Page 22 of Building What's Meant to Be

“No, this is not a prank. You were arrested for breaking into the mayor’s house and stealing his cat.”

“You have no evidence.”

“Eye witnesses.”

Aiden slumps back.

“Lucky for you, Mayor Stoll is out of town and I couldn’t reach him to see if he wanted to press charges.”

“So you’re letting me go?” Aiden asks.

“Yep, on a few conditions.”

He and I grip the bars, waiting for Officer Henley to reveal our fates.

“Miss Humber, you may not drive until you pay the fine for operating a motor vehicle with an expired license and apply for a new one, of course.”

I let out a sigh of relief.

“Don’t relax just yet.”

I stand at attention.

“Because the BMW you were driving was stolen, and much like Stoll, I was unable to contact the owners to find out if they want to press charges, it will remain in police custody until I receive instruction from,” he glances at a piece of paper, “says here the vehicle is registered to John and Meredith Humber. Any relation?”

“They’re my parents.”

“You stole your parents’ car?” Aiden asks.

“More like borrowed it. But does this mean they didn’t report it stolen?” Fingers crossed, they don’t know.

Officer Henley nods. “The supervisor of the garage where they keep it parked filed the report because an unauthorized user claimed the vehicle from the night parking attendant,” he reads from the paper.

I knew I should’ve given the guy my emergency hundred-dollar bill. Nonetheless, relief comes and I let it linger. For now, my parents aren’t the ones who had me arrested. Then again, they’re yachting, so they may not know about my little getaway or what prompted it.

I bite my lip. “Could I just return the car? That way no one ever has to know?”

Officer Henley’s mustache twitches which amounts to an eye roll as if I shouldn’t have bothered asking.

“Alright, Aiden, you are not to set foot on the premises of thirty-two Briarwood Court.”

“The mayor’s house? He filed a restraining order?”

“No, I did. For now. Behave yourself and I’ll see that it expires sooner rather than later. I also expect you to find that cat and return it.”

Aiden’s cheeks puff with a breath and he stares at the ceiling. “Yes, sir. But if, by chance, the cat doesn’t cooperate or prefers her current residence...”

Aiden gets the mustache twitch look.

“Alright, alright. I’ll try to track down Twinky. Is that it?”

Officer Henley wears an expression that I can’t read. It’s like he knows something we don’t. I glance around, looking for cameras and a crew to pop out and exclaim that we’ve been caught on hidden camera, or pranked, or some other cruel version of reality television.

“You will both perform thirty days of community service here in Butterbury.”

Aiden waggles his finger between us. “Together?”

“You got it.”

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