First and foremost, Dick owns them. I am making nothing off of them.
This is the sequel to Journeys. Read that one first. This one won't make much sense if you don't.
Well folks, here it is. I've formulated the idea well enough to start this. It's mostly finished in my head. I just need to get some details straight and actually write out the chapters. I've got a couple pretty much written.
So, without further ado...
Closing arguments. Alex sat down in the back of the courtroom, eager to watch her girlfriend-no, her fiancé- put Rebecca Jameson away for many, many years. Oh, God, she's wearing that suit, Alex thought as she looked at Casey standing by her table. The light green turtleneck, the black pinstripe jacket, the skirt that was just barely long enough to be appropriate for the courtroom. Alex loved it. Casey looked so amazing in her suits. Alex didn't ever want to look away.
"You're drooling, you know."
Alex looked up to see Olivia sit down next to her. "Excuse me?"
Olivia cocked her head towards Casey's direction. "You were staring. And you've got a little bit of drool, right here," Olivia said, bringing her finger up to the corner of her mouth with a smile.
Alex instinctively brought her hand to her mouth and frowned. "You're horrible."
"I know. But you love me anyways." She looked up and smiled. Casey looked ready. More than ready. She looked like she knew she had this one in the bag. "She likes it when you're here," she said softly.
"She does? How do you know?"
Olivia shrugged. "Because, even though I never thought it would be possible, her confidence level increases when you're in here. Have you missed any of her court appearances since you proposed?"
Alex pretended to think about the question. "Well, let's see. I proposed just over four months ago and...nope. Every time she's been in here, so have I. Well, actually there was that one closed trial with the protected witness. So all but one." She looked up and saw Trevor Langan begin his closing arguments. "Oh, shut up you slimy little man," she whispered. Both she and Olivia had to suppress a laugh.
Casey stood up and closed the folder on the table. She had practiced with Alex the last two nights. She was more than ready. "Mr. Langan paints a very nice picture of consenting adults that we'd all like to believe because the alternative is far too horrible to think about. Unfortunately, the alternative is exactly what happened. Yes, these women had sexual relations with Rebecca Jameson at the club. And yes, they even invited her into their homes. They initially consented to the sexual acts. Nobody is disputing these facts. But Rebecca Jameson went far beyond what they consented to. And when they begged her to stop, she became more violent, and used more foreign objects. They told her to stop, and she ignored them. And then she left them chained to their beds. Erin Stanton was chained to her bed for two days before her neighbors heard her screams. Rebecca Jameson did not intend to come back for her victims after she raped them. Find her guilty, ladies and gentlemen. She deserves it." She stared the jury down before returning to her desk and waiting for Petrovsky to dismiss everyone.
"You were brilliant," Alex said as they sat down outside the courtroom. She was sure the jury would return a guilty verdict today, so she convinced Casey to wait around for a while. "After your closing arguments, and Langan's pathetic attempt to make it sound like they wanted to be left chained to their beds, there is no way in hell that woman is going to walk."
Casey would never admit it, but she loved when Alex watched her in the courtroom. Having that extra support just a few feet away was a huge confidence booster. She ran her fingers over the diamond ring she was wearing, a small smile creeping onto her face. "Well, practicing with you certainly helped. You gave me some great pointers."
"Glad I could help."
Casey looked around the slowly emptying courthouse. She wasn't as confident as Alex that the jury would return a guilty verdict, especially not any time soon. As ridiculous as Langan's arguments had been, she couldn't be sure he hadn't convinced at least one member of the jury. All of a sudden, she heard someone calling her name. She whipped her head up and locked eyes with the man in front of her. "Yes?"
"Jury's back."
She looked at Alex and then back to the man delivering the information. "It's only been an hour."
He shrugged and walked back into the courtroom, Casey right behind him. "Guess somebody argued their case well."
Casey sat down at her table and scowled when Langan winked at her. Over confident little prick. I will give you another black eye in an instant. Just give me a reason.
Petrovsky looked over at the jury and spoke. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, have you reached a decision?"
"We have, your honor."
"How do you find the defendant?"
"We find the defendant, Rebecca Jameson, guilty."
Casey let out a sigh of relief and turned around to speak to the four women standing behind her. They all thanked her for her hard work, and she repeatedly tried to deflect their thanks. She told them that she couldn't have done anything without their testimonies, that they were the reason Rebecca Jameson was going to prison. They had put her there. She wanted to make sure they understood just how much of a role they played in getting that guilty verdict. It would help them heal. She thanked them again for their help, told them to take care of themselves, and smiled as they walked out of the courtroom. Relief washed over her when she realized the case was finally over.
"I love you."
Casey looked around and realized she and Alex were the only people left in the courtroom. She leaned over and gave her a kiss "I love you, too."
"Elliot and Olivia are going to O'Malley's to celebrate. Want to tag along?"
"Did they invite us?"
Alex shrugged. "It's O'Malley's. I don't think they'll care if we just show up. We'll have a few chicken wings, you'll have a couple of celebratory beers, and I'll drive us home. What do you say?"
I'll drive us home, Casey thought. Home. Through some unspoken agreement, she had all but moved in with Alex shortly after the proposal. A few of her things were still in her apartment, mostly furniture, but they were all heading to Goodwill just as soon as her lease was up. In the almost five months since they'd gotten engaged, she'd only slept in her apartment twice. Alex had finally offered to let her move in with her, or vice versa, if she wanted.
"The house is paid for," Alex had said. "I can sell it and move into your place if you want. Or you can move in with me. Either place is fine."
Casey thought about it for a while. Moving was not an easy task. True, Alex had a fully furnished house, so moving furniture wasn't going to be much of an issue. But she had kitchen items she wanted to hold onto. And knickknacks, books, and several other odds and ends. She knew Alex's house was more than big enough, but other than her roommate in college, she'd never lived with anyone before. She didn't want Alex to think she was trying to take over.
"You can bring whatever you want," Alex said, knowingly interrupting Casey's inner debate. "That's what happens when two people move in together. They combine things."
Casey took a deep breath. "The only reason I'm in the apartment is because it's affordable and in a relatively safe area. It's nice, sure, but I don't really have any emotional attachment to it or anything. Tell me though, Alex. Why'd you pick your house?"
"Honest answer?"
"Yeah."
"The jacuzzi."
"That's it?"
"That's it."
Casey felt a pang of jealousy. How nice it must be to have the luxury of deciding on your house based on the size of its bathtub. And to be able to just buy the house outright, with no loans or anything. She hated that she felt almost angry with Alex. It wasn't her fault she was born into money. And the woman had sounded sincere when she offered to simply sell her house and move into Casey's apartment with her. Casey closed her eyes and tried to rid herself of all her anger and doubts. She was moderately successful. "It is a nice bathtub."
Alex smiled. "I will sell the house in a heartbeat if you want to stay in your apartment. I promise it's okay."
"No," Casey said firmly. Alex's house was much nicer than her apartment. It was far larger as well, which would be nice when Casey's family visited. And, truth be told, she really did love that damn jacuzzi. "I would love to move in with you."
Casey was vaguely aware of someone calling her name. She listened for several seconds before Alex's voice puled her back to the present. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she smiled at Alex's confused expression. "Sorry."
"Where'd you just go?"
"Took a trip down memory lane."
"Good memory?"
"Very good."
Alex wrapped an arm around her. "So, O'Malley's?"
"Let's go."
