With her free hand, she caressed his cheek. “It’s way more serious than I was expecting, too.”
“So we’re both committed to whatever this is?” he asked, wanting to be sure.
Smiling, she nodded. “I’m committed to whatever this is.”
J.C. sat back with a sigh. For the first time in years, he felt an amazing sense of contentment steal over him. Apparently, when the right woman came along, commitment wasn’t half as terrifying as he’d been thinking all this time. If only there weren’t this nagging thought in the back of his mind that even something that felt so right could still end very, very badly.
* * *
Laura was in the middle of a test with her second period class when one of the secretaries from the office came in. “Mrs. Donovan wants to see you right away. I’ll stay here and monitor the class, if that’s okay.”
Laura nodded. “They’re taking a test,” she said, then raised her voice, “so there’s to be no talking.”
“Got it,” Cathy said. “Leave ’em to me.”
Since Laura knew she’d actually been a drill sergeant in the army before retiring to Serenity with her husband, she figured Cathy could control a roomful of teenagers.
In the office, she found Betty with Helen. They were looking at a thick sheaf of papers.
“Uh-oh,” Laura said nervously. “What’s going on?”
“Mariah’s claimed to the school board that you both should be fired,” Helen said, her voice tight. “It’s all ridiculous, of course, but she’s managed to get it on the agenda for this afternoon’s meeting. I think what she really wants is to create such a stir that the board won’t be able to deal with Annabelle’s expulsion. It’s a delaying tactic, nothing more, just the way she managed to wrangle a postponement to get the meeting pushed over to today, rather than yesterday, when Ham originally had scheduled it.”
“But we’ll still have to defend ourselves,” Betty said wearily. “Which will take time.”
Helen shook her head. “Not to worry. I’m all over this. I’ve already spoken to Hamilton Reynolds, who’s fit to be tied. Yes, he can’t afford to sweep this under the rug, but I imagine he can wrap up the discussion in about ten minutes, tops.”
Betty gave her a wry look. “He certainly put me in my place quickly enough when I brought up those charges against Cal several years ago.” She shook her head. “Looking back, I don’t know what I was thinking.”
“You had a few bitter parents who thought Ty Townsend was getting preferential treatment from Cal because he had a relationship with Maddie,” Helen consoled her. “Maybe you went overboard trying to soothe their ruffled feathers, but that’s over and done with. Everyone in town knows you’re a good principal. They also know Laura’s one of the best teachers at the high school. These charges of Mariah’s are nonsense, especially this notion that you two had some kind of vendetta against Annabelle. The suspension of all those boys for bullying pretty much makes mincemeat out of that argument.”
“What do you need from us?” Laura asked.
“Not a thing,” Helen said. “If Mariah wants me to produce all those posts Annabelle put online to prove that she was, in fact, bullying, so be it. They were coming out in court sooner or later, anyway. As a mother, though, I’d have thought she’d prefer later, after tempers in town cool down a bit. The content of those posts doesn’t reflect well on Annabelle or on Mariah’s parenting.”
“This is mostly about the transfer,” Laura guessed. “Remember what Don said, that getting Annabelle into some private boarding school would cost money they don’t have. If Mariah couldn’t find the money, then she’s clearly not one bit happy about having to drag Annabelle over to another district for classes every day. She’s probably grabbing at any straw she can think of to keep her here.”
“Not an option,” Betty said flatly.
Helen confirmed it. “The transfer’s already been approved. Ham put through the paperwork this morning. The Litchfields can choose a different school, but Annabelle won’t be staying here.”
Laura regarded her worriedly. “Without even a public hearing? Could Mr. Reynolds do that on his own?”
“Certain circumstances allow him to act in the best interests of the district,” Helen explained. “And, frankly, he was furious that Mariah managed to get the meeting delayed. He made calls to the other board members after the prosecutor and Chief Rollins explained to him what they felt was in the best interest of the community. Every board member backed him up after what they saw at Saturday’s rally. Every single one of them has privately expressed to me how dismayed they were by what happened. They’ll still take a formal vote this afternoon. That will tidy up any legal loose ends.”
“If I weren’t still so outraged with Annabelle for what she put Misty through, I’d almost feel sorry for her,” Laura said. “She’s just a teenager, and this could change her life.”
“Hopefully for the better,” Helen said, undeterred by any hint of sympathy. “Today’s board meeting is in the auditorium at four o’clock. Can you both be there by 3:30 in case there are any last-minute surprises or details we need to go over?”
“Absolutely,” Betty said. “Are we going to need character witnesses or anything like that?”
“I’ll handle that,” Helen said. “I’ll have a couple of people on standby just in case, but I promise you I don’t think they’re going to be necessary.”
Laura hoped she was right. She’d never in a million years anticipated things going this far just because she’d been trying to protect one student from another’s bullying.
* * *
J.C. had listened quietly as Helen explained why she needed him to attend that afternoon’s emergency school board meeting.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” he said incredulously when she was finished. “Mariah has actually gone through with this? When the meeting was postponed, I thought she’d had second thoughts.”
Helen shook her head. “She’s not the sort of woman to go down without a fight,” she said wryly. “This is her last-ditch attempt to turn her daughter into the victim of some terrible conspiracy.”
“That’s absurd!”
“Well, of course it is, but it’s hard to ignore someone who’s shouting not only in your ear, but making phone calls to every media contact she has in the region. The school board has no choice but to address these charges and formally
