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After pleading not guilty to the charges, Isaac’s lawyer had fought for bail and the prosecutor had argued, but not much. In the end, Isaac had been granted bail and I’d paid it and had him out of jail within an hour and taken him back to my house. He’d been devastated to learn that the protective order that had been issued against him meant he couldn’t even talk to Newt on the phone or via video chat, but he’d managed to keep it together. He’d insisted I go to see Newt and give him a message saying how much he loved him and everything would be okay. Newt had given me a similar message to share with Isaac. The little boy was doing okay with Nolan and Dallas, but it was clear to everyone he just wanted his brother back.
With me dealing with Isaac’s situation and Nolan and Dallas trying to care for a broken-hearted Newt, I’d been worried about the work piling up at the sanctuary, but I’d been surprised to learn that Ford had volunteered to help out until things got back to normal and that Dallas had actually accepted. I figured Dallas saw what I did–that Ford wasn’t anything like his brother. The fact that Ford had tried to help Isaac and Newt, first by warning me about Gary being in town and again by helping in the search for Newt, was evidence enough that he had a good heart. Between him and Sawyer, they were able to keep the sanctuary going without too much trouble.
Isaac had spent the last few days just lying on our bed in front of the fireplace and when I hadn’t been visiting Newt, I’d just held Isaac and let him alternate between sleeping, crying, and utter silence. His lawyer had stopped by several times to ask Isaac questions and to give us updates on things, but it’d been hard to hear that the prosecutor in Massachusetts was extraditing Isaac to face charges there, since that was where the kidnapping had actually occurred. Isaac’s lawyer was fighting it, but the whole thing was inevitable, since the investigator who worked for Isaac’s lawyer was still gathering evidence. The lawyer’s goal was to delay the extradition as long as possible.
We were back in court for another hearing. The judge had been going through the evidence presented and was considering whether or not he wanted to meet with Newt. Dallas and Nolan were with Newt in another room within the courthouse, which was especially hard on Isaac because he was desperate to see his brother. To know he was so close but still couldn’t see him was akin to torture for him.
As the judge took a brief recess, we were milling around the courtroom waiting for him to return and let us know if he’d made his decision about meeting with Newt or whether he wanted to hear more evidence. There was a slim chance he could even rule on the extradition then and there. Sawyer was there for moral support and to communicate what was happening to Dallas and Nolan.
Unfortunately, Gary was also in the courtroom and that was stressing Isaac out even more. While Isaac hadn’t testified during the hearing, his affidavits claiming abuse were in the judge’s hands. As were Gary’s claims of innocence. Each side was hoping their argument would sway the judge one way or the other.
“All rise.”
“Love you,” I whispered to Isaac before giving him a quick kiss and returning with Sawyer to the seats just behind the defendant’s table. We waited until the judge was seated and the bailiff gave the all clear to sit down. Isaac cast me a glance over his shoulder and offered me a wobbly smile, but I could see the fear in his eyes.
“Okay, folks,” the judge began, but then paused when his clerk suddenly got up and handed him a note. He read it, then called the bailiff over and spoke to him. The bailiff went to a side door and opened it. I stiffened when I saw the old man who’d been at the sanctuary the day Gary had attacked Isaac. No one had seen or heard from him since then. Gary had been mum about who he was when Cam had questioned him, and since there’d been no evidence the man’s identity was pertinent to the case, the sheriff had been forced to let it go.
The older man entered along with a middle-aged woman dressed in an expensive-looking suit. The man looked at Isaac and I once again saw the same expression I’d seen that day at the sanctuary.
It almost looked like longing.
But that didn’t make sense.
He and Isaac didn’t know each other.
“Would you introduce yourself to the court?” the judge asked the woman.
“My name is Karina Sumner. I’m a managing partner at Sumner, Horst and Winehouse. My firm is based in Houston. My client is Mr. A.R. Sheridan and he has a personal interest in this case that the court should be aware of, Your Honor.”
