John Martin was in big trouble. His 20-year-old daughter was in jail and was expecting a baby, and he knew who the father was.
He
was! He had tried to arrange an abortion before his wife could find out, but Cindy had just gotten arrested by the highway patrol for speeding, drunk driving and resisting arrest.
Cindy had always been the wild one, the very opposite of her sister Clara, who was wise, mature and responsible, even though Clara was two years younger than Cindy. Cindy had always been a problem child from the very beginning. John just didn't know what he should do with Cindy. Ground her? It hadn't worked during her teenage years, and certainly not now as Cindy was an adult who was unafraid of her parents, or anyone else for that matter. Talking to her? It hadn't worked either. She was belligerent, defensive and sometimes violent. John had tried his best to show her the right path, but Cindy enjoyed pushing his buttons, taunting him into violence, something he had vowed not to do to his kids like his father had done to him. Cindy would come home drunk at 3 am. She would constantly break curfew as if the concept was foreign to her. She would ride on motorbikes with her friends after being told not to come near the rough, leather-clad bikers of the neighborhood. He had thrown her out of his house, but his wife had begged for her return. And he had conceded, as he was sick of fighting with Marcie, his wife. After all, at that time, Cindy was just 17 β a born-to-be-wild-child, as she called herself. When she turned 18, she left the house, seemingly for good.
With Cindy gone, John's existence became peaceful and even pleasant. He'd still worry about his eldest daughter, but it was her own life to live and he knew parents had to let go of their children sooner or later. It was the way of the world and there was no way around it. Anyway, he still had his younger daughter. Clara had been accepted in an Ivy League college and after the summer she would leave home toward her new, very promising, bright future. However, the peace John enjoyed for about a year vanished in a fateful summer evening.
John hit the brakes and the metallic screeching made him return to the present. He heaved a sigh of relief when he managed to stop his car in time. The near accident made him sober up and focus on what he was doing. He was driving to the highway patrol station where Cindy had be taken to. He had also to post bail to secure her release as quickly as possible. And knowing how big-mouthed his daughter was, he was terrified at the thought of Cindy telling them that she was pregnant with her father's child.
With a lump in his throat he parked the car and strode in the station, painfully aware of the cops' movements. He waited for a while before the cop behind the desk could attend him. When the old lady before him left, he said, "I'm here for my daughter, Cindy Martin."
"Cindy Martin?" the cop asked.
"Yes..." John stammered, clearing his throat.
"Hey, Harold," the cop called out. "We have a Cindy Martin in here?"
"Yes, we do. It's the wild cat we put in jail this morning."
"Okay," the cop said, turning to John. "Wait a minute, sir. I need to talk to my superior about this." And the cop left the desk and disappeared behind a door with a stained glass window.
John took a handkerchief out of the pocket of his pants and dried off his temples and forehead with it. He was perspiring like a pig. It was the heat, he told himself, but he knew it wasn't. He just didn't know what to do. Should he go and avoid arrest?... Or should he stay because Cindy hadn't told a thing? Why the cop had to talk to his superior? Why Cindy was so special that he had to talk to his superior? His heart hammered on his chest and his blood was full of adrenaline. "What am I supposed to do?" he thought. I wanted to be a good father... But she didn't let me. She didn't.
Suddenly the door with the stained glass window came open and the cop returned to his desk. "The captain is going to receive you. Please go and knock on that door." The trooper pointed to a door with a sign that read
Highway Patrol Captain
,
C. Oakes
. "Are you okay, sir?"
"Yes, yes, why?" John managed to say.
"You are shaking, sir. And you're pale, but I guess... if I had a daughter like yours... Well, please go see the captain. That's important."
John knocked on the door and to his surprise he heard a female voice, not his daughter's, ordering him to come in.
"Oh, there you are, Mr. Martin," said the woman, standing up and shaking his hand. "I am Carol Oakes. Please sit down."
"Where is Cindy?" he asked, still trying to curb his nervousness.
"We'll come to that. But first I will have to ask you some questions."
"What... questions?" John stuttered, fidgeting in his seat.
"Are you aware of the charges against your daughter?"
"Yes, I think we spoke on the phone a little earlier."
"Are you aware that your daughter is pregnant?"
"Yes...? Is she?"
"Yes, she is, and she was drunk... and driving at 100 mph on the highway when she was intercepted. Not really the proper behavior of someone who is going to be a mother within seven months. Do you have any idea why she did that?"
"No, ma'am. Iβ"
"Well, that's a shame. We called our psychologist just in case. This kind of behavior is very rare in women, unless..."
"Unless what?"