Deadlock

His dirty beard and face were unmistakable. And he was looking at her again, like he’d been expecting her.

“What?” Cosmo said. Then she turned and saw the guy, too.

“You got some spray?” Cosmo whispered.

A

The homeless man said, “You work for him, don’t you? You work for Senator Levering.”

His voice was remarkably clear. Not the guttural sound one associated with denizens of the street.

A

“You do, don’t you?” the man repeated. He took a step forward.

“Stay there,” A

“You still have time,” the man said.

“What’s he talking about?” Cosmo said.

“How do I know?” A

“How does he know you?”

Good question. He took another step. A

“Listen to me,” the man said. “It’s not too late.” He took two steps now.

“Back off,” A

The man did not stop. He walked slowly but steadily toward her. His face, dirty as it was, was pleading with her.

“Do you hear me?” the man said. “It’s not too late!”

“I said back off.” A

“Let’s go,” Cosmo said.

But A

“Not too late!” the man said, and charged.

The next few seconds were like a slow-motion dance with death. Later, A

In those few seconds, though, she had no time to reflect, only to react. She pressed on the nozzle.

Nothing happened.

The man was now so close she could smell him. She heard Cosmo scream.

She depressed the nozzle once more, and this time an acrid hiss of mace spray shot out. The jolt hit the man full in the face.

He screamed. His hands shot to his eyes. He gouged at them wildly. He dropped to his knees and screamed again.

A

5

Charlene took Sarah Mae’s trembling hand in her own. They stood as the judge entered, then sat at counsel table when he called the proceedings to order. He had not asked for the jury.

“Back on the record in Sherman v. National Parental Pla

Excellent? Charlene thought. Even her? There was hope. She had a very small burden to carry in order to defeat the motion.

“I have spent the last two hours poring over the legislative history of the informed consent statute,” Lewis said. “And while there is plenty of ambiguity about the intentions of the drafters, there was a very clear consensus about what this statute was supposed to accomplish. While it was meant to give a certain amount of added information to a class of people, namely women seeking abortion, it was also clearly intended to provide a barrier in the area of litigation.”

Lewis paused and looked at Charlene. His look made her stomach drop.

He was preparing her.

“And while this court believes strongly in the jury as finders of fact, I am mindful of my role as the interpreter of the law. In that capacity, I find I am in agreement with the argument of counsel for the defense.”

Charlene’s heart joined her stomach in free fall.

“Therefore, the defense motion for a directed verdict is granted. The case is dismissed.”

For a moment silence prevailed. Then Winsor was standing, hugging Graebner and a representative of the NPPG. They slapped each other on the back.

Then she heard Aggie Sherman’s anguished, angry wail. Sarah Mae’s mother slammed her hands down on the railing and shouted, “No!”

Charlene took a step toward her to comfort her, but Aggie pointed directly at her and screamed, “You stay away from us!”

A bailiff rushed over and warned Aggie to quiet down. Sarah Mae slumped in her chair. Charlene stood clamped to the floor, unable to move, watching the aftermath of the destruction of her world.

But worst of all was not what the decision meant for her. No, she could somehow recover from this. The worst thing was seeing Sarah Mae’s head fall into her hands and her small, girlish body begin to shake.

Charlene put a hand on her shoulder. Almost immediately she felt a hand on her own. Aggie was pulling Charlene away. “Don’t touch her,” she said.

“Please – ”

“No! Sarah Mae, come along. Now.”

Helpless, Charlene watched as Aggie yanked Sarah Mae up like a sack of linens. Sarah Mae’s eyes flashed at Charlene, a mix of confused emotions Charlene could not read. Following her mother through the railing, Sarah Mae Sherman disappeared from view, and for all Charlene knew, from her life.

She fought back tears. She would not cry, not here. But she longed for someone to talk to.

Anyone except Beau Winsor. He offered his hand to her. “Don’t feel too bad,” he said. “There will be other fights.”

Charlene opened her mouth, and there it stayed. Open and without speech.

“You’re young. You’re talented. Ever think of joining a firm?”

Slowly Charlene shook her head.

“Give me a call. Let me take you to lunch.”

All she could do was shake her head.

Winsor said, “If you change your mind…” And then he nodded and walked away.

Larry Graebner also offered his hand, and Charlene felt compelled to take it.

“I’d consider his offer,” Graebner said. “It’s a good one.”

“This isn’t over,” Charlene said weakly. “I’ll file an appeal.”

Graebner glanced at the courtroom doors. “If you do, and you lose, our position will become precedent in this circuit. Would you want that?”

“Has it occurred to you we might win on appeal?”

“It really hadn’t,” Graebner said. “But anything’s possible.” Larry Graebner smiled. “Good luck, Ms. Moore. You did a fine job.”

CHAPTER TEN

1

Millie was begi

Hope was in the casket, about to be buried. The hope that she would get more time with her mother. The hope that had been waved in front of her when her mother had managed to talk to her at the hospital.

“ ‘Therefore, since we have been justified through faith’ ” – Holden was reading, and she heard the words as if outside the building – “ ‘we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.’ ”

This was how her mother would have wanted her funeral, and for that she could endure it. But not the word hope anymore. Please.

“ ‘And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.’ ”