Chapter 53 - Some Disturbing News
Jack's almost hysterical laughs died down quickly into chuckles.
He probably couldn't have chosen a more inappropriate - yet somehow totally perfect - time to laugh at Erin. His conscience nagged at him, and he told himself, Okay, maybe it was the wrong thing to do.
But she was so fucking pitiful. He was actually glad their relationship was over. Finally.
But he decided that his reaction had been somewhat strange. While most people would have probably broken down at that point into mindless sobs, he had gone the other way.
Jack pressed down on the top of his head to relieve the headache, but it didn't work too well. Even though he had fallen asleep earlier, he discovered that the sleep was now evading him. So he sat up and called a guard over for a pain killer and some water.
The next morning, before he even had a chance to wake up on his own, his cell was opened and Anthony and another man walked in. Jack knew this man, and he had been an assistant lawyer the last time Jack had been in court. The man held a briefcase and wore a woolen coat over a blue suit. His hair was slicked back and his face was full of sharp angles. His eyes were icy and alert.
The guard waited with the cell open.
Jack sat up groggily. "Has bail been set?"
"Not yet," Anthony said, shaking his head. "We're going to have a little chat right now. You remember Mr. Delgado?" Anthony asked. "Yeah," Jack replied, and they shook hands.
They were led to another room with a rectangular table and four chairs. The room had two large windows that looked out into the hallway, but Anthony shut the blinds first before doing anything else.
While Jack sat down and looked on, Anthony traced his fingers around the window sills and then around the edges and under the table, then he did the same with the chairs. Jack watched him in silence, and then he finally sat down.
Delgado took his coat off and set it on the back of his chair. "Why don't you just tell us what happened?"
Jack started the story out with when he arrived in Gotham, and met up with Teresa. He ended it with when the paramedics showed up. Jack was picking at his stitches as he talked. They were already itchy. Then he looked at the two men. "I need my blade back. I've had it for years."
The lawyer shook his head. "That's evidence right now. You probably won't get it back until after everything is over."
"But that could take months!"
"Exactly."
"That thing is good luck for me. It's saved my life twice. I can't..." Jack trailed off, as something dawned on him. His lower jaw grew slack. He stared off into space for several seconds before someone finally spoke. "What is it?"
Jack blinked and looked at Anthony, but didn't answer right away as he still sat there thinking.
"What the fuck is it?" Anthony demanded. "Are you sick or something?"
If only... Jack thought. "No. I'm not sick," he strained. "But there might be a problem."
Delgado frowned, sensing troubling news. "What kind of a problem?"
Jack looked at him, then at Anthony. Both of them didn't look pleased, and the lawyer looked downright hostile at this new distortion of what would otherwise be a smooth case.
Jack swallowed nervously. "My blade is a murder weapon."
"Are you shittin' me?" Anthony asked sarcastically.
"No. I mean... In another murder."
Now Anthony's jaw dropped and Delgado demanded, "Are you shittin' me?"
"No," Jack mumbled.
"Who the fuck did you kill?" Anthony asked through his obvious shock.
Jack sighed and said, "A man called Jamie Roscoe."
Both of the men stared at Jack, clearly searching their memories for some recollection of him.
"You don't know him," Jack finally said, saving them the trouble.
"Who is he then?"
"He raped my mother. Years ago. Before I was born."
After a few moments of silence as the information seeped in, Anthony asked, "When did you kill him?"
"When I was eighteen. Eight years ago."
Anthony continued to stare at Jack like he was someone else Delgado whipped his head around to look at Anthony. "This is bullshit, man. You can't pull something like this."
Anthony shrugged his shoulders and put his hands out in protest. "I didn't know about this!"
"Listen, I don't know if there will be a problem yet. I cleaned the blade after I killed him."
Delgado jumped to his feet. "I can't believe this. I'm not taking on this case. This is fucking ridiculous. I want out."
"Just shut up and sit down. You're getting a lot more than your sorry ass deserves." Anthony overcame his surprise quickly. "And as for you. You're totally out of control. What else have you done?"
"Nothing else," Jack answered. "I cleaned it after I... You know. I don't know if they'll find any blood on there though. I did a pretty good job of cleaning it."
"What kind of blade is it?"
"A switchblade."
Delgado threw his hands up. "You didn't do a good job of cleaning it. Trust me."
Anthony looked disappointed. "He's probably right about that."
Jack frowned and shook his head. "I did. I got all of it."
"What kind of switchblade is it?"
"A folding switchblade."
Delgado was completely discouraged. "They'll definitely find something. Unless pulled that thing apart, submerged the parts in bleach, and soaked it, and then rinsed them with distilled water, they'll find something." Delgado put his palms down on the table and looked Jack squarely in the eye. "Did you do that?"
"No," Jack mumbled.
"Did you at least use soap?"
"No," he replied foolishly.
"Face it. You're getting ass-raped."
"Stop being so dramatic," Anthony waved his hand. "We'll just wait and see if they find anything. Until then, we have to keep cool."
Jack knew the possibility of going to prison was very real, if they found something. "I'm not going to prison."
Delgado was fuming. "If they find something, you're definitely going to prison. Your file is going to be opened back up."
Jack was determined. "I'm not going to prison."
Anthony cautioned, "You know the life of a fugitive isn't easy."
Jack looked scathingly at him. "Why do you think I ran away from Florida?"
"Prison might be easier than you think." Anthony settled back in his chair and folded his hands behind his head.
"I'm not going to prison. I swear."
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It's a really short chapter, I know. But if I started writing the next part it would have gotten too long. More in the next update!
