“The cake’s still good. You can eat it,” Andrea explained. “That’s why we wrapped the file in foil.”

Hannah stared down at the piece of cake. It was a big piece, but it wasn’t big enough to contain a file. She felt around with the fork and found a hard object at the bottom, just as her mother had said. She pulled it out, unwrapped it, and began to laugh. “A nail file?”

Andrea looked highly embarrassed. “It was the only thing we could find.”

Hannah was still laughing, but she managed to gasp out her questions. “What did you expect me to do? Pick the lock on the cell door?”

Delores shrugged. “No, but we wanted to bring something . And your nails are looking a bit ragged, dear.”

“Then thank you. If Rick doesn’t confiscate it, I’ll file them. It’s not like I don’t have the time. I’ll be in here for two more days before I’m arraigned.”

“Oh, no!” Delores looked very concerned. “Will you be all right, dear? It’s rather dreary in that cell.”

“We should have stopped at my house and brought a nice bedspread,” Andrea said. “And a few throw pillows to dress up the place.”

“What a good idea! I’ll do it tomorrow.” Delores looked pleased that she had something she could do.

“They’ll grant you bail, won’t they?” Andrea asked Hannah. “I mean, you have strong ties to the community, you own a business and a condo here, and you’re not a flight risk . . . are you?”

“Not really. For one thing, I wouldn’t know where to go. And for another thing, I don’t have the money to fly to a foreign country where they can’t extradite me.”

“Don’t worry, dear,” Delores told her, but Hannah saw the worried look in her mother’s eyes. “They’re bound to give you bail.”

“That’s another problem,” Hannah told her. “I don’t have the money to make bail.”

“But I do. I’ll be there at the arraignment, dear. And I’ll bail you out.”

“That’s nice of you, Mother.”

Delores shrugged again. “What else is a mother to do when her daughter’s in jail? I’m certainly not going to leave you here! Now eat your dinner, my dear. You must keep up your strength.”

Right, Mother, Hannah thought. I won’t be able to use my super powers and bend these steel bars if I’m as weak as a kitten. But she smiled at her mother, anyway. Delores meant well. And then she dug into Sally’s excellent dinner like there was no tomorrow.

CREAM CHEESE AND HERB SCONES