“Yes, sir. Dee and I went by her house, and I apologized for my rash actions.”
His gaze swung back to Gloria and he lifted his bulky brows. “Ms. McCrae, is this true?”
She crossed her arms. “Yes. But just because she says she’s sorry doesn’t make it right.”
The judge studied us. I tried to meet his gaze but let my eyes drop.
“Emily Burns, I sentence you to ten hours of community service. See the bailiff on your way out.”
Bang
Relief washed over me with the finality of the gavel’s fall.
“What? That’s all?” Gloria stomped her foot like a child.
The judge’s eyebrows descended, framing already hard eyes. “Ms. McCrae, I suggest you gain control of yourself in my courtroom.” He banged the little wooden hammer again for reiteration. “Next case!”
Gloria stomped past me and I looked to Buford, who motioned for me to sit next to him.
As soon as I did, he leaned over and whispered in my ear. “That was a pretty light sentence. He didn’t keep any of the charges, your record will just cite public disturbance.”
“I’m thankful for it.”
In another half hour the court session ended and Buford and Deputy Davis escorted me back through the halls and into the same interrogation room that was beginning to feel rather familiar. I plopped down in the chair. Buford took his place next to me.
“Well, one down,” Buford said. “I’m afraid this next matter may be a bit more difficult. You really hurt yourself by not calling the police. It makes your story seem weak. They’ll say if you were truly attacked, you would have called the authorities.”
Heat radiated through my chest and filled my face. “Yeah, sure. ’cause I had time to do that while he groped me.”
“Calm down, Emily.”
I took a deep breath. “Sorry. I know. I know I should have called someone. I just…I was just so scared, and mad, and all I wanted to do was run, to get as far away as I could. I didn’t need to call the cops to come save me. I’d saved myself.”
“But you did stab the guy. That’s why you should have called.”
“I know.” I dropped my eyes and pretended to study the chipping paint on the metal table. “Guess I’m running up quite a few hours at the law firm, huh?”
“Well, then I guess it’s a good thing you get the family discount.” He winked at me.
I tilted my head. “Because of Dee?”
Buford ran his sausage fingers over his close-shaved hair and adjusted the glasses on his nose. “Well, yeah, there’s that, but there’s something else, too. You see, your aunt—”
The door swung open, and Davis walked in, her black shoes clapping on the concrete. She slapped a folder down on the table. “Meridian police have apprehended the man you stabbed. Looks like he didn’t want to get involved with the police, either.”
She sat across from me, flipping open her folder. “Says here one Daniel Scott was apprehended last night trying to rob a Quicky-Mart. He had a bandage around his neck that drew some red flags. He’s being held for questioning now, but seeing as how his rap sheet includes two accounts of assault, both against young females, I’m inclined to believe your story.”
I let out a breath I didn’t know I’d been holding. “Does that mean I can go?”
She glanced at me sharply. “Not just yet. I’m just giving you a heads up on the situation. You have already admitted to stabbing a man. We will still have to wait for Meridian’s report from their questioning to determine conclusively if it’s self-defense.”
I slumped in my chair. “If you are waiting for him to admit what he intended to do, I might as well make myself at home. That, or just go ahead and send me back to the judge.”
She held up her hand. “Not so fast. I’ve already talked to the detective on the case. He’s going to use the robbery charges as leverage to get something out of him on this. At the very least, if we can prove Scott approached you in a threatening manner, and especially if he admits he put his hands on you, then we can drop this and you can go.”
Buford put his hand on my shoulder. “Thank you, Cheryl.”
She gave a curt nod. “Well, we still have to wait and see what they came up with, but it should be wrapped up shortly.” She checked her watch. “Your time is up for us to hold you. Just don’t leave town, okay?”
“Not a problem. I plan on staying for a while.”
She rose from the table, and Buford and I did the same. “I’ll let you know as soon as I hear something,” she said. “Let’s go get your stuff.”
Twenty minutes later I stood on the front steps with Buford. He patted me on the shoulder, and I wrapped my arms around his neck. “Thanks for all your help.”
“Not a problem, dear. That’s what I’m here for.” He pulled back, a grin on his face. “So, you’ve decided to stay a while.”
“Yep. Kinda have this feeling I’m supposed to be here. I think I’ll hang around for as long as I feel that way.”
“Glad to hear it.” He looked up at the clear sky and stroked his double chin.
I could see the wheels turning in his head. “What is it?”
“Well, it’s just that house. I guess I thought if you were going to stay then you would keep it.”
“I am.”
His eyebrows shot up, and he stared at me. “But you already told Kristin to auction it as soon as possible.”
“That was just because I was mad! I didn’t really mean it. I’m going to call her and tell her not to go through with it.”
He shook his head. “No, no, no.” Sweat glistened on his forehead. “It’s too late now.”
“What? What do you mean?” My pulse quickened.
“You already signed the paperwork with Kristin to act on your behalf. When you told her to sell it, she called the auction people and they jumped on the opportunity.”
“That’s okay. I should still have time before it goes up to cancel everything.”
Buford shook his head furiously. “No. They set it up this morning. They are going to auction it this afternoon.”
“What? Buford, I have to stop it!”
“Hurry, maybe we can get down there in time.” We rushed over to Buford’s car, leaving mine where I’d left it yesterday.
I slid into the leather seat, snapping the buckle after the second attempt and willed Buford to maneuver his bulk with more efficiency. “How could this happen so fast? Don’t they have to advertise for this kind of thing?”
He turned the key and the engine roared to life. “You wanted it to be done quickly.”
“Not in two days!”
We tore through town, breaking the speed limit and leaving me praying we didn’t find Barney Fife with a radar gun. “There were fliers all over town and they put it on their Internet site,” Buford said after barely pausing at a stop sign. “Apparently, that garnered enough interest they felt they could do it today.”
Buford took a hard turn and we flew down Ironwood’s driveway, dust billowing behind us. People littered the porch and loitered under the oaks. Cars were parked all over the lawn. A tent stood near the front door and people walked around carrying objects of all sizes. I leapt from the car before Buford put it in park.
“Stop!” I screamed. “I changed my mind.”
Kristin appeared from under the tent, a clipboard in her hand. “Emily?”
“Kristin! You have to stop. I don’t want to sell!” A lady walked by us with one of Adela’s bedroom lamps. She intended to separate the matched set, made from copper with a delicate lace shade. Without thought, I snatched it from her hands.
“Hey! What are you doing? I already paid for that!” She grabbed it.
I held on. “No. You can have your money back. I don’t want to sell it.”
She tugged harder. Kristin put her hands on my arm. “Emily, stop. You can’t do this. You signed the papers. They are already selling everything off.”
I let go. Defeat slithered through my
stomach, clogging my throat and choking me. “Can’t we stop it?”
“Hold on.” She dashed into the house.
As I watched Ironwood being pilfered, bile rose in my throat. Just the way my life goes. I finally make the right decision, but it’s too late. People walked by carrying dishes, knickknacks and books from the house.
One older lady with a straw visor shoved low on her forehead shuffled up to the table under the tent with two picture frames tucked under her arm. I jumped in front of her, positioning myself in front of the table. “Sorry, Ma’am, you can’t buy those.”
She looked up at me, her wrinkled face washed in surprise. “Excuse me?”
I pointed to the frames. I didn’t even know where she’d found them. “Those. They’re not for sale anymore. You can’t buy them.”
She frowned. “And just who are you?”
I crossed my arms. “My name is Emily Burns. This is my house.”
She shook her head. “No, this house belonged to Adela Harper. She’s dead. Now everything’s being sold. You’re not going to run me off so you can get my stuff.” She clutched the frames tighter.
“Excuse me?” said a voice behind me.
I turned around. A woman about my age sat behind the table, her arms crossed. “You can’t block the register.” She pointed to the older lady. “I can help you right here, Ma’am.”
The old woman tried to step around me.
I blocked her.
The blonde behind the table huffed. “If you don’t step out of the way, I am going to have to call the manager.”
“Good. Call him. I don’t want to sell anything else.” I glared at her.
She rose from her metal folding-chair and came around the table, stepping between me and the older lady. “Look, I can see you’re upset. But until someone tells us otherwise, this estate sale is supposed to continue.”
I shook my head. “No. I own this house. You will put everything on hold until I can get this straightened out.”
The old lady peeked around me, waving a twenty dollar bill. “Here! You can keep the change.” She tossed the money on the table and started shuffling off.
I grabbed the money from the table before the breeze could carry it away or the auction gatekeeper could snatch it. As long as she didn’t have the money, it wasn’t sold.
“No! Here, keep it. It’s not for sale.” I waved the money in the old woman’s face, but she just shook her head. I followed her until Kristin grabbed me.
“I already talked to him. They’re shutting it down.”
I looked back at the table. A tall man in a charcoal suit engaged in an animated conversation with the gatekeeper. He gestured at me and she nodded.
Victory! Where’d that lady with the picture frames go? I spun around and spotted her loading them in the trunk of her car. Man, she was sure a spry one. I shook my head, still holding the twenty.
I turned my focus onto the woman standing next to me. “Kristin, I’m so sorry. I’m sorry I yelled at you and said all those things at the restaurant.”
Kristin looked at her maroon pumps, unable to meet my eyes. I knew the feeling all too well. “I’m sorry, too,” she finally said. She lifted her chin and I tried to convey understanding with my eyes. She bit her lower lip. “I was so mad at you, I pushed the auction through. I should’ve waited. I let my emotions outweigh my judgment. They jumped on the chance to auction it, and before I knew it, here we are.”
“It isn’t your fault. It’s mine.” My chest expanded with a lungful of fresh air. “At least we stopped it.”
Kristin bit her lower lip, her eyes wide. “Oh, Emily. I tried. We can stop anything further from leaving the house, but….” her voice trailed off. She stared at the ground.
“But what?” I grabbed her shoulders, forcing her to look at me. “But what, Kristin?”
Her eyes glistened. “They already auctioned the house. Under the terms of the auction, once they come to a high bid, the property is sold.”
“No!” I breathed heavily. The ground shifted out from under me, and my knees gave way.
Kristin’s voice barely broke through the pounding in my ears. “I’m sorry, Emily. But Ironwood has already been sold.”
My head swam. I’d come so close. Now I’d lost it. I had let greed and anger overshadow everything important. I sank to the ground and put my head in my hands.
All of this was my fault. I let Lydia down. I let Adela down. They’d wanted the house to stay in the family, and now it was gone. People walked around me, loading up objects that had been in my family for generations.
Tears stung the back of my throat, and I let them slide down my cheeks. Kristin tugged gently on me, drawing me to my feet. I buried my face in her tropical-scented hair and sobbed.
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry,” she repeated.
When I could catch my breath, I pulled back and wiped my face with my hands. “Don’t be. I did this.”
The tall man in the suit walked over to us. “Excuse me, Miss Burns?”
“Yeah?”
He stuck out his hand. I shook it weakly. “Mike Cooley. Kristin says you’ve decided not to sell anything else?”
I wiped the last of the moisture from my eyelashes. “Yes, but I guess what I want doesn’t matter.”
He shifted uncomfortably. “Well, the contract you signed allowed for Kristin to act on your behalf, and as long as all the property went for a fair-market value, she allowed us to price and sell. By our normal estate sale rules, all sales are final.”
“But I didn’t sign anything to sell the house.”
“That was all covered in the contract you signed with Kristin.”
I looked at her. She lowered her eyes. “He’s right.”
“You mean I don’t have to sign closing documents or anything like that?”
He stroked his beard. “Well, there is that. The final documents will have to be signed and you will have to turn over the title, since there are no lean holders on the property.”
I crossed my arms. “And if I refuse to sign?”
He puffed his chest. “Then you would be in breach of your contract. You are obligated to complete the transaction.”
“I will talk to my lawyer and get back to you. Until then, I’m not selling anything else, and I want all of you off my property.”
He snorted. “It’s not your property anymore.” He stalked back to the tent.
After a brief discussion between them, the gatekeeper lifted a megaphone from under the table. “Ladies and gentlemen, we are very sorry for the inconvenience, but due to unforeseen circumstances, this sale has been closed until further notice.”
Several people around us grumbled and a few of them simply dropped the items in their hands on the lawn.
When the last of them finally meandered out of the house and the last car pulled away, I trudged over to the front porch and slid down on the top step. Kristin followed behind me.
“I don’t know how I let this happen.”
“I’m so sorry, Emily. I tried to call you before everything finalized. After the third time you didn’t answer, I thought you refused to talk to me, so I just went ahead and let them start.” She sat next to me.
“I didn’t answer because I was in jail. They took my phone.”
Her mouth made a little O. “They put you in jail for hitting Gloria?”
I shook my head. “No, I had court for that this morning. Ten hours community service.”
“Then why were you…?”
“I stabbed a guy in the neck with a fountain because he attacked me.”
I studied the chipping pink nail polish on my toes. The sun beat down on my bare legs and I became aware of the fact I’d not had a shower in the last two days. I eased away from Kristin.
“Oh, wow. I didn’t know that happened to you. Did anything…?” Her voice trailed off.
“No. I got away after I stabbed him. But I guess even though there were no witnesses to him grabbing me, there were plenty to see
me driving away from a bleeding guy.”
“Wow.”
I took a long breath. “Yeah. Anyway, they got him on a robbery case and are supposed to be questioning him to see if my story of self-defense holds.”
“That’s crazy. What else would it be?”
“Who knows? Nonetheless, they told me not to leave town until they had it settled. I told Deputy Davis that wouldn’t be a problem since I’ve decided to stay. Now, I’m not sure what’s going to happen.”
“You decided to stay?”
I chewed my lip and looked out over Adela’s grass, now marred by the tire tracks of invited plunderers. “I had decided to keep the house, stick around for a little while, and then see what happened next.”
“Now what are you going to do?”
“First, I am going to talk to Buford. See if I can get out of this. I won’t give up Ironwood without a fight. It’s my family’s home. It shouldn’t be with anyone else.”
She hopped up. “No sense wasting time. We should get over there now.”
I suddenly remembered Buford had driven me out here in the first place. I spotted his vehicle just around the edge of the house. I pointed to it. “He’s already here. Somewhere.”
We walked to the back of the house, the sun and the melody of the birds proclaiming a much lighter mood than the weight of guilt that strung itself over my shoulders like an iron yolk. We heard voices coming from the back porch and went to investigate.
“But my client has decided not to sell, and since no money has exchanged hands, she can still pull out.” Buford’s voice rose in pitch with every word.
We stepped onto the rear porch. Mr. Cooley glanced our way but didn’t acknowledge us.
“She already signed a contract agreeing to sell, and a price has been set. The buyer is ready to move now.”
“No, Emily did not sign any contract with you. It is my opinion Miss Cruz operated outside the parameters of her authority, and therefore, does not have the power to bind Miss Burns to a contract she did not sign.”
I silently cheered Buford on.
Mike shook his head. “She turned over all marketing and sales of this property to Kristin. She also gave Kristin explicit directions to have the house auctioned as soon as possible. Given those two criteria, I say Miss Burns knew full well what she was doing and gave consent for the house and its contents to be sold. We complied. It’s too late for her to back out.”
Heir of Hope: Return to Ironwood Plantation (Ironwood Plantation Family Saga Book 2) Page 25