On the courthouse steps Phil came out. She was asked "What next?"
"The State Supreme Court," she answered. "Then it may be the federal courts. This isn't over yet! And I understand the nat9onal organization is planning some kind of protest. I'm not exactly sure what it is, but Speaker White contacted me this morning and said he and one-hundred-thousand demonstrators could be arriving in a couple of weeks."
"A hundred thousand?" one of the reporters cried "What are you planning on doing?"
"I don't know," Phil answered, "but knowing the national organization it will be something profound and peaceful!"
She said no more but headed for her car. Even with the trouble in Washington the news that one-hundred-thousand Spiritist demonstrators were headed for Vermont got mentioned. It got mentioned a LOT!
The sheriff returned to his office. As he took off his jacket and hung it up he felt something in the shirt pocket. It was another index card. It was another index card which read "Don't forget tomorrow night, 7 o'clock. It's all arranged, an intimate little supper, then we've got a room upstairs."
"How in the hell does she do that?" he wondered. He knew the card had not been in his pocket this morning, and no one had been near him all day. "How did she DO that?"
His thoughts returned to the hundred-thousand demonstrators. He didn't like the sound of that at all, not at all. He wondered if he should go through with tomorrow night. Could he stay objective? But the thought of Phil in that dress told him he was definitely going to go through with it!
There had probably been stranger relationships, but at the moment he couldn't think of one. He wasn't the ONLY one worried about the demonstrators. In the state capitol the attorney general was talking to the governor.
"Have the state Supreme Court deal with the appeal as quickly as possible!" the governor ordered. "Tell the Commander of The National Guard. I want a large contingent available to deploy into Mountain View within twelve hours, tell the state police to be prepared to send in everything
they can spare, too. This is going to be a fight! It's going to be a NASTY fight!"
"Yes, Mr. Governor!" the aide snapped.
Yes, all of Vermont was getting ready for what was coming.
