A Little Secret between Friends. C.J. Carmichael

      In the reception area she found Pam perched on the edge of a chair, flipping through People. She tossed the magazine to the table and jumped to her feet when she saw Sally.

      “I’m on a break,” she said. “I only have fifteen minutes.”

      Sally had pulled strings to get Pam an office job at the courthouse, which unfortunately didn’t pay that much, but it was a start. Since black jeans were the dressiest item in Pam’s closet, she’d also given the young mother some suits she rarely wore and money for tailoring. Pam was wearing the green linen today.

      “You look good, Pam.”

      “I feel good. If only Rick—”

      “I know. Come on, let’s talk.” Sally put a hand on her arm and ushered Pam to her office. When Pam was seated and the door closed, she quickly turned to business.

      “What is Rick up to this time?” The fact that Rick owned his own business had made collecting child support a challenge from the beginning. They couldn’t request that his employer deduct the money straight from his salary, because he had no employer. Then he’d tried some accounting tricks—officially reducing his salary to a nominal amount while allowing funds to accumulate in the business.

      Pam had gone to Maintenance Enforcement for help and they’d put a hold on his driving privileges in order to force him to meet his responsibilities to his children.

      And now—

      “The bastard sold his business. Just to spite me, I’m sure.”

      “But how is he supporting himself?” Rick rented a posh condo in trendy downtown Eau Claire. And he had an extravagant lifestyle to go with it.

      “He let the apartment go and moved in with his mother.”

      “You’re kidding!”

      “He says there’s no sense working when half his money goes to taxes and the rest to me.”

      “As if. What is wrong with the man? He’s cramping his own lifestyle as well as yours.”

      “When it comes to hurting me, Rick has always been willing to go that extra mile.”

      “Surely he won’t keep this up for long. A man like Rick can’t be happy living with his mother. Not working.”

      “He’s taking computer classes at SAIT. Claims he wants to open a new computer service business when he’s done. I can’t afford to wait him out, Sally. I’m behind on my own rent now. I could barely scrape together the money for Tabby’s antibiotics when she got an ear infection last week. I’ve asked my parents for help—again—but I can’t keep putting them in this situation.”

      “I hear you, Pam.” But if Rick wasn’t working, he had no income. “What did he do with the proceeds of his business?”

      “He wouldn’t tell me, but a mutual friend says he bought some land down by Pincher Creek. He isn’t renting it or anything, so there’s no income from that source, either.”

      Land. Sally smiled. “We can register a support order against his property to create a lien.”

      “What does that mean?”

      “You need to contact Maintenance Enforcement again. They’ll file a writ against the land on your behalf. Unfortunately, that won’t put any cash in your pocket right now, but when he goes to sell—which he’ll undoubtedly want to do soon—he’ll have to pay you arrears plus interest.”

      “Sally, I need money now. Or the kids and I are going to have to go back to the shelter.”

      “Phone Maintenance Enforcement today. Hopefully just the threat of action will get Rick to pay. Besides, how much longer do you think he’ll be able to stand living with his mother?” Pam had told her before how the woman drove both her and Rick crazy with her nosy interference.

      “I guess it’s worth a try.” Pamela glanced at her watch. “I should be getting back to work. The last thing I need right now is to lose my job.”

      “Okay. Try not to worry. Rick’s not going to get away with this.” As Sally walked Pam to the elevators, she asked about the kids. Samuel was now five, Tabby three. Like most mothers, Pam’s face lit up as she talked about her children. She was smiling when they parted.

      Back in her office, Sally found it more difficult to keep up her own good spirits. She was so tired of dealing with men like Rick. Didn’t he see that by lashing out at his former spouse he was hurting his own children?

      If only he could be in the position of holding a crying child at night and not having the money to buy the medicine to make her better.

      Or would he even care?

      Weary already, though it was only ten o’clock, Sally picked up her pen and began to jot notes for the file. The phone rang before she was through the first sentence.

      “Sally Stowe speaking.”

      “Hi, Sal. Hard at work already, are you?”

      It was Neil. Sally dropped her pen and ran her hand through her hair until she’d found the neat line of stitches at the side of her head. She traced the line back and forth with her index finger and contemplated hanging up without another word.

      “How’s Lara?” he asked.

      No mention of what had happened Friday night. She’d been half expecting an apology but wasn’t surprised he chose not to bring up the incident at all. Maybe he was embarrassed. She hoped so. “Lara’s fine. Gearing up for the big race next weekend.”

      “I’ll be taking her to that,” he said.

      It was Neil’s weekend with Lara coming up. “I know.” If she and Neil were able to get along better, she would have loved to watch the races, too. But Lara became anxious whenever she and Neil were in close proximity.

      “Lara needs to be in top condition for the weekend,” Neil warned. “Feed her lots of meat—a good steak dinner or a roast beef. Not just those god-awful tofu stir-fries you like to eat.”

      “I’ll make sure Lara has plenty of protein.” Sally rolled her eyes, though in truth she was comfortable with this, the negotiating of care for their daughter. She didn’t really mind Neil checking up on her this way, even though his concern was totally unnecessary. She was thankful that Neil was a good father. She could put up with his crap as long as he treated Lara right.

      “And don’t let her stay up too late at night. She needs to be rested.”

      “Of course.” Lord, Neil could be so overbearing.

      Suddenly his voice switched from a lecturing tone to something soft and intimate. “Oh, and Sal?”

      On guard, she said cautiously, “Yes?”

      “How’s the new boyfriend?”

      “What?” He’d caught her completely by surprise with this one.

      “Don’t play innocent. I saw the SUV in your driveway on Saturday morning. It was still there until just before Lara got home.”

      Neil had seen Colin’s vehicle? Sally felt suddenly ill to her stomach. How long had he been watching her house? Was this something he did often?

      “This is none of your business, Neil.”

      “Maybe not. Still, you ought to be careful. A judge has to be circumspect about the men she’s keeping company with. Especially a judge who hasn’t yet been officially appointed.”

      The bastard was trying to threaten her. She remembered the last words he’d uttered on Friday night before he’d left her half-unconscious on the kitchen floor. He’d said he would make sure she was never appointed to the bench. He’d promised to see her disbarred instead.

      Sally hung up the phone firmly. She wouldn’t let her ex play these mind games