Lean On Me
Page 19
"Cole, Collin, stop tormenting your sister right now! Jason, can you come corral these two while Melanie and I bring the food outside?" Sandy shouted over the noise. "Hunter, are the steaks almost ready?"
"Just about. Why don't you go sit down and put your feet up? Let Lillian help Melanie. You should be resting."
"Hunter, I'm pregnant, not helpless, "Sandy laughed. "You just dish up the meat and we'll be ready in no time."
Hunter turned around to look at his oldest son, who had the twins wrapped in a wrestling hold. His heart swelled in his chest at the sight of the handsome young man, wearing the uniform of an Air Force officer. Who would have thought, seven years ago, that he would ever see such a splendid sight?
He had to give most of the credit to his wife, who, with her boundless love and patience had helped to shape the dignified man Jason was today. She had given him back the joy for life his mother had taken away, and had helped the boy rebuild his self-respect. He had aced his way through the Air Force Academy, graduating near the top of his class.
His specialty was computers, and Hunter had no doubt that Jason would be an asset to his country. Today they were hosting a party to welcome Jason home on his first leave since graduation.
Hunter was also very proud of Sandy. She'd been dismayed when Jason had first announced his intention of following in his father's footsteps, but she'd never let Jason know. She'd stood behind his decision, helped him with his application to the Academy and encouraged him to follow his dreams. It had taken a toll on her emotionally, but she'd been as proud as Hunter when Jason crossed the stage to receive his commission. And Hunter had been proud to be the man to hand it to him.
"Are you going to stand there and daydream, or are you going to take those steaks off the grill before they burn?" Sandy asked as she slid her arms around his waist." Her gaze followed his to where Jason stood, straight and proud, with a hand on top of each twin's head, holding them in place. "He looks wonderful, doesn't he? Whoever would've thought he'd turn out to look so much like his dad?"
"Yeah, he does, doesn't he? I just hope he does a better job of handling his personal life than I did. But I hear the Air Force is more sensitive about family issues these days. Maybe things will be easier for him."
"I think he'll learn from past mistakes, and be man enough to admit to those he does make. Just like his father, whom I love dearly, by the way."
"I love you, too. And Jr. there. Thank you, Sandy."
"For what?" she asked, looking up at him with a puzzled expression on her beautiful face.
Hunter placed a kiss on her lips. "For giving me someone to lean on. To love." He kissed her again. "To share all these blessings with."
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An excerpt from Lone Star Justice by Tori Scott
Madelyn Cooper leaned back in her chair, pleased with her day's work. She'd sentenced a drug dealer to twenty years in the state penitentiary, ordered a wayward teen to three years probation and two hundred hours of community service for his part in decorating the brick walls of the high school, and she'd awarded temporary custody of two adorable children to their grandparents until their parents stopped threatening each other over visitation rights and child support.
She knew people viewed her as a cold-hearted, hard-ass judge, but she was proud of the fact that she didn't let killers go free or let repeat offenders off with a slap on the wrist. Sometimes the press was cruel and heartless in their portrayal of her in the evening papers, but it didn't bother her. Except when it hurt her daughter.
Maddie glanced at her watch for the fifth time in as many minutes. "Where the hell is Ferguson?" She had no patience left after a full day of dealing with defense attorneys who hated her guts. Now the Assistant District Attorney had failed to show for pre-trial motions in the Delgado case, the last on today's docket. It wasn't like Anne to miss something this important.
Jerry March, the bailiff, only shrugged in reply. The defense counsel alternately scowled and glanced at his watch as he drummed his knuckles on the tabletop. Maddie couldn't help but wonder if he was more concerned about missing his dinner than he was about the missing ADA.
When Anne still hadn't arrived by five o'clock, Maddie continued the case until the next week and left the courtroom. More worried than angry, she hung her robe on the coat rack in her office and went to her desk to call Anne's office. No answer.
She cut the connection, then dialed her home number. Brandy should be home, safely ensconced in front of the television, but Maddie knew her daughter would fret if she was late getting home.
She smiled as Brandy rattled on about the latest happenings at Wadsworth Junior High. At thirteen, she was still young enough to enjoy the social life at school without all the teenage angst inevitable in another year or two.
"Sounds like you had a good day. Listen, I'm going to be a little late getting home. I need to stop by Anne's house to check on her. She didn't show up for court today. You keep the doors locked and don't open them for anyone, okay?"
"Sure, Mom. I know the rules. Can you pick up a pizza on your way home? Oh, and see if Anne got that Brad Paisley CD yet. She said I could borrow it."
"Pizza? Again?" Brandy would eat pizza for breakfast, lunch, and dinner if she'd let her. "I'll ask her about the CD, but you are not going to copy it, understand? That's illegal."
"Geez, I know that. I just want to see if I like it enough to buy my own copy."
"Okay. Now remember, keep the door locked and don't open it for anyone. Not even Matt."
After Brandy had assured her again that she had sense enough to keep the doors locked, Maddie took a few minutes to finish her paperwork before she left the office. By the time she locked the office door behind her, the building was nearly vacant and the sun was setting over Montgomery. The streets were clogged with rush hour traffic, extending the fifteen minute trip to forty-five.
Maddie turned her Expedition onto a narrow street lined with frame houses in varying stages of neglect. Rusted pickups wasted away on blocks in several of the cracked and broken driveways. Barefoot toddlers played in yards more dirt than grass.
She'd begged Anne many times to move out of the crime-ridden neighborhood, but the house had belonged to Anne's mother and was mortgage-free. Anne insisted she would move when she'd saved up a decent down payment for a new house.
A shiver of nerves chased up Maddie's spine when a group of rough looking men turned to stare at her as she made her way slowly down the street, trying to discern the house numbers amidst the faded and peeling paint. When she found the right one, she pulled into the driveway and looked around before she opened her car door.
No one came outside to see who had come to visit. No cracks appeared in the crooked blinds. No dogs barked a warning. All was eerily quiet and still. Maddie tried to shake off the foreboding that stole over her. You're being silly. It's just the neighborhood that's getting to you.
She stepped onto the sagging porch and cupped her hands around her eyes, trying in vain to see through the grime-covered window, but there were no lights on inside, no sound of a television or radio, no footsteps echoing from within the house. No sign of life.
Maddie opened the screen and knocked on the door hard enough to bruise her knuckles. She waited, and waited, and waited. No one answered. She knocked again, then a third time. Feeling like a too-stupid-to-live character in a B movie, she tried the doorknob-and breathed a sigh of relief when she discovered it was locked.
So that was that. Anne wasn't there. When she got home, she'd call the DA to see if Anne had called in sick. Most likely something had come up and someone else was supposed to take Anne’s place in court but had forgotten. It happened.
As Maddie rounded the front of her vehicle, she glanced toward the overgrown backyard. Maybe she should take a look back there. For what, she had no idea, but she hated to leave without checking out every possibility. Still, there was no sign of Anne’s ’63 Volkswagen bug, so most likely she’d gotten stuck in traffic, or had a
n accident, or one of a hundred other things that could have kept her out of the courtroom.
She took a deep breath and forced herself to walk down the sidewalk and push open the back gate. She hated this neighborhood, the feeling of helplessness she had whenever she came here. It reminded her too much of growing up poor and vulnerable in Greendale.
She stopped at the corner of the house to listen for any sounds out of place. Other than a dog barking in the yard across the alley, there was nothing. As she stepped into the yard, a flash of white drew her attention toward the tall, stately oak tree. What she saw stopped her in her tracks. Then she lost her lunch all over her brand new Gucci sandals.
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