*Author's Note*

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Truth & Lil White Lies

Novella POV:

I walked down stairs, dressed for the day ahead in slacks and a long-sleeved blouse, and made my way into the kitchen. Uncle Perry, Roseanna, Moses, Sarah Eliabeth, and the 4 Philips children (whose names I don't remember) where all crowded around the kitchen table eating a breakfast full of grits, eggs, and sausage. They all looked at me as I went over to the far kitchen counter and poured myself a cup of coffee.

"I thought you were with Tolbert." I heard my uncle remark as I grabbed some of the non-dairy creamer cups from the bowl by the coffee machine, opening them and putting them in my cup.

"She was, but they got into it and I had to go get her last night." My brother told our uncle, saving my ass just like he said he would, as I walked over to take a seat at the table.

"Oh, I see." Uncle Perry simply said, lightly nodding his head, as he turned the page of the newspaper he was reading.

"Talk to my brother. Don't let your quarrel fester." Roseanna advised me, a soft look on her face, as she watched me fill up my plate.

"Yes, you two need to come to an understanding in order for this case to be successful."

"The case is hopeless."

"There's always the secret weapon plan…" Moses drawled before taking a long sip of his black coffee.

"No, there will be no talk or thought of any such thing." My uncle sternly said, his eyes narrowed firmly at my brother. "Well, I better get going to the office. Novella, Moses, come by as soon as you're down with breakfast. The McCoy boys are coming in today to begin case prep."

"Okay, Uncle Perry." I nodded before shoving a spoonful of grits into my mouth.

"Yea, sure thing." Moses said through a mouthful of scrambled eggs as out uncle walked over to Roseanna.

Uncle Perry leaned over and gave Roseanna a kiss before telling her, "Don't do too much today, love. You're looking particularly pale."

Roseanna gave Perry a small smile before gently assuring him with, "I'll be fine, Perry. I'll just do the dishes and watch the chil'ren."

"Sarah Elizabeth, be good for your mama and help with your little cousins." Uncle Perry ordered the girl with a stern and fatherly look.

"I will, Papa." The blonde little girl simply answered before sipping on some chocolate milk.

Without another word my uncle left to start his day at the office. The office that I'd be at soon enough, along with my brother once we were done eating breakfast.

I was sitting in the conference room with Uncle Perry, Moses, Pharmer, and Bud waiting on Tolbert to arrive whenever my phone that was in my pocket began to ring. I quickly pulled it out, nearly having a stroke whenever I saw the ID flashing Will. "I need to go to my office to take this. Excuse me." I announced, slightly holding my phone up, before quickly rising from the conference table and darting out of the room. My office was down the hall and across from the conference room, so I did a mad dash in heels to get there before my phone stopped ringing. As soon as I entered my moderate office and shut the door I answered my phone with a, "What're you doing calling me?"

"Checking up on ya. After giving you a ride home I thought it'd be best to make sure you're okay." I heard Cap's rough rolling wave of a voice tell me over the phone as I walked over to my desk chair and sat down.

Quickly, maybe too quickly, I answered him with, "I'm okay."

"You're not okay, but if ya say so…" His rough wave-like voice trailed off into a sigh.

"Why wouldn't I be okay?"

"After the way you got played last night ya deserve to be hurt and pissed. No way you're 'okay' after that shit."

"I'm over it. It happened, live and let learn."

"Yea, well, babe, it better not happen again. I don't wanna be going over there another time cause ya'll decide to kiss and make up only to have a repeat of you getting tossed out." Cap told me, his rough voice hard and deep with a bit of irritation laced into his words.

"It won't happen again." I assured him before adding, "Also, there won't be any kissing and making up either."

"That's good." He said, his rolling rough voice suddenly sounding pleased, no longer irritated. "Really, babe, you need to let him go." Cap demanded, even though his tone of voice made it sound like advising instead. "Last night's proof that whatever you had with him was first love bullshit that wasn't very strong and isn't worth a bucket of spit now."

"Yea…um…I got to go. I'm needed in the conference room soon to start defense prep." I told him since I didn't want to get into it with him about me and Tolbert, plus I was needed back in the conference room too. That wasn't a lie.

Cap let out what sounded like the mix between a sigh and a groan. I imagine that he was pinching the bridge of his nose about now too. "Baby, please, drop this case." He pleaded before going on to explain in a tone that was like rolling ocean waves, "I'm not going to go soft on that fucker and his brothers. It's going to get ugly and messy. I'm a hard, cold, calculated man in the courtroom and I don't want that to touch you."

"Cap, you're just a cold man period. There's nothing new about that."

"No, Nova, you haven't seen me in court. If you think I'm already cold, then you'll think I'm made out of ice once the trial's over."

"I can't drop this case and you know why so stop begging me to." I ordered, my flowing voice sounding a bit snippy.

"Fine, stay on a case you know's a dead end one. I would prefer it different, but…" Cap told me, his second sentence just dropping off on the tip of his a few seconds his rough rolling voice spoke up caringly with, "Anyways, if you say you're okay I'll let ya go. I'll text you sometime tho, okay?"

He didn't have to text me, but somehow, I knew he felt like he had to though. Also, I knew that I'd most likely reply to said text and somehow, I think he knew that too.

"Sure. Bye, Will." I told him before quickly hanging up the phone. Wait a minute, why did I just call Cap Will? He used to be Will, but he's Cap now. I shouldn't be slipping up and calling him Will. Whatever, I need to get back to the conference room. I'm sure that Tolbert's in there by now.

Oh boy, dealing with Tolbert should be fun. Not…

Sure, enough whenever I walked into the conference room Tolbert was there. He looked like shit too. His ginger hair looked a bit messy and he had some dark circles under his eyes. Tolbert looked tired, like he didn't get much sleep last night. Good, his guilt from kicking me out kept him up all night.

I silently took the open seat at the table, which was across from Tolbert. Uncle Perry looked at me while asking, "Did your call go well?"

"Oh, yes. Sorry about that, just one of my sorority sister's calling to confirm my RSVP for her wedding in Florida in a few weeks." I lied, forcing my flowing voice to maintain a smooth and normal pitch, while smiling as I looked at my uncle.

"Too bad it's in Florida. If it was in Kentucky I'm sure that Tolbert would've been fine with being your escort." Uncle Perry told me, a slight upturned line of sympathy forming on his lips, as he looked between me and the temperamental ginger sitting next to me.

Tolbert turned to me with a smirk on his face before solidifying my uncle's remark by telling me in his smooth gruff timbre, "Yea, I would've went, but my bond won't let me."

Oh, only if they knew who my date was to the wedding. They'd shit a brick. "Its fine, it's just one weekend. I don't need an escort." I countered dismissively as I shook my head. Moses just cocked a brow while shooting me a look that screamed 'Take you know who so we can win, sis.'

"Very well then." My uncle conceded, nodding his head. Turning to look at the McCoy boys he said, "Now, boys, we need to prep you on some of the things the prosecution's going to try and trick you with."

"Like what, Mr. Perry Cline?" Bud asked with an interested look on his round baby face.

"Cap Hatfield trying to get you to say you killed Ellison." Uncle Perry answered, seriousness in both his words and facial expression.

"But we did." Tolbert's velvety gruff voice rumble, nearly chuckling, as he leaned back in his chair.

"No, that's what happened, but that wasn't any of your intent boys." Uncle Perry told the McCoys in a very convincing slick tone of voice. "You boys must make sure that your intent to get him to leave you alone, not kill him, is portrayed to that awful Judge Wall Hatfield no matter how hard ADA Cap Hatfield tries to get you boys to admit otherwise."

Nodding his head and hitching a thumb towards Uncle Perry, Moses told the McCoy brothers, "Yea, what he just said."

I just sat quietly, not knowing what advice to give. I mean I was a bit baffled, how can they make what they did sound like they didn't mean it? Oh boy, it was going to be hard ork trying to save the boys I grew up with. That was certain.

Uncle Perry turned his head to me and smiled slyly. "Novella, dear, any insight?"

With a tight smile on my face I simply told my uncle, "Um, not at the moment, but you're doing a great job, Uncle Perry."

"Ella, ya sure ya don't got no opin'ons?" Tolbert asked me, his eyes roaming over the side of my face.

I turned my head and met Tolbert's gaze before answering with, "Just keep maintaining self-defense. You don't even have to give long answers since it's just a preliminary to determine whether it moves on to jury trial."

"Plead the 5th, ya'll." My brother seriously advised as he pulled his hair back, using the rubberband around his wrist to secure the manbun.

My uncle shook his head before firmly saying, "No, not in a preliminary. They won't get the case thrown out if they do."

Me and Moses shared a look between us that read 'This case is going to trial. Judge isn't throwing it out.' The McCoys just nodded their heads, eating up Uncle Perry's advice as we all sat around the conference table.

"Can we talk?" Tolbert asked me, following behind me as I was walking back to my office after the prep meeting in the conference room was over.

"I don't feel like talking, but I'll hear you out." I answered him as I reached my office , opening it and walking inside.

"I didn't mean what I said last night 'bout ya leavin'." Tolbert told me as soon as he walked into the room, closing the door behind him, while I made my way over to my desk chair and took a seat. I just gave him an unimpressed look, which prompted him to say, "I was mad an' half-drunk, didn't think ya'd really leave tho."

Yea, 18-year-old me in the past wouldn't have left, but me now at 28 sure did. I was grown up now and wasn't going to be dealing with his little attitude problem. "Well, I did." I simply remarked while turning on my desktop.

"I went in the livin' room to get'cha from the couch and when ya weren't there I felt like shit." He told me, his stormy eyes downcast in shame. Raising his gaze to catch onto my cornflower blues he sighed, "I wanna soothe things over. Make it right 'tween us."

"Tolbert, I forgive you for last night." I told Tolbert, causing him to nod his head and look at me hopefully. Before he could start talking about picking up the pieces of the past I bluntly told him, "Since we have a history and you're related to most of my friends here we can be friends, but nothing more. I'm a defense attorney and you're my client. Plus, after last night…I was just reminded of how cruel and ill-tempered you get so quickly."

"Ella, didn't ya feel our spark last night? I know I did." Tolbert told me, his velvet voice a soft tone, as he stood in the middle of my office looking at me with hopefulness.

In response to his plea I told him, as flatly as my flowing voice could manage, "Tolbert, just cause a spark's there doesn't mean it's going to catch fire."

"I don't know why yer denyin' our second chance, Ella." He wanted to dive head first into the deep end of the pool that was our decade long gone relationship. To most girls getting another chance with their first love sounded like a dream, but to me it was more of a nightmare. Maybe that was because too much time had gone by or because only a few months ago, hell weeks ago, I felt like I was able to move on with none other than Cap. Tolbert's jaw twitched as his smooth velvet voice spat at me, "Not like we got much time 'getha 'fore that fog eye bastard tries to send my ass fryin' t'hell."

"Don't call him that. Cap can't help that he's only got one eye." I quickly defended my latest ex so quick that I think it made Tolbert's head spin.

Pure rage appeared in Tolbert's storm-blue gaze. His nostrils flared angrily, much like a bull ready to charge, as he stared me down. His mouth opened and out came rolling the angrily smooth words of, "Christ, ya really defendin' him? Him!? The demon Hatfield that wants me dead!"

I narrowed my eyes, giving him a very unimpressed look, as I spat, "I'm not defending him, Tolbert, and the only reason he wants to slap the death penalty on you is cause you along with your dumbass brothers shanked his uncle 26 times before fatally shooting him in the fucking gut with a damn magnum. Any sane person would want revenge and justice for their family after that."

"It was self-defense, darlin'. Ellison was smackin' us 'round, broke Pharmer's arm. Had t'do what we needed t'survive." Tolbert told me, defending his atrocious actions. I understand elf defense, but what they did was overkill.

"Mhm…" I sighed, giving him a leery look full of disbelief. "I think you should go now. I got work to do." I meant it too. How I was going to spin 26 shanks and a magnum gut shot's a justifiable self-defense is beyond me.

Tolbert silently nodded his head before walking over to the door. With his hand curled around the doorknob he looked over at me and said, "I'll see ya for Sunday dinner at ma and poppy's." He opened the door and walked out of my office, leaving me alone in my work and thoughts.

Cap POV:

My day went by easy enough. I had some files to work on, cases to review, and I began to plot my take down of the McCoy boys. I talked to Nova a bit, checking in on her. She assured me that she wasn't going to be making up with Tolbert. I was relieved to hear that.

Currently I was sitting at a table in the tavern at Mate Creek playing poker with my Uncle Jim and Cotton, who was my late uncle's mentally slow son that was my age, to unwind after work. We were sharing a bottle of whiskey, by we I mean me and Uncle Jim, as we played cards in the sparsely filled tavern.

"Heard that Landon girl you've got it for went home with Tolbert McCoy last night from that country bar over in Pikeville." Uncle Jim's coarse and deep voice spoke up as he dealt the cards for another round of Texas Hold 'Em.

"They ain't together like that, Uncle Jim." I told him, earning me a skeptical stare. "Nova called me to pick her up last night. Tolbert tossed her out like trash and she's done with him." I furthered explained, picking up my hand of cards off the table.

"Oh, now that's mighty interestin' to hear." Uncle Jim chuckled as the poker game started. "So Miss Landon's off the case too?"

I took a quick puff of the cigar I had in my hand before shaking my head and answering with, "No, she feels obligated cause her uncle bamboozled her into promisin' to help him before he even told her the details. Hell, I had to tell her the details of the case report cause Perry Cline wouldn't."

Uncle Jim gulped down his glass of whiskey before scoffing, "That lawyer, Perry Cline, was always a bamboozlin' sly fox. Tried to swindle your Pa, steal his land by forgin' documents, but Devil Anse was too smart and made a deal with the crooked lawyer. Sign over his acres or he was gonna get him disbarred."

"Does she know her uncle bamboozled her?" Cotton asked, innocence in both his question and the look on his face.

I nodded my head, watching my cousin's eyes dart between the cards in his hand and the ones on the table. "Yes, Cotton, she knows."

"Then why don't she just leave and help you, Cap?" He asked as he folded his cards.

"It's hard to explain, but she would if she could tho." I told him while our uncle turned over a card on the lineup before tossing some beer nuts, our make shift chips, onto the table

"Oh…okay." Cotton nodded, seeming to accept my answer, as I matched Jim's amount of beer nuts on the table.

Uncle Jim gave me a quick look, tilting his chin, as his brows furrowed. Setting his hand down he asked, "You plan on seein' her anytime soon?"

"Yep." I answered, poppin' my p, as I placed down my winning hand.

Uncle Jim chuckled, his tobacco stained yellow teeth poking out under his curled lip. "Interestin'." He scratched his beard before asking, "So, ya like her?"

"Jim." I warned him with a cuttin' stare as I shuffled the deck of cards I had just picked up from the table.

His eyes narrowed and glued themselves on me as he bluntly asked, "Can ya trust her?"

"Yes." I said as began to deal the cards.

"Is she nice?" Cotton innocently asked he watched a card get placed infront of him.

I took another puff off my cigar before knocking some of its ashes into the tray by me. "Of course, she's nice, Cotton. Why'd ya ask?"

"Cause that whore of your's Mary Lou ain't." Cotton bluntly told me in his innocent and childlike tinted tone.

"Oh, yea, what 'bout Mary Lou? Ya still goin' see her as well as Miss Landon?" Uncle Jim asked, grabbing the bottle of whiskey from the table and filling up his near empty glass.

"No, I'm done with that whore. Whoever wants her can have her." I took the whisky bottle from Jim, topping off my glass.

"Cause you like Nova." Cotton stated, even though it sounded a bit like a question.

"Yep." I smiled, popping my p, as I place the bottle back on the table.

"If she's gonna be wit' you she needs to remove herself from them McCoys." Uncle Jim said as he took a drink of his whiskey. Tippin' his glass at me he said, "Can't have somebody close to them 'round us, our family. Might spy."

"Damnit, Uncle Jim, she ain't like that." I seethed, my jaw tensing while I gave my uncle a hard and cold stare that cut right to the bone. Cotton just looked between us, cowerin' a bit sheepishly as he placed his card son the table. Uncle Jim just narrowed his eyes at me before drinkin' continuing to his glass of whiskey and slamming his hand of cards onto the table. I could feel his anger at being told off by me, but I didn't give a fuck. I wasn't letting anybody, and I mean anybody talk bad 'bout Nova or insist that she couldn't be trusted.

I knew that she could be trusted. In my gut and my soul, I knew. I also knew, deep down inside, that this trial was gonna tear her down. That she was goin' to need me to help her keep it together, even if she didn't know or was in denial about the fact.

AN:

Oh, yea Novella's definitely stuck between Cap and Tolbert now. Seems like she trusts Cap more tho…Oooo…And of all people Jim Vance knows the truth about Cap picking up Novella…Yikes! O_o