SWNOVELS A Drop of Pretty Poison: Chapter 11
No matter how hard I try, I can’t seem to sit still. How can anyone stay calm when they’re in a courtroom? The environment alone is enough to have you on edge. But with today being Cam’s bail hearing, I don’t stand a chance. Either I’m making excuses to have to walk around—like excusing myself to the bathroom so much it looks like I have a bladder infection—or I’m fidgeting while I sit.
“Someone should have brought a goddamn pop-it for her,” Mali says.
Hayes reaches over and puts his hand on my knee. “You okay, babe?”
“I feel like I might throw up,” I tell him. “Like projectile vomit all over everything.”
He smirks. “You are so sexy right now. Keep talking dirty like that.”
For the first time all morning, I laugh. It’s soft, and it doesn’t last long, but it’s there. And Hayes smiles proudly, knowing he caused it.
“I hate you,” I lie, and he winks at me.
But as he interlaces our fingers, it manages to calm me down a little. He has been my rock the last few days. He’s always checking on me and making sure I’ve had something to eat or drink recently—because stress always manages to destroy my appetite. And the one night I came close to having a breakdown, he laid with me and watched Gilmore Girls for hours while running his fingers through my hair.
Honestly, I wonder if he knows how amazing he truly is.
“He’s here,” Mali tells me, and I turn around to see Monty walking in with Cam’s new lawyer.
The man is middle-aged and looks professional in a suit that probably costs more than my car. He stops to talk to my parents while Monty comes over to us.
“Hey. How are you guys holding up?” he asks.
“Been better,” I answer. There’s no point in sugar coating shit.
He nods sadly. “Well, Brent is very good at his job. If all goes well, Cam should be home by this afternoon.”
God, I hope so.
I didn’t want to have to call Monty, especially knowing how much it would bother Hayes. But when it came down to it, he was the only option we had. Hayes even tried calling Marc instead, to see if there was anything he could do, but there wasn’t. Monty was our only option.
The way he stepped up so easily, even after not talking to him for a few weeks, it really showed he cares. Sure, technically he owed me after he involved himself in my and Hayes’s relationship, but he still could have told me to fuck myself. Plus, it’s a lot harder to stay mad about what he did when Hayes and I are in such a good place.
“Brent,” Monty says as the lawyer comes over to us. “This is Laiken, Mali, and Hayes. Laiken is Cam’s sister.”
He extends his hand toward me specifically. “Brent Waldorf. It’s nice to meet you.”
“You, too,” I reply. “Thank you so much for doing this.”
“It’s my pleasure. Your brother is in good hands.” It looks like things are about to get started, and Brent gives me a small smile as he has to take his place. “Excuse me.”
It’s one thing knowing your brother is currently in jail. It’s hard, but you can block it out in a way so that it’s not so bad. Seeing him in handcuffs and an orange jumpsuit, however, is an image I will never be able to remove from my memory.
With the last case, that polyester never even touched his skin. He didn’t spend so much as one night in jail because we were able to bail him out and bring him home until his trial. At least then I knew he was safe. But this time hasn’t been anything like that.
It’s been worrying about him constantly.
It’s been missing his sarcastic commentary.
It’s even been missing the way he hogs my boyfriend because hehad him first.
Cam’s gaze meets mine, and the bags under his eyes tell me all I need to know about what he’s been through. My grip on Hayes’s hand tightens as my brother nods at him, and then he masks all emotions and smiles at Mali. I glance over at her and see the look on her face.
“Stop doing that,” I whisper.
“Doing what?”
Exhaling slowly, I pull her into my side. “Blaming yourself. This wasn’t your doing.”
My parents come to sit on the other side of her, and you can tell my mom is struggling with seeing her son this way. My dad has always been a hard man to read, but not Mom. She wears her emotions like an outfit.
We all stand as the judge is brought into the room, only sitting after he does.
“Okay, let’s see what we have here,” he says as he reads over the case in front of him. “Mr. Cameron Blanchard viciously and violently assaulted Mr. Isaac Morrison, causing extensive injury, and thus violating the terms of his probation. What is the state’s position on bail?”
The prosecutor stands. “We request that the defendant be held without bail, your honor. This is his second offense within the last year, and only a few months after he was put on probation to begin with. There’s no way to guarantee that he is not a risk to others or a flight risk, given the severity of violating his probation.”
The judge nods in understanding. “Does the defense object to that stance?”
Brent rises to his feet. “We do, your honor. My client is a good person who shouldn’t even be on probation in the first place. The first offense was unreasonable nonsense, and if I had been his representation at the time, I would have gotten it thrown out. It came down to subpar counsel and an ex-girlfriend who was never subpoenaed.”
“Not saying I disagree with you, councilman,” the judge says. “But that is not the case we’re discussing here.”
“Correct, but it speaks to the violation of probation. In this case, this is someone who wants revenge on my client for having him removed from their shared hockey team after the victim assaulted one of his teammates.”
“Your honor, we have a video of the assault taken by the victim’s brother,” the prosecution adds.
Brent hums. “Well, you make sure to have that sent to my office.”
The judge keeps his eyes focused on his desk for a moment while he reads Cam’s casefile. We wait with bated breath for his decision, until he sighs.
“While I understand the state’s view on this, I agree with Mr. Waldorf in that the first offense was not properly tried. Mr. Blanchard, if you would like to appeal the decision in that case, that is your right, and you are free to do so. As for this one, I am hereby granting bail for Mr. Blanchard in the amount of fifty thousand dollars.”
There’s an audible sigh from this entire side of the courtroom, and I watch Cam’s shoulders relax as Brent thanks the judge for his decision. We all stand, and Brent shakes Cam’s hand before the bailiff takes him away again.
“So, what happens now?” Mali asks.
Brent straightens his suit jacket. “Now, we bring the bail money to the court and then Cam will be released from the county jail.”
“But we don’t have—” my mom starts, but Hayes interrupts.
“That’s me,” he tells Brent. “I’ve got it.”
Brent nods. “Great. Come with me and we’ll get this taken care of. Get him out of there as soon as possible.”
As Hayes walks past my mom, she wraps her arms around him and hugs him tightly. “Thank you.”
My dad pats his shoulder. “You’re a good man, Hayes. My son is lucky to have you. As is my daughter.”
It’s the first time my dad has outright acknowledged our relationship, and I watch the way Hayes’s eyes light up because of it. He was always worried about Cam, but I think a part of him secretly stressed over my parents’ views on us dating. After all, they’ve known him since he was an unruly teenager—acting like his second family at times.
Hayes glances at me, and we share a smile before he leaves with Brent. Meanwhile, I turn to Monty with the utmost appreciation and gratitude.
“Thank you so much,” I tell him, going in for a hug.
He wraps his arms around me for a short moment. “You’re welcome. He’s not out of the woods yet, but I have a few people working on something. We’re hoping to get the whole case thrown out.”
“What would that mean for his probation?” my mother asks.
“You would have to ask Brent,” he answers. “But I believe he would go back to abiding by the original terms of his probation, as if this arrest never happened. Unless, of course, he appeals that decision.”
“I think we should worry about this one first,” my dad says.
Monty nods. “Agreed.”
His phone starts to vibrate as he gets a call, and he excuses himself to take it—telling us that he will keep us updated before he leaves.
“Where did you meet him again?” my father questions.
Mali chuckles. “A club. Laiken accidentally spilled a drink on him.”
Both my parents laugh, showing their relief, and my dad shakes his head at me playfully. “I’ve never been so grateful for your clumsiness.”
THERE’S NOTHING PRETTY ABOUT the jail. Not the towers that hold armed guards. Not the barbed wire that lines the top of the fences. Not a damn thing. Just knowing that Cam has been here for the past five days makes me sick to my stomach. We wait outside the gate for him to come out, and the second I see him back in the clothes he was wearing when he was arrested, I feel like I can breathe a little easier.
“Thank fuck,” Hayes murmurs as they let Cam out of the gate.
He goes over and hugs my parents first, then comes to me. I wrap my arms tightly around my brother. We’ve never been the affectionate kind of siblings. Normally his version of saying he loves me is threatening to kick his friends’ asses for hitting on me, and mine is by flipping him off while smiling sweetly. But today, I don’t care. Today, I hug my brother because I wasn’t allowed to for almost the last week.
Hayes is next, and you can see the relief on them both as Cam thanks him for being there, not just for him but for me. I feel like the latter means more. It’s the first supportive thing he’s said about our relationship, and I can’t help but smile at it.
Finally, he goes to Mali. There’s something different about the way he embraces her. He’s speaking softly, straight into her ear. I can’t hear what he’s saying, but I see the way she nods against him. When he finally pulls away, he looks her in the eyes.
“I mean it,” he says.
An involuntary smile forces its way through. “I know.”
“I am so glad you’re out of there,” I tell Cam while we all climb into my parents’ van.
“You and me both,” he replies. “But it may not be for long. My preliminary hearing is in a week. Brent said we should know more then.”
My head rests against Hayes’s shoulder, and he presses a kiss to the top of my head, knowing I need it.
Please, God, let Monty work a miracle soon.