Page 101 of Penance
When I look at him, he puts his hand on his neck and looks uncertain. “Is it okay if I sit here?”
Despite where we are standing, happiness tugs at my chest. “Of course it is, kid.”
He pulls out his chair, and I look over at Josephine. If she’s angry, Eric is downright murderous.
Judge Ranker walks in, his robes billowing around him, all while my heart hammers.
While he’s getting seated, I let my eyes roam over the crowd, searching for Lily, and when I find her, standing toward the back,the world goes still.
Lily stares back at me, her blue eyes enough to make a man’s heart stop. Everything about her is put together, but underneath, I can see the turmoil brewing. She’s beautifully broken.
Judge Ranker bangs his gavel, and I jerk my attention away from Lily to the door at the back of the courtroom and then to the judge.
“We are here again for the custody review between Theo Sylvis and Josephine Westbrook.” The judge looks at me. “Mr. Sylvis, I’m not usually one for gossip, but in times like these, it can be helpful—especially in this town. It has come to my attention that the only thing you’ve managed to accomplish this summer is a failed relationship. It has also come to my attention that in the past few weeks, your son has been exclusively living with his mother. Care to explain?”
I swallow hard, my eyes darting to the door again. On one side of me, Tanner fidgets in his chair, but on the other, my lawyer looks calm, far calmer than I do.
“We had a misunderstanding, Your Honor.”
The judge lowers his glasses to the end of his nose and stares at me over the top of them.
“A misunderstanding?” He asks in disbelief.
“Yes, Your Honor. Tanner and I had a lot to work through due to my absence in his life.”
Judge Ranker hums. “And have you figured it out?”
I glance at Tanner. “We have.”
Josephine snorts, bitter to the very end, but Tanner smiles back at me. And with that smile, I know that no matter what happens here today, it won’t be the end of our relationship. Tanner is old enough to make that decision for himself now—even if I don’t end up with custody.
Suddenly, the door at the back of the courtroom flies open, and Hayes and Campbell saunter in. They are both dressed in theiruniforms, Campbell with his arms tucked beneath his vest and Hayes with a piece of paper in his hand.
“What is this?” Judge Ranker demands. “You are interrupting my courtroom.”
Hayes smirks. “Sorry, Your Honor, but I have a warrant for Mr. Westbrook’s arrest.”
Josephine gasps, her hand flying to her chest as if scandalized at the mere thought, and Eric stands up, knocking over his chair.
“On what charges?” He bellows. His face is turning red, and spit flies from his mouth.
Hayes takes his time answering, walking the warrant up to the judge before spinning around to face Eric.
“Well, let’s see—there’s arson,” he says, pretending to think, “and insurance fraud. And I guess we’ll have to see what else our investigation reveals.”
“Those charges are a lie,” Eric sputters. “They are trying to frame me to win this custody hearing. You see that, don’t you, Bill?”
He turns to Judge Ranker, but the judge has gone very pale looking at the paper.
“The charges are real,” Campbell says, stepping up to Eric to cuff him. “Just ask your friend, Zeb. He had a lot to say about you and a lot of proof to go with it.”
On the day Morgan and I visited Zeb, he told me about how Eric had paid him to start all the fires around town, including the community building and the one in his subdivision. Apparently, Eric has lost a lot of money in that subdivision, and he’s floundering. He was trying to recoup it with the insurance money. The other fires had been to throw the scent off of him. I can’t say whether Josephine was involved, but I figure it will come out in the investigation.
Zeb spilled it all for a chance of making a deal, but I didn’t have the authority to make that deal for him—so I went to Hayes. Hayes wasable to work with the right people to get Zeb a plea deal. He’ll still serve time, but not as long as Eric. Zeb also signed away his rights to Mia, and while that’s a step in the right direction for Morgan and Mia, it still isn’t enough. Morgan has to prove he can provide a good home for Mia, including a steady income, which means the possibility of him dropping out of school is very likely. I won’t let that happen, though. I’ll figure out something before it comes to that.
When I told my lawyer everything going on with Eric, he devised a plan for Hayes to deliver the warrant during court. It would make a statement about the reliability of Josephine and Eric’s home. I told Tanner about all this last night. He’s been staying with me since I went to the jail and came home to find him at my house. He wasn’t all that surprised about the lengths his stepfather would go. He also didn’t seem upset with the possibility of my getting full custody, which I was thankful for.
“That snitch. I’ll kill him for this,” Eric yells, fighting against Campbell as he tries to cuff him.
