Whirlwind (5 page)

Jas glanced at the building’s double front doors. Dr. Danvers was bringing Grandfather from the nursing home.
Where are they?

Her grandfather was important to her case. The judge had to see that he was healthy enough to regain custody of Jas. She loved Miss Hahn, but she was tired of being a foster kid.

“Chase, would you
sit down?”
she whispered, slamming shut her book. “You’re making me crazy.”

“This waiting is making
me
crazy,” he said, continuing to stalk. He wore khakis and a light blue cotton shirt. Jas had never seen him in
anything but cutoffs or jeans and T’s. The shirt brought out the blue in his eyes, his sun-streaked hair looked silky-soft, and his …

Oh, stop it
, Jas scolded herself.
You are not a love-struck idiot in a novel
.

She pointed to a closed door down the hall. “At least we’re waiting here and not in the holding cell. That’s where the deputies brought me for my first hearing.” She shuddered, thinking about that day.

“Bender case!” the court bailiff hollered, and Jas jumped. A young kid shuffled from the holding cell, escorted by two deputies. He wore an orange jumpsuit, ankle chains, and handcuffs.

Chase hastily slid onto the bench beside Jas. “Jeez, they’ve got him chained up like Hannibal Lecter. Hey, they’re here.” Leaping up, he strode to the double doors and held one open for Grandfather, who hobbled inside using a cane. Dr. Danvers followed behind.

“You made it!” Jas tossed the book on the bench, ran to her grandfather, and wrapped her arms around his wafer-thin frame. A suspender buckle bit into her cheek, but she didn’t care. When Jas’s mother, Iris, left to pursue her dream of jockeying, Jas’s grandparents had raised her. A year ago, her grandmother had
died of cancer. Since then, Jas and Grandfather had been a team. She’d missed him terribly.

“You look terrific.” She leaned back. His snow-white hair was combed, and his cheeks were razor-smooth.

He rubbed his chin. “Nurse shaved me. Nearly cut off my ’ead.” Some of her grandfather’s words were slurred because of the stroke, but Jas understood him perfectly.

“Hello, Mr. Schuler.” Miss Hahn shook Grandfather’s hand. “Jas and I are so excited that you like our plan.”

“Plan? What plan?” Grandfather shouted as if deaf, but then he winked. “Don’t ’orry, I love the plan. I’m ready to come to your farm and ’ork. Soon I ’on’t need ’is.” He waved his cane in the air, lost his balance, and would have tipped over if Jas hadn’t been holding him. Before the stroke, her grandfather had been able to carry a bale of hay in each hand. Now he could barely walk.

Jas bit the inside of her cheek.
How will he manage living and working at Second Chance Farm?
But she pushed the worry from her mind.

“Jas’s case should be called any minute,” Miss Tomlinson told everyone. “I expect it to go
well. The judge has all the information about the circumstances leading up to her assault on Hugh. The probation officer’s and my reports will state that Jas has met her obligations.”

Everybody but Jas murmured in relief. Her gut was tangled in a knot. Despite yesterday’s bravado, she knew the surveillance tape could screw up everything. She could end up back in foster care with more time on her probation. Chase could be arrested.

The blood rushed from her head. Dizzy, she plopped down on the bench.

“Are you all right?” asked Miss Hahn.

“Put your head between your knees,” Dr. Danvers instructed.

Miss Tomlinson opened her purse. “I have smelling salts.”

“Get her some ’ater,” Grandfather suggested.

“Excuse me.” Arm outstretched like a quarterback, Jas sprang from the bench and barreled through them. She raced around the corner. There was a ladies’ room in the small commons area, which also had soda and snack machines, an exit door, and a drinking fountain. Ducking her head, she gulped the stream of cool water.

Suddenly, fingers grasped her upper arm, hurling her from the fountain. She slammed against the wall, banging the back of her head.

“Hey—” A palm slapped over her mouth, stifling her cry. Jas twisted and found herself staring straight into Hugh Robicheaux’s eyes.

“DON’T SAY A WORD.” HUGH GRABBED JAS’S
throat with his other hand. “Just listen. You need to stop searching for Whirlwind. She’s safe and healthy. Got that?”

How did Hugh know she was looking for Whirlwind?

“Got that?” Hugh tightened his grip, and Jas nodded as best as she could.

“If you persist, you will regret it. I can—and I will—destroy Diane and her precious farm. And as for that boyfriend of yours …” He grinned maliciously, his face so close that Jas felt the brush of his foul breath on her cheek. “I doubt he’d want his video debut sent to the police. Right?”

Jas squeaked a “right” beneath his palm.

“I knew you’d agree. Look, I kept my end of the deal. Your grandfather was well cared
for at the nursing home. But keep up this foolishness, and I’ll make sure everyone you love pays dearly. Understand?”

She nodded again.

“Good.” Releasing his hold, Hugh spun and pushed open the exit door. Jas gasped, trying to catch her breath. Pausing, he glared at her. “Don’t forget, I have friends in high places.” He tipped his head in the direction of the courtroom. “Not only will I be acquitted of all these foolish insurance fraud charges, but also this meeting better stay between us or you’ll regret it.”

The door closed behind him. Running outside, Jas scanned the busy sidewalk and street. He was gone.

She rubbed her neck. She could still feel his fingers, choking her.

“What are you doing out here?” Chase asked. He was holding open the door, looking at her with a puzzled expression.

“I … I needed some air.” Jas stumbled over the words. Ducking her chin, she tried to pass by him, but he didn’t step aside.

“What’s wrong with your neck?” He pushed her hair behind her left ear. “It’s all red.”

She shook her head, afraid to say anything.
This little meeting better stay between us or you’ll regret it
.

Chase’s face darkened. “Hugh was here, wasn’t he?” Striding outside, he looked right, then left. When Jas didn’t reply, he whirled to face her, his blue eyes snapping. Jas had never seen Chase angry before. “You said no more secrets, Jas, remember?”

“Yes, it was Hugh.”

“What did he want?”

“He said if I didn’t stop searching for Whirlwind, he was sending the surveillance tape to the police.”

“I already told you the tape’s no big deal.”

“He told me to keep quiet and to stop looking for Whirlwind. How does he know I’m searching for her?”

“He’s bluffing.”

“He’s not bluffing when he said I would regret it if I told anyone he saw me today. And”—her voice rose—“he’s not bluffing about having powerful friends and beating the fraud charges against him.”

“Jas?” Miss Tomlinson said from the courthouse. “They just called your case.”

“We’re coming,” she said, starting inside.

Chase reached for her elbow, holding her
back. “Forget about Hugh for now. You have a lot of supporters here today. Don’t let that jerk ruin it.”

Nodding quickly, Jas hurried into the courthouse. A deputy in uniform stood outside the courtroom door. Jas joined Grandfather, Miss Hahn, and Dr. Danvers, who were milling in the hall. Miss Tomlinson had already gone in.

Jas flipped up her shirt collar so no one would notice the red marks on her neck. Grandfather put his arm around her shoulders. “It’ll be all ’ight,” he assured her.

“You may enter.” The deputy opened the doors and escorted Jas in first. She gulped nervously when she spotted the robed judge behind his desk in the front of the room. The last time she’d faced him, she’d been convicted of assault.

Slowly, she walked down the aisle between the rows of benches. Mr. Eyler, the probation officer, sat against a wall near the front. He was talking to Miss Tomlinson, who was next to him. Jas’s public defender, Mr. Petrie, sat behind the defense table on the right. This time there was no prosecuting attorney at the table on the left.

And no Hugh. Jas’s shoulders sagged with
relief as she looked around to make sure. Still, she could feel his presence.
Don’t forget, I have friends in high places
. She looked at the judge. He was reading her file, his head bent. Was he Hugh’s golfing buddy? Fraternity brother? Distant cousin?

The deputy guided Jas to the chair next to Mr. Petrie. She sat, immediately twisting to look over her shoulder. Miss Hahn, Chase, Grandfather, and Dr. Danvers were seated several rows behind her. They smiled encouragingly. This isn’t like the first trial, Jas reminded herself. That time, she’d had no one.

Jas gave them a wavering smile. Then she took a deep breath and faced the judge.

Mr. Petrie was already standing, addressing the bench. “Good morning, Your Honor.”

“Good morning, Mr. Petrie,” the judge said without looking up from Jas’s file.

Jas squirmed in her chair, remembering her trial forty-five days ago.

Miss Schuler, you have been charged with assault against Hugh Robicheaux. Mr. Petrie, how does your client plead?

Your Honor, Miss Schuler pleads not guilty
.

Only, she
had
been guilty of attacking Hugh. And she’d do it again today.

Finally the judge looked up from the folder. “I see from the reports that Miss Schuler has met the terms of her probation.”

“Yes, Your Honor.”

“It is my understanding that Mr. Eyler, Mrs. Weisberger, and Miss Tomlinson have agreed that no further services are necessary for your client.”

“That is correct,” Mr. Petrie said.

“Is Miss Schuler’s grandfather, Karl Schuler, willing and able to cooperate?”

“I am, Your Honor!” Jas heard her grandfather shout.

The judge smiled. “You may sit down, Mr. Schuler. Mr. Petrie will respond for you.”

“He is willing and able, Your Honor.”

The judge next consulted with the probation officer and social worker. Finally he turned to Jas. “Jasmine Schuler, please stand.”

She stood so quickly that the chair scraped the floor with a loud rasp. “Assault is a serious charge. It will remain on your record until you are eighteen. I have read the extenuating circumstances concerning Mr. Robicheaux and his alleged participation in the death of two horses. However, Mr. Robicheaux’s actions do
not mitigate your crime. You are hereby ordered …”

This is where the judge tells me he’s seen the tape, and I will never, ever go free
.

“… to have no contact with Mr. Hugh Robicheaux, and you will continue to be restricted from High Meadows Farm. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes.” Jas gasped in surprise.

“Speak up. I want to be sure you understand the importance of my order.”

Jas bobbed her head. “Yes, Your Honor.”

“Mr. Schuler, as the child’s guardian, you are also responsible for making sure that your granddaughter has no contact with Mr. Robicheaux, his horses, or his property.”

“I un-nerstand, Your Honor.”

The judge swung his attention back to Jas, his gaze boring into hers. She began to tremble.
This is when he mentions the tape. This is where he arrests Chase
. “It is the order of the court that the terms of your probation and foster care be concluded.” The gavel banged down. “Bailiff, clear the court for the next case.”

Jas leaped in the air. She gratefully thanked
Mr. Petrie. Outside the courtroom, she hugged Grandfather and Miss Hahn, and thanked Miss Tomlinson and Mr. Eyler.

“Now let’s go have that ankle bracelet removed,” Miss Tomlinson said.

As Jas passed by Chase, he caught her hand. “See?” he whispered. “Everything turned out great. Hugh was bluffing.”

She gave his hand a squeeze and then strode after Miss Tomlinson. Jas was glad Chase was feeling confident. But she knew better. For some reason, Hugh hadn’t used the surveillance tape today. Even more puzzling, somehow he knew that she was searching for Whirlwind.

No, Hugh definitely wasn’t bluffing, and he wasn’t all talk.

Hugh had a spy.