Harbor Street (Cedar Cove #5)(89)

“Actually, this must’ve been one of your junior officers,” David said. “He was a little too eager to get his quota, if you know what I mean.”

“We don’t have ticket quotas in Cedar Cove.” She didn’t work in traffic court, but she knew the system.

“The officer apparently took a dislike to me, I’m sorry to say. I didn’t help matters, I suppose,” David admitted with a look of chagrin. “I thought he had a bad attitude. Anyhow, one thing led to another—and now it’s a bit of a disaster.”

“What was the ticket for?” Olivia asked, tired of having to ferret out each kernel of information.

“Speeding—but I wasn’t speeding,” David insisted. “I have a signed statement here from a mechanic that states my speedometer was faulty.” He extracted a folded sheet of paper from inside his jacket and held it out.

“David,” she warned, “put that away. I don’t want to see it. Just tell me what else you were charged with.”

He heaved a sigh. “Negligent driving,” he confessed. “It was a simple misunderstanding that got out of hand. I can’t even begin to tell you what this’ll do to my car insurance rates. Normally I’d just pay for the ticket and be done with it. But it’s going to be more difficult than that. My insurance company is threatening to cancel my policy and then I’ll have to find another one, and my rates will skyrocket.”

“You haven’t paid the ticket?”

“No. You see, I’m experiencing a bit of a cash flow problem at the moment. I figured it’d be fifty bucks or so and if it was, I’d pay it and write off the entire matter. Unfortunately, the fine is more than three hundred dollars—and then there’s this dilemma with my insurance company. I need this whole thing to go away. The best way to make that happen is to throw myself on the mercy of the court.” He laughed lightly. “Then I learned that my very own sister is an influential member of the Kitsap County Court.”

“I see.” Boy, did she.

David shook his head, as though embarrassed to trouble her with anything this trivial. “I was hoping you’d help me out. A brief conversation with the Traffic Court judges…”

Olivia relaxed in her chair and crossed her arms. “I’m afraid it doesn’t work like that.”

“You just said you were friendly with the other judges.”

“Yes—on a social basis. It doesn’t mean I can or will involve myself in any situation that would contravene the law. My relationship with my fellow judges can’t help you.”

“Of course it can,” he argued. “You talk to them, and my little issue with the Cedar Cove police will go away.” He leaned close and lowered his voice to a whisper. “All you have to do is snap your fingers.”

“No. I can’t do it.” She spoke slowly, deliberately. Olivia couldn’t make her position any plainer than that.

His jaw tightened. “In other words, you won’t help me.”

“There’s no other words about it. I don’t know how the judicial system works wherever you live, but we don’t fix traffic tickets here in Cedar Cove. If you broke the law, I suggest you step forward and deal with the consequences of your actions.”

Olivia found her stepbrother to be a decidedly unpleasant man, despite his glib and rather overstated charm. Then it clicked. “Just a minute here,” she said, bolting to her feet. “You’re the one my daughter was telling me about.”

“Hey, hey,” he said, raising both hands. “I haven’t dated any women in this town—and definitely not your daughter. Who is she, anyway?”

“Justine Gunderson. You were at her restaurant.”

His smile faded. “Your daughter owns The Lighthouse?”

“My daughter and son-in-law.”

David’s eyes went hard with a look that set Olivia’s heart pounding. “Your daughter took that check right out of my hand,” he said from between gritted teeth. “She interfered in something that was none of her damned business.”

She suddenly remembered exactly what she’d heard about David Rhodes. She rose from her chair. “You were trying to cheat my mother out of five thousand dollars.”

David leapt to his feet. “It was a loan,” he insisted, his eyes on fire. “I fully intended to pay her back in two or three weeks. She’s a lovely woman, kindhearted and generous. Apparently none of those traits were handed down to anyone else in the family.”

Olivia wasn’t going to allow him to insult her in her own office. “I think it’s time you left, Mr. Rhodes.” She walked around her desk and opened the door. “Officer Lusk,” she called.

Mike Lusk walked purposefully in her direction. “Would you kindly escort Mr. Rhodes out of this building?”

Mike stepped forward and planted his hands on his wide belt. “This way, Mr. Rhodes.”

“Hell of a way to start off our relationship,” David snarled as he moved past her.

“I sincerely hope, Mr. Rhodes, that we never have a relationship. Now kindly leave me and my family alone.”

“You’re going to regret this.”

Olivia smiled. “You know what? I doubt it. Oh, a word of warning—if you show up in my office or my courtroom again, I’m going to throw the book at you.”