Read Online Times and Seasons by Beverly LaHaye - Free Book Online

said. “My lawyer cares more about some other client.” He dropped back down, leaned his elbows on the table, and raked his hair back. “I can’t believe they’re doing this to me.”
    “I can’t believe you’re doing this to us,” Jerry said.
    “That’s enough, Jerry!” Cathy bit out. He shot a look at her, as if daring her to speak that way to him again. The look only made her wearier. “It looks like we have a few choices, Mark. They’re all equally bad. Most of them require taking huge chances with your life in the next few months, and there are no guarantees.”
    “So, what do we do?” Mark asked.
    She let out a rough breath and looked at her ex-husband. “Jerry, do you have any constructive ideas, or just more snide comments?”
    “He deserves whatever he gets,” Jerry said.
    Cathy wanted to throw something. “That may be true, but don’t we all? Some of us never have to pay for what we’ve done.”
    Jerry cursed under his breath and got back up, striding to the window at the back of the room.
    “Mark,” Cathy went on, “the only thing I can suggest is that you go in there and face up to what you did. You plead guilty and we pray that the judge will have mercy on you.”
    “But, Mom—”
    Jerry turned around. “Much as I hate to admit it, I think she’s right,” he said. “I have a feeling that if you do that, thejudge will probably let you go home with us today. That doesn’t mean you won’t be on probation, that you won’t have a conviction on your record, that it won’t affect all of our lives. But it might be our only hope.”
    Mark’s face burned as he stared at his dad. “You’re not doing this just to save money, are you, Dad?”
    The words seemed to ricochet across the room. Cathy flinched.
    “Because if you’re gambling with my life just so you won’t have to pay an attorney, then that’s pretty sleazy, Dad.”
    That artery in Jerry’s neck looked as if it might burst, and he took a few steps toward his child, wearing that expression that suggested he could break him in two. “You really think I’d gamble with your future to save a buck?”
    She held her breath, hoping Mark had the good sense to say that he didn’t, so they could get on with business. Mark just stared him down, too prideful to reveal any intimidation or vulnerability.
    Finally, she watched Jerry turn to a barred window and peer out. His shoulders rose and fell with seething breaths.
    Cathy tried to clear her brain of accusations and inflammatory memories. “This isn’t getting us anywhere, Mark.”
    “Then what should I do?” he asked. “Just go in there and surrender to them? Let them take me off?”
    “Lots of people are in there praying for you, Mark. If you plead guilty, maybe God will show you mercy.”
    “The whole neighborhood probably showed up, didn’t they?” Mark said, further accusation in his voice. “Best entertainment around, Mark getting convicted of drug dealing.”
    “You didn’t hear me, Mark,” she said. “I told you they’re praying for you. You should be glad.”
    “Yeah, big hurrah.”
    The comment turned Jerry around. “That’s it,” he said. “You’ve gone far enough, Mark. If you don’t want to help with this decision, then we’ll make it for you. You’re pleading guilty, you’re facing up to your crime, and you’re taking whatever it is the judge hands down to you. And if you go to jail, maybe you’lllearn something your mother wasn’t able to teach you at home. Respect.”
    “Dad, I do have respect,” Mark said as tears came to his eyes. “I’m just scared.”
    “So am I.” Jerry strode to the door, opened it, and looked around for the attorney. He turned his dull eyes back to Cathy. “I’ll go tell him he’s pleading guilty,” he said. He closed the door behind him, leaving mother and son alone.
    Mark looked small as he stared in the direction his dad had gone. But Cathy couldn’t think of a thing to add to what Mark’s father had