Alexander Hopkins Senior was in his personal den at home, and pacing the room like he was in a hospital waiting room. The arrest has made him very nervous, and he didn’t go to the office and instead chose to head right home. He had considered going to the station, but his lawyer advised against it, saying the panic would only play to helping his son’s prosecution. Jefferson had told him to let Russell do his thing, as he praised Xander’s choice of attorney and assured him things would be alright.

  “I don’t care what the price is,” Alex told his attorney, “The moment we know how much bail is, cover it. No price is too steep. I don’t care, Jefferson, pay it.”

  It was at this point where a lady his age came storming into his den, and this was the moment that Alex Sr. had been dreading. This was like seeing a hurricane hit the beach, and there was nothing you could do by watch the carnage. Alex was used to watching his wife of forty years pitch a fit, but even he knew today she was likely going to take things to the next level. Alex wasn’t as impressed that their son had been arrested for something rather horrible, but he’s had time to prepare himself for it. Jefferson and his firm had been talking to people about it for weeks, where as mom was now only hearing about it today with zero notice. To say she was going to go nuclear on his ass was the understatement of the century. As she stormed into her husband’s den, all Alex could do was brace for impact. She looked almost as angry as the day her mother passed away, and she was given little notice for that as well.

  “Alex!” his wife bellowed out, holding up her cell phone which had news of the arrest on the screen. “What the hell is this?”

  “I was just on the phone with Jefferson,” Alex replied, “It’s being handled.”

  “Handled?” she roared back, “How long have you known about this?”

  Alex took a deep breath. “Two weeks.”

  “Two weeks?” she repeated. “Ever thought to let me in on this?”

  “I had considered it,” Alex confessed, “Jefferson wanted to settle and just make it all go away, and it looked like the accuser was all for it. Xander refused to pay to make it all go away. He’d rather fight it out in court, and now it looks like he’s going to get his chance.”

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  “I can’t believe this,” Janet replied. “Does Jefferson approve of this strategy?”

  “He doesn’t have a choice,” Alex answered, “Xander fired him and retained new council to represent him and his company.”

  “He fired Jefferson?” his wife repeated, shocked to hear that.

  “He did,” Alex confirmed. “And then he was arrested. It was dreadful.”

  “How would you know?” She asked him.

  “I was there,” Alex replied, “We were having breakfast with his lady when the cops arrived and cuffed him in public. They didn’t need to do that, they could have asked and Xander would have surrendered.”

  “I didn’t realize you two were close again,” Janet said, rather surprised.

  “It wasn’t done on purpose,” Alex admitted, “I went there to dine on my own before going to work and he was at my table with a lady.”

  “A lady?” his wife repeated, “He was dining with a lady?”

  “Yes, he was.” Alex confirmed, “And she’s quite lovely. Her name is Lauren and I think you’d really like her.”

  “How much does Xander like her?” Janet asked.

  “Enough to put up with me,” Alex answered. “He was even nice.”

  “Wow, he does like her.” Janet concurred. “And he was arrested in front of her?”

  “I know, it was terrible timing.” Alex agreed, “I hope this bullshit doesn’t scare her away.”

  “So you don’t believe it?” Janet asked, eager to know what her husband thought about what their child was thinking regarding the situation.

  “No, I don’t.” Alex replied, “This accusation is an attempt to extort money from us. Just like the blokes that kept jumping in front of my car, the only difference is these charges are more harmful and slanderous. This is why they assume someone will pay big to make it go away, to avoid the public shaming.”

  “Why wouldn’t he pay?” his wife suddenly asked. “I mean this is humiliating. I’ve seen you pay off for less than this.”

  “Because of you, Janet.” Alex countered. “He doesn’t want you to think he’s capable of something like this. He thinks paying them will make you think he’s capable of doing this, which he didn’t by the way. These charges are a total fabrication.”

  “Well, I guess it’s nice to see you in his corner.” Janet observed, “This might bring you two closer together.”

  “Anything is possible I guess,” Alex conceded, “No matter what he thinks of me, I’m always going to be there for him. He’ll always be that little boy that we raised together no matter how successful he is. I’ll do what I can to get him through this, whether he wants my help or not.”

  “And what about this lady he’s been hanging around?” she asked him.

  Alex grinned back at his wife. “You are going to love her. Her name is Lauren and turns out she used to work for…”