*Author's Note*

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A Whole Lotta Heartbreak & Pain

Novella POV:

After having Randall McCoy bring up the subject that I needed to talk to Tolbert I excused myself with the guise of wanting to go home and check on Roseanna along with the children. Truth was I needed to get out of the office before Randall or my Uncle Perry started up with some kind of bullshit involving mixing up my past relationship with Tolbert into what I was presently doing for him.

Uncle Perry and Roseanna's house was in town, not that far from Main Street in fact, so it only took a few minutes until I pulled up into the driveway. I noticed that a sand-colored GMC Yukon was parked on the curb in front of the house. I didn't recognize the large car, so I assumed it was somebody over to visit Roseanna.

As soon as I entered the house I saw Roseanna and Nancy sitting on the sofa, talking and sipping on tea. "Hey, bout time you showed up." Nancy told me with a blunt smile. She pointed her teacup at her cousin while saying, "I was just telling Roseanna that my Frank says you're cashin' in your retirement fund to bail out Tolbert."

I went further into the living room and joined them on the sofa. "Nice to see you too, Nancy." I looked around but didn't spot any of the children. School wasn't due to start for a few more weeks. "So where's the kids?"

"Jefferson's out back with them. All of them." Nancy explained, her deep brown eyes lookin' right through me, before taking a sip of tea.

"I hope he's not drunk." I spurted out before I could stop myself.

Nancy's eyes narrowed as she placed her teacup on the coffee table. "Course he ain't. His AA's been working this time." I bet it hasn't. Jefferson McCoy has been a drunk since we were teenagers. Doubt a decade and a bushel full of AA has done anything to help remedy that. "I best be going. I'm sure ya'll will want to talk 'bout what happened at the hearin'." Nancy said as she stood up from the sofa. She walked over to the door that led outside and opened it. "Jefferson, kids, time to go!" She shouted, causin' her brother and children to quickly walk into the house.

"Novella, been a long time no see." Jefferson told me, a slight slur in his voice, as he walked by the sofa.

"Yea. It's good to see you too." I smiled while one of his nieces grabbed his hand, leading him towards the front door.

"Bye, Nancy. Come over again real soon." Roseanna sweetly told her dark-haired cousin with a small smile as the woman walked by us with a small boy balanced on her hip

"Of course, I'll be by when I got the time." Nancy replied before looking at me. With her finger pointed as she tilted her head and told me, "And we need to catch up over drinks soon."

"Yea, we'll have to set up a day for it." I told her, happy that she wanted to slid right back into the friendship we always seemed to have when we were younger.

Without saying anything else Nancy, the black-eyed beauty of Pike County, left.

Roseanna placed her teacup on the tea tray setting on the coffee table before telling me, "She told me how Cap Hatfield, the ADA, seemed to know you."

Of course, Nancy picked up on that. She was always very observant. "He kinda does from when I was in Baltimore. He lived and worked there too for a while." I simply explained, hoping that answer would be enough for the fragile blonde and that she'd drop the subject of me knowing Cap.

Roseanna looked at me with a sad, but sweet, look. "Novella, I love you like a sister so please listen to me when I say this, don't do what I did and fall in love with a Hatfield." She stood up and grabbed the tea tray off the coffee table while looking at me and saying sullenly, "All that comes outta that's a whole lotta heartbreak and pain." Quickly she rushed out of the room towards the kitchen.

I appreciated her advice, really I did, but her situation with Johnse isn't the same as mine with Cap er William She knew that Johnse was a Hatfield and went with him anyway while I had no idea that my casual William was actually Cap Hatfield since he never told me he was Cap. If I would've known he was Cap Hatfield, and not just a one-eyed lawyer named William working under an ADA, I never would've went to dinner with him that crisp rainy night in late April at The Corner Bistro & Wine Bar a couple days after receiving a box of Sherri's Berries and a card with his number on it.

I wasn't naïve like Roseanna was when she took up with Johnse, I knew that the McCoy side and the Hatfield side would never mix. Me and Cap would never work. What we had in Baltimore as Will and Nova was over with now. I didn't matter that only 24 hours ago I was missing him, feeling hollow and hurt after two weeks of being broken up. We were now dead and gone, much like how my first relationship that I had with Tolbert was dead and gone.

Seems like that's the story of my life, relationships that wither and die cause they got no hope of growing and blooming into something beautiful and tangible.

After I help my uncle with this case I'm moving out of these god forsaken hills and hopefully I'll meet somebody that's nice, that I can actually have something with.

Cap POV:

After returning to my office in the Pike County Justice Building I shrugged my jacket off and placed it on the back of my care. I took a seat at my desk, letting out a frustrated sigh. Quickly I opened the bottom drawer of my desk, grabbing my bottle of Maker's Mark and my whiskey glass from the otherwise empty drawer. I shoved the desk shut a bit too hard before cracking open my bottle and pouring myself a double in my glass. I set my bottle down and then opened up my top drawer, grabbing my box of Cubans. I flipped it open, takin' one out and shoving it in my mouth. Quickly I grabbed my matchbook from the cigar box before flippin' the lid shut.

After lighting my cigar, I took a long relaxing drag of it. While holding my smoke in one hand I grabbed my drink with the other and downed the smooth, but biting warm, amber likker. I set my glass down on the desk, opening my bourbon to pour myself another drink, whenever my office door swung open. Grabbing my second drink I noticed that my foolish older brother, who can't keep his prick in his pants to save his life, had just sauntered into my office.

Damn, those good for nothin' secretaries would let him waltz right on in without calling to give me a heads up.

"How ya doin', lil brother?" Johnse asked as he plopped down in the chair adjacent to my desk.

"Just fine, Johnse." I rolled my eyes, taking a sip of my drink.

"Ya sure?" Johnse proded, causing me to just nod my head. "Well, ya didn't look fine to me in court earlier." My brother sighed, givin' me a concerned look.

"Then how did I look to you in court, if it wasn't fine?" I mumbled around my cigar, not feeling in the mood to be listening to my dumbass brother right now. I just wanted to have a smoke and a drink before going over some paperwork that was stacked up in a corner on my desk.

"Upset and heartbroken." Johnse quickly answered with an understanding look on his face.

I just rolled my eyes and took a sip of my bourbon before scoffing, "Johnse, you drunk? Only reason I can come up with for you to say that to me."

"I'm not drunk." He scoffed before going on to say, "I got eyeballs and can see how ya were looking at Miss Landon."

I pointed my cigar at him while giving him a low, rumblin' warning of, "Drop it, Johnse."

He didn't drop it. Instead he went on and blabbered, "I don't know what ya'll said since I was up in the balcony seats, but I could see how ya looked at her like you were both happy and sad at the same time to see her on the McCoy side of the room."

"You got a point for bothin' me with this?" I asked lowly, knocking some ashes off of my Cuban and into the crystal tray on my desk.

"You, baby brother, are in love." Johnse said matter-o-factly with a smirk on his dumb pretty boy face.

"I'm not in love."I deadpanned quickly, narrowin' my eyes into slits at my older and overly sensitive brother.

He smirked and waved a finger at me while leanin' foreward in his chair. "You're in denial, but it's love."

"You need'a lay off the shine you've been brewing." I chuckled after sipping on my drink. "Stop drinking it and sell it." I advised, placing my whiskey glass on my desk.

"Well, if you're not in love with Miss Landon then ya care for her a lot." Damn bastard hit the nail on the head there. I did care for Nova.

I was with her for a few months and even tho we labeled it casual it was a little more than that since we stayed the night at each other's apartments on weekends, more times than naught sleepin' together. It was a nice routine we had, or at least I thought so. Friday we would show up at one of the apartments with take-out, which we would eat while watching all those crime and legal shows on tv. We would have movie nights with popcorn on Saturday and lazy Sundays doin' nothin', but loungin' in our night clothes. Monday we would go our separate ways to our jobs, then meet up on Wednesday for drinks and burgers at the corner pub.

After all of that how could I not care for her?

I could feel my blood boiling. I didn't want to talk to my big brother, I just wanted him to hush. "Johnse, shut up!" I yelled out my order before taking a drag off my cigar.

"Oh…" He slowly trailed off, nodding his head. Suddenly he perked up in his chair and asked, "She's that girl ya were seein' back east in Bal'more ain't she? The one ya told me wasn't put off by the bad eye?"

"Johnse, it don't matter who she is. She's on the McCoys' side. Her uncle's fuckin' Perry Cline." I sighed, shaking my head while tossin' my cigar in the crystal ash tray and grabbing my half empty bourbon glass.

"I get it, really I do." Yea, bet he did. I just cut him a look, showin' him I wasn't in the mood to deal with him. Johnse, being his classic oblivious self, continued to talk to me. "I walked 'way from Roseanna and our baby cause nobody approved." Yea…right…Johnse left cause he didn't want to be bothered and didn't have the balls to define our daddy by doin' right by the knocked up McCoy girl. Shit, my bother changed relationships like people changed clothes. Hell, he's on his third wife right now, expectin' his fifth or sixth child too. "Hopefully you and your Landon girl get a better outcome of your chapter then I did." Johnse gave me a sympathetic look before rising from his chair and walking out of my office, shutting the door behind him.

Fuck! I threw my glass at the door, causing it to shatter with a crash. The liquid in it streamed down the heavy oak door, staining it. I shook my head while letting out a bitter, deep, laugh.

Why am I lettin' this, the subject of me and Nova, get to me? I'm not supposed to get myself lost in the clouds, that's Johnse's specialty. Nova would have her claws in me. Bet she don't even know it either. What am I gonna do now? The one woman that I felt I could truly be myself around, just be William and not the hardened Cap, was connected to the enemy. To the McCoys and the Cline.

Damnit, I need to get her out of my system. God, and I have to go over to ma and pa's for dinner tonight too. Bet Uncle Jim'll torment me bout Nova. If he told my best friend Skunk Hair, then he'll be bustin' my balls too.

Later tonight I'd have to pay Mary Lou a visit, get my frustrations out. Even tho I'd rather be gettin' my frustrations out with a different woman, one with natural copper tangles instead of thick black curls.

Novella POV:

After changing into a t-shirt and lounge shorts I went into the living room to relax. Since there wasn't anything good on tv, other than Law & Order: Criminal Intent reruns, I was reading a book, well an e-book on my tablet, whenever little Sally Elle climbed up on the sofa next to me. "Hi." She squeaked, sounding like a little mouse, as she smiled at me.

"Hi." I smiled back, placing my kindle down on by my side.

"I's Sally Elle. What yer name?" The redheaded girl cutely smiled at me.

"You can call me Ella." I told the girl since I figured Novella would be too hard for her to pronounce with being so young. I noticed that the bright smile had quickly faded from Sally Elle's slightly freckled face as she sat next to me, sadly staring into space. "What's the matter?"

"I wan' my poppy." Her lip frowned and her stormy blue eyes dulled as she looked at me pitifully. "Where my poppy?" The ginger-haired girl with unruly curls asked, breaking my heart.

"Your poppy's in time out right now an-" I began to explain to the small girl until I was cut off by her squeak of a voice telling me, "He got corner time. I hate corner time. I's never bad, but s'times I's bad and poppy puts me in corner time." Oh, so Tolbert wasn't belting his kid like he got belted by Randall. Hmm. I doubt Tolbert stuck this cute little girl in time out at all really. She looked to be a sweetheart.

I nodded my head while sweetly explaining, "Yea, your daddy's in corner time. He has to stay for a few more days, but I promise to get him when times up."

"P'omise?" She asked, looking up at me with big innocent eyes.

"I promise." I smiled, knowing that promise was going to be kept once the money got into my account.

"Watch Frozen wit' me. P'ease." Wow, that was sudden. One minute she was sad and the next she wants to watch a Disney princess movie. Hmm, kids sure as resilant, or at least that's what the old timers always say.

"Okay, but where's Sarah Elizabeth?" I asked, wondering why she wouldn't want to have her cousin watch the movie with us.

"She no like Frozen an'more. Say I watch lots and lots an' make her not like it." Sally Elle quickly explained, her words nearly tumbling into one another. Well, Tolbert did say that movie was her favorite…

"Well, I haven't seen it yet so I'll watch it."

A scandalized look crossed over the young girls cute little freckle dusted face as her mouth dropped open in a big O-shape. "Y'no see Frozen yet? How? Why?"

"Been too busy." I simply explained while leaning forward, grabbing the tv remote off of the coffee table. "I'll put it on now."

The little girl smiled and clapped her hands enthusiastically as I brought the Disney movie up on the tv with the remote. She was literally dancing in her seat as the opening credits came on. She sang the intro song at the top of her lungs, forgetting that only a few minutes ago she was missing her poppy.

Tolbert POV:

Jail fuckin' sucked. I hated bein' locked up in a cage like a damn animal. At least I was still with my brothers. I was sititn' at a dinnin' table with my brothers eatin' dinner. Dinner at 5 o'clock. What the hell, was this Florida? Who eats that damn early? I hated the routine of jail. Same shit different day.

"Ya think we'll get bailed out?" Pharmer asked as he stuck his spork in the lumpy white mess that was supposed to be mashed potatoes.

"No." I simply answered before shovin, a sporkful of mystery meat smothered thick goo into my mouth.

Bud looked up from his tray and stopped scoopin' up his runny puddin'. "Why not?"

"Ma and poppy don't got no 300k." I barked before shovin' more of the disgustin' prison food into my mouth. Eh, it tasted so bad that I had to overrule my gag reflex to shallow the shit down.

"But what 'bout the bondsmen?" Pharmer asked as he continued to eat his potatoes.

"Yea, they help get people out for cheap." Bud piped up as a fellow inmate walked by us, carryin' his tray to the area the empty ones were stacked up at.

"That still costs money that they don't got." I watched as the other inmates were walkin' 'round with their trays, either findin' a table to sit at or returnin' finished trays.

Bud nodded his head. Before eatin' some of the runny yellowish puddin' he told me, "Out of us all you'll get out. Novella wouldn't let ya rot in here."

"Yea, she still loves you." Pharmer pipped up as he began to pull his mystery goo covered meat apart with his spork.

Ella shouldn't be here wastin' her time on me. She shouldn't 've given up her job, her life, for me. The only thing 'bout her life in Bal'more I hated to think of was her relationship with Cap Hatfield. She tried to play it off, but I knew she was sleepin' with that fog eye bastard. She was with him, he's who she was seein'. I don't care that they never shared last names, she still layed up with his ugly ass. God damnit, did she have feelin's for him? Did she-did she love him or think that she could? Did he hurt when he left her, break her heart like I did?

Damn it!

"Ya morons don't know jackshit 'bout what yer talkin' 'bout!' I angrily snapped, tossin' my spork down on my picked apart tray. My brothers just looked at me wide-eyed before silently goin' back to their meal while I grabbed my glass of milk, takin' a large gulp of it to wash the nasty taste of prison food outta my mouth.

Damn, what I wouldn't give for a cold pop, Bud-Light, or some of my 'shine right now. The food, drink, and settin' of the Pike County Jail was anythin', but ideal. I hated it. I'd rather be at the Golden Corral then this joke of a mess hall where ya could get shanked for lookin' at somebody the wrong way.

AN:

Tolbert and Novella never had full closure to their relationship/breakup while Cap and Novella never really wanted to breakup and have only been broken up a couple of weeks, perfect recipe for a love-triangle. Right now, I'm still debating on whether Tolbert/Ella or Cap/Nova are endgame. I mean both Sam Reid and Boyd Holdbrook are fine so…LOL!