I Knew You Were Trouble When You Walked In

Chapter One.

"Alright. I just got off the phone to a Miss Isabelle Maddox. Her boyfriend of 6 years is one of ours. She co-signed for him, Tim Hardy, and basically he is stealing money from her. She thinks he's planning on running," Beth repeated the facts to the small crowd gathered around her, "She's terrified of the guy. She has a baby girl and she is worried for her safety."

"Why did she bail him out if she is scared of him?" Bath's stepson, Leland, asked from his position on the single chair.

"I told her to bring her baby girl and come down to chat to us, and fill us in," Beth seemed to ignore his question, and returned to talking to the general people around her.

"We've got to be careful she isn't just trying to get him back 'cause they've had a fight or something," Beth's husband, Dog, noted.

"Let's not be so quick to judge," Beth quickly spoke, "the poor girl sounded petrified."

----------

Within fifteen minutes Isabelle had made her way to Da Kine bail bonds. Her petite frame struggled to get Zahli from the car, along with her handbag and a few toys to keep Zahli occupied. She rolled up the sleeves of her grey sloppy joe, and tucked her long brown hair behind her ear.

Zahli was quiet as they pair walked into the building. Standing silently at the front desk, Isabelle looked around the office space, hoping to see the woman who had made her feel so comfortable before.

A woman coughed slightly behind the desk. In isabell's daze, she had missed the woman's question.

"I'm sorry," Isabelle quietly spoke, "My name's Isabelle. I spoke to Beth earlier?"

"One moment." The woman smiled warmly towards Isabelle, before retreating to a room down the hallway. A buxom woman walked out of the office, bleached and curled blonde hair fell onto her shoulders.

"Thanks for coming," Beth smiled, bringing instant comfort to Isabelle, "Come through."

Isabelle followed Beth until she came into a large room, with a table, a whiteboard and numerous chairs scattered around. Isabelle took a seat at the request of Beth, settling Zahli on her lap. Her daughter turned around and kissed her mother's cheek, before snuggling carefully into the nook of Isabelle's neck.

Soon a small group has congregated in the room, and Beth came and sat beside Isabelle. Secretly, Isabelle believed that Beth knew she brought her comfort and so she was happy to stay close.

"She's beautiful," Dog motioned towards the child in Isabelle's arms, "What's her name?"

"Zahli," Isabelle meekly smiled.

"Explain what's happened, sistah." Beth gently placed a hand on Isabelle's leg, giving her the sign that it was okay to go on.

"When Zahli was born, Tim and I started a trust fund for her. My grandmother passed away a year ago and left a lot of money to be put into Zahli's fund. I got a call from the bank last week, saying money was being withdrawn from the account. A lot of money. I confronted Tim about it, and he lost it. He said Zahli wouldn't need it."

At the mention of her name, Zahli cautiously glanced around the room. Unfamiliar faces surrounded her everywhere. She made to move off her mother's lap, and stood on the floor, still holding onto her mother's leg for support.

A man sat in the corner, listening to Isabelle's recount. He watched the child for a moment and smiled when she looked in his direction. Zahli toddled towards the man and stood silently in front of him, taking in his face and cautiously analysing the situation. The man, Leland, smiled once more, which caused Zahli to laugh slightly. She stepped closer to him and was playing with her stuffed teddy bear right beside the man's black boots.

"So you think he's planning on running?" Dog asked.

"I don't know what he's planning on doing. I don't want the liability anymore. He's still hanging around the wrong crowd, going out to the pub for hours and coming home drunk. I don't want Zahli exposed to him anymore. I'm scared he's going to hurt her."

"Why'd you bail him out?" Leland spoke from the corner, his brown eyes staring straight into Isabelle's blue ones.

"Leland." Beth shot him a warning glance, as he shrugged.

"I've been with Tim for six years. He used to be an accountant. He was the nicest guy you could imagine. Then I fell pregnant. I don't know what happened to him then. He got fired for never showing up to work, started spending time with these guys that are bad news. Then he got arrested for breaking and entering. I had no idea what was happening to him. He's the father of my child. I had to see if he was serious about making a change. He doesn't care about me or Zahli. He brings disgusting men to the house and they terrify Zahli. His sister told me he's on drugs. I just have no idea what to do."

Isabelle's eyes had started to water. Her hand brushed them away and she tried her hardest to stop them from coming anymore.

A silence fell over the room, as Beth gently stroked Isabelle's back. Leland sat back silently, feeling like a dick for even asking. He averted Beth's glares in silence. His eyes focused back on the small child playing in front of him.

Zahli looked up and smiled at the brown eyed man, "Daddy's naughty."

"Sounds like it, sweetheart," Leland responded, a smile breaking out on his hard face.

"It sounds like he's getting ready to run. We need to get him. Do you know where he could be now?"

"No," Isabelle answered honestly, "but he said he'd be coming home tonight."

"Well I think we'll have to lie and wait until he comes home," Dog spoke.

Leland looked from the child to the mother, and felt an unbelievable urge to protect them, "I'll keep watch 'till he comes home."

The rest of the conversation involved questions about Zahli and discussing how they were going to take down Tim Hardy. As Isabelle thanked the family at Da Kine Bail Bonds, and prepared to direct Leland to her small home, Dog had pulled Leland aside.

Quietly, so no one could hear the words, Dog spoke, "Don't go into this thinking she's a bad person. She is doing what's best for her daughter."

Leland nodded knowingly and followed the petite woman and her daughter to her car.