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“What am I looking at for that?” I asked.
“Well, they already did the charging and all that. Now they are in pre-trial motions. The defendant is trying to dismiss some of the evidence in place, last I heard. After that, they’ll set a trial date. It can take months for that to happen.”
“Months?” My eyes nearly bugged out at that. This could drag on for that long?
“It’s as long as it takes for both sides to build their cases. Sometimes, the defendant can demand a speedy trial, but that doesn’t work in the Ryder gang’s favor this time around. The evidence is too strong against all their members, so the defense needs more time. And it takes even more time because each member has to have a solid case built against them. They’ll be tried separately since they all won’t have the same charges. But it’s also gang related and that falls under other laws too. It’ll be a bit of a mess to organize.”
I mulled that over for a little while. “So be patient.”
Amy nodded. “Be patient. Whenever you want an update, let me know.”
“Will I need to testify?” I asked.
“It’s hard to say. You could be called to the stand. Or you won’t. It depends on which direction they go and on the charges. Once things move forward, we’ll have a clearer picture.”
“And I’m not in danger?” I asked.
“No. They got them all.” She pulled me into a hug. “Enjoy life, Cadence. You deserve it. Don’t let this shadow your future.”
I returned her hug, enjoying the feeling of being mothered. It wasn’t something I received often. “I’ll try.”
“Good.” She pulled away. “I need to go feed my daughter before she eats everything in my pantry. I’ll check in with you.” She pointed at the manila folder. “Let me know as soon as you decide, but think it through.”
I already wanted to tell her I wanted to take the deal, but only nodded. Maybe I did need to consider things first. Give it a good look over.
Once Amy left, I went back inside and sat down. We were back to waiting.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Eventually, Seth showed up to take Justin back to his aunt’s so I could head home too. I had to suppress so many yawns on my way back that I was a little worried I was going to drive into a ditch. It was well past dinner time, but I couldn’t work up any appetite.
Mental exhaustion pulled at me as I parked in front of Seth’s house. Kept its hold on me while I let Bebe out of his crate to go to the bathroom. Tugged at me as I curled on Seth’s couch with the TV on, the sound off.
With the room dark, the bright lights from the TV bounced around.
My phone light caught my attention.
A message from my dad. Feeling a bit sick to my stomach, I slowly checked his message, expecting the worst. He hadn’t seemed very interested in my Thanksgiving idea. And the way he had practically run out of the cafe, I had felt a little crushed.
Dad: I’d love to join you at Micah’s for Thanksgiving.
I gasped as pure relief flooded through me. He wasn’t going to leave me for Thanksgiving. He wasn’t going to demand that it was Vegas or nothing at all.
The front door opened and Seth came in. He took everything in before blinding me with the light.
“Ow,” I said.
“Not sorry. Why are you sitting in the dark?”
“I’m thinking.”
“That can be dangerous.”
“Maybe. How’s Justin?”
“He’ll be fine. Thank you for helping him. He knows now what he doesn’t need to do, and I think that has taken a huge load off of him. They’ve been asking him questions like that since his dad was released. I wish I’d known sooner that they shouldn’t have done that.”
“I barely even remembered. It was something to be considered when I became Lindie’s proxy, but we hit a loophole. Since I was emancipated and seen as an adult, they let me decide. And since the doctors and others were in agreement with what I wanted to do, it was even easier.”
