The huge crowd gathered in the hallway surged forward as soon as the door to the conference room opened. Reporters lunged forward shouting out to them. NSYNC’s security held back the crowd, the group made their way through the sea of people, JC was holding her hand and Stasia’s hand was resting protectively on the small of her back. Lyn’s eyes darted around, scanning the crowd of reporters, she recognized several of them from press events with the guys. She squinted a little as the flurry of flashes reached it’s peak.

Holding her head high, she looked to her right at Stasia who was walking swiftly, her back straight and her stride long. Lyn wished that her own stride could have the same confidence.

Looking to her left, she saw JC watching every move she made out of the corner of his eye. He looked younger today, with his beard gone and hair cut, he looked like the boy she’d met when he moved to Orlando.

The heavy wooden doors to the court room gave way and she began to take in her surroundings. The first thing she saw was Reagan and Powers, already seated together at one on the long tables at the front of the room, facing the judge’s bench. There were two other men sitting next to Powers. As their group entered the room with a lot of noise, Reagan turned to face them as they made their way to the front of the room. He caught her eye and winked. She felt a chill shoot down her spine as she pulled her eyes from him. The thought that she had once upon a time been involved with him, actually sickened her. She couldn’t even begin to remember what she had seen in him.

Jess and Stasia walked to their table across the aisle from Reagan and Powers and began unpacking their briefcases and settling into their seats.

JC held her hand firmly, gently rubbing the back of her hand with his thumb. Lance walked past them to hand Stasia a legal pad she must have left in the conference room. Stasia smiled and whispered something to him. He nodded, took her hand for a moment, playing with her engagement ring and then walked away to take his seat in the second row. He sat next to Cat and began talking quietly.

Dev and Ryan made their way to the front row. Dev was looking very tired. “She shouldn’t be here.” Lyn watched as Dev squeezed her eyes shut and pinched the bridge of her nose. Ryan silently rubbed her shoulder.

“You may be right about that, but it would take all of us to drag her out of here.” JC continued to stroke her hand.

Lyn’s eyes continued to scan all of the people beginning to fill the rows of seats behind the table where she would soon be seated. “Dani, Angela and Morgan didn’t have to come.” She began chewing on her cuticle.

JC pulled her hand down from her mouth,“Sweetpea, none of us would ever dream of being anywhere else right now. Stop worrying about us and start concentrating on yourself.”

“Joshua is right.” Da’s voice came from over her shoulder, “You need to make sure you are prepared for battle.”

“I had better be prepared. If I’m not, it’s too late now.” She sighed, “I think one of the most difficult parts of this whole thing is knowing I’m up against two people who are not afraid to break the law to get what they want. There is no telling what is about to happen.”

“Have faith Allyn.” Her father squeezed her shoulder and then went to sit next to Ryan.

“That’s good to see.” Lyn watched as the two men talked quietly, even smiling together at a comment Cat made from the row behind them. The comment must have been at Brenna’s expense, because she rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest.

“Your father can’t deny that Ryan is a good guy. He’s his son-in-law now, Da can’t change that, he knows it. Now I even think that he knows Ryan is the right guy for Dev.”

“I think you’re right.” Lyn began to fidget. She tugged on the hem of her jacket with her free hand, then pulled on a loose string on her cuff.

“Stop pulling at your clothes. You have nothing to be nervous about.” Justin put his arm around her shoulder.

“I can’t help it.”

“You know, we could all wait for Reagan at his house tonight. You know, like hide in the bushes. And when he gets home we could....gently explain to him how much we hate him.”

Lyn smirked, “You’d do that for me?”

“In a second.”

“I’ll keep that in mind, but for now I’m going to have to say no.”

“Offer still stands.” He kissed the top of her head and then went to sit next to Lance.

“I can hear the reports, ‘NSYNC ARRESTED IN CONNECTION WITH ASSAULT ON ORLANDO AREA ATTORNEY! DETAILS AT 11!'. That would just be great.” JC teased.

“All of NSYNC?”

“We work well as a group. Chris goes low, Justin goes high. Joey and I strike in the middle.”

“And Lance?”

“Lance just stands there and prays that his momma doesn’t find out.”

She couldn’t help but laugh when Stasia turned around slowly, narrowing her eyes at JC, “Harry is a lover, not a fighter. A thinker. He would find a way to make his opposition pay, without bloodying his knuckles.”

Lyn giggled, “A lover huh?”

Stasia rolled her eyes, “Oh shut up and come sit down.”

“Yes ma’am.”

JC kissed her quickly, “I’m right here.” He sat down between her father and mother, right behind her chair.

Lyn took her seat next to Stasia, “I may throw up.”

“You are not allowed to throw up.”

“Oh, Ok then. Am I allowed to wet my pants?”

Jess leaned forward to look around Stasia, “Nothing comes out of you body until we get home.”

Stasia rolled her eyes, “Ignore the witch to my left. She has her ‘game face on’.” She shot Jess a dirty look, “What she seems to be forgetting is that you are her client.”

“I didn’t forget, but the last thing we need is for her to fall apart BEFORE opening arguments.”

Lyn’s eyes narrowed, “I’m not falling apart. Maybe you should review your notes again.” p> Stasia’s eye grew wide, “Guys....”

“Calm down Stasia.” Jess huffed, “We’re fine, right Lyn?”

Lyn raised an eyebrow, “Yeah. We’re fine.”

“I do not need to deal with you two fighting.”

Jess and Lyn answered together, “We’re NOT!”

Stasia rolled her eyes and went back to reviewing her notes, “I swear, I feel like a parent 90% of the time.”

Lyn began really studying the courtroom. It was large and paneled with dark wood. The entire wall behind the empty judge’s bench was dark green marble with the seal of the state of Florida carved into the center of it. The jury box was off to her right, and would soon be filled with the people who would decide her future. She looked down at her hands and sighed.

She had been using the case as a way to avoid making decisions about her future. If the jury decided she was right, that must mean that she should go back to teaching. If they happened to side with Powers, then it must be a sign that she was meant to stay at Free Lance, and on the road with the guys.

It suddenly hit her that she had unconsciously decided to let a group of strangers decide her future. Decisions she could have made months ago, decisions she SHOULD have made. She had been to afraid. Her heart had been screaming at her for months and she had been ignoring it. She had truthfully known all along what she wanted to do, but had been afraid to admit her decision.

She was pulled from her thoughts when the bailiff entered the room, “All rise for the Honorable Olivia Hartwell.”

Lyn’s legs suddenly felt like Jell-O, she placed her hands flat on the table and tried to stand. Pushing against the table, she hoisted herself up. As the Judge walked in, Stasia slipped her hand into Lyn’s and gave it a squeeze. Lyn swallowed hard and nodded her head, reassuring her friend that she was going to be fine.

“You made be seated.” Lyn slowly sat down, her mind began to wander again. The Judge reminded her of the only teacher she had ever truly hated. She had been deathly afraid of the woman, and now her spitting image was sitting in front of her, controlling the jury who would decide her fate.

‘What was her name?’ She squinted, ‘Watters.’ Her mind was spinning as the Judge went on and on, instructing the jury about protocol and the progression of the case. ‘Maybe she got remarried. Maybe it’s her.’

She was pulled from her hazy world when Jess stood up, “Jessica McCullan for the Plaintiff.”

She sat, and Stasia stood up, “Anastasia Blake for the Plaintiff.”

Across the room, Reagan stood up, “Reagan O’Boyle on behalf of Defendant Powers.”

“The man sitting next to Powers rose, “James Eddings for the Defendant The Hazelwood School.”

“Alexander Parker for The Hazelwood School.” The last man took his seat again.

The Judge shifted the papers spread out in front of her, “Ms. Blake are you prepared to deliver your opening argument?”

Stasia stood, picked you her legal pad and nodded as she walked to the podium in the center of the room, “Yes Your Honor.”

“You may proceed.”

“Ladies and gentleman, I’m not going to take up much of the Court’s time here. The facts of this case are really quite simple. Allyn McLachlan was victimized by a man who was in a position of power. Alvin Powers held the power in this situation. He used that power to persecute, and then wrongfully dismiss Ms. McLachlan.”

“Through the evidence we will easily show that, while the administration, parents and students at The Hazelwood School were more than happy with Ms. McLachlan’s job performance, Alvin Powers had a personal vendetta against her from the day they met. He did not, at any point in time, relent in his pursuit of his personal goal of removing Ms. McLachlan from her position. When he finally found, what in his mind, was cause for dismissal. He unceremoniously fired her, without allowing her her contractual right of appeal with The Hazelwood School.”

“In supporting Mr. Powers in his decision and not investigating the dismissal more thoroughly, The Hazelwood School, also breached their contract with Ms. McLachlan.”

“As I stated, the facts of this case are simple. Allyn McLachlan had a contract with The Hazelwood School. That contract was unlawfully broken by Alvin Powers and The Hazelwood School. It’s really as simple as that. Thank you.” Stasia turned around and walked back to her seat.

“Thank you Ms. Blake.” The Judge made a quick note, “Mr. O’Boyle, are you ready to proceed?”

“Indeed.” Reagan casually walked over to the jury box, “Good morning folks. How you doing this morning?” He smiled, flashing his overly white teeth.

“Ms. Blake threw around a lot of big words there didn’t she? She talked about ‘contractual rights’ and ‘vendettas’...” Reagan leaned casually against the railing and launched into a rambling, two hour long explanation of why his client was being wrongfully accused of dismissing Lyn, who in his description was the bad seed.

When he finally took his seat, the Judge looked down at her watch, “Well,” she sighed, “with that, I think we are going to break here for lunch. Counsel for Hazelwood will give their argument when we resume in two hours.”

The jury was excused and Lyn stood up and turned to face JC. He reached out and took her hand, but just as he was about to say something when he noticed Jess and Stasia being approached by the attorneys for Hazelwood.

He nodded his head in their direction, “What do you think that’s all about?”

“I have no idea.” Lyn shrugged.

Lance walked over and hugged Lyn tightly, “So, Reagan thinks you suck, huh?”

Lyn smirked, “Yeah, pretty much.”

Justin’s eyes were locked on the group of attorneys as he walked over, “Reagan is an ass.”

Mrs. McLachlan swatted him, “Justin! Language.”

He hung his head, “Sorry Mrs. McLachlan.”

The woman smiled softly, “I can’t be all that angry, you’re right.” She blushed, “I’m going to go pick up Elis from school. I’ll be back as soon as possible.”

“Kiss her for me.” Lyn smiled.

“Of course.” Ma kissed Lyn’s cheek.

Stasia glanced over her shoulder and winked at Lyn, then turned back to the group she was standing with. Lyn was trying to analyze the situation. Jess was standing, arms crossed, hip out. Stasia was right, Jess had her game face on, if she wasn’t on their side, Lyn would have been afraid of the woman. Both attorneys for Hazelwood were pointing at various lines in a document. Stasia nodded slowly and then took a copy of the document they had been discussing. After a few long moments, she walked over and said, “I need to talk to you in private.”

“You know there is no ‘private’ with this group.”

Stasia smirked, “Then let’s all move to the conference room.”

When Chris finally made his way into the door, pulling the door closed behind him, he held his arms out, “Who votes we kick Reagan’s butt?”

Lyn laughed when every hand in the room went up. She sat down between JC and Da, “So Stasia, what’s up?”

Stasia handed her the document she had been discussing with Jess and the attorneys for Hazelwood. “If you agree to dismiss the charges against Hazelwood, you will be paid from the day Powers fired you, through the end of the year. You have been invited to return to the staff after the Christmas beak, and again next year, if you want to. If you choose to leave, they will release you from your contract without any ramifications.”

“What about Powers?” Da asked.

“He isn’t part of this deal. The school feels that they can’t make a decision as to his future with the school until your case is resolved. They see it as a ‘gray legal area’.”

“So they are basically saying that I’m right, but Powers gets to keep his job?” Lyn gave Stasia a confused look.

“Until this is all settled...he keeps his job. However, I got the distinct impression from their attorneys, that they are looking for an open window to push Powers out of.” Stasia shrugged, “What do you want me to tell them?”

Lyn scanned the faces in the room. Her sisters and friends were all doing their best to avoid reacting. JC’s eyes were locked on her face, Justin was closely inspecting the back of his tie. Dev was whispering something in Ryan’s ear, “Dev, if you have an opinion, please let me know.”

Dev blushed, “Oh. I really don’t have an opinion, I was just saying I need to use the rest room.”

Chris snicker, “You can’t keep the pregnant lady out of the can.” Dev stood up and walked out into the hall.

Joey smacked his head, “Shut up. Nice manners.”

Lyn ran both hands over her face, “JC?”

“Sweetpea, it sounds like a victory to me.”

She lifted her eyes, “Justin?”

“Seems to me that they shouldn’t be able to just walk away free and clear. Screw ‘em. Why are they doing this now?”

Jess’s voice carried from the back of the room, “They have suddenly realized that they are in bed with the devil. Reagan made it crystal clear in there that this IS a personal issue, they don’t want to have any part of that. They want to wash their hands of the whole thing. My take on this situation is, if they are willing to settle, it looks bad for Powers.”

Lyn looked around the room once more, her eyes stopping on an unexpected face, “What about you Brenna? What do you think of this?”

Bren’s eyebrows shot up, “Me?”

“I’d like to hear your opinion here.”

Bren pushed her hair back with both hands, “I think that from the very beginning you haven’t really cared about the school in all of this. We all agree that they we totally stupid when they didn’t look into this whole thing in the very beginning. But if you take their settlement, you can focus your energy where it belongs, beating Powers to a bloody pulp. Take the money, their not saying you have to go back, they’ll let you out of your contract if you want. If he stays, you don’t have to work for him, you can leave without facing any consequences.” She shrugged, “So yeah, I guess my opinion is settle with Hazelwood, and then focus on taking down Powers.”

Lyn looked down at her hands in her lap and then back up, “She’s right. I could care less about Hazelwood. Take the settlement, let’s focus on Powers.”

Jess pushed herself away from the wall, “I’ll take care of it. You guys go get something to eat.

JC glanced at his watch. He knew Lyn wanted her mother to be back before the hearing started in the afternoon, but she was still out getting Lis to the babysitter. Lyn looked back over her shoulder for the tenth time in three minutes. Catching JC’s eye she raised an eyebrow in question. Standing up, he leaned forward, “I’ll go call her.”

“Thank you.”

Stasia and Jess were reviewing the final version of the settlement with Hazelwood. When Jess scrawled her signature on the bottom of the page, she handed it to one of the Hazelwood Lawyers, who signed next to her and then carried the document to the Judge’s Clerk who scanned the page, nodded and disappeared through the door the judge and her staff used to enter the courtroom.

Reagan leaned over and said something to one of Hazelwood’s attorneys and the response obviously upset him. He threw his hands in the air and point a finger at the attorney. The man simply shrugged and leaned back in his chair. Reagan’s head whipped around and his angry glare landed squarely on Lyn.

Stasia turned toward her friend, “I’m guessing he just found out that we’ve settled with Hazelwood. Half of his unified front is about to walk out of this courtroom, leaving him to fight this battle all on his own.”

“He hates it when his plans change. Reagan is a VERY orderly guy. Seriously, you never try to alter his plans. Trust me.”

“I don’t find that the least bit surprising.” Stasia grinned.

The bailiff entered the room and instructed them to rise for the Judge, just as JC walked back through the doors, “On her way.” He slipped in next to Da.

The Judge climbed up behind her bench and smiled, “You may be seated.” Holding up a piece of paper she began, “Am I correct in saying that a settlement has been reached between Ms. McLachlan and The Hazelwood School?”

Jess stood up, “Yes Your Honor.”

Lyn watched as one of the attorneys for Hazelwood stood up, “Yes we have.”

“Well if both parties agree to this Settlement as drafted, I’ll sign off on it right now and Mr. Eddings and Mr. Parker may be excused.”

Reagan jumped to his feet, “I object to the entry of this Settlement. My client and I were not given an opportunity to review the documents.”

The Judge cocked her head, “Sit down Mr. O’Boyle. Your objection is over ruled, based on the fact that it has no merit. There is no reason you or you client should review the Settlement between Hazelwood and Ms. McLachlan.” She shook her head slightly, “That being said, I have signed the Settlement Agreement and it is final. Mr. Eddings, Mr. Parker you may be excused.”

The men gathered their things, but rather than leaving the courtroom, they took seats near the back of the room.

When everyone settled into their seats Judge Hartwell looked down at Jess and Stasia, “Are you prepared to go forward against Mr. Powers solely?”

Stasia stood up, “Yes. We are prepared to bring our witnesses today.”

“Mr. O’Boyle, I assume you are prepared to go forward as well?”

“I suppose so.” The Judge shot him a dirty look after that comment.

“Well then Mrs. McCullan, Ms. Blake, call your first witness.”

Jess walked to the podium and said, “Thank you, Your Honor. Plaintiff calls Bethany Robinson.”

Lyn looked back and watched as Beth got up and walked to the witness stand. The bailiff swore her in and she settled into the seat. Jess reviewed her notes and began, “Miss Robinson, how long have you known Allyn McLachlan?”

“Three years.”

“Where did you meet?”

“We met in the main office at The Hazelwood School.”

“What were you doing there?”

“We were both in the final stages of the interview process.” Bethany answered each question precisely, she didn’t elaborate at all. She behaved exactly as Jess and Stasia had instructed her.

“And you were both hired?”

“Yes.”

“And until this year, you both remained employed by Hazelwood?”

“Yes.”

“Have you at any point in time had reason to observe Ms. McLachlan in her classroom or with her students?”

“Yes I have. On countless occasions.”

“In your opinion, as a fellow educator, how was her performance?”

“She is an amazing teacher. Her students love her. She has a remarkable ability to get through to even the most challenging students. Parents fight to get their children into her class.”

“In the three years you have known one another, have you ever seen her do anything to harm or jeopardies any of the children in her care?”

“No! Never!” Bethany looked properly shocked by the question.

“Did you ever observe her have a heated conversation in front of a student?”

“No.”

“Swear in front of a student?”

“Absolutely not.”

“Raise her voice to, or in the presence of a student?”

“Never.” She shook her head vigorously.

“Did you ever have the opportunity to see Allyn McLachlan interact with Alvin Powers?” Jess nodded toward Powers.

“Yes.”

“What type of interaction did you observe?”

“I was standing next to Lyn...Ms. McLachlan...when she was introduced to Mr. Powers on the day it was announced he would be taking over as principal this year.”

“And what was said?”

“Basically she said hello, and welcome to Hazelwood. He was completely rude and and said something like he would be watching her. She had barely said two words and it was obvious that he disliked her.”

“When you were with Allyn, did you ever observe any other hostile conversations between she and Alvin Powers?”

“He was livid the day that her photo appeared in the paper.”

“Did he give a reason why he was angry?”

“He said it was ‘completely unprofessional’.”

“Did he say why?”

“No.”

“Thank you Miss Robinson. I have no further questions at this time. Plaintiff reserves the right to redirect.”

Judge Hartwell nodded, “Noted. Mr. O’Boyle, do you wish to cross examine?”

“Thank you. Miss Robinson, are you and Allyn McLachlan friends?” He didn’t even bother to stand.

“Yes.”

“Do you like my client, Alvin Powers?”

“No I don’t.”

“Thank you. I have no further questions.”

The Judge made a note and then looked at Jess and Stasia, “Redirect?”

Stasia nodded, “Please Your Honor.” She stood, “Are you still employed by The Hazelwood School?”

“Yes.”

“Could testifying at this hearing jeopardize your position at the school?”

“Yes.”

“Why are you here?”

“Because Lyn is a great teacher. She deserves the right to teach.”

“Thank you. I have nothing further.”

The Judge turned to Beth, “You may step down.”

Jess pulled six more teachers from Hazelwood onto the stand. She was methodical in driving home the point that every teacher in the school respected Lyn’s teaching ability, even the teachers that did not consider Lyn a personal friend.

After the parade of teachers, several parents testified. Every parent said basically the same thing, they were thrilled with Lyn’s performance in the classroom. One parent even told the jury about how Lyn visited her son every day in the hospital when he was being treated for Leukemia.

The reporters at the back of the room snapped to attention when Jess stood up and calmly said, “I call James Bass.” Lance was the first of four high profile witnesses.

According to the plan Jess and Stasia had devised, Lance, Justin and JC were going to be the only members of the group to testify. They would be followed by Johnny. The questions were going to be short and strictly about her performance as an employee, her loyalty as a friend and her demeanor with children.

Justin had know Lyn almost as long as JC, so he was able to speak about her character. He would also talk about the way she interacted with his brothers.

JC obviously knew her better than anyone in the room. He would be asked about the photos Powers had made Powers so irate.

Lance walked to the witness stand and listened intently as the bailiff swore him in. When he was seated, Jess looked up at him, “Mr. Bass, how long have you know Allyn McLachlan?”

“Roughly five years.” Lance tapped his fingertips together.

“And in how did you meet?”

“We were introduced by a mutual friend.”

“And what is the relationship you have with Allyn McLachlan?”

Lance shifted in his chair, leaning forward slightly, “It’s two fold really. She is a close friend, as well as an employees of my company.”

“You an Ms. McLachlan’s employer?”

“I am one of them, I have partners in my venture, but the short answer is, ‘yes’.”

“As an employee, have you ever had any difficulty with Ms. McLachlan?”

“Never.”

“Has she ever been unprofessional?”

“Never.”

“Has she ever placed anyone in harms way?”

“Never.”

“Thank you. I have nothing further.”

The Judge nodded, “Mr. O’Boyle?”

“I have nothing for this witness.”

The Judge shrugged, “Mr. Bass, you may step down.”

As Lance made his way to his seat Jess glanced down at Stasia who nodded just slightly, “Plaintiff calls Justin Timberlake.”

Justin walked to the witness stand straightening his tie. He was sworn in and Jess began asking questions about Lyn’s behavior in the time he had known her. She built up to the questions he was actually there to answer, “Mr. Timberlake, have you ever had occasion to see Ms. McLachlan interact with children?”

“I have.”

“When?”

“At least a thousand times in the length of time I’ve known her.”

“What children?”

“I’ve seen her with her own five year old sister, as well as my brothers.”

“Could you please describe some of those interactions?”

“My brother Jonathon, who is six and in the first grade was in Orlando visiting me. Lyn...I mean, Allyn was there. She overheard Jon telling me that he was having a hard time with reading. He said his teacher was talking about putting him in special classes. He was frightened. At six, you know very well that if you’re placed in a special class, other kids will make fun of you. Lyn pulled Jon aside and asked if he would like to learn a few tricks she knew about reading. She spent four solid days with my brother. After those four days, Jon was not only LIKING reading, he was reading well. When he got back to school after that long weekend, they tested him, thinking he would be placed into remedial classes for his reading. Instead, he tested at a fourth grade level.”

He leaned forward, resting his elbow on his knees, “I don’t know what she told him, or how it work in four days time, but I can tell you that Jon’s teacher called my parents to get her number. The teacher was amazed. We were all amazed. Lyn has a gift with kids, like I have never seen before. I wish I would have had a teacher like her, to make me want to learn.”

Jess smirked, “Thank you Mr. Timberlake. I have nothing further.”

“Mr. O’Boyle?”

“I have no questions for this witness.”

Lyn leaned over to Stasia, “He has not asked one question since Beth. What is he doing?”

“Waiting.” Stasia’s gray eyes were very serious, “He wants you, and JC.”

“Oh.”

“You are going to have to be rock solid. No matter how bad he gets, do NOT forget Jess and I know what we’re doing and we’ll take care of you. You know he’s going to try to get you riled up.”

“I can deal with it, but JC might try to kill him.” Lyn glanced back over her shoulder, she knew that Jess was about to call him to the stand.

Jess pushed her blonde hair back over her shoulders, “Plaintiff calls Joshua Chasez.”

If the reporters had snapped to attention when Lance’s name was called, they were foaming at the mouth now. JC glanced up to see Reagan smirking at him, if Reagan wanted a war, JC was more than happy to fight it.

Jess carefully eyed JC. Stasia gave him a pleading look, and Lyn just gave him a soft smile. She was trusting him to help her, and he was not going to let her down.

“Mr. Chasez, how long have you known Allyn McLachlan?”

“About eight years.”

“And what is your relationship with the Plaintiff?”

“She is my girlfriend.”

“Mr. Chasez, in your estimation, has Allyn McLachlan ever done anything to jeopardize one of her students?”

“Never. She would soon die than harm a child in any way.”

“Have you ever met Alvin Powers?”

“Not formally.”

“Can you think of any reason why he would dislike you?”

“As I said, I don’t know the man. I have no idea why he would dislike me.”

“Can you think of any reason why he would dislike or disapprove of Allyn?”

“The only fault Allyn has is that she cares too much. She cares about her students more than her own welfare. She keeps in close contact with students she is concerned about, as well as their parents. When she feels a child is at risk, she will fight endlessly to get that child back on the right track.”

“Thank you. I have nothing further.”

The Judge turned to Reagan, “Would you like to cross THIS witness?”

“Yes Your Honor.” Reagan stood up and walked directly to the rail in front of JC. JC leaned back in his chair and crossed his legs, “Mr. Chasez, How long have you been Ms. McLachlan’s boyfriend?”

“About six months.”

“How long have you been in love with Allyn McLachlan?”

Jess was on her feet, “Objection Your Honor! What is the relevance?”

“Mr. O’Boyle?”

“I’m establishing background. It will all make sense in the long run.”

“I’ll allow it, but you had better show The Court how it all makes sense quickly.”

Jess sat down, and Stasia whispered something in her ear. Jess nodded and rolled her eyes.

JC smirked slightly, “I suppose I have been in love with her for eight years. I’ve KNOWN I was in love with her for two.”

“And how long has she been in love with you?”

JC’s eyes narrowed, “You would have to ask her that question.”

“Fair enough.”

“Have you and Ms. McLachlan had sexual intercourse?”

Jess and Stasia were both on their feet, “OBJECTION!”

“Sustained! Mr. O’Boyle, you are to change your line of questioning NOW! This is a wrongful dismissal case, not a soap opera. I suggest that you watch yourself.”

“I’m sorry Your Honor.” Reagan hung his head dramatically. “Mr. Chasez, do you like my client?”

“No.”

“Why wouldn’t you like my client? You said yourself that you’ve never met him.”

“I care very deeply about Allyn McLachlan. Alvin Powers has done his best to tear her life apart. I don’t like him, because he has hurt the woman I am in love with.”

“Why would Alvin Powers ‘tear her life apart’?”

“I have no idea.”

“I have nothing further.” Reagan shrugged.

“Redirect?” The Judge was looking completely baffled.

Stasia stood, “We have no further questions for this witness.”

“You may step down Mr. Chasez.”

JC made his way back to his seat. Reagan had backed down too quickly, which meant he was saving all of his fire for Lyn. When JC didn’t lunge across the rail when Reagan baited him, Reagan had changed tactics. He was waiting for Lyn and he was going to come at her full force.

Stasia stood, “Plaintiff calls Allyn McLachlan.”

Lyn calmly walked to the witness stand. She was quickly sworn in and she sat carefully. Stasia walked over and smiled, “Please stated your name for the record.”

“Allyn McLachlan.”

“Ms. McLachlan, how long have you been a teacher?”

“Three years.”

“Where were you employed?”

“The Hazelwood School in Orlando.”

“How long were you with Hazelwood?”

“Three years.”

“So your entire career as a teacher, you were at Hazelwood?”

“Yes.”

“When did you meet Alvin Powers?”

“July of 2001.”

“How did that first encounter go?”

“Not well.”

“What happened?”

“I went into the main office to introduce myself. I said, ‘Welcome to Hazelwood.’ and he said, ‘Miss McLachlan, I have heard quite a lot about you, I will have my eye on you.’ He was very short with me, and quite frankly, he was very rude.”

“Can you tell me about the first hostile interaction you had with Mr. Powers?”

“I believe it was the day I asked for two days off to attend an awards ceremony with a friend.”

“And did you attend the ceremony?” Stasia smirked.

“No I did not.” It suddenly dawned on Lyn that Stasia was asking EXACTLY the same questions Reagan had asked in his office the day of her deposition.

“The next disagreement?”

“Was over another request for time off.”

“Why were you requesting the time off?”

“To attend another awards ceremony.”

“I see. What happened next?”

“We had another argument when I was shown on TV at a charity event. He was furious.”

“Why don’t you tell me about the day that Mr. Powers confronted you about being on television again?”

“He asked me to stay after school to talk. When he came into my classroom he said I was a poor moral example for allowing a photo of me with a friend be aired on tv.”

“And tell me about your last day.”

“Mr. Powers pulled me into the office at the beginning of the day and used one of my own personal photos as reason to dismiss me. A photo he had stolen out of a sealed envelope on my desk.”

“Who was the friend you wanted to go to the first awards show with?”

“Joshua Chasez.” Lyn’s eyes shifted to Reagan, she was looking for some sort of reaction out of him. He simply stared coldly at her.

“What were the circumstances around the second awards show?”

“My friends were nominated for a Grammy Award, Joshua Chasez asked me to attend with him. Mr. Powers refused to give me the time off.”

“Were you alone in the footage of the charity event?”

“No I wasn’t.”

“Who was in the footage with you?”

“You were, Ms. Blake.” Lyn smirked.

“OK. And the photo aired on tv...the second time, who was in that?”

“Joshua Chasez.”

“And the photo the day you were dismissed?”

“Joseph Fatone and Justin Timberlake.”

“Who is Joshua Chasez in relationship to you?”

“My boyfriend, my best friend.” Lyn’s eyes met JC’s.

“Can you think of any reason Alvin Powers would dislike you?”

“There is only one reason I know of, at one point in time I dated his stepson. We had a very messy relationship and break-up.”

“So Alvin Powers had a personal reason for disliking you, before you even met him?”

“Yes.”

Stasia winked at Lyn, “I have nothing further.”

The Judge turned to face Reagan, “Mr. O’Boyle?”

“Thank you.” He stood and crossed paths with Stasia, “Ms. McLachlan, is it true that my client repeatedly asked you to stop being so public with your personal life?”

“Yes he did.”

“Is it true that despite his repeated requests for you to keep out of the public eye, for the good of The Hazelwood School and your students, you continued to defy his request?”

“I wasn’t defying him I was....”

“Ms. McLachlan, it’s a yes or no answer. Did you follow his instructions?”

Lyn looked to Stasia who nodded slightly, “No.”

“Thank you. I have nothing further.” Reagan walked back to his seat.

Lyn watched as Powers leaned over and angrily whispered something in Reagan’s ear.

“Redirect Ms. Blake?”

“Yes Your Honor.” Stasia stood up, and pulled out a piece of paper. She walked to the witness box, “Ms. McLachlan is this a copy of your contract with The Hazelwood School?”

Lyn inspected the contract carefully, “Yes.”

“Please enter this contract as Plaintiff’s Exhibit A.”

“Noted.” The Judge nodded to her bailiff who took the document from Stasia.

“What amount of control of your personal life is awarded to The Hazelwood School or it’s principal by your contract?”

“None.”

“When you were told you could not take vacation time to attend the functions with Mr. Chasez, did you argue with Mr. Powers?”

“No.”

“And again, did you attend the functions?”

“No.”

“Thank you. I have nothing further.”

The Judge looked at her watch, “You may step down Ms. McLachlan.” She sat back in her large leather chair, “Ms. Blake, Mrs. McCullen, it’s getting late, how many witnesses do you have left to call?”

“We have one more.” Jess answered.

“Is this going to be time consuming? Should I hold this witness over until the morning?”

“We don’t expect to take very long with our last witness.”

“Then let’s finish with the Plaintiff’s witnesses tonight, the Defense will bring their witnesses in the morning.”

“Plaintiff calls Johnny Wright.” Lyn watched Powers’ reaction when Jess said Johnny’s name. He looked visibly shaken.

Johnny quickly to the stand. Jess leaned forward against the podium, “Mr. Wright, I’ll do my best to keep this fairly short. How do you know Alvin Powers?”

“He called me about nine months ago.” Johnny started slowly.

“Why did he call you?”

“The first time he called, he said he was going to expose a relationship between Joshua Chasez and Allyn. But I laughed him off and said there was no relationship to expose, because at THAT time there wasn’t a relationship. That time he just went away. I didn’t take him seriously. I actually laughed about it the first time he called.”

“So why didn’t you say something to the police at that time?”

“He didn’t called me again. I thought he had gone away. It didn’t dawn on me that he would black mail me.”

“What do you mean black mail you?”

“I should have gone to the police, but I didn’t because I thought I could make him go away...I thought if I just paid him the money he asked for, he’d go away. I’ve paid him seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars. In the beginning, I thought she would be able to go back to Orlando, I would have paid him and she could have her job back and no one would ever know what happened.” Johnny closed his eyes, “Then all hell broke loose.”

“What happened?” Jess glanced over her shoulder when she heard Powers hissing in Reagan’s ear.

“I paid him twenty-five grand to begin with, right about the same time Lyn filed her law suit, which was exactly what she should have done. But the lawsuit made him angry. He claimed he had pictures of her kissing someone other than Joshua Chasez and he was threaten to leak them to the press.”

“Were there actually pictures?”

“Yes.”

“These?” Jess handed Johnny a stack of photos.

He took the photos and flipped through them, “Yes.”

Jess held out the photos to the bailiff, “Plaintiff’s Exhibits B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I and J.”

The Judge nodded, “Admitted.”

“What did he say he wanted in exchange for keeping the photos out of the press?”

“He wanted her back in Orlando. He wanted her to go back to work, for less money than she was making before and he wanted her to drop this lawsuit.”

“Why did you do all of this? Why would you give him all of this money?”

“I mistakenly thought I was protecting Allyn and Joshua from this. I thought I could pay him and he would go away. I never thought he would keep doing it. I knew we could deal with a few pictures, but that Lyn would be embarrassed. I thought I could avoid that.”

“Thank you Mr. Wright. I have nothing further.”

Reagan was slouched down in his chair with a hand covering his face, “Mr. O’Boyle, would you like to cross?”

“May I ask for a very brief recess Your Honor?”

“Mr. O’Boyle. It is very late in the day. We would all like to go home. Why do you need a recess?”

“I need to have a discussion with my client.”

“The time to have discussions with you client has long passed. Request denied. Would you like to cross?”

Reagan threw his hands in the air, “I’ve got nothing. May I request a moment with opposing counsel? ”

“Very well. Mr. Wright, you may step down. We will resume in ten minutes.” She smacked her gavel against it’s base and stood up.

“ALL RISE!” Lyn could not believe everything that had happened. She stood in awe as the Judge disappeared through the door behind her bench.

As soon as the jury had been cleared from the room, Reagan stomped over to Jess, “I want to talk to you.”

Jess began tossing paper into her briefcase, “So talk.”

“Let’s find closed doors.” Jess, Stasia, Lyn, JC, Reagan and Powers all crossed the hall and entered a conference room.

Stasia crossed her arms, “Let’s get it all out on the table. You somehow didn’t know about this. We weren’t expecting that stroke of luck, but now it’s out there. We will not advise our client to settle for any less than the damages requested in her Complaint. We are also going to request that the Judge sign a Personal Protection Order, we don’t want Powers withing Lyn’s line of sight.”

Reagan squeezed his eyes shut, “Fine. Whatever you want.” He looked up at Lyn, “I seriously didn’t know about this.”

Lyn’s eyes narrowed and she stood taller when she felt JC’s hand resting gently on the small of her back, “I don’t care.”

Reagan slowly shook his head, “Do you want me to draft it?”

“I’ve got a proposed Settlement Agreement with me.” Stasia pulled a document out of her briefcase.

Reagan leaned back against the table as he quickly read through the documents. He turned to Powers and sighed, “Do you understand what this is all about?” Powers nodded, “Do you agree to these conditions?” Powers nodded again. Reagan scrawled his signature across the signature line.

Stasia leaned over signed on her own signature in her distinctive, bold handwriting. She looked up, “I’ll go see the Judge.” She quickly walked out the door.

It didn’t take long for the Judge to sign off on the Settlement and return to the bench. She chastised Reagan and Powers for their behavior, and excused the jury. As soon as the Judge stepped down and left the courtroom, Jess flipped her cell phone open she quickly placed a short call and then said, “Let’s get out into the conference room, we’ll have a better view from there.”

She and Stasia quickly herded the group across the hall. Everyone began to rushed toward Lyn, trying to hug and kiss her, but Jess held them back, “Not yet. This day is about to get even better and we have got the best possible seats.”

Stasia pulled open the large double doors just in time for everyone to see Reagan and Powers leaving the courtroom together. Just as they got out into the hall, two County Sheriffs walked up to him, “Reagan O’Boyle?”

“What?” Reagan looked incredibly annoyed.

“Reagan O’Boyle, you are under arrest. You have the right to remain silent....”

“WHAT? WHAT THE HELL AM I UNDER ARREST FOR?”

The second sheriff answered, “You are being charged with statutory rape.”