The Boy Returns to Court
Chapter 19 - The Boy Returns to Court
Ten years later, Thomas returned to the Hawthorne County courthouse as a university student.
He studied public-interest law and corporate accountability.
The old courtroom had been renovated, but the witness box remained.
A class visited to discuss landmark probate cases.
The professor described Mercer v. Bennett as a turning point in recognizing domestic workers as caregivers and witnesses to family abuse.
Thomas did not announce who he was.
After the class left, he stood in the center aisle where his chair had once been.
Rose joined him.
She now managed the county’s legal-record integrity office.
“Do you remember pointing at me?” she asked.
“I remember Grandpa telling me to sit down.”
“What made you stand?”
“Dad’s voice in my head.”
Thomas looked toward the witness stand.
“And because you looked like no one had ever said the truth for you.”
Rose smiled sadly.
May you like
“You did not have to save me.”
“I know. I was saving myself too.”
