Casey and Me

I KNEW that was going to happen!

Ellis' case turned out to be just as painless as Olivia's much to our collective relief. Unfortunately for him, since he showed little to no remorse for what he'd done, and because he'd repeatedly broken the ban preventing him from going near Casey, it meant he had several counts against him. The magistrate simply rolled her eyes and slapped him with a 6 month jail term, plus the maximum fine. She also went ahead with the extraordinary step of issuing a sexual harm prevention order, given his repeat offending, which caused us all to blink in surprise. But that was her final ruling, and as Ellis was led away, his head bowed and shoulders slumped, I knew that his life was effectively over. An SHPO stayed on your record for life, and I actually felt a little sorry for him. 

"Don't beat yourself up over it," Dad advised me as we left the courthouse. "He did the stupid thing, got his arse handed to him, and now he's got that following him for the rest of his life. But that doesn't mean you can't feel bad for him."

"He's still a bastard for what he did," Mum said crossly. "I don't feel sorry for him one little bit."

"Don't blame you," Dad agreed. Mum had good reason for such anger; she'd been molested by her grandfather as a child. She'd been like a bear with a sore head ever since Ellis' arrest; it made sense she'd want to come along to see someone else get the justice she never got. 

"But your father's right," Mum added, giving my hair an affectionate ruffle as we started up the street. "You can feel sorry for him, and still not forgive him for his bastardy. Casey's probably singing a different tune now that the father of her child is in jail, though. Maybe you should try reaching out to her again? She might be feeling lonely."

I thought about it. "I might," I decided at last. "I'm just not sure if I should right now. Her aunt and uncle will definitely be appealing the part of the sentence that gets her away from them, and I'll wager you ten quid Miss Ainsworth will get news of the appeal before we go back to school on Monday."

"Five?" Dad suggested. "I can't spare ten this week."

Mum rolled her eyes and punched him lightly on the arm. I had to laugh and agree. "Fair enough," I said, thankful for the brief moment of levity amongst all the chaos. 

Sure enough, I was summoned to Miss Ainsworth's office before I'd even closed the car door on Sunday afternoon, and Marcia took charge of my suitcase as I trotted over to find out the latest development. I already had a bad feeling it was to do with Casey's court case, and sure enough, Miss Ainsworth's face was a mixture of anger, disappointment, and sorrow. "Her aunt and uncle have appealed," she announced, and I bit my lip hard, wishing David was there. But he'd taken sick Thursday night due to gastro, and he was currently under strict orders to stay home until the infection had passed. It took all the courage I had, therefore, to ask the most burning question in my mind. 

"What happens to Casey?" I ventured. 

Miss Ainsworth sighed.  "She's been removed from my care until the appeal is dealt with," she said. "I am not permitted to talk with her, but on the bright side, neither can her aunt and uncle. They, however, have a lawyer on their side who is very corrupt; I am already near bankrupt, and I simply do not know where I can turn."

"My dad knows someone," I offered. "If I explain the situation to them, they could be willing to cut you some slack. They know their field very well, and I'm sure they can fight Casey's aunt and uncle tooth and nail."

"I would be most grateful," Miss Ainsworth said, nodding. "If it helps Casey finally get a chance at a decent life, then I will take any and all opportunities presented to me."

"I'll get onto Dad straightaway, then," I promised. But as I headed for the door, a thought occurred to me. "You know," I said hesitantly, feeling as if I was suddenly way in over my head, "you could also ask Mr Gladstone for help."

Miss Ainsworth's face went very still, and then she nodded again. It was the most minuscule of movements, but volumes had just been spoken in that instant, and I quickly left the office. It didn't matter if she took my advice or not, but in the end, the ones who truly loved you would always help, whether or not you loved them back. Mr Gladstone would move heaven and earth for Miss Ainsworth; Casey was as much a part of him as she was of Miss Ainsworth, so he'd do all he could for them, even at the risk of bankrupting himself.