Baedes was in the middle of filling out an arrest report in his office. He looked up from his desk to regard a tall, athletic woman dressed in a blue uniform, who had just entered. She was awe-inspiring, not just for her physical prowess and beauty, but even more for her accomplishments. Pale and soft from one angle, she stood as an amazon from another. Her academic achievements were significant, having earned a degree in Criminal Justice, having graduated from the police academy with flying colors, and now having made an outstanding young officer. She brought passion and dedication to the job.
All of Baedes’s force was made up of fine officers. He stuck up for them, and they were loyal to him. But occasionally, Baedes met one that made his heart swoon. Not in a romantic way. Pamela Burns was much too young for him. She made his heart swoon in a proud, fatherly way. Just her being here was a credit to Abe’s Turn and to him for hiring her and to the society he had worked so hard to build here. His chest swelled with pride, but he suppressed the feeling.
“I have those records you wanted,” she said.
“Good,” he said. “Has Miss Jayson been processed?”
“Yes, Sir,” she said.
He took the folder full of papers.
“Ike Morgan is still waiting outside,” she said.
“I know,” Baedes said. But before she left, “Do you know why I haven’t talked to him yet?”
“Not exactly.”
“Because he’s a bargaining chip.”
The woman looked confused.
“Sit down, Burns.”
She sat.
“Unfortunately, the law doesn’t always do so well on its own. Sometimes the guilty need a little help to bring them to justice.”
“Ike Morgan needs a push?” Pamela looked confused.
“No, Mira Jayson does.”
“You aren’t talking about…”
“I needed to make sure she was arrested in a way that would stick.”
Officer Burns nodded. “That makes sense.”
“So I made sure Ike Morgan and I got into a scuffle. That would guarantee not only driving an unregistered vehicle, but also resisting arrest, attempted assault, and anything else I can think of to throw at her.”
“But what do you put in the report? Do you lie?”
“No!” Baedes said. “Never lie. Everything in my report is one hundred percent God’s honest truth. Morgan and I were in a scuffle. That’s the truth. Jayson charged at me. That’s the truth. I made a split-second decision. That’s the truth. All truth.”
“Didn’t you risk exposing yourself by getting into a scuffle?” she asked.
“Know your adversary,” Baedes said. “These two probably wanted to be arrested. I was safe.”
“Well, I guess she’ll have some trouble getting on her high horse from the depths of a jail cell.” She smirked.
“Indeed.” Baedes grinned. “Don’t worry, you’ll pick it up quickly enough. You just need to get a little street-smarts under your belt.”
“I appreciate your tutelage, Sir,” she replied.
Baedes still grinned. “Send in Ike Morgan on your way out.”
“Yes, Sir.” Officer Burns nodded, rose, and was out the door.
Ike entered, his hands handcuffed in front of him.
Baedes had returned to his report. Without looking up, Baedes motioned Ike to a chair.
Ike sat.
“I’m just finishing up your arrest report,” Baedes said, still writing. “But I haven’t decided yet what to do with you.”
Clydene had never been to a prayer vigil. And this night, she really didn’t feel like praying. Cursing, yes. Punching a bag, maybe. Ripping a pillow to shreds, definitely. But praying? No way. She was all prayed out. So instead of praying, the three friends sat in the Jackson’s living room and chatted and nibbled stale cookies and sipped burnt coffee. Or rather, Michael and Ted chatted and nibbled stale cookies and sipped burnt coffee, while Clydene seethed.
“I must admit,” Ted began, “I didn’t let you in on the whole story over the phone.”
“Didn’t think I could handle it, eh?” Michael said. “Well, you were probably right.”
Michael’s spooky, sapphire eyes cut through the air between them. Actually, the spookiness came more from how his irises were set off by his black hair. The contrast made them stick out visually, like little glowing blue orbs.
Who can? Clydene thought.
“I do think you can handle it. But I thought I should tell you in person,” Ted said.
Michael took a notebook and pen from his pocket. “Okay. What’s the situation?”
“I’m going to meet with Mira again tomorrow morning. She’s currently being held at the county jail.
“She was driving Ike Morgan home from work. You remember him. Mira met him through a colleague and has been helping him out.”
“Right,” Michael said. “The bum. A ‘professional’ relationship.” He used finger-quotes around the word professional.
Clydene had been staring into her coffee. At this point, she looked up. Oh God, Ted, you started it now. Her expression showed nothing.
“I admittedly haven’t inquired deeply into their relationship,” Ted said. “But I do believe it’s currently on a professional level, or semi-professional at least. They don’t have a client-counselor relationship, but I don’t think they’ve been… untoward.”
“But her feelings are distorting her judgment,” Michael said.
Yeah, so what? That has nothing to do with it.
“You don’t know that,” Ted said. “And even if they were, I don’t think it matters in this case. Ike didn’t get her arrested.”
“Still, she may not be giving you the whole story. She may be giving you the edited version,” Michael countered.
Jeez! With friends like this…
“Fine. May I continue now?” Ted seemed annoyed, but Clydene was still wrapped up in her own thoughts.
Of course, she’s giving the edited story. So what? She doesn’t want anybody to get hurt.
“Sure. Go ahead.” Michael prepared to write.
But she’s still going to tell the truth.
“The official complaint is that she resisted arrest, aided the attempted escape of a convict in custody, and attempted assault on a police officer.”
Instead of writing anything down, however, Michael looked surprised. “Mira?”
“Yes.”
“Resisting arrest.” Michael was clearly stunned.
“Yes.”
Clydene quietly observed the two men. Unfortunately, she had already heard the whole story from her husband. Her teeth were clenched.
“But Mira likes to be arrested. It’s her thing. Helping the cause and all that.”
“Yes, I know.”
“And assault? Mira doesn’t even like to kill spiders. They’re saying she attacked another human being?”
More likely the other way around!
“Based on these accusations, the D.A. has already met with the judge ex parte and she is being held pending a bail hearing tomorrow.”
“Wow. Must have been like being assaulted by an ant. Uh…” Michael paused. “Did she do it?”
No, she didn’t.
“No, I don’t believe she did.”
“You don’t believe she did.”
“At this point, I have only my belief, based on the official reports and especially on Mira’s side of the story.”
And that isn’t good enough for you?!
“Okay. What is Mira’s side of the story?” Michael made a note in his notebook.
“She was pulled over for driving with an expired registration. Oh, and you should add that to the list of charges.”
“Sure. Gotta get those unregistered drivers off the road! Crazy sons of bitches are a danger to all us drunks.”
Clydene smiled, a short, angry, evil smile. Her teeth were still clenched.
“It’s an arrestable offense, but most officers don’t arrest for it. They just demand that you get the car off the road immediately—tow it if necessary—until you get the registration renewed.”
“Well, most officers don’t work in Abe’s Turn. Besides that, the paperwork is a pain.” Michael chuckled.
“Yes, and most officers don’t have a personal ax to grind with Mira Jayson.”
Michael looked up. “What do you mean?”
“Baedes handled this one personally,” Ted explained. “He’s listed as the arresting officer.”
He wanted to make sure it went down without a hitch.
“He’s finally been demoted?” Michael joked. “That’s great news, right?”
He knew only he would be willing to do whatever it took.
“No, he was just ‘getting in some street time.’” Ted’s tone changed slightly to indicate these were not his words. “At least that’s what he said when I met him in the hallway.”
“Street time.” Right. Hit the pavement! Jerk.
“Okay, so Beady-eyes tried to arrest Mira. What happened then?”
“He also arrested Ike.”
“Well, maybe Beady-eyes isn’t all bad,” Michael quipped.
Shut up already about it, will ya?
“He claimed Ike was associating with a felon, thus violating his parole.”
“He was associating with a felon?” Michael stared quizzically.
“Mira.”
“Mira was associating with a felon.” That seemed to make more sense to Michael.
Clydene closed her eyes for a moment. She thought she might be getting a headache, because she understood exactly what Ted meant the first time.
“No, Mira is a felon,” Ted clarified.
“She is?”
“No, she isn’t. But Baedes said she is.”
“What?” Michael seemed even more confused than he did before.
No, What’s on second. Who is on first. If you were inside of Clydene’s head, this joke would have been funny.
Ted started over again. “Baedes claimed Mira was a felon. Therefore, he said, Ike was violating his parole by associating with Mira.”
But surely he knew this wouldn’t stick.
“Why would he say that?”
He must have something else in mind. A bigger plan. What? Clyde couldn’t have told you why she thought there was a bigger plan, but it seemed logical to her.
“He was mistaken.” Ted pushed on. “While he was handcuffing Ike, a physical conflict ensued. Mira ran to Ike’s side, but Baedes must have thought she was— That she had another goal in mind.”
“Fine.” Michael scrawled on his pad. “So he hasn’t been demoted, but he has lost all his marbles.”
“Exactly,” Ted said.
This is news? Now, that was a funny joke.
“And,” Ted added, “I’ll try to get you a photo of her with the bruise across her forehead.”
“Beg pardon?”
“Where Baedes hit her and knocked her unconscious.”
Shithead. Effing shithead jerk. Similar incidents were commonplace in Abe’s Turn. But Clyde was particular angry about this one. Mira was, after all, her closest and dearest friend, and Clyde knew what it was like to be beat up by a crazy sonofabitch, and Mira didn’t deserve it. No one did, but Mira especially.
“I think I’m gonna puke,” Michael said. “How much of this can we use?”
Clydene felt ill.
“None of it,” Ted said.
“What?!” Michael looked exasperated. “Why did you tell it to me?”
“Firstly, you need to know.”
“I do? You’re kidding? I don’t need to know anything! I know nothing. I see nothing. I hear nothing.”
Shut up. You talk too much.
“But this you do need to know, and I’ll tell you why.”
“This ought’a be good,” Michael said.
“Tomorrow, we’re going before the judge, and I’m hoping he will dismiss the whole thing as a simple misunderstanding,” Ted explained. “I expect it to be a cinch. In that case, we’ll need to issue an immediate press release making us sound triumphant and victimized at the same time.”
“No problem,” Michael said.
Not good enough. Thinking about Beady-eyes, He deserves a stronger tongue-lashing than that.
“But if we lose,” Ted continued, “we’ll need to announce Mira’s arrest and trial. I want you to write that one first.”
“I thought you said it was a cinch.”
“There’s a chance that it won’t be.” Ted paused. “Something feels wrong about this case.”
You didn’t believe me when I said that.
“What do you mean?” Michael asked.
“I think the D.A. has something hidden up his sleeve, something he got from Baedes.”
“Like what?”
“If I knew that, it wouldn’t be hidden up his sleeve.”
“Voodoo litigation? You gonna argue that in court?” Michael stared at him sideways.
“Let’s just be prepared, okay?” Ted said.
“Sure. Just give me more work to do.”
“That’s Mira’s way,” Ted said.
“What does that mean?” Michael asked.
“She gets herself into these situations all the time.”
You really don’t understand, do you?
“Yeah, well, she makes waves,” Michael agreed.
Suddenly, Clydene opened her mouth. “Shithead jerks! Even on our side you’re shithead jerks!” She stammered for a second. “God!” she shouted. And then she slammed her coffee cup onto the table and stormed out of the house.
Ted stood, as did everyone else in the courtroom. Beside him stood Mira, a bruise stretching across her forehead. But she looked smart in her gray suit and skirt, and stood as tall and proud as her stature would allow. When just a few minutes earlier she had wished him a happy birthday, Ted had brushed off the sentiment, because he thought it was stupid. Now, he wondered whether he had hurt her feelings, because things like that seemed to matter to Mira. Ted peeked at her out of the corner of his eye. She looked proud, not hurt.
“Criminal court is now in session, the honorable Nathaniel V. Spiller presiding.”
The judge took his seat, as did everyone else in the room. He was wearing a long, dark robe and a long, dark scowl to match.
“Docket number 07233, State versus Jayson—”
Ted stood. “Defendant waives reading and moves for dismissal.”
“On what basis?” the judge asked.
“Lack of probable cause, Your Honor. The official police report gives no indication of any plausible aggression by Miss Jayson. She was carrying no weapons, and she is much smaller than the arresting officer; therefore, she posed no credible threat. All we have to go on is the feeling of the arresting officer.
“Furthermore, the official report omits several facts, in favor of my client—”
“Do you mean to say that the report is incomplete?” the Judge asked.
“I do not know whether the arresting officer faithfully reported all that he saw. But I do know that no jury in the state would convict my client based on the evidence.”
The judge turned to the prosecutor.
“There is additional evidence, Your Honor. Ike Morgan, who was in the car with her, will testify to the fact that Miss Jayson threatened him, and that she then attempted to assault the officer who was arresting her.”
“Ike Morgan was also picked up at the same time Miss Jayson was. As a parolee, he no doubt feels great pressure to back up the government’s case,” Ted countered.
“A question for a jury, Your Honor,” the prosecutor said.
The judge spoke. “I tend to agree, Mr. Jackson. This case is not cut and dry.”
“Before you make that determination, we ask for an immediate probable cause hearing. We also ask that Miss Jayson be released on personal recognizance.”
“You’re kidding!” the prosecutor said. “These are serious charges.”
“Miss Jayson is an upstanding member of the communit—”
“With an arrest record a mile long!”
“But always in the context of non-violent protest.” Ted knew he was visibly fuming, desperately trying to restrain himself, to keep his mind on track. “She is well known for her political activism and non-violent political protests.”
“Well,” the prosecutor quipped, “I guess she ran out of non-violent ways to get her point across. Now she’s a terrorist with a martyr-complex.”
“Fear-mongering and speculation. Ridiculous, because there isn’t one shred of evidence to support any of it! More to the point: Miss Jayson poses an extremely low flight risk, because she has always appeared at court when required, and her activism gives her strong ties to the community. ”
A sudden quiet fell over the court room. Ted could hear his own heavy, labored breathing. He could feel his heart still pounding inside his chest. His mind was racing, already listing all the points at which he might have gone wrong.
The judge finally spoke. “Let’s have a probable cause hearing. Tomorrow morning at 10 o’clock?” He scanned the nods of the attorneys. “Bail is set at one million dollars. Court is in recess.” And he banged his gavel.
Later, Ted met Mira at the jail. He sat at a solitary table in the center of a small room, facing a sturdy, windowed door. The place stank the musty smell of a government facility. The door opened and a uniformed guard led Mira in and watched her sit in the vacant chair opposite her lawyer. The guard exited, closing the door on the way out. Ted could see him through the door.
Ted began. “Ike is now saying you bragged about having a weapon and that you threatened Baedes. He also says he relayed this information to Baedes, which is why he reacted the way he did.”
Mira gave him a desperate look. It could have been bewilderment. It could have been betrayal. Or maybe it was just anger. “But— I— I didn’t have a gun. Are they saying I had a gun?”
“No, you didn’t have a gun. And I don’t believe Ike. His story has more holes than a colander.”
Mira interrupted. “What’s he getting out of it?”
“Getting? You mean Ike?”
“Yes, what’s Ike getting out of it?”
“Well, I hear they’re dropping all charges against him. They’re saying it was just a misunderstanding but that you seized the opportunity to attack Baedes.”
“They’re dropping the charges.” Mira stared at the floor. “Ike is desperate,” she said.
“I’m sure he is. But we’re desperate, too, Mira. Baedes is clearly threatening Ike in order to get to you. And because of the position Ike is in, that’s exceedingly easy to do.”
“And there’s nothing illegal in that?”
Ted scoffed. “What’s legal anymore? Anything a person can get away with. And Baedes can get away with this.”
“Where do I get a million dollars?”
“We could get you out with $100,000.”
Mira nodded.
“Do you have $100,000?” Ted asked.
“No. Can we raise it? Isn’t that awful high?”
“For a misdemeanor? Yes, excessively.”
“Isn’t there anything you can do?”
“Our options are limited. And none of them is likely to work before the weekend.”
“I thought as much,” Mira said. “He’s trying to shut us down, isn’t he?”
“It would appear so.”
“Michael could stand in for me in a pinch. But it’s gonna hurt. I’m afraid the volunteers will be too scared.”
“It’s an end-run around free speech,” Ted said, “and artfully planned and executed, I’m afraid. Baedes is knowledgeable, experienced, and connected, a triple threat.” He paused. “I don’t know how we’re going to get you out of this.”
