Total pages in book: 28
Estimated words: 25932 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 130(@200wpm)___ 104(@250wpm)___ 86(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 25932 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 130(@200wpm)___ 104(@250wpm)___ 86(@300wpm)
It also didn’t help that I was homesick. I’d been so excited to move away from home—and “spread my wings” as my mom liked to put it—but I had been ready to come back home for a visit after the first month. Unfortunately, my classes had kept me too busy for trips to see my parents as often as I wished I could. I’d barely made it back for Thanksgiving. The trip before that, I’d only been able to pop in quickly for a couple of days, and I stopped to have lunch with my dad at the courthouse on my way out of town since it felt as though I’d barely seen him while I was there.
Now that winter break was finally here, I had a whole month to spend with them. After pulling my Mini Cooper—a high school graduation present from my dad—into the garage, I jumped out and raced into the house. I was so excited to be back that I left all my stuff in the car and headed straight for the kitchen. “Mom, I’m home!”
“Shh, keep it down.” She lifted her wineglass toward the hallway that led to my dad’s office before taking a healthy gulp. “Your father is working from home today.”
My brows drew together. “Really? I saw his car in the garage, but I figured you dropped him off today or something. I thought I’d have to go to the courthouse to see him if I didn’t want to wait until tonight.”
“You definitely won’t find him there today.” She polished off the rest of her wine and poured another glass. “Or anytime soon, for that matter.”
I blinked a few times as I moved closer, my excitement quickly turning to concern. My mom had wine with dinner every night, but I couldn’t remember ever seeing her drink during the day by herself. My dad being at home was just as strange since it was the middle of the day during the week. He should have been busy presiding over a case. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing, dear.” She dropped the empty wine bottle in the recycling bin. “Everything is fine, just like it always is.”
She didn’t sound very convincing. Her high-pitched tone was the same fake one she used when talking to someone she didn’t like but felt she needed to impress. “Then why are you having a liquid lunch? And what’s Dad doing at home when he should be at the courthouse?”
“Those damn bikers have driven me to drink,” she muttered.
My eyes widened as my head reared back. My mom hardly ever used swear words, and I didn’t think she had any clue motorcycle clubs existed. She didn’t watch the same shows as I did, and the people she hung out with were more likely to drive a Rolls-Royce than a motorcycle. “Bikers?”
“Your father went up against a local biker gang during his last case.” She rolled her eyes with a huff. “And he failed miserably.”
Staring at the bottle of wine she was opening, I wondered if it was the alcohol talking. “That doesn’t make any sense. How could Dad lose? He doesn’t try cases; he’s a judge.”
“No, he was a judge.”
I felt a sinking sensation in the pit of my stomach. “What do you mean?”
“He’s been suspended from the bench.”
My chest tightened as I shook my head. “I don’t understand. Everything was fine the last time I visited. How could all of this have happened in such a short time?”
“It feels like forever to me,” she grumbled. “You were lucky to be at school because time has been moving in slow motion for me with all of this going on.”
“I was literally just here for Thanksgiving.”
“You were only here for a few days, and we didn’t want to worry you. But there’s no point in trying to keep it from you when you’re bound to notice that your father is home all month. ” She heaved a deep sigh. “The suspension is temporary while the judicial commission determines whether there’s sufficient evidence for disciplinary action. If those bikers manufacture more evidence against him, the decision may very well go against your father. Even if they don’t, he could still be removed from the bench and disbarred.”
“Disbarred?” I sputtered.
“But hey, at least a grand jury hasn’t been convened…yet.” She lifted her glass as though she was toasting the good news. “So he might not end up in jail.”
My knees felt weak, and I reached out to grab the marble counter to steady myself. “There’s a chance he can go to jail? Is one of his lawyer friends representing him?”
“Absolutely not! The proceedings have been kept confidential so far, but there are already enough rumors about why your father isn’t presiding over any cases. The last thing we need is for some office busybody to gossip about our business.” Wrapping her fingers around my wrist, she hissed, “You can’t tell anyone what’s happened, Kiara. I’m doing my best to keep this situation out of the limelight while your father figures out a way out of this mess.”