The Reunion

Chapter 26 - Karlie

"And I'm telling you. This is all a big waste of time." Karlie said for the thirteenth time in the past half hour. Or, what felt like the past half hour. She didn't have her phone on her, and she didn't have a fancy enough watch to wear with her black dress, so time was a slight illusion given her current circumstances.

"Miss Harris, as we have stated before, this is all protocol. And, seeing as you don't have your identification or any possessions on you, this is going to take longer than we all would like." A female officer told her from behind a desk.

Karlie was currently seated in a room filled with desks smack dab in the middle of the local police station. To her delight, there were only a few officers working in their cubicles. But to her utter dismay, she knew who the sheriff of this very police station was.

At least she wasn't hand cuffed or in some type of interrogation room and thank God she wasn't in a little holding cell. Maybe they pitied her for having dressed so fancy only to be brought in, or maybe, they knew that even if they could slap her with the very fine Adam Baker, no, Sheriff Baker, had threatened her with not even an hour before the police siren went off, it was a flimsy accusation.

Okay, fine. There was still dried paint on her hands because the stupid shit was the best for the job. She knew the stuff wouldn't come off for days. And on top of being caught red handed, or paint-handed, yes, she laughed at her own pathetic joke, she also had a paint brush in her hand. If none of that pointed to the culprit, well, Karlie figured she should go try her luck on the lottery.

Upon being brought in though, Karlie couldn't help but smile at how Kaia had stuck up for her.

"And how do you know that it was her that did this?" Kaia asked, her tone of voice the very one she used when she had been angry playing on the field, yelling at an umpire for a bad call.

"Uh, she's holding the paint brush." The young -- so young it was sad -- officer said as he pointed to Karlie's hand.

Adam came around the back of the police car with a smirk. "I told you Harris. Graffiti and vandalism are no joke around here."

"Adam, what the hell?" Kaia yelled.

Karlie knew well enough to keep her mouth shut. From the very moment she saw the young officer walking directly towards her, she knew what it was about. And she knew damn well not to throw the brush. Nobody ever got away with simply throwing the incriminating item into a bush. Especially not after being seen holding it. It basically proves the point that you're guilty.

Adam pointed to the dugout behind them. "As you two clearly aren't aware, this is considered property damage. The property, I might add, is public school property. This type of act can be punishable for up to 90 days in jail, a misdemeanor of several degrees and have hefty fines."

"There is no solid proof that she is the one that did this." Kaia crossed her arms when Adam stepped closer. She wasn't backing down from him.

"There isn't?" he asked arrogantly. "Kaia, she is holding the very paintbrush that she used to do this." His patronizing attitude made Karlie want to vomit. "Plus, it's a portrait of you. Of course, she did it. It's the same as that stupid painting from high school she did for a final, because she was hopelessly in love with you and pining after you when she would never be good enough to have you."

"I- she- not good enough?" Kaia's mouth opened in disbelief. "And who are you to say who is good enough for me? You're the one that cheated on me repeatedly in college! Can't say the bar can go much lower."

Okay, Karlie wasn't prepared for that tidbit of knowledge. If she had known this years ago, she might have actually paid for those plane tickets that had sat in her airline cart for weeks. She spent those weeks contemplating a visit to see Kaia at school. She envisioned showing up and walking through the quad and seeing her with all her books and a coffee in hand. Then she imagined she'd just show up and knock on the door to her dorm.