Theodore Boone: The Scandal by John Grisham Page A

and laws and those in authority.
    Theo said, “I skipped school all day, and I need to tell my parents about it. They will want to know why.”
    “You can tell them. I’ll call Woods tomorrow and explain everything.”
    Mr. Boone and Ike rarely talked, and this had always bothered Theo. The fact that Ike would call Theo’s father and talk about this was perhaps a good thing.
    “Why did you skip all day?” Ike asked.
    “It’s a long story.”
    “I’m not that busy.”
    So Theo told him about April, and her anonymous letter, and the suspensions of the five teachers at East. Ike could be trusted with any secret. He seemed to like the idea that April nailed the cheaters with an anonymous letter.

Chapter 18
    W hen Theo returned to the office, his mother was standing at Elsa’s desk, talking to Mr. Boone and Elsa and Vince, her paralegal. It was obvious that something bad had happened. For a split second, Theo thought maybe the school had called and reported him.
    But it was far worse. That afternoon, the police had arrested Geneva Hull and the other four teachers. They were being charged with conspiracy and fraud, and Mrs. Boone was furious.
    “These people are not criminals,” she said more than once. “What is Jack Hogan doing? You’d think he and the police have more important crimes to prosecute, bigger criminals to go after. This is ridiculous.”
    Jack Hogan was the chief prosecutor and a well-respected lawyer. Theo had watched him in many trials.
    Mr. Boone said, “Well, the important thing right now is to get Geneva out of jail.”
    “I know that. The poor girl is probably terrified. Picked up by the cops, handcuffed, thrown into the backseat of a patrol car, hauled off to jail. And I’m sure the police notified the reporters just to add to the embarrassment. This is an outrage.”
    “Has a bond been set?” Mr. Boone asked carefully. His wife was really upset, and he wanted to be supportive. For once, Elsa had nothing to say. Theo tried to hide in a corner, though he wasn’t about to miss the drama.
    “I don’t know,” Mrs. Boone said. “I’m going down to the jail right now to find out. See if you can get Henry Gantry on the phone and call me.”
    “Can I go with you?” Theo asked. “Maybe I can help.”
    “I don’t see any way you can help matters, Theo,” his mother said.
    “Probably not, but I’d hate to miss all the fun.”
    “This is not fun, Theo,” she scolded. “This is an extremely important matter, and an outrage.”
    “I’ll stay out of the way. I’ve already been there once today.”
    All four froze and looked at him. He said, “It’s a long story, for later.”
    “I don’t have time for a story,” Mrs. Boone replied. She threw up her hands and walked to her office. Seconds later, she came out with her briefcase and stomped out the front door. Vince followed her. And Theo decided to follow, too. He wasn’t sure how far he would get, but he was willing to try. What did he have to lose? Mrs. Boone got behind the wheel of her car and slammed the door. Vince hopped into the front passenger’s seat. Theo crawled into the backseat and waited for his mother to order him out. She did not. She drove fast and recklessly to Main Street and parked illegally, as if she was just looking for a fight. Vince and Theo followed her into the police station, and she barked at the first officer she encountered.
    “My name is Marcella Boone, attorney-at-law, and I represent Geneva Hull, who was arrested about an hour ago. I demand to see her immediately!”
    Theo could not remember a time when he’d seen his mother this angry. Luckily, there were no reporters hanging around.
    There were a few other cops milling about, and they disappeared into thin air. The first officer said, “Well, uh, sure, Mrs. Boone. I think you need to see the head jailer, just down the hall.”
    “What’s his name?” she demanded. Mrs. Boone handled few criminal cases and as far as Theo knew had never been