Chapter 26

Facing Jail time Six

o’clock met James in a nearby shopping mall a few blocks from the Paz motel, and as he was staring
at the cabbages and vegetables that lined the shelves around him, he couldn’t help listening to the two
ladies gossiping beside him.

“Did you see this morning’s news?” A brunette woman asked excitedly. “Of course, I saw it. I thought
news about their divorce was going to be the craziest thing we would get, but it just keeps getting
worse! He and her cousin… like that’s just so messed up!” A blonde lady exclaimed, throwing her free
hand in the air.

Wondering what the heck they were talking about, he shook his head and put the cabbage into his
basket before moving to the next shelf and grabbing a bunch of tomatoes. As he was placing them into
his basket, he noticed how some shoppers were whispering, instead of talking normally and it just
made him even more puzzled. But he carried on with his task in silence, trying his best to ignore them
since he wanted to buy all the stuff quickly to make breakfast before Elijah or anyone else woke up.
Finally, when he had all the items on the list in his basket, James carried it to the cash register, paying
with his credit card.

Then he collected his plastic bags and headed out of the store and started walking up the sidewalk,
humming to himself softly.

After a ten minutes walk, he suddenly stopped in his steps, his eyes widening as he saw the bunch of
news crew vans, parked in front of the motel with a bunch of reporters standing outside like vultures
ready to pick off the bodies of their prey.

His heartbeat accelerated as he wondered if they were here concerning the situation where Elijah
punched a reporter yesterday, and the more he thought about it, it made sense, and he let out a sigh of



annoyance. Clutching onto his bags’ handle, James drew a deep breath and started walking toward the
motel entrance, praying that none of them stop him.

But when he got to the door, he felt a hand tap him on his shoulder, and he squeezed his eyes shut,
dreading who it would be. Yet, he didn’t turn around and pushed the key into the lock.

“Excuse me, do you live here?” A journalist asked, looking at James struggling to unlock the door. “It
seems like you do… Do you mind if we ask you a few questions?” “Yes, I do mind!” James replied
angrily, shaking his head as he finally managed to open the door.

Then he shoved it open, rushed into the lobby, then fought his way into shutting it in the face of the
reporters, who were shouting questions at him while banging on the door. “What is wrong with these
people?!” James growled, shaking his fist in frustration. “Is it true that this is where Elijah live, in the
motel of Peach and her mother?” A reporter shouted from outside the shut door. A look of worry and
anger flashed across James’ eyes as he took a step back, mumbling beneath his breath, “This has
gotten out of hand. Master Elijah is in some serious trouble.”

As the fear that he tried to suppress became hard to ignore, James rushed into the kitchen with the
plastic bags and set them on the counter before pulling out his phone. For a while, he stood, staring at
its screen, as he wondered if he should call. Then he sighed and dialed the number. After a few rings,
he heard Mr. Maxwell’s voice on the other end of the call, “Why are you disturbing me this early,
James?”

“So…rry… I am sorry, Boss. It’s just that the young master might be in a serious situation and 1…”
James stated, trailing off as he could feel his voice shaking.

“James, is my son facing jail time?” “Well… I… I don’t think so, boss… not that I know of.” “Is he in
need of a heart, kidney, or organ transplant?” “Huh?! Hmm… No, sir.”



A sigh of annoyance echoed through the receiver and then Mr. Maxwell said calmly, “Then why are you
calling me?” Swallowing hard, James closed his eyes and said nervously, “The thing is, sir, there are
reporters everywhere, and they-”

“James, you call me this early in the morning because of reporters?!” Mr. Maxwell demanded harshly,
his tone filled with irritation as he said, ”I told you to call me in case of a real emergency.” “But sir, his
reputation…” “What kind of teacher gives his students the answer to the questions on the day of the
test?” Annoyed and worried, James lost his grip on his tongue and said, “But sir, you are his father, not
his instructor.” “Don’t be silly, James. How does a child learn to crawl, walk, talk, and understand life..?
From the adults in their lives regularly. And as his father, this is a part of my life lessons for him. Let him
figure it out for himself!” Mr. Maxwell said calmly.

Silence took over and after a few seconds James spoke again, his voice low, “I understand, sir.” “Good.
Don’t call me again unless my son has exhausted all his options. Otherwise, I won’t forgive you or
handle it lightly!” Mr. Maxwell uttered firmly, ending the call without another word.

Staring numbly at his phone for several seconds, James sighed, and then he put it back into his pocket,
frowning at the groceries.

At that moment, he heard the sound of footsteps approaching him from the back, and he immediately
turned to see Miss Grace heading his way. He smiled faintly as she greeted him with a warm smile and
said, “Morning, James!”

“A pleasant morning to you, Grace,” He replied gently.

Darting her eyes away from him, she stared at the bags and asked, “What’s in these?” “Oh, I picked out
fresh ingredients for breakfast,” James answered as she walked towards the

counter.



Then Miss Grace took a peek into the bags, staring in disbelief at how fresh the vegetables and fruit
were, dumbfounded that Elijah knew how to pick out food so well.

”Thank you so much.” Miss Grace said gratefully, her face breaking into a radiant smile as she stared
intently at him. “You should go rest. I will handle things from here.”

Watching her in disbelief as she took out the bag of tomatoes, Elijah rushed over and gently grabbed it
from her grip, saying, “You just got back from the hospital! I could never let you take such a big load by
yourself. So you should be the one to rest.”

Grinning brightly, Miss Grace stared at him with a loving look before saying, “I’ll manage, don’t worry.
Besides, you, Elijah, and the others have done so much for us, that I can’t keep letting you guys
continue like this.”

“You are not cooking, Grace,” James stated sternly, shaking his head in disapproval. “You are too weak
right now.”

“He’s right, mama.” Peach uttered as she stepped into the kitchen, pouting at her mother’s frown.

“But…” Miss Grace tried to argue and then sighed when both her daughter and James glared at her.
“Okay, fine.”

Smiling at her mother, Peach went over to Miss Grace and hugged her tightly, inhaling as a sense of
relief flooded over her body as she felt safe and secure being in the arms of her mom.

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