by Elbie Dee
The police officer stood behind me and held onto the cuffs. With the chains being around my ankles, it was hard for me to walk. I had to wobble to the elevator, and then to the courtroom until I was instructed to sit in the row that was located in front of the jury box. I sat terrified as the judge was in the middle of handling another case. I eased a bit once I noticed my lawyer entering the courtroom from the door that was straight ahead from where I sat.
“All parties in the case of Alynn Russo! Please step forward!” the African American District Attorney called, after my lawyer pulled my folder from where the state representatives sat.
I stood up, and the bailiff helped me walk to join my lawyer behind the table where he had his briefcase laid on top. The state began running through the details of my case, and acknowledged I had no prior criminal record. When it was my lawyer’s turn to speak, he informed the judge and jury that I was diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder. I gasped in shock, although it explained why things happened the way they did. It went on to explain that I was being prescribed medication for it, along with the prenatal vitamins from having my daughter. Since I had been given the prescription, episodes of anger had almost vanished.
After my condition was exposed, I was sure that the judge would cut me a break. I was informed that jail time would be necessary, or extended time at a mental health facility. Since Merrisah lived, my lawyer explained that I had a greater chance of obtaining a lesser sentence… especially since she denied the need to testify after being subpoenaed by the court.
“Jury, have you reached a verdict?” the judge turned in his seat to ask, after recess was over and my case had continued.
“In the case of Alynn Russo versus State,” one of the jurors stood to speak. “We find the defendant guilty.”
“What?” I blurted out of agony. “How could you say that? I’m a fucking psycho! It says it right there on the paperwork!”
I couldn’t control myself. My life was in the hands of people who were free in this world, and not detained like an animal in a fucking cage. The judge lowered his glasses and looked as I lashed out. My lawyer was able to calm me enough so I could hear my sentence from the judge. All I heard was ‘blah, blah, blah’ until I heard him begin to recite my time.
“Under the court of law, you are sentenced to fifteen years in Federal prison with the possibility of parole after twelve years,” he said as I listened to his words clouding around my brain in slow motion.
“Tuh,” I gasped. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing!
There wasn’t a way I’d be able to make up to my daughter after being out of her life for fifteen fucking years! I cried out tears of agony, and in fear of never getting to be reconnected with my daughter. The bailiff approached and lifted my body from where I laid my head on the table, as I beat my fist on top. I stood, and just when I thought matters couldn’t get any worse, I heard a voice come from the other end of the room.
“That’s what you get!” I turned my head. There she was. Brilese stood in front of her seat in the second row and shared the way she felt. Right next to her, Bradson sat holding my daughter. I wanted to lash back, but instead, the room went black as my knees fell to the floor.
14
Bradson
“That is what you get,” I whispered to myself, after I witnessed Alynn’s horrific ass fall to the floor. Just as Brilese was about to take her seat again, her case was called.
“All those in favor in the case of Brilese Selters! Please step forward!” the district attorney announced.
Brilese inched past me, as I watched her watermelon shaped ass graze the front of my eyes. I watched as she strode down the aisle in her grey and white plaid slacks and met her lawyer on our end of the long table to the right of the room. The state representatives went over the case as a whole. A few moments later, Mr. Brown began providing evidence that proved Brilese had nothing to do with Merrisah getting shot.
Her case took much less time than Alynn’s did, so panic and worry came to heart when a fifteen-minute recess was called for the jury to deliberate. Brilese followed Mr. Brown down the aisle between both sets of seats, passing Miracle and me. The moment she swayed past my section, she rolled her eyes at me and gave me the dirtiest look I had ever seen her wear.
That was my queue to stay put. Since my newborn was asleep in my arms, I thought it was a good idea anyway. If I wished to stay in the courtroom to hear the verdict, then I needed to keep her sleeping as long as possible. Besides, she was the only child I needed to worry about in the moment. Karleiyah and Zirko were at Dezire’s, and Kash and Kayo were finally able to reunite with Merrisah.
The commotion in the front of the courtroom near the judge’s podium started to ease. When Brilese and her lawyer came back through the doors of the courtroom, it forced me to look at the analog clock on the wall. Fourteen minutes had already passed. Apparently, Brilese kept up with the time better than I had because as soon as she re-approached her table, everyone was called to stand as the judge re-entered the room.
“Have you reached your verdict?” the judge asked the jury, once everyone but Brilese and her lawyer had taken a seat again.
“In the case of the State versus Brilese Selters, we find the defendant...” the old ass white man who spoke on behalf of the rest began to state. When he hesitated, I cringed my teeth and sat forward in my chair. “... not guilty!”
“Oh my God!” Brilese shouted and took her hands from on top of the table before burying her face into her palms.
“Brilese Selters, you are acquitted of all charges and your case has been dismissed,” the judge stated, before he tapped his gavel on top of his podium.
Jealousy entered me when I noticed Brilese give Mr. Brown a hug, but I shook it off. Even with Mr. Brown being her kid’s father, I couldn’t get too upset. She was excited that she was free! He just beat a very hard case for her, and I honestly wanted to hug him myself. Since everything was over now, I hoped to rekindle my relationship with Brilese. After the verdict, all of our problems could become a subject to the past.
Mr. Brown lifted his suitcase from the table once he had all of the folders back inside. With Miracle in my arms, I slowly rose to my feet and walked to the end of the row. Brilese walked my way, with the lawyer following behind her. Once they both passed me, I followed them out of the doors to the courtroom.
“Thank you,” I said to the lawyer, and held my right hand out for a shake. He reached his arm forward and placed his palm into mine.
“You two are welcome,” he replied, before removing his hand and placing it in his front pocket.
“Are you following me home, baby,” I turned to Brilese, who stood about my height with the black, closed toe heels she sported.
“Actually, Mr. Brown and I have some paperwork to finish up,” she replied. She sounded sincere, but her tone allowed me to intake the attitude she held in her voice.
“Okay,” I stated. “I’ll see you at home?” I questioned.
“Yeah. I’ll be there,” she answered. “I’ll pick up my kids on the way in.”
She rolled her eyes, and walked away from Mr. Brown, Miracle and I. By the time we followed, and turned the corner, the elevator was beginning to slide open. We watched Brilese load the elevator. The doors to the elevator touched my shoulder, as I walked in before Mr. Brown. Once he was ready to board, the doors had fully opened again.
I pressed the ground floor level on the panel and waited for the doors to close while I kept my stare toward Brilese. She stood with her arms folded in the corner that was on the opposite side of the corner I leaned into. She was happy for herself, but still held her grudge toward me. It didn’t help that I had to have Miracle with me. Additionally, I assumed she was uncomfortable because the father of her children wore a smile like he hadn’t fucked up with her as well.
“Waah!” Miracle began to wail, as we were coming to our stop.
“Shut that baby the fuck up!” Brilese screamed. She grinded her
teeth and shot a death stare my way. My eyes widened her way, and she was the first one off once the elevator doors opened. I understood her pain, but with Alynn being sentenced to fifteen years, she was going to have to get used to Miracle.
“How are you feeling?” I asked, once I arrived at Merrisah’s apartment and she opened the door.
She lived in Charlotte and agreed to babysit Miracle so I could be a part of the final meet between Brilese and Mr. Brown. Unlike Brilese, Merrisah wasn’t mad at all that I had another baby. She was going to accept her regardless for the simple fact of Kash and Kayo being her biological brothers.
“I’m great,” she answered, before she opened the cracked door wider to allow me inside.
Since Miracle was fed, full and back sleeping, I welcomed myself into the room Merrisah and I used to share. Although Kayo had gotten too big to fit in the bassinet, it was still kept. After placing Miracle’s small body down, I rejoined Merrisah in the living room.
“Can I sit?” I asked, since it was the respectful thing to do.
“Sure,” she said, and took a seat herself on the loveseat. I decided to sit away from her, so I lowered my body onto the couch. “How’s Brilese?”
“All charges were dismissed,” I answered honestly.
“Good!” she exclaimed. For a moment, I felt like she almost cared for Brilese. Her eyes lit up, and her grin grew wide when she listened to the verdict roll from my tongue.
“Alynn got fifteen years,” I informed her. Quickly, her eyebrows scrunched.
“That’s it? After she almost killed me?” she asked in disbelief.
“She got evaluated. She tested positive for BPD, so she argued about mental health instability,” I said.
“Well I hope she dies in there,” Merrisah concluded. I gasped and looked at her like she was a different person. Shock was an understatement. I had never known of her to speak that way.
“Alright. I’m going to head to this appointment before it's over. Thank you again, and I’ll be back later,” I informed her, snapping myself from processing the words she just allowed to release from her chest.
“Okay. Maybe Kash and Kayo will be up from their nap by then,” she raised her tone, so I could hear her at the front door from the couch.
“Okay,” I said, and walked out of the apartment.
I closed the door behind me and fled down the flight of stairs. My Fusion was parked right in front of the bottom of the stairwell, so I walked a few steps ahead until I reached my vehicle. Manually, I unlocked the car door and hopped inside. After pulling my phone from my pocket and typing in the address to the firm, I placed my phone in the holder in the vent. I backed out of the space and continued driving as I listened to the directions according to the GPS.
Since I never drove to the office from Merrisah’s, I was unfamiliar at how close the place was to hers. After seven minutes of driving, I pulled into the lot. To my surprise, there were no cars parked I had recognized. Brilese’s car was certainly not there, and from what I remember seeing, neither was Mr. Brown’s Mercedes SUV.
“What the fuck? They should have been here by now,” I said to myself aloud.
Instead of going inside the firm to inquire about their appearance, I continued driving. The instinct in my gut told me that I should check around the area. Only if I couldn’t locate them would be when I’d ask about their presence. I circled around the building the first time, but I quickly glanced around the area. The second time around, I was sure to go five miles per hour to thoroughly get a glimpse of the surrounding areas. Once I got the left end of the building, Brilese’s car caught the corner of my eye.
“What the fuck?” I asked aloud.
Brilese was parked beside the vehicle that was confirmed to be her exes, Mr. Brown. If they had been parked beside each other in the lot of the firm, I wouldn’t have raised a brow. The fact that they were in an empty parking lot across the street, caused my nerves to jump. Knowing the history between the two of them, being together in the back of an abandoned building was the last thing I wished to witness.
Without hesitating, my foot rested hard on the gas pedal and I skidded out of the parking lot. I took a left out of the lot and was met with a red-light signal. Anxiously, I kept my right foot on the brake pedal, and tapped the floorboard with my left. There wasn’t a blink I took as I stared at the red light, as I waited for it to turn green.
Finally, I was signaled to go and hooked a left onto the main street, before pulling into the middle lane with a signal to turn. Once traffic was clear and I was able to go, I sped into the lot. I almost reacted before my mind, which had been a problem for me all along. Instead of pulling around the building and confronting them, I decided to park in the front and walk around.
I parked directly in the center of the length of the building and turned my ignition off before placing the key inside of my grey slacks. After pulling on the handle on the inside of my door, I placed my left foot on the cement before sliding out of the vehicle. Just in case they were somewhere outside and could hear me, I slowly closed the door. Placing my palms on the top end of the door, I pushed the door in to be sure it was shut.
Once it was confirmed, I crouched over and began to inch toward the back of the building. The street was on the left side, so I figured that to be the best route. If I would have chosen the other way, I’m sure my motion would be signaled seeing there wasn’t anything promoting traffic that way. As I approached the edge of the building, I slowed down and stopped at the edge. After peeking my head around the corner just enough to get one eye toward them, the movement of his SUV set me off!
Bang! Bang! I pounded my fist on the back-seat window.
“Open the fucking door!” I screamed, and the both of them jumped up when they noticed me on the outside. I couldn’t believe my eyes. To witness the woman I loved fucking her baby’s father in a back seat set flames to my soul!
“Fuck you Bradson!” Brilese screamed and instructed Mr. Brown to move out of her way. She waddled her body toward the window where I was glancing in, before she concluded. We were eye to eye with the tinted glass in between our faces and she said, “Your miracle was conceived in my car with a best friend of mine. You better be lucky I’m at least in his.”
Instantly, Mr. Brown jetted into the front seat of his car and started the ignition. Out of instinct, I fled back around the building to get to mine. Before I had a chance to get onto my driver’s seat, I noticed Brilese’s Lexus flying from the backside of the building and turning out of the parking lot; Mr. Brown’s Mercedes was behind her, and on her tail.
“Fuck!” I screamed at the top of my lungs and punched the hard-plastic roof of my vehicle. They both vanished within seconds, and there was no hope for me to catch up. I opened my door and plopped down on the seat. I banged my forehead on top of the steering wheel until the ringtone of my phone began to blare. Thinking it was Brilese, I answered.
“Why would you do this to me?” I yelled into the phone’s mouthpiece once I accepted the call.
“I’m sorry, but you have me mistaken,” I heard a soft tone coming from the other end of my line. I looked at the screen and noticed I had just answered a private number, and the caller was far from Brilese. “I’m a social worker assigned to deal with inmates at the county jail.”
“Okay. What’s that gotta do with me?” I asked. Alynn was sentenced, but my daughter was safe with me.
“You are the only contact we have on file for Ms. Russo. I’m sorry to inform you, but she had been pronounced deceased after committing suicide in her cell,” the lady informed me.
Without hanging up, the phone slipped out of my hand and fell from my ear. Not only was I about to be a single man, but I was being forced to become a single father forever. My daughter didn’t have a mother anymore.
15
Matt
“We have to hurry, babe,” I told Dezire, as I watched her gather the list of things Brilese asked her to get from her house.
The day
before the trial, Brilese gave Dezire a key to get into the home. With her trial being the next day, she knew nobody would be at the house. It was the perfect plan to gather her things and leave Bradson for good. Because Brilese would have to try and fit the bags into the trunk of her Lexus, she only needed the necessities; clothes, a few pairs of shoes, and hygiene products. Brilese told Dezire that she would make a stop at the house after a week when it was confirmed that Bradson was at work, so she could gather the rest.
At first, I was concerned that Bradson wouldn’t have anywhere to go, but Dezire informed me of the conversation Brilese had with her landlord. She said that he'll be taking over the lease, and she would inform Bradson of the deal once she was finally gone. I was tempted to tell Bradson on what was going on because he’s my friend, and I knew he was about to be crushed. After talking to Dezire about the situation, I decided not to say a word.
She was right. Brilese stayed through the two pregnancies he had behind her back, and even almost married him. If it weren’t for Alynn announcing she was pregnant, then the two would have been a married couple now. It would have been much harder to just up and go. She didn’t want her two children to be affected by the drama Bradson’s infidelities caused.
“Okay. Here’s the last bag,” Dezire slid the white, trash bag toward me after she joined me in the living room from Karleiyah and Zirko’s room.
I picked it up from the hardwood floor and watched as Dezire walked out of the house before me. Once I had gotten outside and was on the first step, I closed the door. I wiggled the door handle to be sure it was locked, and I walked down the pathway to get to where my truck was parked in the driveway. I reached the bed of Big Red, and carefully placed the bag next to the others.