Clarence shook his head in pure misery, leaning heavily upon his walking stick while muttering quiet objections under his breath.

“You may proceed, Mrs.

Holloway, because this court wants to know why a centenarian with a spotless record suddenly turned to shoplifting,” the judge said patiently.

PART 2

I turned slightly toward the gallery and extended my hand toward a tired young woman sitting quietly in the very back row with a sleeping little boy resting against her shoulder.

“Her name is Rebecca Foster, and she lives just three houses down from us while raising three small children completely by herself,” I explained to the entire room.

Rebecca lifted her chin in utter bewilderment, shifting her toddler’s weight as her wide green eyes darted from my face to the judge.