Page 62 of Rock and a Hard Place

“I don’t know how long you were thinking of hanging around, but Penny needs a waitress down at the Fork in the Road. It’s a café, nothing fancy, just a bunch of farmers and truckers coming through, but they’re good people.”

“Thanks, I think I’ll check it out.”

21

Six months later.

“Good morning, Jerrold.” Libby poured coffee for the kind older gentleman who had become her closest confidant, even closer than DarLynn.

“Morning, Jill.” Jerrold knew her true identity, unlike the rest of the town. He kept his knowledge private under client-lawyer privilege, calling her by the name printed on the plastic name badge pinned to her waitress uniform.

Shortly after she started at the Fork in the Road, Jerrold became one of her regulars. Five mornings a week he came in for coffee, eggs basted, wheat toast, and a half grapefruit. They immediately hit it off. Jerrold retired two years before. His wife still worked the morning shift at the local hospital. Used to getting up early to work for the past forty-five years, he came in for breakfast each day. He always sat in Libby’s section.

“Catch any fish yesterday?” Libby knew Jerrold struggled with retirement. He tried hard to keep his days full, fishing and puttering around his workshop, but his heart remained with his law practice. He spent his career working as a lawyer for Family Services.

When she first learned of his legal background, Libby feared he could see through her façade and would send her back to Wisconsin. Instead, he became her angel of mercy, guiding her through the mess of surviving as a teenage runaway.

“Yeah, I caught a couple, but threw them back.” He drummed his fingers on the counter as if impatient. “I spent all evening reading.” His head tilted to the side and a smirk lit his face.

Libby placed the coffeepot on the heating element behind her, then returned to Jerrold. “Anything good? All I ever get to read are textbooks.”

“Oh, it’s very good. It’s a little something that arrived in the mail from the State of Georgia yesterday.” He patted his pocket, where a white envelope stuck out. He grinned.

“Is that my letter?” He had her full attention. “Don’t you dare tease me. Did my appeal pass?” She reached to snatch the envelope, but Jerrold blocked her move. “I’m not afraid to jump over this counter and take it from you.”

She twisted the towel that hung from her apron in impatience. Jerrold took a slow sip of coffee. His eyes darted to everything in the diner except Libby. She slapped herhands on the counter in front of him.

“Listen here, old man. Give it up. Am I free? You can’t withhold information from me. I’m your client.” Jitters fluttered through her stomach. Her future depended on that envelope.

In what seemed like slow motion, he removed the envelope from his pocket, methodically pulled out the papers, then patted his pockets. “Where did I put my reading glasses?” His stalling tormented her.

“They’re on your head,” Libby pointed out in short, impatient words.

“Ah yes, so they are.” He pulled the cheaters off his head, slid them on, and began to scan the document line by line. “Hmm. Mmhmm. Yup, looks good.”

“Oh for Pete’s sake, get to the point.” Libby wanted to strangle the man. “Give me the darn papers.” She snatched them out of his hands and read. Her hands shook as she scanned the pages, looking for the magic words that would give her her freedom.

Then she saw it.

The petitioner, Elizabeth Ann Sawyer, has been granted a final decree of emancipation by the State of Georgia.

It was over. She was no longer a runaway or a ward of the state. Jerrold had navigated the process of filing papersfor emancipation of a minor. Now she could make her own decisions, and no longer need a parent or guardian to decide her future. No more Aunt Marge, no more fear of group homes or anything else. Better than that, she could start college in the fall. For the last six months, Libby had worked her tail off getting her GED, taking the SAT, and applying to colleges. She’d been accepted to a school in Boston. For the first time in a long time, she felt her world glide into place.

She looked up at Jerrold. “It’s done?”

“Yes.” He nodded. “It’s done.”

“Woo-hoo!” She tossed the pages in the air.

Penny, owner of the Fork in the Road, peered around the corner. “Jill, what’s all that racket about?”

Libby rushed to her side and hugged the plump woman and plastered a kiss on her cheek. “Penny, I just got the best news of my life.”

“You win the lottery, hon?” Penny asked.

“Better than that. I’m free.”

Penny’s eyes moved to Jerrold, she nodded some unspoken words, and the two older people smiled. Apparently, Jerrold hadn’t kept her situation entirely confidential after all.

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