“Come in, come in!” The lawyer Grey Robinson waved them into the rear office. “You must be Colin. Good afternoon, young man.” He seemed to find nothing wrong with Colin’s silence. Grey turned to Celeste and said, “And who might this be?”
“Dr. Celeste Talbot serves as the de facto guardian of Colin Eames,” Roland said.
“That is not happening,” his father said. “Not now, not ever.”
Roland waved Celeste and Colin into seats to his right. He pulled a third chair slightly away from theirs and replied, “That remains to be seen, doesn’t it.”
And just like that, the lines of conflict were drawn.
Colin felt his heart rate surge, an electric response to the room’s rising tension. And yet he remained somewhat removed. As if none of this could genuinely touch him.
The trio facing Colin were not defining his future. They only thought they were. And their thinking was as wrong as their assumptions over what was about to take place.
“We were so pleased to receive your request for this meeting. Weren’t we, gentlemen.” Grey Robinson was seated behind the massive oak desk, slightly to one side of Colin’s father. The other man, who still had not been introduced, stood in the corner with his arms crossed. Removed. Isolated. Watching. He was small and unkempt and wore wrinkled trousers to what probably was a fancy suit. His shirt was marginally tucked in, the end of his belt dangling like a limp leather tongue. His gaze was a milky green and hard as a frozen pond.
Grey went on, “We had been intending to contact you ourselves. That is, if you are indeed serving as the school’s attorney of record.”
“I am not,” Roland said.
Grey displayed a mocking and jovial surprise. Colin thought his words and gestures were far too theatrical for the room’s small confines. In a courtroom, before a jury, they might work well enough. Here, Grey looked like a man out of his element. Assuming he was in total control because of who he was. An attorney representing power on the rise.
Grey said, “Excuse me, Roland. Then why on earth are you even present?”
Roland chose not to respond.
Colin’s father was seated in a massive leather office chair. The wall behind him was dominated by a giant mural, the same image as on the posters decorating the front room. It showed him standing between two American flags gazing hard and intent upon the distant horizon. Overhead words were written in a script of stars and stripes:Roger Eames for the United States Congress.
Grey went on, “We have learned of highly disturbing issues related to students housed within the Outer Banks Academy.”
“Duly noted,” Roland replied calmly.
Grey took that as his signal to begin gesticulating. His voicerose in tandem with his motions. Addressing the unseen jury. “We have serious complaints that we intend to raise within the court of public opinion. Failing that, we will begin proceedings in court. Given what we have uncovered, this could go federal.”
Roland waited. Then, “Are you quite done?”
“Am I … Don’t you want to know what the charges are?”
“I have no interest whatsoever in your legal maneuverings.”
“Well, you and the academy will soon enough, I assure you of that.”
Roland shrugged. “Again, noted. Can we now move to the matters at hand?”
“What do you think we are doing now?”
“I have no idea.”
A flush crept up from Grey’s collar. “You may mock, sir. But I assure you, these charges against your group—”
“Again, Counselor, I do not represent the academy. As far as we are concerned, the academy does not enter into this meeting. If you insist, I will convey your intentions. But I personally think you would be better served to alert them personally.”
It was Grey’s turn to go silent. Then, “You are making no sense whatsoever.”
“I don’t see how I can be any clearer. Whatever charges you intend to bring against the academy have nothing whatsoever to do with us or why we requested this meeting.”
Roger Eames slammed one elbow on the desk and pointed at Colin. “That boy, my son, is done studying at that place.”
The man standing in the corner said, “Roger.”