“That’s okay,” Addy said. She’d been following the woman’s progress, the online forms Randi had filed, all in accordance with policy. Randi hadn’t pulled any strings where the scholarship admittance was concerned. If she’d played favorites ten years before for the basketball player, she’d apparently learned her lesson. There were no forms filed on that one. “I was just stopping by to let you know that she got another offer. She’s going to be playing for a community college close to home her first year with the hopes of getting an agent.”
Her former client was doing so. The words were only half lie.
“Well, if you’re sure...”
Addy nodded. “She’s made her decision.”
“Tell her to keep us in mind for next year, then,” Randi said. “I viewed her footage. She’s good.”
“I will.”
“Let her know that it would be best if she applies by January.”
Backing out the door, Addy nodded. She would pass on the information to her former client. She’d taken the girl’s case gratis because the girl and her parents hadn’t been able to hire an attorney. And if their allowing her to use their daughter’s name for this, another case, could actually get the girl seen by Randi Parsons, if it could get her into Montford, then something good would have come from involving them in the deception. Not that
they knew she’d used their daughter’s name deceitfully. Just that she’d needed it for a case.
“Thank you,” she said to Randi, and got the hell out of there.
One thing was for sure, if the threats against Will materialized into actual charges before they discovered who was behind the anonymous letters, his defense team would have an arsenal of information ready and waiting for them.
If nothing else, Addy was doing her job well.
Randi would forgive her the lies, if she ever found out about them, because Addy was working under direction from the older brother Randi adored. The question was, would Addy ever be able to live with herself again?
She was finding out that she was a good liar.
The fact that she was doing it for a good cause didn’t seem to matter anymore.
* * *
MARK JOINED JON on his favorite rock about ten minutes into his afternoon break on Monday.
“Hey, man, I didn’t see you around this weekend.” And they’d had a test in class that morning so hadn’t had a chance to talk then.
“Abe was throwing up all weekend.”
So Jon, as his sole caregiver, had to miss work. On one level, he understood.
But from a work standpoint—which mattered since Mark had stuck his neck out to get Jon the job—they couldn’t have a new hire calling off.
“I traded with someone on third shift and had a neighbor lady, Veronica, sleep over,” Jon continued. “Abe’s pretty clingy and the doctor says it’s okay if I pander to that a bit, just so long as I also get him out and socializing. I figured puking was a good excuse for pandering. Anyway, the doc says it was just a twenty-four-hour thing. He’s fine now.”
Mark listened, and his mind wandered, too. What if Ella still wanted to marry him? Outrageous as the idea sounded, he was seriously thinking about asking for full custody of their child.
“If you worked nights, when did you sleep?”
“When he napped, mostly.”
“How’d you do on your test?”
“Didn’t ace it, but I’m sure I passed.”
If a twentysomething guy could raise a kid alone, then he could certainly do it.
“You ever have time to go out?” he asked now, trying for a light tone as he felt out his own situation.
“Not much.” Jon chuckled.