Disclaimer: JP never got anyone arrested. I did.

Chapter 10

I sat handcuffed in front of a cluttered, beat up desk. An outdated computer sat in the right corner and old Styrofoam coffee cups created rings on the old wood to the left. Papers were scattered across the rest of the desks surface just waiting to give some unsuspecting person a paper cut.

A man in his forties, my arresting officer, reclined in a rolling office chair on the opposite side of the desk from me. While he was supporting an impressive mustache he seemed to lack the capability to grow any hair on his gleaming head. I glared at him through a curtain of my own hair while I mentally cursed Fang out.

My night had gone from okay to hell in a matter of seconds.

As it turned out the cave that Fang had taken me to was government property used in some research projects, conducted in the old decrepit ranger station that was an actual research post. One of the scientists there had called the police when he'd seen two teenagers heading up to the cliff for god knows what reason.

The police, having had many tips similar to this one in the past, came out to investigate. There they had found me and Fang alone in a cave at eleven thirty something on a school night, surrounded by booze.

They'd arrested us immediately.

As I was being Mirandized I had cursed Fang out at the top of my lungs. We were placed into the same squad car where I'd continued to call him every dirty name in the book, both Spanish and English, until we'd arrived at the police station. From that point I had spent the past two hours being finger printed, DNA tested, and mug shot. The police had called my parents, much to my protest, and they were on their way.

The officer, A. Sheridan according to his nametag, picked up a pen and started clicking it slowly but persistently. I ignored it at first, I knew he was trying to annoy me, but he was doing a really good job of it and soon enough I snapped.

"Can you at least take off the cuffs?" I asked, holding up my hands to display that I was, indeed, still handcuffed. The wonderfully attractive metal bracelets were heavier than they appeared and starting to hurt my wrists.

He shrugged his shoulders. "Sorry. You're not in an interrogation room, you can't be without a lawyer, so as long as you're out here you need to be handcuffed."

"I don't need a fricken lawyer. I already told you what happened." I ground out.

"And what would that be again?" He asked me.

I glared at him. He was dancing on my last nerve and I seriously doubted he knew what to expect when I snapped. Then again, snapping and showing him probably wouldn't be the smartest of moves when I was surrounded by a dozen other police officers. I finally decided to answer him, if not to reiterate what I'd already said.

"I didn't know that we were trespassing. I figured it was nature, you know, for public use. Its close enough to the nature trails to guess as much."

He nodded.

"And the sign in front of the ranger's station didn't tip you off. You know, the big 'do not trespass sign'?"

I intensified my glare, reevaluating my decision to try and maintain my cool disposition.

"There are a few holes in your faulty logic. Actually, your logic is looking a lot like Swiss Cheese. First of all, it was dark, I couldn't see a damn thing. Second of all, from what very little I could see that station looked abandoned, you really should tell them to invest in some paint or something. And third of all, if I'd seen a 'do not trespass' sign don't you think I would have listened to it and not trespassed? Or do you think I can't read as well?"

He straightened his posture and glared right back at me.

"And what about the alcohol?"

"Again with the Swiss Cheese! God damn it! Seriously? First of all," I held up my hand bound and started ticking off my reasons as I went. "Do I look drunk to you? Seem it? Smell it? No! Besides you guys did a breathalyzer and a field sobriety test on me! I passed! Second of all those booze were long since dry! You took my DNA, compare it to whatever is on the lids! I never touched that crap! Third of all, do whatever fancy test you have in that little forensic tool kits you guys have to figure out that I've never drank before. I don't intend to either." I had been leaning forward in my seat as I chewed him out. He seemed to lean back in an attempt to escape me.

"What were you doing there in the first place?" He asked.

"As I'm sure F-Nick told you, as I've already told you, I wanted to go somewhere quiet to think." I admitted.

"And why would that be?"

"Damn you police are so nosey." I complained. "Fine. I got in a fight with my mom earlier and I didn't want to be home. I went to the park but there were kids there and it was noisy. Nick found me there and told me he knew a quiet place. That's how I ended up there."

"So you're saying it's all Nick's fault." He stated.

"Yes! No! I don't know!" I groaned.

"That's a lot of contradictions right there." He pointed out.

"Look!" I sighed and looked down the hall where they had led Fang. They'd separated us because I'd kept cursing a blue streak towards him. "Do I blame Nick that I was in the cave? Yes. Do I think he meant for this to happen? No. Do I think he knew we were trespassing? I have no fricken clue."

I lifted my handcuffed hands and attempted to brush fallen strands of hair from my face. It didn't work so well. The sleeves of Fang's jacket slid over my fingers and I couldn't use them to aid me.

"All I want is for this misunderstanding to be done with. We weren't aware we were trespassing and we didn't cause any harm while we were up there. We weren't even there for long! Not even an hour! Why do we have to go through all of this? Can't you let us off with a warning?" I leaned forward and put on my begging eyes. I'd picked up a few tips from Angel that day I'd babysat her and put them to the test. "I have a scholarship that I need so I can go to college. If I get arrested that goes away. I don't want that to happen over a mistake."

He leaned forward, his elbows on his desk as he looked at me. His expression softened slightly.

"You may not have caused damage but you still trespassed. And then there's the matter of the alcohol."

I groaned and flopped back in my seat, my eyelids drooping under the stress of my day and the late hour. Maybe I could get a few minutes of rest…

"Max!"

Or not.

I shot up in my seat and winced as I heard my parents voices shout across the room.

My dad came storming across the room, followed closely by my mom, leaving their police escort trailing behind them. I saw Marcy in the distance, accompanied by a very sleepy Angel and Gazzy, heading off towards where Fang was being held.

"Mom, Dad." I sighed as they came to stand by my side.

I closed my eyes and waited for the shouting to start. I was taken completely off guard when I felt my mother's arms wrap around my shoulders instead.

"Oh Max," she whispered in my ear. "You scared me so badly! I didn't know what happened to you! And then the police called!"

"What happened?" My father demanded, one hand resting on my shoulder as he stared at Officer Sheridan.

"Miss Martinez here, along with her friend Mr. Carroway, were caught trespassing on government property. Alcohol was found at the arresting scene."

Mom gasped and Dad's grip on my shoulder tightened while I cried out in indignation.

"Hey! Tell it right!" I demanded before turning to my parents. "We didn't know we were trespassing. The empty bottles were there when we got there. I'm one hundred percent sober, they ran tests to prove it."

"Well then why are we still here? And why is my daughter still handcuffed?" My father demanded of the officer. "Seems pretty open and close to me."

"We've had several reports of teenagers sneaking up to the cave in question. How are we to know that your daughter hasn't partaken in drinking there on another occasion?"

"Not that it would matter now," Dad objected. "You can't arrest her for something you can't prove. Besides, what person hasn't drunk underage at some point?"

"I didn't drink!" I objected. Both men ignored me and the officer continued.

"The point is if we prove she's been there before we can prove that she knew she was trespassing—"

"I didn't know!"

"In which case we'd have to arrest her." He finished despite my objections.

"So what happens now?" Mom asked from beside me.

"Well, we've taken a DNA sample and once we get the results we'll be able to incriminate or clear your daughter. If we clear her all charges will be dropped."

"Nick too?" I asked immediately.

He nodded.

"Nick too,"

"Thank god," I said in a sigh of relief. I may be pissed at him but I didn't want him being arrested for an honest mistake.

"How long will that take?" Mom asked.

"DNA takes ten days. We've got one or two cases that take precedence so it will be processed after them. Once that's done we'll compare the results and act accordingly. Give it two or three weeks. In the meantime," he said as he got up and walked around the desk. He held a key in one hand and gestured for me to give him my hands with the other, "I have to ask you not to leave the city." He pushed the jacket sleeves back and unlocked my cuffs. I snatched my hands back quickly, rubbing where the handcuffs had chafed my skin.

"Not a problem," My father answered for me.

"Wait!" I objected. "I have a final track competition in Helena next Friday!" It was my last high school track meet ever! It was already mid May and I graduated in three weeks. How could I miss my last track meet?

"I'm sorry," the officer said. "But I'm going to have to ask you to miss it."

"What am I going to say to Paul? I'm the only one who runs my event!" I cried, desperately.

"Try the truth. In the meantime, don't leave Philipsburg."

And things finally start getting interesting! Thank you guys for reviewing! I have to say, I seem to have lost all concept of time lately. It was four days since my last update before I realized it. I apologize. Things have been hectic lately. Anyway, you don't care about that. I only want to make the point that I'm doing my best to update once or twice a week.

Read and Review!

Peace!