Lt. Caine joined the pair in the interrogation room not long after they were left to their own devices. Caine felt wholly responsible for the transgressions that Keats was accused of.
"June, I promise I won't let anything happen to you." He had said before Ouida Remington pulled him aside for a private discussion.
"Somehow my granddaughter got mixed up in this shady business, but I am going to make sure it never happens again." She said, her demeanor proud and somewhat self-important.
"I thought T.C. Remington was the hotshot lawyer in the family." Horatio replied, holding his own against the powerful grandmother. Ouida Remington smiled bitterly.
"My son is a good-for-nothing father. He's never been there for her like I have… Don't worry, Lt. Caine. The Remington Family is full of prestigious lawyers. We take care of our own." She said with a slight nod of the head. It was a curt dismissal, and one that Horatio Caine took personally.
Keats waited in a cold room with bad fluorescent lighting as her grandmother presented her defense during her impromptu arraignment. Grammy Remington had requested a quick trial due to Sloane's fast-approaching wedding.
Keats chewed her fingernails and wondered vaguely if Ryan had heard. Of course he has, dummy. He doesn't live under a rock.
I wonder what he thinks of me now that I'm a criminal. He never loved me before…what if he despises me now? Especially since I'm the reason that Horatio has to resign.
Horatio's Resignation. It was widely spread news and Keats didn't know if it was simply rumor or unabashed truth. Wherever or however it came, Keats felt disgusted with herself nonetheless.
Presently the doors opened and Ouida Belle Remington came out all smiles, shaking the hands of everyone she passed. Keats rose in hopeful anticipation.
"You've been acquitted, darling. I knew they'd see the truth." She held Keats in her arms, leading her outside to a rented limousine. They were headed to Grammy Remington's hotel suite overlooking the beach.
Keats had showered and eaten, and she would have looked wonderfully healthy if it weren't for the dour, melancholy expression on her face.
Ouida Belle sat in her white silken robe tasting a few ladyfingers from the dessert tray she'd had sent up from room service. She put them down, however, when she realized that Keats hadn't smiled since she'd been cleared of her charges.
"Juniper, is something wrong?" She asked mildly. Keats was standing near the edge of the balcony, her hands on the ledge, looking dreamily into the ocean water.
"I…I realize this must be hard for you, darling. Feeling responsible for that man's resignation. I heard you were quite fond of him…" Grammy Remington held her tongue and waited for Keats to take the bait.
She slowly turned to face her beloved grandmother and nodded. Shrewd Ouida Belle Remington emerged and she began to think of a proposition.
"If I could make it so that Lt. Caine does not lose his job…well, what I mean is…what is it worth to you?" She asked. She was quick to follow up with words of consolation to hide the true motive.
"It would mean the world to me if he was forgiven. I would do anything if they'd just let him go back to work!" Keats cried, playing into the palm of her grandmother's misguided hand.
"I can make it happen darling…But I would request a small favor in return. This isn't exactly a bargain, because I was planning on asking you anyway..."
"Yes…" Keats persuaded her to continue.
"Come back to Biloxi with me, Juniper. You can graduate from Ole Miss just like your daddy and your Uncle Vinton." She held onto Keats' arms, rubbing them comfortingly.
"Why?" was all she could think to ask. Grammy Remington gave her a wistful smile.
"Aunt Roe hasn't lived with me for quite some time and…an old woman gets lonely without anyone to take care of." She stroked her cheek with great tenderness. Keats could empathize deeply. She had wanted to take care of Ryan…but that was all over now.
"I would love to, Grammy. But can you please help Horatio get his job back?" She asked, her big green eyes misting up with pitiful tears.
"Of course, dear. Grammy will take care of everything."
Horatio Caine was madder than Hell. Keats' sanctimonious grandmother had threatened to get him fired if he didn't release her from her internship at Miami Dade P.D. When he refused blatantly, he knew that it would not stop there. Her half-empty threats would find a way to get what she wanted, using whatever angle necessary to attain results.
And when Keats had sent him an email telling him she was dropping out of the CSI training program, he knew what Ouida had done.