December 2014
7:00AM
I only got about two hours of sleep last night. My swollen face doubled as a painful pillow, and the resulting pressure only aggravated my insomnia.
Mia stirred at around seven in the morning and rolled over toward me. Her hands gently cupped my puffy face and pulled my lips to hers for a cuddly good morning kiss. Our Abyssinian cat, Kato, was quietly slumbering at our feet.
"Hey you…" She said in the raspy 'I-just-woke-up' voice that drives me wild. We melted together in another kiss.
"What happened to sleeping in?"
Mia scoffed. "You never sleep, so I don't see the issue." She reached for a remote control on her nightstand and turned on the TV. Watching the news was her morning ritual. Election coverage. God, all of this hokum over the campaign made my head hurt. Mallard Diction was running against Edith Plume for the US Senate. I had no idea who I wished to vote for. The two candidates were diametrically opposed on all of the issues…and of course, as per usual, I fell right in the middle on everything. Mia on the other hand, being the fervid liberal that she is, was already in full support of Ms. Plume.
Mia frowned. "I don't see why anyone would be stupid enough to vote Diction into the Senate. There is so much corruption surrounding that man. Do you know how many innocent Iraqis perished at the hands of his boneheaded private security firm??"
I nibbled the supple skin of her neck. "I love it when you talk politics…it's sexy…" Mia purred and I continued my ministrations.
"Lana…" My tongue was running up the sinewy muscles of her neck. "It's early…" She squirmed. The news report droned on and I was determined to distract Mia. Tracing every peak and valley of her body, I brought my hands to the apex of her legs. Her hips bucked and she bit her lip. I slipped my anxious fingers under the elastic of her panties. A hand halted my journey. "Not right now Lana…I'm too tired."
I pull her closer against me. "I'm sorry Mia…cuddle?"
"For a hardened detective, you're awfully sappy…can we just watch the news?" A small yawn escaped her lips as she curled into me. Kato lazily stretched his lithe body and looked at us with his big bright eyes. Mia outstretched an arm welcoming the cat into her embrace. I simply attempted to fall back asleep seeing as how I lost to a fuzz ball for Mia's attention. The TV still hummed in the background as I spooned a pillow with my other arm.
Ring! Ring! Mia's horrible cell phone started to ring. Ring! Ring! The awful tinny sound rammed itself against my eardrums no matter how hard I attempted to wrap the pillow around my ears. "Mia! Will you answer your goddamn phone already!"
"Calm down Lana!" She reached across me, and grabbed the devilish device from my nightstand.
"Well why did you have to leave it inches from my head Mia??"
"Hello?" She ignored my whining.
"Yes this is Mia Fey."
"What!?"
A long pause.
"Are you absolutely sure?"
Another pause. Mia's eyes grew wide.
"The Senator!?"
Yet another pause. I was growing increasingly concerned. Mia's face contorted into a mixture of a grimace and a frown. Whatever was being said over that phone was deeply unsettling.
"Yes, yes, yes, give me 20 minutes and I will be at the precinct! Thank you." She hung up her phone and hastily leapt out of bed.
I gave her a perplexed look. "Mia what was that all about? Is everything alright?"
"Well, I certainly don't have a day off anymore. Go back to sleep babe, I'll be back in a few hours." A brief kiss on my lips was my goodbye.
"Mia. What the hell was that phone call about? You look like you've seen a ghost." She was frantically flitting around our room throwing on a pantsuit.
Mia stopped and looked down toward the floor. Her eyes closed, and she shivered as she struggled to swallow a nagging lump lodged in her throat. "There's been a murder."
Now this I found surprising. Mia, being a top-notch defense attorney, has stoically dealt with plenty of grisly and heinous murders; this particular incident had to have been something absolutely horrendous to put her into such a state. "And…? Who is it?"
"A child…Senator Plume's child."
I couldn't believe what I was hearing coming out of her mouth. "A child!?"
"Yes…Opal Plume was found dead in the pediatric oncology wing of the hospital this morning."
"They know its murder?"
"I guess so…the police say the evidence is overwhelming. They've brought in Doctor Genevieve Caduceus as the prime suspect. I've been appointed as her attorney. I have to get to the detention center before the reporter swarm." Standing before our mirror she tidied herself up a bit.
I started to get up. "I'm coming with you."
Mia spun around on the spot and fired back with a firm, "NO!" I was rendered dumb at the outburst. She quickly regained her composure. "No Lana. No one knows about us, and if we arrive together it'd just be too much of a coincidence for everyone down at the precinct. The media is going to be all over this case, we need to keep our guard up."
My head and shoulders flopped back onto the bed. "I hate this charade we're playing." I crossed my arms angrily…for emphasis.
Mia was still looking right at me with her are-you-kidding-me expression. "Lana, let's think here for a moment. First, no one knows that we are lovers. Second, you're about to be named Chief Prosecutor. How would the PR department feel about the Chief Prosecutor and a Defense Attorney dating?" I frowned; deep inside I knew that she was right. Mia continued. "I know this is all frustrating Lana, but we need to find the right opportunity, and unfortunately it just…hasn't…presented itself yet..." She swallowed hard and shot me a wayward look. "I…have to go now, you need to stay in bed and heal…please try to sleep. If you freak yourself out you'll rip your stitches…again." I rolled my eyes. She planted a kiss on my forehead. "I'll call you with the details later alright? I love you."
"I love you too…" And with that, she slipped out the door. I pressed my head into the pillows and continued to watch the news unfold on the television. On screen Genevieve Caduceus, a young doctor who must have been no older than 30, was flanked by two hulking police officers. One of them looked extremely confused. Gumshoe…you oaf. The correspondent's monotone voice droned on in the background.
"The body was discovered at approximately 6AM this morning by custodial staff. The cause of death has yet to be determined, however Officials report that multiple syringes were found in Opal Plume's hospital room, all of which were covered with Dr. Caduceus' fingerprints. She is being arraigned as we speak and will be brought in for questioning later today. Senator Plume is expected to address the media at a press conference by 2:30 this afternoon…" Click.
I pulled the covers over my head and closed my eyes tightly, assured that Mia would fill me in when she returns.
1:15PM
I stirred awake, the awful squealing of my cell phone's alarm reverberating in my eardrums. My hands blindly fumbled for my phone and proceeded to launch the accursed thing against the far wall. It silenced and fell to the hardwood floor with a clatter. The cat scrambled away at the sound. I sat up, rubbed my eyes and let out a loud moan of pain, as my face was even more swollen and painful.
I looked around the bedroom and Mia was nowhere to be found. I checked my watch and gawked at how long I had overslept. Mia had left the apartment around 7AM and she had been gone for nearly 5 hours. A briefing never took this long.
I slowly slid out of bed and walked over to my battered blackberry. I'm shocked the thing has held up through all of the abuse that I put it through. I called up Mia with the speed dial.
Ring…ring...ring…ring…ring…"Hello you've reached the voice mailbox of Mia Fey, Attorney at Law. I am unable to answer the phone right now. For inquiries please dial-"
I sighed and walked to my closet. It was time to head to the precinct, on my day off no less. Gant was sure to give me a lecture once I got there, but I had a right to spend time with Mia, and to make sure she was ok.
2:00PM
I was driving on the freeway when my ever-faithful blackberry rang. A text message. "Things are taking longer than usual. There's a media circus. Probably won't be home until late. I'll pick up dinner later. ily"
Although being highly illegal I messaged her back with one hand while weaving in and out of the lanes. "I'm on my way to the precinct. ETA 15 mins. ily 2"
The response was almost instantaneous. "Lana, please turn around. You need to rest. Official statement being given soon."
"Too late. This is too weird, I'm coming there to see you."
"Fine. I'm in the detention center. See you soon love. 3"
2:20PM
The kiosk guards rolled their eyes at the sight of my black SUV.
"Skye isn't it your day off?" one of them shouted.
"I've got things to take care of. Let me through." I groaned. They couldn't go for 5 minutes, even on my day off, without giving me a hassle. I quickly parked and briskly entered the detention center, my badge at the ready. As expected there was a swarm of reporters, and at the epicenter stood Mia, with Dr. Caduceus by her side. The young Doctor held her eyes downward, not once looking up at the media. Her right hand was held tightly by one of Mia's hands, her thumb gently rubbing the young woman's hand. I felt a twinge of jealousy inside me, but of course I bottled it up. I had a reputation to uphold, as well as Mia's.
I didn't like this one bit, Mia looked uneasy. She looked straight into the hungry lens' of the cameras and cleared her throat. "I, Mia Fey, will representing Dr. Genevieve Caduceus for this case. I firmly believe in my client's innocence, and will do all in my power to earn her acquittal. We have no further comments at this time. Thank you." Mia looked at me through the crowd and motioned her head toward the door of interrogation room 3 of the detention center. I nodded and smiled. The Doctor and Mia absconded through the door to escape the blinding flashes of the multitudes of cameras.
Suddenly one of the reporters shouted, "Senator Plume speaks in 10 minutes!" That did it. The crowd dissipated as quickly as it had formed, racing against each other to get that first money shot of Ms. Plume's devastation. Fucking vultures. I slid into room 3. Mia was sitting at the table, holding a shaking and sobbing Dr. Caduceus, a gentle hand on the young woman's head. This is what made Mia special, her compassion and trust in her clients, and I was certain that someone as outwardly frail as Dr. Caduceus needed someone like Mia to defend her in court. I sat next to Mia and placed a hand on her back, rubbing gently. I pressed my face to her cheek; luckily there were no windows in this interrogation room so Mia and I could be ourselves. I kissed her ear.
"Hi babe." Said Mia softly. I gasped, she sounded so weak and drained. She hadn't really had a high profile case yet in her young career.
"Are you alright?" I asked. I caressed her cheek calmly. Mia pushed into my touch
"Yes…I-I'm fine…we're fine…Thanks for coming here." I looked to Dr. Caduceus, her eyes bright red with tears. The young doctor looked up at me. Mia cleared her throat. "This is my partner, Lana Skye."
"Are you on the defense team?" asked the young woman weakly. Mia and I exchanged glances. I shrugged.
"Oh…no! No, my apprentice Phoenix Wright will be helping me to defend you. Lana is my girlfriend…my…lover...but please don't repeat it. No one really knows about us."
Mia was being very, very bold, but I trusted her judgment. Dr. Caduceus smiled a little. She spoke weakly, "At this point I'll do anything…anything you say that saves me from the death penalty."
I gawked for a moment, "The death penalty!?"
Mia nodded weakly. "It's what the prosecution is calling for, as well as the public."
Genevieve suddenly became frantic. "But I didn't do it!! I would never kill any of my patients!!" She grasped onto Mia's shoulders, commanding that Mia's eyes look into her own. "Please believe me!" Mia patted a reassuring hand on the Doctor's back.
"What was the cause of death?" I deadpanned.
Mia looked at me solemnly. "Intentional Overdose."
