The Accomplice (Theodore Boone 7)

“Good question. I am told that his office has yet to talk to the Lambert boys. I assume the PD is very busy, as always.”

“Well, I was informed by Mrs. Lambert yesterday that she could not afford a lawyer.”

“I’m here pro bono, Judge, as a friend of the family, and just for the purposes of getting bail set. We’re trying to get the boys out of jail. The PD will take over from there.”

Judge Pendergrast yawned again and shrugged, as if he didn’t really approve of her involvement, but no judge in the state would tell Marcella Boone that she didn’t belong in a courtroom. He said, “Very well. I’ll note your appearance. Are the boys here?”

“No, sir. They’re still in jail. Their presence is not necessary. It’s just a bail hearing, Your Honor.”

Judge Pendergrast shuffled some papers and read something. “Each is charged with armed robbery. What type of bail are you requesting?”

“Personal ID, Your Honor. The Lamberts have lived here for many years, and there is no reason to believe that Woody and Tony will not appear in court when they are supposed to. They pose no risk of flight or disappearance. They’re both students and good boys. This is all a misunderstanding anyway. Nothing can be gained by forcing Mrs. Lambert to spend money she doesn’t have.”

His Honor frowned and said, “I see here that Tony Lambert is on probation from an earlier violation this year. This could complicate matters.”

“Let’s deal with it later, Your Honor. The goal right now is to get them out so they can meet with their attorney and find a solution.”

Judge Pendergrast was shaking his head. “Their codefendant, Mr. Garth Tucker, posted bail of fifty thousand dollars. This is a serious crime, Mrs. Boone.”

“He’s an adult and apparently his family has the money. I’m not concerned with Mr. Tucker. My clients are minors and deserve to be released from jail. There’s no good reason for keeping them locked up.”

Theo was sitting next to Daisy Lambert in the front row. He managed to keep a frown on his face but wanted to say, “Go get ’em, Mom!”

Judge Pendergrast said, “But for a serious charge like this, Mrs. Boone, I cannot simply release them on their personal IDs. I’ve never done that. And until we know the facts of this case, I cannot assume that these boys are as innocent as you think they are.”

Without yielding an inch, Mrs. Boone said, “I assure you they’ll show up in court when they are supposed to.”

“That sounds good but I’ve heard it before. And, since you will not be their lawyer after today, I’m not sure how you can guarantee anything.”

“The family has little resources, Your Honor. Any type of bail will be a hardship. Indeed, any bail at all will simply keep the boys in jail. They are innocent until proven guilty.”

“I realize that. Does the family own a home or any other real estate?”

Mrs. Boone exhaled in frustration and said, rather sternly, “No, Your Honor. The family rents their home. Mrs. Lambert works two jobs, one as a part-time hairstylist, the other as a waitress in a restaurant. Her husband, the boys’ stepfather, works in construction and right now he’s on a job two hours away. His involvement with the boys is limited. The family is barely getting by and any amount of bail is nothing but a hardship.”

“For armed robbery I cannot set a bail below ten thousand dollars. For each.”

“That’s twenty thousand dollars, Your Honor.”

“I can do the math.”

“Bail bondsmen typically charge ten percent for the bond. That’s two thousand dollars just to get them out. That’s unfair, Your Honor.”

Judge Pendergrast glared at her, obviously irritated. “Nothing I do is unfair, Mrs. Boone. I realize you do not work in criminal law, and I assure you that a ten-thousand-dollar bail for armed robbery is not unfair and is definitely on the low side. These boys got themselves in trouble. Don’t blame me for it.”

For a tense moment, the lawyer and the judge stared at each other, but it was obvious who was in charge. Mrs. Boone finally smiled and said, “So be it, Your Honor. Thank you for your time.”

“You are welcome. Now, I have a scheduled hearing and need to move on. You are excused.” In other words: Would you kindly leave my courtroom at this time?

Theo followed his mother and Daisy Lambert into the hallway where they huddled in a corner. Daisy was wiping tears and Mrs. Boone was trying to control her frustration.

Theo had almost four hundred dollars in his savings account and was already thinking of ways to get more.

“What about your husband?” Mrs. Boone asked.

“Which one?”

“The current one.”

Daisy shook her head. “He won’t help. We talked last night, had a big fight. He says he’s not coming home for a while and will not help the boys. They’ve never been close.”

“What about their father?”

“He’s around but we don’t see much of him. I’ll ask him. He might pitch in something but I doubt it. He’s not working much these days.”

“You do that and we’ll talk later. I need to get to the office and you, Theo, need to get to school.”

Daisy wiped her face and said, “Thanks, Marcella. You’ll never know how much I appreciate this.”

“I’m not sure I helped the situation, Daisy.”

“Thanks for being here. And thank you, Theo.”

Theo said, “I can’t believe Woody is sitting in jail.”

Halfway to school, and pedaling as slowly as possible, Theo remembered that he was officially excused from class. Neither Mr. Mount nor Mrs. Gladwell nor anyone else at school would know how long things took in court, so he had a bright idea. He turned around and sprinted to the jail where he found his pal, Captain Rick Pruitt. Carrying his backpack, he explained that he needed to meet with Woody and discuss their homework. He implied that he had been sent by their teacher to help his friend keep current with their lessons.

Pruitt was skeptical and suggested that he should call the school and check

out the story. Theo said that would be fine but he doubted Mrs. Gladwell would answer the phone because she was tied up in assembly.

To Theo’s horror, Pruitt picked up the phone and called the school. He asked to speak to Mrs. Gladwell, then said, “Good morning. This is Captain Pruitt at the police department. Your student, Theodore Boone, is in my office and says he needs to visit with Woody Lambert to do some homework. Was this authorized by anyone at the school?”

Theo thought about bolting, but tried to remain calm. Pruitt listened and listened, then smiled. He said, “Thanks,” and hung up. He pointed at Theo and said, “If you’re not in school in ten minutes, I’m calling your mother.”

Theo saluted, said “Yes, sir,” and ran from the office.

Theo thought it highly unlikely that Captain Pruitt would follow up on his threat to call Mrs. Boone. It was a good bluff, and it worked because Theo was headed to school, but the closer he got the slower he pedaled. Second period was Geometry with Mrs. Garman, and it was his least-favorite subject. After a few loops and swings through the leafy neighborhoods around Stratten College, he eventually arrived at school, at precisely 10:40 when the bell rang for morning break. He checked in at the front office, went to his locker, said hello to April Finnemore, his favorite friend-girl, which was something altogether different from a real girlfriend, and drifted through the crowded hallway to Mr. Mount’s classroom where Government, his favorite subject, would start at eleven o’clock.

Mr. Mount was waiting. He said softly, “Look, Theo, some of the guys are asking about Woody. What if you explained what’s going on?”

Theo glanced around, obviously uncertain. He glanced at his feet, then said, “Well, sure, but I don’t know how much I can say. It’s a Youth Court matter and those cases are not public.”

“I know. Did the judge set bail?”

“Yes, ten thousand for each. Woody’s mother doesn’t have the money, so they’ll just stay in jail.”

“That’s ridiculous. Let’s talk about this in class without going into the details of the armed robbery, okay?”