“The car isn’t the issue,” he said. “It’s the alcohol. The legal drinking age in Missouri is twenty-one. This young lady is nineteen. Her blood alcohol level was .07, under the legal limit for an adult. But for a minor caught driving, anything over .02 qualifies as a DUI, punishable by a fine of up to a thousand dollars and up to a year in jail.”

“But she’s in college, and her father’s recovering from an accident, and . . .” Allison stifled a groan as she realized her words carried no weight with the stone-faced cop.

“Five hundred dollars bail and you can take her home now. You can pick up the car tomorrow. You’ll hear when we’ve set a trial date. Meanwhile you might want to get her a lawyer.”

Allison produced her credit card at the window and collected Brianna’s purse and suitcase, which had been taken from the car. A few minutes later a policewoman ushered a scared and bedraggled Brianna into the waiting area. She looked so pathetic that Allison wavered between hugging the girl and shaking her till her fool teeth rattled.

“Come on, Brianna. Let’s go home.” She turned away and headed for the exit. “You can’t drive tonight. You’ll have to ride with me.”

Brianna trailed after her without a word. But her demeanor changed when they reached the parking lot. “Where’s Garrett?” she demanded. “He’s the one I called, not you.”

“Garrett’s busy. He asked me to pick you up.” Allison opened the passenger door. Brianna plopped into the seat, staring straight ahead as Allison put her suitcase and—after a moment’s thought—her purse in the trunk and walked around to the driver’s side of the car.

“Where’s my phone?” Brianna asked.

“I’m guessing it’s in your purse. You can have it after we get home.” Allison started the car and drove out of the parking lot. She kept quiet, giving the situation time to sink in.

By the time they’d reached the highway, Brianna was sobbing. “Please don’t tell my dad about this!” she pleaded.

“What if Garrett tells him?” Allison asked, playing devil’s advocate.

“He won’t. He promised me. But you need to promise, too. Please. Dad will be so upset with me. That can’t be good for him right now.”

“We don’t have to tell him right away,” Allison said. “But sooner or later, he’ll have to know. When the time comes, you need to take responsibility. You should be the one to tell him. Agreed?”

“Oh, all right.” Brianna sighed. “I just hope he won’t change his mind about buying me that new car.”

Allison swung her car onto a side street, pulled up to the curb, and turned in the seat toward her stepdaughter.