Facing the Dawn by Cynthia Ruchti

Author:Cynthia Ruchti
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction;FIC042100;FIC044000;FIC042040
ISBN: 9781493428625
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 2021-01-27T00:00:00+00:00

The taste and smell of coffee doesn’t solve all problems, she discovered as she sipped and sniffed. Even the good stuff from a quaint little bistro like this one. Booths and tables that didn’t match but still seemed related. Coffee posters from around the world adorning the walls. Coffee art everywhere she looked, including the coffee shop’s name made out of coffee beans.

The conversation groups reminded her of pictures she’d seen from a coworker’s trip to Copenhagen and her favorite corner coffee shop there.

Despite her reason for being in this shop, Mara had a twinge of longing to pull out her graphic design background and help them develop a new logo that fit their brand better. A crazy thought. She pushed it aside and waited while the man across the table from her sipped and sniffed.

Did she really want a guy from church serving as her son’s defense lawyer? Couldn’t that get awkward on Sunday mornings? “Hey, there’s the sound technician!” “Hey, there’s my lawyer!”

She hadn’t made the connection Friday afternoon when she’d dialed the spin-the-wheel attorney pick from her internet search. It wasn’t until this morning at their coffee shop/bistro meeting that she realized the man with the heart-shaped bald spot often sat in front of her at church.

“Thanks for agreeing to represent Dylan, Mr. Lawson.” Law-son. Had to be a good sign. Although, most lawyers prefer suits to buffalo plaid shirts and jeans, don’t they?

“Your son has my full attention. I’m semi-retired but still have full credentials and take on cases of interest from time to time.”

“Dylan’s is a case of interest?”

“It’s complex, to say the least. One piece of good news. His drug panel and alcohol screening came back clean, as we would have expected.”

You might have expected. I’m deliriously grateful.

“There’s still a question, apparently, whether he’ll be charged with assault and battery or simple battery. In this particular jurisdiction, that’s a possibility.”

“The difference is . . .”

“Muddy. Which is why most court systems lump them together these days. And . . .”

“And what?” Mara had to ask.

Mr. Lawson took another sip of his well-doctored coffee. “Aggravated assault is not off the table yet.”

The term turned Mara’s stomach. Dylan could be mouthy, and when he had been high, he was a different person. But aggravated assault? “That would be a felony, wouldn’t it?”

“Oh, definitely. What they call simple assault and battery can go either way—misdemeanor or felony.”

“Mr. Lawson, I can’t imagine—”

“Most parents can’t. But you can trust that I’ll make sure he’s treated fairly throughout this process. The fact that the arresting officers are still forming their charges may work in our favor.” He poured a sweetener packet into his coffee, stirred, and tasted. Added another packet.

Mara understood way too much about drug-related charges, both when Dylan was a minor and more recently. Her mind could recall the unique, claustrophobic, life-draining air inside a courtroom. But this was new and scary territory. “Don’t they have to release him if he hasn’t been arraigned?”

“The forty-eight-hour time window is a little wiggly in this instance, as it sometimes is.

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