'You're over here unusually bright and early. Is this the new thing now?' Annalieses mom asked inviting him into the living room.
'No, just have some information that we need to go over before the trial.' He replied seeing no signs of Annaliese. They hadn't really spoken since that day at the mall. Instead he threw himself into work and it paid off. He may have found something to break this case wide open.
'Would you like some breakfast?' She asked heading for the kitchen.
He followed close behind. He actually hadn't grabbed anything he was planning on getting something quick on the way there. It wouldn't be politely to eat now considering how upset Annaliese was even if she was being unreasonable. But the coffee smelled heavenly. 'No, but I could take some of that coffee of yours.'
She patted him on the hand before grabbing a mug from the cabinet. 'That's why I made extra.'
He adjusted the bag on his shoulder as he tried to glance towards the stairs.
She caught him and smirked. 'She just went upstairs to change. She should be down in a minute.'
He looked at her sheepishly. 'Of course.'
'Cream?' She asked getting some from the fridge. 'I'm afraid its only French Vanilla, none of that fancy stuff that you get from the coffee shop.'
'That's good,' He said pouring some into his piping hot mug.
'Let's take it over to the table. It will give us a chance to catch up, again.'
She maybe small, but he knew that Annaliese got her fierceness from her. He wasn't too worried about the questions though. He had survived an interrogation from her previously. She probably just thought up some more questions to ask. He sat at the dining table and stirred his coffee, before taking a sip.
'What are your intentions with my daughter?'
He gagged on the piping hot drink, going into a coughing fit. 'Intentions?' He put the cup down and twirled the handle in his hand. 'To finish the case we are currently working on and perhaps go back to the university and my job their.'
'Don't play dumb with me, boy. I meant your intentions with this relationship with Anna or Annaliese as you liked to call her.' Thrumbing her fingers on the table.
'Anna and I aren't together.' He said taking another sip of the coffee. Hoping that it would burn his tongue so severely he wouldn't be able to answer anymore of her questions.
'But you want to be. I see the way you look at her. The flowers and the gifts. I want to know that my daughter is in the right hands. That Sam was no good for her and you probably won't be either.'
He sat up in his chair at that. 'Why? Because of my age? Or because of my color?'
She leaned back and folded her arms in front of her. She didn't utter a word, but that in it self spoke volumes. He looked towards the door and back at her. 'When Anna was with Sam she didn't smile. She threw parties, brunches, and meetings. She shaped thousands of impressionable minds in her classes and she never smiled.' He moved his coffee away and folded his arms in front of him. 'She won cases, difficult cases and she never really smiled. Sure you saw teeth and her lips turned upward, but she wasn't smiling.'
'Listen . . .'
'No,' He intejected. 'It's my turn.' He cleared his throat and began again picturing her smiling face when she took the flowers from his hand. Or the look she gave him just before she put her head on his shoulder. The stupid questions she asked over breakfast. 'When she's with me she smiles from her heart and her laughter is like ringing Christmas bells. How hard has it been for her to have to fake that for so long. More than the money and the home and the prestige. She should be happy and if I'm the one that makes her happy. I want to do that. I want to give her that. A real smile.'
'Are you two already dating?'
'No, but we should be.'
They heard the clicking of her heels on the kitchen lenoulem before they saw her.
'What are you two talking about?' She asked looking in between them both, but giving Frank a harsher look.
'You of course.' Her mother replied standing up. 'What do you think we were talking about? The weather. I don't need to hear the weather from him thats what my weather man is for.'
He scratched his eyebrow, panic growing from within. He didn't expect the old lady to tell the truth. Now what was he going to say to cover.
'Sorry, I'm too old to lie.' Her mother sauntered off disappearing into the kitchen. He could hear pots and pans rattling as she moved to do the dishes.
'So, what was that all about?'
'Maybe we should talk outside.' He allowed her to lead the way as she opened the door that led to the backyard.
Her mother reached over and stopped him. 'I agree you should be that guy.' She gave him a wink before heading back to the sink and rinsing off some dishes.
'What is she talkin about?' Annaliese wasted no time as he closed the door behind them.
'We have other things to worry about.' He said fishing in his bag for the paperwork. 'I did some digging after we ran into that girl at the mall. As we know the autopsy didn't show any signs of any type of drugs in Jillians system. It just didn't sit with me a child that age making something like that up. Until I found this.' He handed her the yellow manilla folder.
She looked up at him startled. 'This is another autopsy report.'
'And if you check the date it was performed before the one that the coronor gave the prosecution.' He said pointing to the date at the top.
She flipped through the document. 'So did she?'
'Yes, meth.'
'And the injuries on her neck?' She asked reading something at the bottom.
'Are noted and briefly mentioned, but with no indication at all that they led to her death?'
She closed the file. 'This is evidence of some sort of cover up, but it doesn't exactly clear my clients name. For all we know she found out about it and in a fit of rage she killed her daughter. A single mother finds out her perfect daughter isn't so perfect.'
He snorted. 'We've got cases thrown out on less information than this. This is our smoking gun.'
'No.'
'No?'
Her heel sank into the damp grass and she kicked her foot up annoyed. Walking past him back towards the house. 'She killed her daughter there's no way i'm allowing her to walk free.'
He turned her back around so that she was forced to face him. His blood was boiling and he wanted the truth from her. 'You had her convicted from the moment you stepped into that interrogation room with her. So now it's time to get honest.'
'I've been doing this longer than you've been alive. I know guilty when I see it.' She says pulling her hand away from his grasp.
'Than your radar's broken.' He stopped and pleaded with her, 'Don't let that woman spend the rest of her life in jail for a crime I committed. Anna, if you want justice all you have to do is say so. I still have her blanket. I'll stand here while you call the police. And I'll admit in front of your mom, the police and God that I was the reason that car hit you, killing your daughter.'
She pushed him away. 'You came to be the most important thing in my life. And you ruined me.'
'Just call 911. I promise I won't go anywhere.' His heart was breaking so much so that he could barely get his words out above a whisper. Her mom opened the door as if she might step out and intervene. He held up his hand to stop her.
'I can't.'
'Why can't you?' He muttered seeing the turmoil that was playing out on her face. He wanted to take her in his arms and tell her that it was going to be fine. But he had been doing that. So maybe it wasn't going to be.
'I can't. That's the problem.' She tucked her black hair behind her ear. Looking away as the tears fell freely. 'Because if I turn you in then there's no one left. There's not one person in this whole world that loves me. Not one person that I love.'
'You love me?' He smiled as his mom went back into the house and closed the door.
'Don't. Don't joke.' She shook her head wiping at her wet cheeks. Her eyes red. 'I hate what you did, but I don't want to be in this world alone.'
'Your mom loves you.'
She laughed weakly. 'My sister Janelle is her favorite. She tolerates me.'
He looked towards the window where her mom was watching intently. 'I dont think thats true. Not hundred percent.'
'My mom doesn't matter. I've been surrounded by hundreds of people and still managed to be the lonliest person in the room and I want it to stop. But I can't love you. It's not fair.'
'Fair to who?' He asked angrily. 'Your mother? The team?'
'My daughter.' She screamed for her soul. She held the folder up as if it were some shield for her heart. 'My little girl.'
His voice choked up. 'I'm not the same man that I was.'
'It doesn't make the horrible things you did go away. And I'm falling in love with you and I hate myself for it.'
His arms circled his chest because they couldn't hold her. 'Your mom asked me what my intentions where? If you were my girlfriend?'
'You told her no, right? That its strictly professional.'
'I did.'
She looked at him sideways. 'Why don't I believe that?'
'Because I also said that I thought you should be.' He stood next to her facing the house. 'I want you to know that I'm not falling in love with you. I just love you.' He leaned over and kissed her forehead. 'If you can't love me. I get it. I have a tendency to ruin things before they start. I'm not going to come to court today, but if you need anything text me. And I urge you for McKay's sake to use the information I gave you.'
