The Deal
907 Words
Chapter Ten
Kendrick didn’t call Clara.
He wouldn’t give her the chance to ignore him.
At 9 a.m. the next day, he was outside the county jail, waiting in the visitor line with a court order in his hand. The order gave him 20 minutes of supervised contact. Cole had pulled strings. “She’s your ex-wife and co-defendant,” Cole said. “If anyone can get her to talk, it’s you.”
Clara looked smaller in the orange jumpsuit. Tired. No makeup. No script.
“You shouldn’t be here,” she said as soon as the glass slid between them.
“I need your help,” Kendrick said. No preamble.
Clara blinked. “For what? To look better in court? I’m not lying for you, Kendrick.”
“Not for me,” he said. “For Daniel. Rig’s out. He’s sending photos of Daniel’s bedroom. He filed to take him. Again.”
Her face drained.
“He’s not supposed to have a phone,” she whispered.
“He does. And he’s using it.” Kendrick slid a copy of the photo across the slot. Daniel asleep, taken through the window.
Clara’s hands shook as she looked at it. “Oh God.”
“I’m filing for a full restraining order,” Kendrick said. “But I need proof he violated the gag order. I need proof he’s harassing us. And I need to know how he’s getting information.”
Clara stared at the photo like it might burn her.
“What do you want me to do?” she asked.
“Testify,” Kendrick said. “Tell the court everything. About the money. About the plan to keep me away from Daniel. About how Rig’s been contacting you from jail.”
Clara laughed, but there was no humor in it. “And get ten more years added to my sentence? No. I’m not that stupid.”
“Then you lose him anyway,” Kendrick said quietly. “Because if Rig gets custody, you’ll never see him without supervision. Ever.”
She flinched.
The guard tapped the glass. “Two minutes.”
Kendrick leaned forward. “Clara, I know you messed up. I know you’re scared. But Daniel doesn’t care about any of that. He cares that you’re his mom. And right now, he’s scared because of you and Rig.”
Her eyes filled.
“I didn’t want this,” she whispered. “I thought if I paid him, he’d disappear. I thought if I kept you out of it, you’d never get hurt.”
“You hurt him,” Kendrick said. “By lying. By choosing Rig over us.”
“I know,” she said. “Every day I know.”
The guard tapped again. “Time.”
Kendrick stood. “Think about it. You have 48 hours before I file without you. After that, you’re just another witness in my case. Not Daniel’s mother.”
He turned to leave.
“Kendrick.”
He stopped.
“If I testify,” she said, “I want it in writing that I get supervised visits. No matter what. Even if I go to prison.”
Kendrick didn’t hesitate.
“Done.”
48 hours later, Clara’s signed affidavit was on Cole’s desk.
It detailed everything.
The embezzlement.
Rig’s threats.
The calls from jail.
The plan to paint Kendrick as unstable.
Cole called it “the nail.”
“We file this with the motion for a full restraining order and criminal harassment charges,” Cole said. “If the judge buys it, Rig goes back inside and loses phone privileges. We also file to hold his lawyer in contempt for leaking the documents.”
Kendrick nodded.
But that night, he got another text.
No photo this time. Just words.
You shouldn’t have brought her into this, Kendrick. Now she’s in deeper. And so are you.
Kendrick didn’t reply.
He went to check on Daniel.
Daniel was awake, sitting up in bed, clutching his Spider-Man toy.
“Dad, is Mom okay?”
Kendrick sat on the edge of the bed.
“She’s okay,” he said. “And she’s going to help make sure you’re safe.”
Daniel frowned. “Why does she need to help? Aren’t you enough?”
Kendrick swallowed hard.
“Because sometimes,” he said, “being a dad means asking for help when you need it.”
Daniel nodded like that made sense.
“Okay,” he said. “But you’re still my dad, right?”
Kendrick pulled him into a hug.
“Always,” he said. “No matter what.”
The hearing was set for Friday.
Rig’s lawyer filed a counter-motion the same day.
It included a new psychological report.
This one said Daniel had been “coached” by Kendrick to say negative things about Clara.
It said Kendrick was “obsessive” and “paranoid.”
It ended with a recommendation: immediate removal of Daniel from Kendrick’s care pending investigation.
Kendrick read it once. Then he called Cole.
“They’re going after Daniel’s mind now,” he said.
Cole was quiet for a second.
“Then we make sure the court hears the truth before they do,” he said.
Friday morning, Kendrick walked into court with Clara’s affidavit in his hand and Daniel’s hand in his.
Rig wasn’t there. He watched via video from jail.
He smiled when he saw Kendrick.
Like he’d been waiting for this moment all along.
- Writer
