“I’ll call you later,” she promised, as she ran through the shop. Outside she headed straight for the bus stop.
“No. I’ll drive you,” Jason said, surprised that for once she didn’t argue. She simply nodded and turned toward the car. Obviously, where Sammy was concerned, she would make a pact with the devil himself if that’s what it took to reach her errant brother.
Once she’d given him the directions to the school, though, she clammed up. With her gaze fixed on the passing scenery and her hands clasped tensely in her lap, she looked as if she were struggling against tears. For what seemed the hundredth time since he and Dana met, Jason wanted to throttle Sammy for putting that worried crease in her forehead. He searched for some way to comfort her, but words seemed totally inadequate. Besides, anything he could think of to say about Sammy right now would not be a comfort. It would only infuriate her and deepen her pain. Since he couldn’t think of a consoling alternative, he remained as silent as she was.
As they turned the corner in front of the old building, she said stiffly, “Thanks for the lift. You can let me out here.”
He ignored the request, finally pulling into the school’s parking lot. “I’m going with you,” he said blandly, not entirely certain why he felt this need to stick by her. Maybe it was that flicker of fear in her eyes that told him her strength was about at its limits. He told himself if there’d been anyone else she could have turned to, he would have happily left her, but he wasn’t nearly so sure it was as true today as it might have been just yesterday.
Afraid or not, her gaze shot to meet his at last. “No.”
“Save your breath. I’m going.”
“Jason, why? This doesn’t concern you.”
“It concerns you, doesn’t it? If it concerns you, it concerns me.”
“Sammy will just resent your involvement.”
His temper flared and he muttered a harsh curse under his breath. “Frankly, at this point, what Sammy feels doesn’t matter a damn to me.”
Alarm filled her eyes. “I won’t have you yelling at him.”
“He’ll be lucky if I don’t break his neck.”
“You don’t even know what he did.”
“I know that when you heard the school had called, you turned absolutely pale. I have to assume you think it’s pretty bad.”
For an instant she looked as if she was going to argue some more, then her shoulders sagged. “Maybe he just has the flu.”
“You don’t believe that.”
“I want to,” she said so wistfully that it wrenched Jason’s heart.
His tone softened and he gently brushed away the single tear that had dared to track down her cheek. “I’m sure you do. Let’s go see what’s going on. There’s no point sitting here speculating. Whatever it is, we’ll handle it.”
“I’ll handle it.”
The words were filled with Dana’s usual spunk, but Jason couldn’t miss the despair in her eyes, the dejection in the set of her shoulders. For just an instant her lower lip quivered, then as if she’d resolved to tough it out as she always did, she gathered her composure. Clenching her purse so tightly her knuckles turned white, she left the car and stormed off toward the principal’s office like some sort of avenging angel, not waiting to see whether Jason followed. He couldn’t decide whether he wanted to shake her or kiss her. The woman had so much honor, so damned much loyalty, albeit seriously misguided from what he’d seen of Sammy.
Jason could practically hear his father’s voice reminding him that not everyone in the world had it as good as he did and that Hallorans owed it to the less fortunate to give them a helping hand. Up to now his idea of charity had been writing several large checks and putting them in the mail. Maybe it would be good for him to see firsthand what it meant to deal with a troubled kid.
Everyone in the office seemed to recognize Dana the instant she stepped through the door. Gazes met hers and skittered nervously away. Jason did not consider that a good sign. It seemed to confirm his suspicion that these visits happened all too regularly.
“Hi, Ms. Roberts. I’ll get Mr. DeRosario,” the clerk working at the reception desk said. “He wants to see you before you pick up your brother.”
“Is Sammy okay?” Dana asked.
Though the woman looked sympathetic, her only comment was a terse, “Mr. DeRosario will explain.”
Jason took an instant liking to the tall, kind-looking man who stepped out of his office and headed toward them. Though the man’s expression was serious, his eyes were gentle, suggesting a personality that blended discipline and compassion in equal measures. Jason didn’t know much about the education system, but he imagined that the combination was sorely needed in today’s overburdened urban schools.
The man greeted Dana with a smile, then glanced curiously at Jason.
“I’m Jason Halloran, a friend of Ms. Roberts,” he told the principal. “I came along in case there might be something I can do to help.”
“Good.”
“Mr. DeRosario, what happened?” Dana asked. “Is my brother all right?”
“Your brother is fine, but I’m afraid I’m going to have to suspend him.”
“Suspend him?” Dana echoed. She drew in a deep breath, then asked, “Why?”
“He had a knife, Ms. Roberts. He pulled it during an argument with another student.”
“A knife?” she repeated dully. Tears pooled in her eyes, but she managed to keep her voice steady. “Was the other student hurt?”
“No. Thankfully it never went that far. But I cannot tolerate this kind of behavior. We’ve discussed this before. I’ve done my best to make allowances for Sammy’s circumstances, but I won’t allow him to put the other students at risk.”
Dana nodded wearily. “I understand. How long will he be suspended?”
“Two weeks this time.”
“This time?” Jason questioned, barely controlling his own dismay. “He’s done this before?”
The principal nodded. “Sammy seems to
