Justin's Point of View: The Dangerous Decision

by Belle Jenkins (ages 14-17)

    “Jed Hatton! Here in Fresno?” Justin Carter exclaimed, “Why on earth would he come back? If I were trying to escape the law, I sure wouldn't return to the town in which I was accused of committing a crime- even if I was innocent.” It was truly a shock for Justin to hear of his convicted client's return.

    Jed Hatton had been accused of murdering old Mr. Slater, and Justin had defended him in court. He had convinced the judge to give the defendant prison time, rather than sentencing him to death. Jed had been traveling to San Quentin but had apparently escaped. Now he was coming back to Fresno.

    After a few moments, Justin asked, “Do you know where exactly he is? Fresno isn't that big of a town.”

    We're not sure,” Sheriff Russell Tate responded, “He was seen heading toward the schoolhouse 'bout a half hour ago.”

    Justin put away all his loose paperwork and headed for the schoolhouse. He was worried. If-and he doubted it, but if – Jed Hatton was guilty, Justin wanted him nowhere near the schoolhouse; especially since his youngest sister, Andi, attended there.

                                                                 ***

    When Justin arrived at the schoolhouse, Jed was there. Jed insisted that everyone outside the schoolhouse disband and continue to go about their everyday business. Justin called to his client, requesting admission to the school so they could figure out something reasonable. Jed refused, announcing that he was holding Andi hostage. Jed had intended to take the teacher's daughter, but Andi had insisted the escapee take her instead.

    Justin was shocked, and dazed. He knew that Andi held a strong dislike for Virginia Foster. But the more surprising factor was that Andi was a hostage. Her life was in danger- and she was only twelve! If Jed was a murderer, one wrong move could aggravate him to kill another person- a child.

    But Justin still believed in Jed's innocence, and so called out, “No, Jed!” his voice betrayed his shock and dismay, “that's not the answer. Don't destroy your chance for an appeal by doing something stupid. Your best bet is to throw out your gun and let me come inside and talk. I know you're not a killer. We have a chance - a good chance. Don't throw it away because you're scared.”

    “Quit yer jabberin'. All I want is a couple o' horses and some supplies. Are you gonna get 'em or not?”

    “All right,” Justin said. “We'll do it.”

    Jed cracked the schoolroom door open a bit wider, and Justin thought he was about to step out when a shot rang out. Justin whipped around to see who had fired the shot, and why. He discovered that a group of worried fathers had been arguing about whether or not they should attack Jed to save the kids.

One man, not agreeing with the idea of shooting Jed, had tried to take the gun from his friend, and in the midst of the struggle, the trigger was pulled, shooting a bullet toward the schoolhouse. When the bullet splintered the doorway, Jed jumped back inside, pulling Andi with him. Those outside heard him shout at Andi, “Is your brother fool enough to want to see you dead?”

    Then a sob from Andi traveled to the spectators waiting outside: “Justin didn't do it!”

    “Maybe not, but somebody did!” came Jed's angry reply. Kicking the door open, Jed exited the school, half-dragging Andi close behind. He started yelling at Justin, “Lawyer, you nearly got us both shot!” He then proceeded to nag about the horses and supplies, and insisted that the crowd disperse. The Sheriff gave a nod to a couple deputies, who retreated to get the horses and supplies for the aggravated escapee, while Justin started to break up the crowd.

    After the spectators had left, things started to quiet down as they waited for Jed's orders to be carried out. As time passed, Justin worried. He worried for Jed. For the people of Fresno. For himself even. But mostly, he was worried- no, scared- for Andi.

    Justin heard Andi's frightened voice call, “Justin?”

Justin motioned his sister into silence. He didn't want to irritate his client anymore. Jed once again tried to explain why he chose Andi over everyone else in the class. He repeated something about planning on taking the teacher's daughter, and Andi having spunk, but Justin wasn't listening. He was trying to think of some way to get Jed to let Andi go free.

When Jed had finished rambling, Justin made an offer. “Let her go, Jed. You don't need her. Take me. I'll go with you for as long as you like. We can talk. Just you and me. When you feel safe, we'll come back together and start the appeal. Or, you can leave me along the road and be on your way. I give my word.”

    Jed refused the offer, and continued nagging about the horses and supplies. Justin slumped in defeat. He could tell this scared Andi when she suddenly cried out,

    “Justin, why don't you do something?”

Knowing there was nothing more he could do, Justin responded, “I'm sorry, honey.” and explained to his sister that if she did everything Jed told her, she would be just fine. But Justin knew the difference between what you say, and what you know. And at this moment, he didn't know anything. He was starting to question Jed's innocence.

    What if Jed was just playing me? What if he isn't really innocent and he is a murderer? If he had no problem killing someone who was a slight inconvenience, then he would most certainly kill the girl who posed a real problem to his plans. How on earth could I explain to everyone that my client, who I defended in court, killed our sister? It'd be all my fault. And all because I was too stubborn to listen to others! Justin silently kicked himself for believing what could quite possibly have been a very dangerous lie. God, please forgive me for my ignorance, he prayed, And please protect Andi!

                                                                ***

    A few minutes later, the horses and supplies arrived. Much to Justin's surprise, one of the horses the two deputies brought back was Andi's very own palomino, Taffy. Justin silently thanked God for this small blessing He had given. Perhaps, if the right time came, Andi would be able to ride home, and Taffy would guide her back the way they would have gone. Maybe Andi would be back by that evening!

    Unfortunately, Jed was taking no chances. He decided to ride double with Andi on Taffy. Through tears, Andi requested to say goodbye to her brother, which Jed permitted.

    “I'm sorry I made a mess of things, Justin,” Andi choked, “Tell Mother I love her. Tell her goodbye for me and- and I'll see her soon.”

    A dozen thoughts swirled through Justin's head. Should I give her some plan of escape? Or maybe a verse of encouragement? She's clearly frightened. Should I talk to Jed and make sure he doesn't hurt her? I can't promise she'll be alright.

The words Justin spoke were not even a thought. They just flowed straight from his heart, “I will,” he assured Andi, stepping up to the golden horse's side, “You did the right thing. I'm proud of you. Now, don't be afraid. Be strong. Be brave. And God go with you. Even if I can't,” he finished, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. Justin backed away from his sister's horse, “I love you,” he finished in a whisper.

                                                                ***

    Justin immediately headed out to the Circle C Ranch to break the news of Andi's kidnapping to the rest of the family. When he arrived, he asked the ranch hand who came to meet him, “Where's Chad and Mitch?”

    “No sé, Señor. Lo siento. – I don't know, sir. I'm sorry,”

    “Está bien. - That's alright,” Justin replied. “Gracias, Diego.”

At that moment, both Chad and Mitch came into view from behind the barn. They appeared to be in some sort of argument. When they saw Justin, they broke off from their conversation, and Chad asked, “What are you doing home so early? It's not even noon!” he noticed Justin's worried face and paused, “Justin, where's Andi?”

    Justin sighed, “I hope you don't have any urgent plans today, because if you do, you're going to have to drop it.” At his brothers' confused faces he added, “Come on inside so I can talk to all of you at once.”

    The three brothers went inside, and Justin called out, “Mother! Melinda!”

The two Carter women appeared from around the corner. Upon seeing her eldest son, Mother asked, “Justin! What's going on?” She realized that something was wrong, since Justin rarely raised his voice. He was usually calm, and seldom in a rush. No, this was not the typical Justin Carter.

    “It's Jed.” Justin began, “he came back to Fresno and decided to hide out in the schoolhouse-”

    “What! Is Andi alright?” came Mitch's astonished voice.

    “If you'd let me finish, I'll tell you. Jed apparently was looking for a hostage, and chose Virginia Foster. But, Andi wouldn't let him take her, and when he found out that the girl who was challenging his wishes was the sister of his lawyer, he figured it would be better to take her, rather than Virginia, since she fainted multiple times, according to Jed. He demanded horses and supplies be brought for them. The deputies who were sent to retrieve them brought back Taffy for Andi.”

     “Taffy's been well trained. She could lead Andi back home! So, Andi's going to be perfectly fine,” Chad's reassurance broke through his older brother's recital.

    “Not exactly, Chad,” Justin acknowledged his brother, “You see, that would be true if Jed hadn't decided to ride double with Andi. There's a possibility that, if Andi behaves, Jed will let Andi ride alone. But he might put her on a lead rope, to keep her with him. Really the only way Andi could get away would be if she escaped at night, or if, for some reason, Jed trusts Andi enough to stick with him- which is not likely. We need to send out a search party as soon as possible. I doubt Jed will take any chances.”

    “Justin,” Mother broke in with a tight voice, her hands folded in her lap, “I can't lose another daughter.”

    Justin put his hand over his mother's, “Don't worry, Mother. We'll find her and bring her back.”

Mother then voiced her greatest fear about this situation, “Alive, or dead?”

When her eldest son didn't answer, Chad said, “We'll do everything in our power to bring her back alive. But, since the court held Jed a killer, we can't make any promises.”

    “Bring my daughter back.” Mother choked.

    “Andi said before she left to tell you that she loves you, and she'll see you soon. She was thinking of you when she was taken,” Justin comforted.

After their mother left the room sobbing, Chad yelled at Justin, “You were too afraid for yourself to do anything for Andi!”
            “Jed had a gun and a school full of children- and Andi! I did the best I could for her!

    Frustrated, Chad quietly confronted Justin, “How innocent do you think Jed is now?”

Justin clenched his jaw to keep from losing his temper, but did not answer Chad's question.

    “You know, this all is very stressful, and we're all worried about Andi, but I think we need to take a minute to calm down and bring this before the Lord” Mitch suggested, “Andi is in His hand, and He knows where she is. I think it would be wise to ask for His guidance.”

    “I agree. He's the only One who can help us – and Andi – right now,” Chad nodded. With that, the Carter family poured out their concern for Andi to God, begging Him to keep her safe.

                                                                ***

    Afterwards, the three boys set out to organize a search party. A few hours later, their search party, consisting of several deputies, the sheriff, a few men from town, and the Carter brothers, split into groups and set out to find Andi and Jed.

They searched all day and night with no sign of the pair. By the next evening it looked as though they had completely lost Andi and her captor, until they stumbled upon a campsite that had been abandoned several hours before. It was nearly dusk, and all were worn out, but this campsite brought hope they would find Jed and Andi soon. As they searched around the site, someone called to the others that he had found a palomino mare. The deputy brought the horse into view of the others. Chad caught his breath, “That's Taffy!” he cried, just above a whisper.

    Suddenly, Mitch called out to his brothers to join him where he stood a few yards away. “Justin! There's blood all over the place!”

    Justin quickly made his way over to his youngest brother and followed his gaze to see a frightened Andi. After a bit of coaxing, Justin was finally able to convince Andi to come out so they could bring her home.

                                                                ***

    Chad burst through the Carter's front door, where his mother met him.

    “Did you find her?” Mother asked with worry-filled eyes.

    “Yes. Justin's bringing her in,” Chad responded as Justin walked through the door, carrying a now-sleeping Andi. “We found her just in time,” Chad added, “Jed shot her in the head!”

    Elizabeth gasped in shock. “Did you get the doctor?”

Chad nodded, “He should be here in a few minutes. We sent Mitch to get him while we headed back here.”

    Just as he finished speaking, Mitch and Dr. Weaver arrived. A few minutes later, Dr. Weaver had examined Andi's head, cleaned her injury, and waited for Mrs. Carter to return with fresh cloths so he could dress it.

    “Was she able to talk or move independently?” asked the doctor.

    “Yes,” Justin replied, “But she couldn't remember anything. She didn't even know who we were.”

    “Hmm. Sounds like amnesia to me,” the doctor mused while he waited for Elizabeth Carter to return, “Could have been caused by either the gunshot wound, or just from trauma. I'll go into greater detail when your mother returns.”

                                                                ***

    Three weeks passed and Andi still couldn't remember anything about Jed or the kidnapping, aside from her nightmares, and Justin had no more ideas to revive her memory. One day, Justin's secretary, Tim O'Neil, rapped on Justin's office door, and informed his employer that Sheriff Tate had stopped by wanting to see him. Justin instructed Tim to send the sheriff in. In the moment of absence, Justin gathered some of his paperwork into a neat stack.

The sheriff entered Justin's office, “Morning, Justin” he greeted.

    “Russ! What brings you here this morning?” Justin asked.

    “Just wanted to let you know that Jed Hatton was captured. He's passing through here on his way to San Quentin. Figured you oughta know so you could be on your guard in case he tries to pull any funny business. He shot a couple deputies when they tried to capture him.”

    “Hmm,” Justin sighed, “That doesn't sound like an innocent man to me.”

    “I agree. He doesn't sound innocent. Kidnapping and shooting Andi, and now this. He doesn't sound innocent at all,” Russ paused, “Speaking of Andi, how's she doing?”

    Justin shrugged, “She's physically recovered,” he sighed, “But her memory hasn't improved any. Like I said, I'm questioning Jed's innocence.” Justin's fist tightened and rested on his desk, “I feel like this is all my fault. If I hadn't protected Jed in court, he would've been hanged- rather than going to prison. He wouldn't have been able to kidnap Andi in the first place.”

    “Don't go there, Justin. You honestly thought Jed was innocent. You did what you felt was right. No one could have known Jed would do what he did. It's not your fault. No one's blaming you, so you shouldn't blame yourself,” Sheriff Tate reassured, turning to leave, “Well, I've got to get back to work. Just thought I'd let you know about Jed. I'll let you know when he leaves town,” he offered.   

But Justin had stopped listening. His brain was whirling. “You said Jed was coming through Fresno?”

    “Yeah, why?” the sheriff was confused by Justin's sudden question.

    “Do you think you could arrange for a stop to be made here? I wonder...” Justin was deep in thought. He looked up at the sheriff, “Do you think a meeting with Jed might bring Andi's memory back? I don't know, but maybe seeing her captor might trigger something in her mind. Could you do that for me Russ?”
            “I'll see what I can do. This town just isn't the same without Andi. We've been praying for her, and would do anything we could to bring her back. Well, I'll see you around”

    “Thank you, Russ,” Justin answered.

    With that, the sheriff turned and left.

                                                                ***

    That night, Justin was awakened by thrashing in his sister's room, and went to see if everything was alright. Then he decided it was time to tell his mother and Andi about the sheriff's visit. When he explained why Jed was returning, he asked Andi if she would be willing to see Jed. He could see his sister didn't want to, and even the thought of seeing him frightened her, but she finally agreed.

                                                                ***

    We've come to see Jed Hatton,” Justin announced two days later.

    “I hope you know what you're doing, Justin. He's not exactly in a cooperative mood back there,” the sheriff warned, with a wave to Andi, which she didn't return. He looked wary, “Are you sure this is a good idea?”

    “No, I'm not sure,” Justin admitted, glancing at Andi, “But it's the only idea I have. C'mon, Russ, let me see him.”

    The sheriff informed Jed of Justin's arrival, but made no mention of Andi. Justin stepped around the sheriff, motioning for Andi to stay with the sheriff in the office. When he arrived at Jed's cell, he started to make small talk, before getting to the point.

Hopefully, Jed would be willing to listen to his lawyer if he realized how sincere Justin was about his concern for Jed and his longing for his client to do what was right. But finally Jed was done with the useless riddles Justin used, and growled for Justin to get to the point.

    “Alright, Jed. Here it is. I defended you in court. Got you a prison sentence instead of a noose. I did my best for you because I believed you were innocent. And I continued to believe, even when I heard you'd escaped. I wanted to help you by going after an appeal, but you wouldn't give me a chance. Instead, you repaid me by kidnapping my sister and leaving her to die out in the middle of nowhere.”

    Jed was shocked, thinking he had killed a small, innocent child, against whom he had nothing. But he lost it when he was told the girl wasn't dead, and insisted he know why Justin was there at all.

    “I want you to help bring back Andi's memory.” Justin demanded. He went on to explain that the gunshot wound delivered to Andi's head had stripped Andi of everything she had known before her accident. “Talk to her. Help her relive the last few moments before her... accident.”

    Jed insisted that the whole incident was an accident, but Justin paid little attention to his rambling, and called for Andi to join him next to the convict's cell. When Justin asked if she recognized Jed, Andi confessed that she couldn't remember seeing Jed anywhere. Jed started to talk to Andi, telling her about what happened before she was shot. Finally, Andi asked to leave because this exercise didn't seem to be working. She turned to re-enter the office, but froze at Jed's next four words.

    “Goin' somewhere, Little Lady?”

    Andi whirled around, something running through her mind. Justin longed to know what she was thinking. Was she frightened? Did Jed's words push her memory back further? Then Andi cried out, “I'm going home!” She staggered back, and Justin caught her, but she pushed herself right up to the bars of Jed's cell, yelling that she now remembered everything! She asked why Jed shot her, but didn't give him a chance to defend himself. She turned toward Justin and the sheriff to inform them Jed had told her he did, indeed, kill Mr. Slater.

    Andi threw her arms around her brother, “I know you, Justin! I really do!” She laughed, tears of joy spilling down her face.

    Justin returned her hug and whispered, “Thank God!” which the sheriff echoed. It was truly a miracle.