Chapter 17

We finally made it to the waiting room. Sally had a pocket full of change, so she bought us all a soda. I had a chance to look around to see what kinds of machines there were, because I was thinking that what they might offer would be better than hospital food. Sally seemed happy just being with me and I knew I was glad she was here. She started asking about Kat. She wanted to know how old she was and the typical daughter type questions, which I didn't feel comfortable answering, even if I had known the answers. Tiny was watching the two of us with a smug smile on his face, which I hated. I knew what he was thinking, but they both were wrong.

"Ok, you two, enough is enough. Sally, I just met her this morning and found out her name, just before you came in to visit. Tiny, if you open that big yap of yours, I will have a little talk with Myrna about you gossiping behind my back. Now, Sally, if you want to know more about Kat, then you will have to ask her yourself. I have told you everything I know."

"I'm sorry, Jon, but she is so sweet and pretty. Besides, if she is interested in going out with you, I need to know more about her before I give her my blessings. I can't just let anyone go out with my dad."

I looked at her in shock and big mouth just plain lost it. Tiny was guffawing so loud, one of the nurses came around the corner and told him to hold it down, there were sick people here. Well duh! I thought, as I glared holes through him. He just shook it off, still laughing at me. Sally had a sweet smile on her face, so I didn't have the heart to tell her she was way off track about me and Kat. Before I could say anything, Sally turned to Tiny and asked him if he thought Kat was pretty and did he think we would make a good pair.

He looked at her thoughtfully, then at me, before he said anything. I tried to glare him down, but it as usual didn't sink through his thick head. Tiny being Tiny, he had to have his say.

"Sally, honey, I think she is just perfect for your dad. With that red hair, I bet she has a temper and could keep him in line. I would even go as far as to say that if they had kids, they would all be pretty, just like their mother. Of course your dad's not a bad looking guy, but he is a bit plain around the edges."

I just glared at him as he rolled his eyes at me as if to say, "Pay back's a bitch, ain't it?" Sally took it serious and sniggered at him, then looked at me in a weird way.

"I think you're right, Tiny. They would make a good pair together. But knowing my dad, he will never muster the courage to ask her out. I think I better step in and see what I can arrange. I really like her, and I bet she would like Jon if I gave her a chance to get to know him a little better. I think I will have a little talk with Myrna and see what we can come up with."

Now this was getting totally out of hand, if she was dragging Myrna into it. I decided to just keep my mouth shut and head back to my room before I said something that made them both mad at me. I stood up and started toward my room. I forgot about the damned IV holder and almost tipped it over. Sally grabbed it and looked at me with that ornery grin she always used when she had something she thought I didn't know about. We walked back to my room, with Sally pushing the IVs and humming to herself. Now I was worried. When Sally hummed, that usually meant I was going to come out on the wrong end of one of her little plans. The trouble with the whole thing was that Myrna always helped her. I had never out thought either one of them yet. Whenever they got their heads together, I always lost out in the end.

We finally made it back to my room, only to find Bill and Jerry sitting in the vacant chairs waiting on us. Sally helped me back into bed and said she had to go because she had an early dress fitting in the morning. She kissed me and gave me that grin again before she and Tiny escaped through the open door, talking up a storm to each other. I wished I could have heard that conversation, but from the look on Bill and Jerry's faces, I had more important things to worry about. Bill reached into a bag beside his chair and handed me a large coffee before he opened his mouth. I took a sip, thinking this wasn't going to be very pleasant just by that little action itself.

"Jon, Sally's stepfather tried to file a motion in court to return her to his guardianship. Fortunately, I had a call from a clerk I knew and got there in time to quash the motion. He also filed a restraining order against you and all the immediate members of your family to keep away from him while he was in town. That one was granted. Of course he didn't know that Sally is your only family. He told the Judge that your half brother made threats against him at his wife's funeral. He also said they wouldn't let him speak to his own daughter to pass on his grief over her mothers passing. I showed the Judge the previous paperwork that was on file, and he just laughed at him. Jon, I don't know what's going on, but he has someone with deep pockets backing him. The lawyer he used is from Maryland and is well known and very expensive to hire."

"Bill, I would almost bet he got a call from the church, or someone connected to it and got paid to come in. This is just the start, my friends. From now on, it will be down and dirty, using any legal argument they can to keep me away from the church. They know that I know more about their dealings than anyone else but the members. They are going to use every means necessary to tie me up to keep me at a distance from them. Bill, Jerry, use your contacts in the courts to keep you informed of any legal moves they try. I can't do a thing until I get healed and out of here. Tiny and his friends will watch out for the girls until that happens. Meanwhile, we can pull a few legal maneuvers of our own, like filing a return restraining order against any member of the church and it's contractors to keep them from approaching me and mine. Bill, in the meantime, I want you to call Jeb and have him put his two friends on alert to be waiting for a call from me. He will know what you are talking about. Jerry, I want that report on Sally's mother's family as soon as possible. Have your investigator check to see if there is a tie in between the stepfather and the mother's sister. I also want to know what happened to the Runt and his people as soon as possible, Jerry."