her. “Thanks for the ear, Nora.”
-
- “Any time.” She
closes the door behind him and rushes back to the kitchen, grabbing
her keys off the counter and heading into the garage.
-
- Matt is standing in front
of his school, looking down the street, glancing at his watch
and rolling his eyes. “She’s always late,” he
mutters under his breath. He turns back toward the school and
sees Stevie and Danielle. He tries to get their attention but
they disappear into the building. Matt looks down the street
but doesn’t see Nora’s car, so he walks back toward
the school.
-
- Matt pulls open the door
and walks down the hallway, trying to figure out which way Stevie
and Danielle went. He hears loud voices coming from one of the
classrooms and walks toward the sound. As he gets to the doorway,
he sees Stevie and Danielle arguing. He hangs back, wanting to
stay out of it, until he sees Stevie push her. Danielle loses
her balance and crashes against a desk before falling to the
floor.
-
- Matt rushes into the room.
“Hey!” He grabs Stevie and pushes him up against the
wall. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
-
- Stevie pushes him away. “Back
off, Buchanan.”
-
- Matt helps Danielle to her
feet. “Are you okay?”
-
- She nods, rubbing her shoulder.
“I’m fine, Matt. It wasn’t what it looked like.”
-
- “Mind your own business,
Buchanan.”
-
- Matt has his arm around Danielle.
“She’s my friend. This is my business.”
-
- She pulls away. “It’s
okay, Matt. I have to go.”
-
- “Danielle, wait!”
Matt tries to follow her as she rushes out of the room but Stevie
grabs his arm. “Let go of me!”
-
- “Chill, Buchanan. Danielle
is fine.”
-
- Matt pushes his hand away.
“What’s wrong with you? Why did you push her like that?”
-
- “It’s not what
you think. Just let it go.” Stevie walks out of the room.
-
- “Hey! Don’t walk
away.” Matt follows him, grabbing him by the arm and turning
him around in the hallway. “You can’t do that, Stevie.
Is this what you’re learning from your dad?”
-
- “Leave my dad out of
this.”
-
- Matt shakes his head. “I
know your dad hit your mom the night I was at your house. That’s
not okay and now you’re doing it to Danielle. I have to
say something.”
-
- “You keep your mouth
shut, Buchanan.”
-
- “I’ve covered for
you long enough. You can’t act this way.”
-
- "Just back off."
Stevie turns to walk away.
-
- Matt grabs him by the arm
and Stevie takes a swing at him. Matt ducks and pushes him against
the lockers.
- “You wanna hit someone?
Try someone your own size. Go ahead, take another swing.”
-
- Stevie tries to push away.
“I don’t wanna hit you.”
-
- Matt doesn’t let him
go. “What’s going on with you? Is it because of what’s
happening with your mom and dad?”
-
- “It’s no big deal,
man. My dad was going through a tough time. He lost his job and
it’s kinda rough right now, you know? He was just blowing
off some steam.”
-
- “Is that what you call
it? And what's your excuse?”
-
- “Look, my dad is bringing
in some money now. Things are getting better again. The fighting
has stopped. It’s gonna be okay.”
-
- Matt shakes his head. “It’s
not okay! You can’t do stuff like that and neither can your
dad.”
-
- Stevie pushes him back. “What
happened with Danielle was an accident. You need to back off,
Matt. This is none of your business.” He starts to walk
away.
-
- Matt follows him. “Look,
we can talk to my parents. They can help you and your parents.”
-
- Stevie turns on him. “You
keep your mouth shut, Buchanan. I don’t need your perfect
parents telling mine what to do.”
-
- “Perfect parents? Are
you kidding me?”
-
- “If your law-abiding
parents get involved, my dad goes to jail. And I’m sure
you'd love to see me sent to juvie. I read Kallie’s article.
Is that what you want?”
-
- “Of course not. You’re
my best friend. My parents would help, Stevie.”
-
- “We don’t need
your help. I told you to stay out of it.”
- Stevie exits the school,
heading toward the parking lot. Matt continues to follow him
and grabs Stevie by the arm. “Wait! You can’t just
walk away from this.”
-
- He brushes Matt off. “Watch
me.”
-
- They hear a horn sound and
both turn to see Nora's car parked at the curb. Stevie glares
at him. “Keep your mouth shut, Buchanan. This has nothing
to do with you.”
-
- Stevie walks away as Nora
honks at Matt again. He watches Stevie get his bike out of the
rack and ride off before reluctantly walking toward Nora’s
car. He climbs in, tossing his backpack in the back seat. Nora
can tell he’s upset. “What’s wrong, Matthew?”
-
- “It’s nothing,
Mom. Let’s just go home.”
-
- She shakes her head. “We’re
not going home, we’re going to the mall to get your tie,
remember?”
-
- Matt rolls his eyes. “I
don’t want a stupid tie.”
-
- “Why are you so upset?”
-
- He shakes his head. “I
said it’s nothing.”
-
- “I don’t think
so, sweetie.” Matt stays silent so Nora tries another tack.
“Stevie looked like he was ready to punch you. What were
you fighting about?”
-
- “I don’t want to
talk about it.”
-
- “Okay, but we do have
to go get your tie. Or have you decided not to go to the dance?”
-
- Matt crosses his arms, sulking.
“Fine, let’s go get the stupid tie if it’s so
important to you!”
-
- Nora glares at him. “All
right, young man. You will not speak to me that way. I can see
that you’re upset and you obviously don’t want to tell
me why, but you will not be disrespectful to me. Is that clear?”
-
- Matt looks down. “Sorry,
Mom. I didn’t mean to yell at you.”
-
- Nora nods. “Okay. Apology
accepted. Maybe we can get the tie later. Would you like to get
something to eat first?”
-
- “Yeah, that’s a
good idea.”
-
- Nora drives to Rodi’s
and they order burgers. Matt looks at her when the waitress leaves.
“So, how come you were late picking me up?”
-
- Nora sighs. “Oh, Hugh
dropped by to discuss a case and I lost track of time.”
-
- “What kind of case?”
-
- “Nothing specific. It
was a hypothetical discussion. You know how legal talk is.”
Matt nods. Nora notes that he seems calmer, so she tries again
to find out what happened at school. “So, are you ready
to tell me about your fight with Stevie?”
-
- “You’re not going
to let this go, are you?” Nora shakes her head. Matt looks
down, unable to look her in the eye. “He broke up with Danielle,”
he lies.
-
- Nora nods. “I see. Why
would that be so upsetting to you?”
-
- Matt shrugs. “Because
they’re both my friends and I don’t like the way he
treated her.” At least that was the truth.
-
- Nora watches her son carefully.
He didn’t make eye contact with her so she knew she wasn’t
getting the whole story. “So, I guess they’re not going
to the dance?”
-
- He shrugs again. “I
guess not.”
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