The Baby Barter. Patty Smith Hall

small sitting room just off the hallway and settled onto one side of the sofa while Red retrieved his file from his office.

      “Are you sure I can’t get you something? A glass of sweet tea, maybe?” Red strolled back into the room, a thick three-ringed folder neatly tucked under his arm.

      “Nothing, thanks.” Mack settled his elbows on the chair’s arms and leaned forward. “I was hoping to talk to you yesterday at Merrliee’s wedding but I never saw you.”

      “I had to go to Atlanta for a client at the last minute and didn’t make it back in time. Did I miss anything exciting?”

      Nothing Mack was ready to talk about, at least not until he did some research into Thea’s claims. He shook his head. “I just want to see where we are with Judge Wakefield.”

      “Pretty much the same spot we’ve been for the last month.” Red sat across from Mack, dropped the file on the coffee table and flipped it open. “As far as I’ve searched, there’s no precedent in the State of Georgia for allowing a single person to adopt a minor child.”

      Red wasn’t telling him anything he hadn’t already heard, but Mack refused give up, not where Sarah was concerned. “But those cases didn’t involve a child with the kind of health issues Sarah has.”

      “No, but that’s because those children are usually committed to an institution.”

      “Or on the streets,” Mack bit out. His stomach roiled at the thought of his daughter, or for that matter, any of Ms. Aurora’s kids, left on the curb to fend for themselves. Who would do that to any child, flesh and blood or not? It made Mack wonder how many more children were out there on their own right now, hungry, cold and afraid. “Those kids deserve a family and a place to call home just like any other kid, Red.”

      Red lifted his hands up in mock surrender. “You don’t have to convince me. And it appears from my discussions with Judge Wakefield that he sides with you on that point.”

      Mack nodded. The judge had never hidden his feelings about the need for adoptive parents for all children, even those with physical and mental disabilities, but he held fast to the notion that a child needed both a mother and a father. Mack could see his point, but no family would adopt a child with the type of medical issues Sarah had. Wasn’t one loving parent better than no one at all?

      “You’ve got a more pressing problem at the moment.”

      Mack settled back into the cushions. Had Red heard about Thea’s claim, that Sarah was Eileen’s child? “What might that be?”

      Red shifted forward, resting his forearms on his thighs. “Ben Holbrook cornered me at the courthouse after I got back from Atlanta yesterday afternoon. It appears the city council is bent on restructuring the police department.”

      “Why haven’t I heard about this?”

      Red shrugged. “They just voted on it. With all these folks from the bomber factory making Marietta their home, the council wants to add more men to the force, maybe even devote entire departments to specific crimes. And there was some mention of adding more experienced men to the sheriff’s department.”

      “What you mean is now that the boys are coming home, they want law enforcement jobs to give them.” Not a bad idea. Able-bodied men with battlefield experience on the force were just what a growing town needed. “We have had an increase in petty crimes recently, mostly kids bored and getting into trouble. It would be good to have some additional help.”

      Red sat back, his lips mashed into a straight line. “From what I understand, they might be evaluating your work as sheriff.”

      Mack’s world shifted beneath him. “Why? Are they thinking about firing me?”

      “I don’t think it’s that dire—yet.”

      Mack rubbed his fingers against the raised scar high on his left cheek. “Did anybody mention where I might fit into all this restructured force?”

      Red shook his head. “Not yet. I’m sure they’ll take your exceptional service to the community into consideration when the decision is made.”

      Mack stretched out his legs and studied his old high school friend. “That sounds like lawyer talk for you’ve already put that information out there for them, but they didn’t bother giving you an answer.”

      “Always looking out for my friends.”

      For that, Mack was grateful. “How does this affect the adoption?”

      Red’s smile dimmed. “With this hanging over your head, Judge Wakefield isn’t likely to budge on the adoption anytime soon.”

      “What’s the man waiting on? Does he want me to jump through hoops or something?” Mack snapped, raking his fingers through his hair.

      “I don’t know about him, but I’d pay good money to see you do that trick.”

      Mack snorted out a chuckle. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bite your head off like that.”

      “It’s understandable. You love that little girl, and you’re afraid you’re going to lose her.”

      Another obvious statement but the gut-wrenching truth. Mack wouldn’t give up. He couldn’t. “So what do we do now?”

      Red slid back in his chair. “Well, we’re still going to need Sarah’s birth certificate. Have you heard anything from Mrs. Williams? I figured she would have gotten back with you before now.”

      Mack shook his head. “From what I understand, her family lives deep in the mountains north of Knoxville. I don’t think mail service is all that reliable out there. It could take some time to hear back from her.” He patted his shirt pocket. “I’m sending her another letter just in case the first one was lost.”

      “If it were any other judge, I’d ask for the adoption to be pushed through without a record of the birth, but Judge Wakefield is a stickler about those things.”

      Mack nodded. How was he going to get his next question by the lawyer without raising his suspicions? “Will Sarah’s parents be listed on the birth certificate?”

      “Yes, but that information will be sealed by the court once the adoption is finalized. Then a new birth certificate with your name listed as Sarah’s father will be registered with the state.” Red studied him for a long moment. “Why do you ask?”

      No sense alerting the lawyer to another possible roadblock, at least not until he had more information. “Just thought I’d ask.”

      “Well, if you’re planning on asking Flossie Williams who Sarah’s parents are, good luck with that,” Red chuckled. “That woman can be as tightlipped as a Mason jar during canning season.”

      Mack waited for the relief Red’s answer should have given him, but felt vaguely disappointed instead. “I wonder if Mrs. Williams would respond quicker if I sent her a telegram.”

      “Does Western Union even deliver to the backwoods of Eastern Tennessee?”

      Were lawyers paid to be killjoys, or was that just part of their nature? Maybe it was a good thing he never went to college and became an attorney as he’d planned. “It’s worth looking into.”

      “Even if they don’t, this lull gives you time to get your job situation worked out.” Red hesitated, tipping the three-ringed folder shut. “Can I ask you a question?”

      “Sure.”

      Red took a long sip of his coffee, as if to steel himself. “How far are you willing to go to adopt this child?”

      An odd question, especially from a lawyer. “What do you mean?”

      The distant song of birds waking up the neighborhood filled the seconds before Red answered. “There is another way to ensure the adoption goes through as planned.”

      Mack knew what the man was going