“Y’all are shitty parents,” Leo said, ignoring me. “And I know about shitty parents.”
“Leo, we’re about to get arrested. Please shut up. For the love of God, please just shut up.”
Leo’s eyes widened when he finally clocked the handcuffs. “Okay, Ozzie.”
* * *
“Thanks for bailing us out, Beckett,” I said as the clerk handed me a ziplock bag containing everything that had been in my pockets when the officer had brought me in.
“Glad I could return the favor,” he retorted, holding back a laugh. “I’m just glad I’m not the one who got arrested this time.”
“This isn’t funny.”
“It’s a little funny,” Leo said, sauntering out of the police station like he owned the place.
I stepped into the sunlight and was confronted by my uncle Ryan, still in his uniform, and the Lost Boys crew, minus a certain teacher.
Joel stepped forward. He hugged me tight. “I brought in Sawyer because he has connections out the wazoo,” he said in a low voice.
I sent a salute to Sawyer, who was wearing his usual suit and tie. “Thanks, man.”
“No problem. I have a lawyer friend who owed me one.”
“She called the Walkers’ lawyer while you were in the slammer,” Joel said, grinning.
I rolled my eyes. “This is not a Broadway musical set in the 1920s, Joel. We were in county lockup.”
He wrinkled his nose at me. “You have zero flair for someone as fashionable as you are. Anyway, she proposed a cease-fire of sorts.”
“How so?”
“She got Walker’s parents to drop the trespassing charges, retract the allegations against Walker with the school, and sign an agreement not to go to the press. In return, we—including Tommy—drop our charges against them.”
I looked him in the eye. “I can’t ask you to do that, man. And Tommy?—”
“We were pretty much able to restore everything with two dollars’ worth of cleaners and some elbow grease.”
“But the window…”
“…was expensive, and the replacement is taking forever to come in, but it’s not the end of the world,” he said calmly. “Certainly not as bad as the kids not having Walker in class. That’s way worse. But I’ll let you make the final call.”
“Wait,” Leo said. “They’re gonna get away with it?”
“No, not really,” Beckett explained. “They’ll have to promise to never use Walker’s sexuality against him in public.”
“Big whoop,” Leo grumbled.
Joel patted Leo’s arm. “They won’t be getting away with anything. They destroyed what was left of their family to make a point. That already hurt Walker, and he shouldn’t also have his career blown up just so we can get our insurance money. I’d rather drop the charges and have Walker where he should be.”
My uncle held up his phone. “I just texted Hendrix, and he offered to take care of anything insurance would’ve.”
“I can’t ask him to do that,” I said.
“I think you and I both know that my son is going to do whatever the hell he wants to. It’ll be easier for everyone involved if you just let him pay what needs to be paid.”
“Fine,” I huffed. “But can we talk about the way he’s been looking lately?”
Worry darkened my uncle’s face. “I agree, it’s bad. His mother and I have put aside our differences to see what we can do to convince him to come home and stay for a while, like Mr. Paige wanted.”
