Unprotected (16 page)

Matty, the boy with the nose ring, looked expectantly at Amanda. “Now what are we supposed to do, teacher? We still don’t got no f-ing igloo.”

Amanda had stood up and pulled her shirt and jacket away from her body, trying to shake the snow out of her clothes. Some snow slid down her pants and she yelped again. Tyler, a short, thin blonde boy who was usually pretty quiet, muttered something under his breath to Chad.

“Oh, you’re sick, man,” Chad bellowed, shoving Tyler against the snow bank.

“What?” Katelyn asked, grabbing on to his arm. Katelyn had a thing for Chad and wasn’t at all upset when the two of them got stuck in the snow together.

Chad eyed Amanda and said something quietly to Katelyn. She turned to Tyler. “Keep dreaming, pervert,” she said. “She would never stoop so low.”

Amanda looked at Tyler, who met her stare in an intense way that gave Amanda the creeps. Funny, none of her social work classes addressed what to do if one of your clients makes suggestive remarks and gives you the willies.

* * *

For the second day in a row, Amanda’s group ended their session without an igloo or anything remotely resembling one. Madge’s group, however, had built a respectable snow structure that fit three people. Madge was disappointed that they weren’t able to meet their goal of fitting all six of them, so she had them start working on a second igloo.

As they were walking back inside with the full group, Madge asked, “How is Amanda’s crew coming along?”

“This is impossible,” Brittany whined. “We tried to build something and Katelyn and Chad almost got killed when it collapsed. “I say we forget the whole thing and do a music appreciation group instead.”

“Oh, come on,” Madge said. “You’re not ready to give up already, are you?” She put her arm around Brittany and launched into a long-winded pep talk.

“She’s a freakin Nazi,” Chad said, falling into step next to Amanda. “She’s a cheerleader Nazi, rah rah, you can do it blah blah. She makes me wanna puke.” Chad added with a grin, “and I think she’s a lesbo.”

Amanda was utterly sick of Madge, but couldn’t let a comment like that slide. “Knock it off, Chad.”

They went in the back door of the high school and trudged back to Madge’s classroom as the bell rang for the end of the day. The students dropped the snow equipment in a large storage closet in the entryway of Madge’s classroom. They shoved their way into the room, grabbed their backpacks, and took off. Amanda plopped into a chair by Madge’s desk, wanting to catch her breath before she packed her belongings.

Brittany hung back. “Hey, Amanda? Do you have a minute?” she asked, standing next to her chair.

“Sure,” Amanda said, trying to sit up. “Have a seat.” Brittany slid into a chair in front of Madge’s desk. Madge was still sorting equipment in the storage closet.

“You do, like, child protection, right?”

“That’s one of the things I do,” Amanda said. “Why? Is there something you need to tell me?”

“Yeah, but it’s not about me. I don’t even know if there’s anything anyone can do.” Brittany crossed her arms tightly in front of her skinny chest. She was wearing an arm full of bracelets, a skin tight t-shirt, and tight low rise jeans. Amanda could see her belly button ring through her t-shirt and mentally checked one more piercing off the list that she had visually confirmed.

“You can tell me the problem, and I’ll tell you some options. We might not be able to do anything, but sometimes there’s another option that you may not have thought of.”

Brittany let out a deep sigh. “Like I said, I just don’t know if anything is happening at all. It’s just that I was at my cousin’s house last weekend, and my cousin is like a total prep. She’s really good and doesn’t get in trouble or anything. Her friend was sleeping over, and her friend was just kind of freaking out. Her friend had snuck out of her house, and I guess she does that all the time. She stays at my cousin Jess’s house, and my aunt and uncle don’t even know.”

“So your cousin isn’t completely perfect if she lets her friend sneak over all the time,” Amanda felt compelled to point out.

“No, it’s the totally right thing to do,” Brittany said. “Jess told me the next morning that her friend will do anything to get out of her house. Jess doesn’t even know what all has happened to her because her friend won’t say, but she thinks it’s pretty bad.”

“Why does she think that?”

“Cuz Jess’s friend has this perfect skin, and she’s totally gorgeous. Jess is kind of zitty so she’s all jealous. So Jess was asking if she takes zit pills or something to make her skin better, and her friend just got all weird and freaked out. So Jess just kept bugging her and said she wouldn’t tell anyone, but Jess really wanted to try some.”

“Jess wanted to use someone else’s prescription? Why didn’t she just ask her parents?”

“Because they’re all weird about money. They’ll never give her money for movies or anything, so Jess has finally got a job just so she can have decent make-up.”

Amanda shifted in her chair and motioned to get Brittany to move along. “Anyway, what’s the weird part? I think we’re getting off the subject.”

“Well, you asked why Jess wanted her pills, and it’s totally not her fault that her parents are controlling freaks about money!” Brittany tossed her long, jet-black hair from side to side. “Okay, so here’s the thing. Jess said that her friend is on birth control!”

Amanda tried not to roll her eyes, especially because Brittany was so worked up.

“Brittany, birth control is prescribed all the time for acne. That doesn’t mean anything.”

Now it was Brittany’s turn to be disgusted. “No, that’s not even the thing,” Brittany said. “Jess tried to get her to share some of them. A few pills here and there. See if it would work. But her friend just freaked and said she HAD to be on the pills.”

“Maybe she was afraid that if she didn’t take them regularly, she wouldn’t get the same effects and her zits might come back.”

“No, it’s not like that. Jess said her friend was afraid she would get pregnant. But she doesn’t have a boyfriend!” Brittany sat back in her chair and crossed her arms, looking appalled.

Amanda raised her eyebrows at Brittany. Amanda leaned forward and whispered, “Sometimes, I’ve heard that kids ‘do it’ even if they aren’t, like, boyfriend and girlfriend.”

“No! This girl isn’t like that. She doesn’t have a boyfriend, she doesn’t go out with boys, she doesn’t do anything social. She stays
home
! Get it?!?”

“Yes, Brittany, I get what you’re saying. But you don’t have any reason to believe that something awful is going on.”

“Yes, I do,” Brittany said. “Jess is really upset, and I told her you would help. I think you need to talk to her.”

“I can talk to Jess if you want,” Amanda said, sympathetically. “I can’t talk to her friend. I have no right to do that. It would make it into a whole investigation, and there are all kinds of procedures that go with that. Believe me,” Amanda was thinking about the Thomas case about which she had a pretrial late that afternoon. “People are usually not happy about their children being interviewed by a social worker.”

Brittany looked defeated. “I’ll try to get Jess to talk to you. She’ll tell you. Something nasty is going on with her friend.”

Chapter Twelve

Amanda barely made it to the courthouse in time for their 4:00 conference with Skip Huseman. Jacob said Huseman had requested discovery, which was lawyertalk for records and paperwork. Amanda and Max had reviewed the Social Services file and submitted the records that Max thought were part of the subpoena. Jacob reviewed the records and submitted them, and now Huseman was taking the unusual step of wanting a face-to-face meeting with Jacob to go over the records. He said Huseman thought the Social Services records were incomplete, so he wanted to meet to discuss his concerns. Jacob asked Amanda to be there to answer questions.

Amanda walked into the county attorney’s office just as Jake was walking out.

“Hey, Amanda, nice of you to show up.” Jake looked flustered.

“I told you I had something at the high school until 3:30. What’s the big deal?” She had to walk quickly to keep up with him.

“The big deal is that I wanted some time to prep with you before this meeting,” Jake said, suddenly turning toward her. Amanda jumped back, startled.

“Why do we need to prep? I’m not testifying, right? This is just an informal meeting.” Her heart starting beating very fast, reacting to Jake’s nervousness about the meeting.

He looked away for a minute and then back at her. “I don’t exactly know what his plan is, but meetings like this are tactics.”

Amanda glared at him. “What do you mean?”

“He doesn’t have questions. He might be trying to intimidate you. He might be trying to waste my time. He might be trying something else. But this meeting is not about questions about your records.”

“Well, obviously he’s doing a good job if he’s trying to intimidate you. Geez you’re a mess, Jake. Is the case that weak, or are you just that flappable?” Amanda was mad that he was so nervous, mostly because it shook her confidence too. She needed him to tell her they were going to be fine.

“The case isn’t weak, Amanda, but it’s sure as hell messy. We’ve got a classic child abuse injury with an implausible explanation, and the statements of a thirteen-year-old who said the kid told him his dad beat him up. That’s it. We both know Chuck Thomas beat up his son, but I don’t know if I can prove it!”

They were interrupted by the sound of expensive shoes clicking on the marble floor. They were still outside of the county attorney’s office near the elevators, and around the corner came Skip Huseman with two paralegals in tow. Jake looked like he’d been punched in the stomach.

Skip puffed himself to his full height as he leaned forward to shake Jake’s hand.

“Hello again, Mr. Mann,” Skip said, pumping Jake’s hand. He turned cordially to Amanda. “I don’t believe we met. Are you Ms. Danscher?”

Amanda tried to answer, but let out a cough. She cleared her throat and tried again. “Yes, I’m Amanda Danscher.”

“Well, it’s good to meet you, Ms. Danscher. This is Ken Brooks and Ashley Daniels, two of my favorite clerks. We actually came down together for a late lunch. This is my hometown, you know.”

The tactic suddenly became clear to Amanda. The good ol’ boys network was alive and well. She glanced over at Jake, who seemed to be squaring his shoulders to match Skip.

“Then I’m sure you’ll enjoy coming down to your old territory for this case.” Skip turned to look at Amanda, and she forced herself to meet his stare. He looked at her a little longer than necessary, and she saw something nasty cross his face for a second. Then his smile was back.

“Are we meeting in your office, Mr. Mann?” Skip asked.

Amanda could tell just by the smug look on his face that he knew there was no way they would all fit in Jacob’s office.

“I thought we’d use the law library,” Jake said. “Pardon me for a moment while I get the rest of my files. Amanda, will you lead the way?”

Amanda turned to glare at Jake, as he had to know that she had no clue where the law library was.

He understood her glare. “Luckily it’s on this floor so you all won’t have to risk using the elevator again.”

“Oh, yes,” Skip said heartily. “I’ve used it a few times in my day.”

They followed Skip down the hall to the modest law library. Amanda studied his well-pressed suit and wondered if he had been in court that day or if he always dressed to the nines. The lawyers who worked for the county dressed down every chance they got, but Skip actually looked at home in his suit. It reminded Amanda of women on TV who look like they could run a marathon in high-heeled shoes.

Jacob joined them after a minute, carrying two large files and his briefcase. She wondered if he had downed a cup of coffee, as he looked alert and much more in control.

“Sorry about that,” Jake said, sitting on one side of the table with Amanda. Just like in a movie, Skip and his paralegals took the other side of the table. Before they could get started, Janice, a paralegal from the county attorney’s office, came in with a tray of coffee and cups.

Before Janice could offer anyone a drink, Skip asked, “Decaf?”

“Oh, no, I’m sorry, it’s regular,” Janice looked embarrassed and apologetic. “I can sure run back and grab you a cup if you like.”

“No no, that’s fine. I don’t think we’ll be long here.” Skip turned to look at Jake, who held up his hands to say he didn’t know. Janice looked at Jake, who shrugged her off and thanked her.

“Well, Mr. Huseman, I didn’t call this meeting,” Jake said, leaning back in his chair, trying to look comfortable. “I’m assuming there must be a serious agenda for you and two of your associates to take the afternoon to come down here.”

Point for Jake
, Amanda thought, making Huseman look like he didn’t have anything better to do but drive down to Terrance with two staff for the afternoon. Amanda was glad Jacob got some kind of jab in, because all the points thus far had to go to Huseman.

Skip tilted his head and shrugged. “Actually we won quite a large settlement this week on a pharmaceutical trial,” Skip said. “Ashley and Ken were instrumental in the settlement, so I decided to get them out of the office and take them out for lunch for a little perk, other than their fat bonuses of course.” Ashley and Ken smiled on cue, but otherwise looked like Skip’s personal robots, wearing almost matching conservative blazers and writing on legal pads in identical leather binders. Skip had wrestled that point away too.

“So did you go to Thomas’s diner?” Amanda asked. The smiles disappeared. Skip’s eyes flashed to Amanda, and then he focused his full attention on Jacob.

“I think that would be a little distracting for Chuck,” Skip said, his voice quiet and full of concern. “Truth be told, Jacob, he’s pretty unsettled by this whole mess.”

“I imagine he would be,” Jake said blankly.

“You know, I grew up with Chuck and his brothers,” Skip said, resting his arms on the table, hands crossed in front of him, head down in thoughtful consideration. “I graduated Class of ’81. Chuck was Class of ’83. I played some ball, but nothing like how Chuck played. And on the ice … whew … some people thought Chuck could have gone pro.”