The Scandal (Theodore Boone 6)

They sat for another five minutes without talking. Finally, she said, “You know what I want to do?”

“Not really.”

“I want to have a picnic. Let’s run by Gibson’s Grocery near the college, get a couple of their corn dogs, and bike over to that spot above the river. No one will see us there, and we can have a quiet lunch.”

“I think we should go to school.”

“No, and besides, we’ve already missed half a day. Who cares? So we get in trouble. They can’t shoot us or anything bad like that.”

“My parents will shoot me.”

“No they won’t. They’ll get mad and slap you on the wrist, but you’re tough. You’ve been in enough trouble before. Please, Theo. I need a friend today.”

He couldn’t say no. Plus, he loved the corn dogs from the grill at Gibson’s.

That afternoon, after he finally shook loose from April, Theo walked into the offices of Boone & Boone and said hello to Elsa. She asked how was school. He replied, “The usual. Is Mom in?”

“She’s in court and your father has a client in his office.”

Theo’s plan was to march into his mother’s office and admit to playing hooky all day. If she was busy and couldn’t see him, he would go upstairs and confess to his father. But since both were occupied, he went to his office with Judge and closed the door, somewhat relieved that his big moment would be delayed. Now, he planned to announce it over dinner that night. After ten minutes he was bored. He left through the rear door and biked over to Ike’s office.

Ike was busy at his desk, barefoot, with Bob Dylan playing quietly on the stereo, and an open can of beer near his phone. It was as if nothing had happened. He smiled at his nephew and said, “Great to see you, Theo.”

“How are you doing?” Theo asked as he fell into an old chair.

“I’m fine. I feel lousy for what happened and for getting you involved. Believe me, Theo, you’re the last person I’d ever want to see me in jail.”

“It’s okay, Ike. I’ve worried about you all day.”

“Don’t worry about me, Theo. I’ve been in worse trouble.”

“So I’ve heard.”

“You know, Theo, I’m thinking about giving up alcohol. I think I’d feel better.”

Theo nodded at the can of beer and asked, “When do you plan to start?”

“That’s what I can’t decide. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe next Monday. I might even go away to one of those fancy rehab places for thirty days and do a complete dry out. Get it all out of my system and learn some new habits. I’m really embarrassed right now.”

Theo wasn’t sure what to say about this. Ike was the last person to be embarrassed about anything. He saw himself as a rebel with little regard for rules and laws and those in authority.

Theo said, “I skipped school all day, and I need to tell my parents about it. They will want to know why.”

“You can tell them. I’ll call Woods tomorrow and explain everything.”

Mr. Boone and Ike rarely talked, and this had always bothered Theo. The fact that Ike would call Theo’s father and talk about this was perhaps a good thing.

“Why did you skip all day?” Ike asked.

“It’s a long story.”

“I’m not that busy.”

So Theo told him about April, and her anonymous letter, and the suspensions of the five teachers at East. Ike could be trusted with any secret. He seemed to like the idea that April nailed the cheaters with an anonymous letter.

Chapter 18

When Theo returned to the office, his mother was standing at Elsa’s desk, talking to Mr. Boone and Elsa and Vince, her paralegal. It was obvious that something bad had happened. For a split second, Theo thought maybe the school had called and reported him.

But it was far worse. That afternoon, the police had arrested Geneva Hull and the other four teachers. They were being charged with conspiracy and fraud, and Mrs. Boone was furious.

“These people are not criminals,” she said more than once. “What is Jack Hogan doing? You’d think he and the police have more important crimes to prosecute, bigger criminals to go after. This is ridiculous.”

Jack Hogan was the chief prosecutor and a well-respected lawyer. Theo had watched him in many trials.

Mr. Boone said, “Well, the important thing right now is to get Geneva out of jail.”

“I know that. The poor girl is probably terrified. Picked up by the cops, handcuffed, thrown into the backseat of a patrol car, hauled off to jail. And I’m sure the police notified the reporters just to add to the embarrassment. This is an outrage.”

“Has a bond been set?” Mr. Boone asked carefully. His wife was really upset, and he wanted to be supportive. For once, Elsa had nothing to say. Theo tried to hide in a corner, though he wasn’t about to miss the drama.

“I don’t know,” Mrs. Boone said. “I’m going down to the jail right now to find out. See if you can get Henry Gantry on the phone and call me.”

“Can I go with you?” Theo asked. “Maybe I can help.”

“I don’t see any way you can help matters, Theo,” his mother said.

“Probably not, but I’d hate to miss all the fun.”

“This is not fun, Theo,” she scolded. “This is an extremely important matter, and an outrage.”

“I’ll stay out of the way. I’ve already been there once today.”

All four froze and looked at him. He said, “It’s a long story, for later.”

“I don’t have time for a story,” Mrs. Boone replied. She threw up her hands and walked to her office. Seconds later, she came out with her briefcase and stomped out the front door. Vince followed her. And Theo decided to follow,

too. He wasn’t sure how far he would get, but he was willing to try. What did he have to lose? Mrs. Boone got behind the wheel of her car and slammed the door. Vince hopped into the front passenger’s seat. Theo crawled into the backseat and waited for his mother to order him out. She did not. She drove fast and recklessly to Main Street and parked illegally, as if she was just looking for a fight. Vince and Theo followed her into the police station, and she barked at the first officer she encountered.

“My name is Marcella Boone, attorney-at-law, and I represent Geneva Hull, who was arrested about an hour ago. I demand to see her immediately!”

Theo could not remember a time when he’d seen his mother this angry. Luckily, there were no reporters hanging around.

There were a few other cops milling about, and they disappeared into thin air. The first officer said, “Well, uh, sure, Mrs. Boone. I think you need to see the head jailer, just down the hall.”

“What’s his name?” she demanded. Mrs. Boone handled few criminal cases and as far as Theo knew had never been to the jail. At the moment, though, that didn’t matter.

“Officer Brock.”

As they headed toward the jail area, Officer Stu Peckinpaw came around a corner, saw Theo, smiled, and said, “Well, hello, Theo. You can’t stay away from this place, can you?” Mrs. Boone and Vince stopped and stared.

“It’s a long story,” Theo said, then quickly had an idea. “Say, look, Officer, this is my mother, and we need some help.” Introductions were quickly made, and the officer volunteered to help. He led them down the hall to the jailer’s desk. As they walked, Mrs. Boone said, “What was that all about?”

Theo replied, “I’ll tell you later. Another long story.”

Officer Brock was very helpful and informed them that Geneva Hull and the other four teachers were being “processed,” which meant they were being mug-shot, fingerprinted, and would soon be placed in cells. Each had a bond of ten thousand dollars.

“Ten thousand dollars!” Mrs. Boone practically yelled. “That’s outrageous. These are schoolteachers, not criminals.”

Officer Brock said, “Maybe so, ma’am, but they were arrested under a warrant, and that warrant says the bond is ten thousand dollars. I can’t change that.”

“Well I can,” she said. She looked at Vince and said, “Get Judge Gantry on the phone.” Vince grabbed his phone and made the call. Mrs. Boone demanded, “When can I see my client?”

“Uh, well, I’m not sure.”

“I demand to see my client as soon as possible.”

“Yes, ma’am. I’ll do what I can.”

Vince handed over his phone and said, “He’s on the line.”

She grabbed it and said, “Henry, this is Marcella. I’m sorry, Judge Gantry. They’ve arrested the five teachers and are holding them on ten-thousand-dollars bond each. That’s an outrageous sum of money, and I want it reduced.” She listened for a moment, then asked, “Are you in your office? Fine, I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

She gave the phone back to Vince and said to Officer Brock, “We’ll be back.” Vince and Theo followed her out of the building, onto the sidewalk, and down Main Street. She walked fast, her heels clicking away, and Theo had to practically jog to keep up. They entered the courthouse, took the elevator to the second floor, and sprinted to Judge Gantry’s office. His secretary, Mrs. Hardy, was Theo’s favorite in the entire courthouse, and she was waiting. She led them into his chambers and closed the door behind them. Everyone said hello, how you doing, and so on, and then Judge Gantry looked at Theo. “What are you doing here?”

“That’s a good question,” his mother said.

“I’m a paralegal today,” Theo said with a smile.

Mrs. Boone wasted no time. “Judge, I represent one of the teachers. All five have been arrested and are currently at the jail posing for their mug shots and being fingerprinted like common criminals. This is an outrage, and I want them released immediately.”

Theo watched the judge’s face, and at that moment there was no doubt his mother would get exactly what she wanted. His parents and Henry Gantry had been friends for many years. She was angry, upset, and she was right.