I saw that the female officer’s face was streaked with blood, her body covered in shoe prints. Even then, she refused to leave.
“This isn’t right!” She raised her voice sharply. “The statements say that Lucas Turner claimed Marcus Lancaster never entered the alley at any point! But now these people who turned themselves in are saying Marcus assaulted Valerie. This doesn’t add up!”
“Officer, stay out of this!”
My father clenched his teeth and turned toward Valerie’s parents.
“We’ll settle this privately. This matter cannot get out. We can’t afford this disgrace!”
“How do you plan to settle it privately?” Valerie’s father asked coldly. “Didn’t your family want that piece of land on the west side of the city?”
“I’ll give it to you,” my father replied. “But on the condition that this matter is never made public.”
“Fine,” Valerie’s father agreed. “But he must kneel and apologize to my daughter.”
Not long after that, I was left alone in the mediation room.
They had all gone to negotiate the terms of reconciliation.
I had nowhere to go.
I sat in a chair, charging my phone, completely motionless, like a corpse.
After a while, the door to the mediation room opened.
Lucas walked in.