Chapter 9: Father and Son Night Conversation

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"Do you think if Mom was alive, seeing the two of us riding bikes like a couple of gays, attracting astonished glances from passersby, just because Dad's gotten himself into trouble again, she would consider buying a gun and blowing Dad's brains out?" Tommy Hawk pedaled hard on the bike as he shouted at Tony Hawk, who was sitting on the back seat.

Tony Hawk, with a cigarette clamped in his mouth, frowned, "I don't know, but I think if Dad makes me figure out how to scrape together bail money again, I might just have to grab a cop's gun and shoot myself to go see Mom."

Luckily, Warwick City was so small that it only took them about fifteen minutes to cycle to the police station. As Tommy parked the bike, Tony had already rushed toward the main entrance of the station.

Tommy Hawk didn't hurry to follow Tony inside. Instead, he first felt the four hundred and some dollars he'd just earned in his pocket, calculating how much might be left after they got Dad out.

But as he entered the lobby of the police station, he discovered that the situation was different from before. His dad, Colin Hawk, wasn't handcuffed, waiting for an interrogation in the lobby, but stood freely inside a detention room with transparent glass walls, explaining something earnestly to a cop with his back to the entrance.

"Dad," Tony said casually as he pushed the door of the detention room open a crack to greet his father.

Tommy stepped forward, "Good evening, Dad. Thanks for providing your kids with another wonderful trip to the police station."

The officer turned around, and both Tommy and Tony let out a sigh of relief. The man was Officer Lenny Clifton, a seasoned cop the brothers were quite familiar with.

"Boys, don't worry, I'm innocent," Colin Hawk said with a smile, greeting his sons.

Lenny Clifton looked away from the brothers and sternly said, "Colin, if it weren't for Joan Kran, the lawyer, stopping you, and if I hadn't been patrolling by, you'd be cuffed to a bench again just like yesterday! You were almost charged with assault!"

"Actually, it was Kran who threw the first punch at me," Colin Hawk replied nonchalantly.

Lenny Clifton, looking displeased, said, "I don't see anything wrong with Mr. Kran punching you. Anyone who sees a guy with half his ass showing, trying to seduce his wife, would react the same way!"

"I paid her; I was Joan's client."

"She's a lawyer, not a damn prostitute! You paid her to solve legal problems, not to seduce her into bed or show her your D**K! Especially not while Mr. Kran is at home! Jesus, Colin, don't you feel any shame? Is the Colin who loved Alida deeply gone to heaven with her? You used to be a good man, Colin. My wife often spoke enviously of how she wished I loved her as deeply as you loved Alida. But now, you're nothing but a complete asshole."

"I shine with charm and didn't break any laws. I got hit; I am the victim," Colin Hawk calmly replied to Lenny Clifton's angry questioning, just offering a light-hearted smile, "Maybe Alida could turn me back into that good man, but sadly she's not here. Can you bring her back for me, Lenny?"

That easygoing smile was filled with profound sadness.

Faced with Colin Hawk's retort, Lenny Clifton didn't know whether to stay angry or offer comfort. Eventually, he turned around, "Asshole, you'd better pray that your ass managed to charm Joan Kran enough to make sure she doesn't file a harassment complaint. Because, let me remind you, she's a lawyer and can slap countless charges on you to throw you in jail."

"Officer Lenny, there's just one thing I care about. Do we need to come up with a down payment for bail and then call the bail bond company to bring the money over?" Tommy Hawk asked, a worried expression on his face.

In the United States, not everyone has the money to post bail. As a result, bail bond companies have emerged to provide financial guarantees for criminal suspects. Suspects only need to pay 8% or 10% of the total bail amount, with the rest shouldered by the bail bond company. Once the court proceedings are over and the court refunds the bail, it is directly transferred to the bail bond company's account, which after deducting a fee of 3% or 5% from the total bail amount, returns the remaining down payment to the suspect.

This is also why yesterday Tony only had to scrape together two hundred bucks to get his dad Colin out of the police station.

In the United States, everything can be turned into a business.

"No, kids, not this time. I happened to be patrolling nearby and intervened in time, or poor Mr. Kran would have been sent to the hospital," Lenny Clifton turned back to Tommy, "Your father is free to leave any time, as long as Joan Kran, the lawyer, hasn't filed any harassment complaint. The police won't trouble him."

"She won't file a complaint; she needs..."

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"Shut up, Colin! Now, boys, take your sorry-ass dad away. Oh, and his car is still outside the Krans' place. One of you go get it, but don't let him do it himself; I'm afraid Mr. Kran can't handle the excitement," Lenny Clifton stopped Colin Hawk from saying more, then addressed Tommy and Tony.

Patting Tommy on the shoulder, Tony took the initiative, "I'll go get the car; you take Dad for a walk. Thanks, Officer Lenny, really appreciate it. Dad, give me the keys."

Tony took the car keys from his father's hand, winked at Tommy, and quickly left the police station.

Colin Hawk ran his hand through his dishevelled blonde hair and then, holding his head high, walked out of the police station with his arm around his son Tommy.

"The scent of tequila, Tony really treated you to a drink, didn't he." Standing on the street, Colin Hawk finally turned to look at Tommy, who was now nearly as tall as him, and asked with a smile, "How was your day, son?"

Gently pushing away the arm Colin Hawk had on his shoulder, Tommy shrugged and looked up at the star-filled night sky, "It was a pretty great day, if it hadn't ended prematurely because of you ogling that female lawyer's rear end."

"Ah, that was just a little misunderstanding. Joan wanted to check the old injury on my hip from when I got hit by a plank to see if those scars could earn some sympathy points in front of the judge," Colin Hawk explained to Tommy.

Tommy laughed, walked up to his bike, and leaned against it, "So, if Joan Kran offered you a night in bed in exchange for legal consulting fees, you'd turn her down?"

"Of course, without a doubt… unless she's wearing that dowdy suit...depends on how much of the consulting fee it covers." Colin Hawk opened his mouth, then amended his statement several times before finally giving an uncertain answer. However, seeing Tommy's half-smiling gaze, Colin Hawk stated with certainty:

"I love your mother, love all of you, and that will never change."

"I know, of course I know. Have a good night, Dad. If there's nothing else, I'm going to head back and continue studying," Tommy Hawk said nonchalantly, patting the seat of his bike.

As Tommy Hawk started wheeled his bicycle away, Colin Hawk asked, "Don't you want to walk together? Kid, we haven't had a real talk in a long time. Tony told me, you could make eighty US dollars a day, yet you still refuse to drop out of high school."

"The only reason I took up a part-time job and started a small business was to avoid you pressuring me into dropping out. After all, you always precisely manage to take all my savings, don't you?"

"Are you blaming me?"

"Isn't it obvious enough?"

"Why? I've never blamed you, son. Why do you hold a grudge against me in your heart?"

"Because I have to withstand the pressure you all put on me, to straighten out the life that's mine. I want to attend a good enough college, leave this small town. I don't want to be a cobbler, a mechanic, a fast-food worker, a truck driver, I don't want to become you or Tony. The best method is not to give up on myself."

"Do you know, five months ago, I had a thought that I didn't want to be your father. You think our desperate attempts to earn money to bring Bessie home will drag down your studies. In my view," Colin Hawk lit a cigarette, then looked up with a complicated expression at Tommy Hawk:

"Son, you seem to have forgotten, it was because of those damn magazines of yours that Bessie ended up in a foster home. So, you owe a debt to this family."

Tommy Hawk's body tensed slightly, and finally, he spoke slowly, "I will repay it to this family."

"No, no need. I will bring Bessie back. Go study. When you really get a college acceptance letter, I'll help you prepare a check to pay for tuition. We're family." Colin Hawk gave Tommy Hawk a faint smile and then turned to walk along the road toward home. Under the night sky, the streetlights cast his elongating shadow on the ground, eventually enveloping Tommy Hawk:

"I've always thought you and Tony had grown up, but it wasn't until what you just said that I realized you're still a boy. Son, keep doing whatever you want, without worries, until you truly understand the meaning of the words family and responsibility."