Chapter 16
“How do you feel?” Mimi asked.
I laughed and wiggled my bracelet-free ankle in the air. “Pretty darn good!”
“Now remember,” Clifford said, “part of your agreement is you can’t be within five hundred feet of Bernie Schuler. If you see him, turn the other way.”
“We got her back,” Mimi said.
“I haven’t seen him all week,” I said. “And I’ve been out in the community doing my hours.”
Clifford gave me a hug before leaving. “Try and stay out of trouble. I don’t want to see you anytime soon.”
Mom, Dad, Mimi, Kat, and Lance sat around the dining room table drinking coffee. Chase had left for work right before I got my bracelet off.
“So,” Lance said, waggling his eyebrows, “what’s this I hear about you coming back down in a couple weeks to see Chase?”
“What?” Dad said. “You’re going todeliberatelysee him again?” He turned to Mom. “Where did we go wrong?”
Mom smiled. “Now, Larry, you know you like him.”
Dad shrugged. “I don’t hate him.”
I gave him a hug. “Thanks, Dad.”
“Chase is a good boy,” Mimi said. “He’ll do right by her. Trust me.”
It was on the tip of my tongue to ask her if she somehow planned all this, but that would have been silly. How could they have planned my house arrest?
“Let’s go to the craft store and get more signs to decorate,” Mimi said. “With the way we’ve been advertising, it’s looking like there could be a huge turnout Saturday for the protest.”
Kat stood. “I have to get to the office. I just dropped by for moral support.”
“Me too,” Lance said.
“Looks like it’s just the four of us,” Mimi said. “Don’t suppose we can take that groovy peace van into town? Can we?”
“Right on!” Dad said.
I let Rocky out one more time then locked Chase’s house. We ran to the craft store and then Mimi suggested stopping by the ice cream parlor. As we exited with our cones, Bernie Schuler parked his car in front of the store.
“Oh crap,” I whispered. “I need to get out of here.”
“Hey!” Bernie cried. “You can’t be this close to me. I have a restraining order against you.”
“We’re leaving,” I said.
I tried to move quickly around him, but my ankle was still too tender to move fast. He reached out and grabbed my arm. “Wait right here. I’m calling the cops.” He reached into his pocket and removed his cell phone.
“Take your hand off my daughter,” Dad said calmly. “Unless you want me to rip it off.”
I’d never heard my dad threaten someone before.
“Yeah,” Mimi said, “if anyone’s getting arrested, it’s you. You can’t just grab someone in public and force them to do what you want.”
Bernie gave me a slimy grin and leaned in close. “Guess what? Your little protest Saturday will be for naught. I’m getting that land developed one way or another. Bye-bye stupid shrimp.”
I gasped. “You better not do anything to that pond of shrimp.”
