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"We'll be here," Jude says.
No one says anything until Bainbridge steps into his office and closes the door behind him, and then David sends a suspicious look in Jude's direction.
"How much of that did you just make up?" he asks.
"Almost none of it, actually," Jude says. "Chloe did write out a statement saying she sent Charlie to her mom's office. Finn does have a private investigator's license. The only part I made up was the impending lawsuit part. But we can always make that a reality." He shrugs. "The ball is in his court."
We don't have to make that part a reality. Ten minutes after disappearing into his office, Bainbridge reappears, his expression more troubled than it was when the door closed behind him. He eyes the group scattered around his waiting room in silence and then sighs.
Charlie grabs my hand, squeezing it like her life depends on it.
"I'm going to need to know how you got these emails," Bainbridge says to Finn.
"And you know I'm not going to tell you," Finn says without missing a beat. "I don't reveal my sources without a warrant. Unless you have one of those, you're SOL."
"Does it really matter?" Jude asks, leaning back against the wall with his hands folded together. "There is no presumption of privacy with student email accounts. If you want the information without worrying about where it came from, ask your IT Department to dig into his email. You can confirm the information directly from the source. If you have employee email or cellphone records, you might want to dig into those too while you're at it." He pauses. "I'd suggest looking at anything they scrubbed. If they know their secret is on the verge of being found out, chances are they'll be trying to cover their tracks."
Bainbridge sighs again before his gaze shifts to Charlie. "Given new developments, I've decided not to expel you," he says, earning a squeak from her. He throws up a hand to halt her before she can say anything else. "However, the next time you decide to get embroiled in something like this, I'd highly suggest that you don't. You aren't Veronica Mars, Ms. Marsh. Come to me next time."
"You're right," Charlie says, squaring her shoulders. "I'm not whoever that is. I'm not a professional. I have no idea what I'm doing. But Chloe tried to bring it to you. You brushed her off. That's why she came to me. Why would I then come to you when you already demonstrated that you weren't willing to listen?"
Jennifer opens her mouth to shush her daughter, but I quickly shake my head. Charlie has earned the right to speak her peace.
"If you want students to come to you with issues, be someone they can come to, Dean Bainbridge," she says quietly. "Otherwise, I will keep getting embroiled in these situations because someone has to care enough to do it."
Bainbridge eyes her silently for a long moment before shaking his head. "It's going to be a long year and a half," he mutters under his breath.
"Actually," Charlie says sweetly, batting her lashes. "I'm thinking about sticking around all the way through the doctorate program."
Fuck. I love her.
"Come here," I growl hours later, dragging Charlie into my arms. We're back at Tate's place. Her parents are at a hotel for the night before they head home in the morning. Finn and Jude are already back in Silver Spoon Falls. And I'm soaking up every moment with my girl before I have to let her resume classes tomorrow.
She burrows into my arms with a happy little sigh.
"I love you," I murmur, brushing my lips across her temple.
"I love you too." Her vivid blue eyes meet mine, brighter than they've ever been. "Thank you."
"For what?"
"For today. For my parents. For everything." She stares at me in complete wonder, awestruck. "You put together a whole team to fight for me and Chloe, Xavier. When I drove into Silver Spoon Falls on Saturday, I felt like the world was crashing at my feet. Today, I feel like I'm on cloud nine. I'm back in school. Professor Rothman is going down. Chloe is free. I owe it all to you."
"No, you owe it all to you," I correct, shaking my head. "You're the one who didn't give up, kitten. You're the one who fought. I just helped you move a few pieces onto the board."
"Yeah, massively important pieces!" she cries. "You brought a freaking computer ninja, the best lawyer in the state, and my parents."
"Are you happy?"
"So happy," she breathes, lighting up from the inside out. "I feel like I could fly."
"Don't go flying off yet. We have to get a few things straight."
"Oh, yeah? Like what?"
"Like where we'll be living," I say. "I have a feeling Bainbridge won't appreciate me holing up in your dorm, kitten."
