Free Beauty & the Beast by Nancy Holder Page B

ignoring the blister from the brand-new black heels she had bought during lunch, and scanned the case file lying open on the blotter. There were a lot of charges—possession of an illegal substance with intent to distribute, possession of stolen property, illegal possession of a firearm, and resisting arrest ?
    Huh , Tess thought, raising her gaze from the document to the family seated before her. The “kid” who had been brought up on this raft of charges—the one Chief Ward wanted her to clear—was not a kid at all. He was an entitled, sulky, bad-mannered twenty-four-year-old. His parents had accompanied him into Tess’s office and were perched on either side of him, both leaning forward earnestly, waiting for Tess to wave her magic wand and make it all go away. The “kid” sat sprawled with his arms crossed, pointedly sighing and staring off into space as if this was all a gigantic imposition on his time.
    “Okay, see—” Tess looked at the file again “— Scott , I’m having a problem. These are very serious charges and from what I’m reading in the arresting officer’s report, all the evidence points towards your guilt.”
    “No, they trumped up those charges,” his mother—Mrs. Daystrom—cut in. She had been weeping when they’d walked in. The father looked no better. There were deep circles under his eyes and he kept twisting his wedding ring, a nervous tic. She had no idea how old they were but unless Mrs. Daystrom had had Scott when she was fifty, parenthood had significantly aged them both.
    “He was in possession of two kilos of pure cocaine,” Tess said. You don’t trump something like that up.
    “They planted that on him,” Mrs. Daystrom insisted.
    Tess glanced over at Scott’s father. He was staring at his son as if he had no idea who he was. His heartbreak was painful to observe. She could read his thoughts on his anguished features: Where did we go wrong?
    “Mrs. Daystrom, I know the arresting officer personally. He’s a good cop. He would never plant evidence on a subject.” Tess tried to be gentle.
    “Then you don’t know him very well,” the woman said shrilly. “I know my son. He’s not a drug dealer. And as for resisting arrest, I’d fight back too if I were falsely accused.” She reached to take her son’s hand but he slid his fists into his armpits. “It’s all over the news, how the police are-are corrupt.” She covered her mouth, then fidgeted with her hair. “I don’t mean you personally, Captain Vargas. Please …”
    “Unless you drop all charges right now, we’re going to sue for false arrest.” Those were the first words out of Mr. Daystrom’s mouth, and Tess could tell they had been rehearsed. The man’s cheeks were blazing red. He didn’t want to say them. He had been told to say them. “And I know Chief Ward will back us up.”
    Ward can’t possibly know the facts of this case , Tess thought. This is such an indefensible crock. He wouldn’t do that to me. She sighed inwardly.
    She looked straight at the kid, who was still avoiding eye contact. “Your parents are good, decent people. They’re going to bat for you. If this goes to trial and you need a lawyer, I’m sure they would spend every dime they have defending you. And your attorney might get you let off. But if you agree to lesser charges, I may be able to get the DA to—”
    “Hello, Brad,” the kid’s father said into his cell phone. Crap, that was Captain Ward’s first name. Mr. Daystrom stared down at his lap, utterly ashamed of himself. “We’re having a little trouble down here at the police station. Yes, she’s here. Sure.”
    He raised a brow as he held out the phone to Tess. As she took it, Scott smirked. Beside him, a tear slid down his mother’s face. Mrs. Daystrom knew that Scott was guilty.
    “Yes, sir,” Tess said into the phone.
    “Vargas, how’s it looking?”
    “Depends,” she said evasively. If she were the squirming type, she’d be squirming now.