Chapter 20- Mike's Confession

"I call Mr. Michael Nesmith to the stand!" Mr. Hodgson declared. Everyone noticed Mike's face, or what they could see of his skin, turn bright red. He pulled on his green wool hat farther down and stood. He walked up to the witness stand, his face studying the floor. Nervously he looked up when he was situated. He took the oath and Mr. Hodgson cleared his throat, ready for dissection.

"Mr. Nesmith, in your own words, please describe the events that took place the night of November 23rd."

"Well," Mike began scratching his hairy neck. "I don't remember much. I remember my bandmates and I going out and playing our gig at the Vincent Van Go-Go. We got home, went to bed, and next thing I know, I'm tied up to a chair in Mendoza's laboratory with John, Ringo, and George sitting across from Micky, Peter, and I. Mendoza didn't tell us much. The first thing I really recall is him dumping something down John's throat. Then there was this bright light and John was gone. In his place was a beetle. Like a proper bug, not like the Beatle he already is."

"Did he do the same to the rest of you?" Mr. Hodgson asked.

"I think so. If I remember right, John and I were the first ones tested on. Then I blacked out. When I woke up the next time, I was a monkey. Not like how I look like now, but a proper monkey. With a tail and everything. Eventually Paul and Davy found us and we had to convince them we were who we are. Lucky for us, Davy brought my wool hat with him so I played charades with him till Paul figured it out. Then Mendoza found us and took Davy and Paul up to the dining room. Before they left, Davy had managed to pick the lock and we escaped, found the room Mendoza took them to, and intervened before Mendoza could shoot Davy."

"Why was Mendoza going to shoot Davy?" Mr. Hodgson asked.

Mike shrugged. "I think it had something to do taking our musical abilities again and he didn't want Davy to put up a fight."

"Alright," Mr. Hodgson looked down at file in his hands. Mike knew what he was going to say next. "Your medical records here show you were shot that night as well, is that true?"

"Yes."

"By whom?"

"Dr. Mendoza. He and Paul were having a shoot-out and I tackled Paul before he could get shot. I got hit with the bullet."

"Thank you, Mr. Nesmith. Please now, please tell the jury what happened after that, and your medical condition for the past month."

Mike turned to the jury, trying not to look at any of them in the eye. "Well, when I was shot, they took me to a veterinary hospital because at the time, I was still an animal. Both the doctors and veterinarians agreed that they didn't want to give me the antidote until I had completely healed from the bullet. Honestly, I had just been changed back this week, I think. The days have been meshing together. The doctors feared that if they changed me back with the wound, it would make the wound worse because of the size difference between humans and monkeys. Well, what they predicted happened, and some of my wounds reopened. External ones, I think. Anyway, I wasn't originally going to come in here. Mr. Hodgson here was going to record my confession so I could stay at the hospital and rest. During the confession, I… Well, this happened." Mike took off the wool hat and bowed his head in shame. There was the sudden gasp from the room and silent murmurs among the jury. His monkey-like ears flopped out, relieved of the tight space from underneath the hat. Judge Wargrave banged his gavel and the courtroom was silenced.

After that, Mr. Hodgson played the confession for the jury, and then proceeded to let Mr. Knight take over. Mike tried to hide a smile, as he could see Mr. Knight sweat. He was going to struggle with this one.

"Mr. Nesmith," Mr. Knight began, straightening his tie. "You claim you don't remember much from the night of November 23rd, is that correct?"

"Yes, but that's because I had been knocked out for a good portion of it," Mike explained.

"How did you know it was Dr. Mendoza doing all of these cruel tests on you and your friends?" Mr. Knight asked.

"Dr. Mendoza knew who Micky, Peter, and I were. He addressed us as if we were old friends. I mean, the reason he knew the Beatles was obvious. They're the Beatles! But us Monkees, no pun intended, aren't famous at all, so the fact that he knew us meant something."

Mr. Knight nodded. The evidence was irrefutable. Mike's smile slipped a little as he could tell that the attorney was stumped. He looked over at his friends, who all had great smiles on his face. After a moment, Mr. Knight asked. "Mr. Nesmith, please tell us the about the first time you met Dr. Mendoza."

"Davy already did that!" Mike exclaimed. "So did Micky and Peter when they were up here! You're beating a dead horse!"

"Tell us the story, Mr. Nesmith," Mr. Knight demanded. Mike sighed and retold the story. When he was done, he looked at Mr. Hodgson with begging eyes. He wanted this to end. That's when he felt an itch on his lower back. His eyes widened.

"Ah, excuse me-" Mike began, but he was interrupted by Mr. Knight.

"Let me do my job, Mr. Nesmith. Speak when you are spoken to."

"But I need my medication from-" He was cut off again.

"Mr. Nesmith, do you know how you got to Dr. Mendoza's place of residence?"

"I need my medication!" Mike blurted out.

"Answer the question!" Mr. Knight yelled back.

Dr. Capaldi stood and grabbed the medication, but as he made his way up, he tripped. Mike noticed the smug look on Mendoza's face when Dr. Capaldi fell, losing the pills on the floor. Nervous and sweating, Mike frantically looked from Dr. Capaldi, to Mr. Knight, to Mr. Hodgson. Why wasn't Mr. Hodgson doing anything?

"I don't know how I got there, I assume I was kidnapped," Mike said, pinching himself to avoid itching. "Dr. Capaldi, please hurry."

"Sit back down, man!" Mr. Knight yelled at Dr. Capaldi who was struggling to find the pills.

"Objection!" Mr. Hodgson finally yelled. "That man needs his pills! He might sprout a tail if he doesn't take them!"

How ironic. Mike sighed and rolled his eyes. Little did Mr. Hodgson knew, that's exactly what was happening. Mike bit his lip. He looked over at the Beatles and Monkees, who were whispering among each other with worry.

"I can't find them!" Dr. Capaldi screamed. "Those were the only pills we had made so far, we've been working all night to make them! I need help!"

"Sit down, man!" Mr. Knight yelled again. Mike looked pained on that stand. "I am not done interrogating this monkey!" Now that stung. It not only hurt Mike, but it hurt Davy, Micky, and Peter as well. The Beatles and the three Monkees stood to help Dr. Capaldi, and soon the courtroom was crowded with people searching for the pills. When Mr. Hodgson passed the witness stand, Mike pulled him close.

"Get me out of here!" Mike begged.

Mr. Hodgson nodded and moved over to Judge Wargrave. "Your honor, the witness needs medical attention. May he be dismissed?" Judge Wargrave nodded. Mike happily hopped down and ran. He ran as fast as he could out of that room. When Dr. Capaldi noticed, he chased right after him. Judge Wargrave banged his gavel and the room came to order.

"Sit down, all of you!" He boomed. You could tell that Judge Wargrave was tired of this case. "Mr. Hodgson, do you have any more witnesses you'd like to call?"

"I wasn't done with the last one!" Mr. Knight exclaimed.

"Shut up, Knight!" Judge Wargrave boomed.

"I did," Mr. Hodgson began, "But he just ran off with the last witness. He was my last one."

"Alright," Judge Wargrave leaned back. "Knight, do you have any?"

"No, sir," Mr. Knight said. He had previously agreed with Mendoza that he would not call him up to the witness stand. They both knew they were going to lose the case.

"Alright," Judge Wargrave said. "Jury, you may proceed with whatever the hell it is you do back there."

The jury quickly filed out and Judge Wargrave called a recess till the jury had made their decision. The Beatles and the Monkees quickly jumped up and left in search of Mike. The first place they checked was the bathroom. They all filed in, taking up most of the space in the bathroom, making it unavailable to any other man who needed to use it. When they ran in, they found Dr. Capaldi leaning against the farthest stall door.

"Dr. Capaldi!" Micky exclaimed.

"Is Mike in here?" Davy asked.

"Right here, shotgun." Mike said from inside the stall.

"Are you okay?" Paul asked.

Dr. Capaldi sighed. "The judge called a recess, didn't he?"

"Yeah, why?" Micky asked.

"Mike, I told you we should have left before they called a recess. The hall is flocked with people, now." Dr. Capaldi said to Mike.

"If it makes you feel any better, we've got this bathroom filled up, so no one will come in here," Ringo tried to reassure them.

"Thanks," Mike said from the stall.

"Are you going to come out anytime soon?" Davy asked.

"Nope," Mike said simply.

John shuffled to the front of the group. "What happened, anyway?"

"Mike's tail grew in," Dr. Capaldi explained. "If I hadn't tripped, I would have gotten to him in time and we wouldn't be standin' here."

"Mendoza tripped you," Mike said from the stall. "I saw it. He had that smug look on his face. I wanted to beat him right then and there."

"Mike, that doesn't matter right now. Right now we need to get you back to the hospital so we can get a steady stream of the antidote going through your system." Dr. Capaldi said, turning towards the stall door.

"Not happening," Mike said from the stall.

"Come on Mike, you need medical attention," Peter tried to convince him.

"I've got a doctor right here in this bathroom with me," Mike stated.

That's when John had an idea. "Hey, we can help you get out."

"We can?" Paul asked.

"Yeah. There is eight of us, including the doctor, here." John continued.

"What are you getting on about, John?" George asked.

"Follow my lead."

Micky, Peter, and Ringo left the bathroom first. Then, with his head down low, Michael left with Paul and John quickly making walls next to him. Then Davy, George, and Dr. Capaldi made up the back of their wall. They merged into the crowd rather easily, slipping away without drawing too much attention to themselves. When they were out, they all ran as fast as they could towards Dr. Capaldi's car. Paul and John practically threw Mike into the back seat while Dr. Capaldi got into the driver's seat. Dr. Capaldi waved goodbye to the lot of them before driving off with the Monkee. The seven musicians quickly made it back inside to claim their victory over Mendoza. Hopefully, this time would be the only time.