by Iris Bolling
"Weren't you the cause of the dissension? Wasn't the argument due to your treatment of Nicole during class? Weren’t you the leader of the mean girl pack and your number one target was Nicole Brooks?”
“Objection Your Honor, Mr. Brooks is badgering the witness. Which question would he like her to answer?”
“I’ll withdraw all of them.” Vernon waved off Trish as if he was done with her then walked back to his table. “One last question, Ms. Hargrove. What is the total amount of money you and your family have received from extorting The Brooks’?” He glared at her.
“Objection. Relevance Your Honor?”
The judge took a moment before he answered. “I think I’m going to allow this one, Ms. Russum. The witness may answer the question.”
“I haven’t extorted anything from the Brooks’.”
“Allow me to rephrase the question.” Vernon picked up a sheet of paper from his table. “I’d like to place this bank statement into evidence.”
“Objection, may we approach,” Ms. Russum demanded.
“Approach.”
“Your Honor,” she began. “I want it on the record, again, that I believe this document to be prejudicial to my client. She cannot control her parent’s actions.”
“We discussed this in chambers Ms. Russum. It will be allowed.”
“Thank you, Your Honor.” Vernon nodded.
“How much money has your family received from the Brooks’ in the last ten years, Ms. Hargrove?”
“I…I can’t say.”
“I can. How does the total of 3.7 million dollars sound? Am I close?”
“Each time the Brooks’ broke the law. They stepped on our rights. You claim to be these upstanding righteous people, but you go around acting like your shit don’t stink. Well it does. And when you do wrong you should be made to pay. Every time one of you precious Brooks stepped across the line, yes, we were there to make sure you paid the price. Your mother hit mine, yes, she is going to pay. Your father hit mine, yes, he is going to pay. Nicole hit me. She is going to pay. It’s the way of the world, Mr. Brooks.”
The rant was the turning point of the case. He made her look like the bully she was. Now, it was up to Nicole to bring this case to a successful conclusion. At the moment she was in bliss, it was the only way he could describe it. Vernon interrupted the group.
“Nicole, it’s your turn to take the stand. Are you ready?”
“Yes,” a beaming Nicole replied.
“Please be seated. Court is back in session,” the bailiff called out.
Everyone took their seats.
“Mr. Brooks call your next witness,” the judge ordered.
“Your Honor, the defense calls Nicole Brooks to the stand.”
Nicole took the stand and was sworn in. Vernon walked over to his sister and smiled. “Hey Nikki.”
Nicole smiled back at her brother. “Hi Vernie.”
Vernon laughed. “How you doing?”
The members of the jury were smiling. They could feel the affection between the brother and sister and that was exactly what Vernon wanted them to see. He leaned against the witness box. “I have to say that was a first. I have never seen any one proposed to in a courtroom.”
“Objection, Your Honor,” Valarie stood disgusted. “Where is the question?”
“She’s right, Mr. Brooks. Sustained.”
“Are you happy?”
“Your Honor,” Valarie jumped up again.
“It is a question,” Vernon stated as he looked over his shoulder at Valarie.
“Make it relevant, Mr. Brooks,” the judge stated.
“Yes, I’m very happy,” Nicole rushed in.
“Then I’m happy, too.” Vernon let that sit for a moment. He looked at the jury as he asked his question. “Ms. Brooks, this case was never about money for you was it?”
“No.”
“In fact, you dropped your law suit against Ms. Hargrove, did you not?”
“Yes, I did.”
“What was the amount of that suit?”
“Five hundred and fifty million dollars.”
The jury gasped.
“Why that amount?”
“It was the amount I stood to lose when one of my partners pulled out of an international deal.”
“Why did your partner pull out?”
“Because I would not declare my sexual preference in public.”
“Why did they require you to do that?”
“Because Ms. Hargrove made the statement that I was gay. The partner will not work with anyone they believe to be homosexual.”
“Are you a homosexual, Ms. Brooks?”
The courtroom laughed.
“No.”
“Therefore, Ms. Hargrove’s statement was false, and detrimental to a deal your company was involved with, true?”
“Yes, that is correct.”
“Why didn’t you comply with your partner’s request? It would have solved the problem.”
“I don’t believe anyone should ever have to answer questions about their sexual preference to seal a business deal, much less be forced to declare it to the public. What I do behind closed doors is my business.”
“Ms. Hargrove’s statement caused a financial problem for you. Yet according to Mr. Davenport, you turned to walk away. Why?”
“The statement embarrassed me because it was made in front of Xavier. I was trying to be the better person and walk away without causing another confrontation with Ms. Hargrove.”
“But you hit her. Why?”
Nicole sighed as she looked at the jury. “I don’t know if any of you have experienced being bullied. So you may not understand my actions. I struggled in school with reading. In a house full of lawyers, reading is fundamental, as my father always says. I never felt I could measure up to his expectations because my reading and comprehension levels were much lower than my brothers. Vernon, you used to tease me and say my twin brother Nick got all the brains, and I got the beauty. You meant it as a compliment, but I internalized it as me not measuring up in a family of over achievers. In high school Trish…Ms. Hargrove, recognized my weakness and she preyed on it. Every chance she got, she would call me a dummy. Whenever a boy paid me any attention, Trish would find a way to bring up my disability by asking in front of him, can you read the menu? Or Nicole, let me help you read that. I know how difficult it is for you to read. I went through my two years of high school hiding from Trish and her friends because I knew she would try to embarrass me. When I was in the tenth grade this guy asked me to the prom. I was so excited. I liked him a lot.” She smiled. “Trish told me later that the guy was her boyfriend and if she saw me talking to him again I would be sorry. The next day my report card was posted in the main hallway. Trish was showing everyone the D I received in English and History. When she saw me, she yelled, here comes the dummy now. I reacted poorly.” Nicole shrugged. “I hit her.” She shook her head. “I was wrong then and I was wrong the night of the auction. Violence is not the solution to problems. But…that night, when she said, ‘are you still a dummy, can you read yet,’ in front of Xavier, I lost my temper again. I just felt like enough was enough. I dealt with her and her cruelty all through high school and I just could not take it again. I’m not sorry that I hit her, she deserved it. People say all the time words can’t hurt you. I disagree. A cut with a knife will heal. The wound will close and the skin will return to normal. Words cut deep and they cannot be taken back.” She hesitated, then looked up at Xavier sitting in the courtroom. “I wanted this case to come to court just to take a stand against a person I consider to be a mean, insecure bully. But what I discovered was it was my own insecurities that gave her the power over me. Today, I’m taking that power away from her.”
There was a hush over the courtroom.
Vernon looked at the jury, then at the judge, then at Valarie Russum. “Your witness.” He smirked then took a seat.
Valarie Russum stood at her table, she did not approach the stand. “Ms. Brooks, did you s
trike my client?”
“Yes.”
“No further questions.”
***
The verdict had come through loud and clear, but it was Nicole’s graciousness that proved to be the media darling. After leaving the courtroom, the Brooks family was bombarded by the media. Everyone was eager to see their reaction to Nicole’s plea to the judge. “This case was never about money,” Vernon declared. “The root of the case was about bullies, for that is what Trish Hargrove is. This court case started back in high school where Ms. Hargrove made my sister’s life unbearable. Nicole conquered her disability and is now a very successful businesswoman. She’s reached a point where her self-esteem is in her control. The physical action she took felt good, but she knows it was wrong. The jury heard her story and understood her frustration. You never know how something you say can impact another person’s life. It is our hope that people will begin to think before they slander another person’s reputation. My sister has again demonstrated how the Brooks’ carry themselves with dignity and grace.”
Just then a man from the crowd spoke. “Dignity and grace is a bit of a stretch for a man being hit with a paternity suit, don’t you think, Mr. Brooks?”
Vernon laughed. “I’m afraid you are mistaken, sir. My child is twenty years old and well provided for.”
“That may be, but can your father say the same?”
The cameras turned to Avery and Gwen Brooks. “Excuse you.” Gwen raised an eyebrow.
The man handed Avery a court order. “You’ve been served, Mr. Brooks.”
Avery opened the document. Gwen looked on, shocked.
“Pop, what is it?” Vernon asked as Nicole, Xavier, Nick and James looked on.
“Stacy Crane claims I’m the father of her son.”
Naverone and Genesis pushed through the crowd pulling the family from the courtroom steps.
“No comment,” Xavier stated as the media began shooting questions one after another. He stood between the cameras and the family as they were directed to the sedans waiting for them.
Nicole looked back as Xavier spoke to the reporters. “This seems convenient and contrived, don’t you think. The gentlemen who served the papers, he pretended to be one of you. Do any of you know him? Ever seen him before? I find that very suspicious.”
“Is there any truth to the claim?”
“I don’t know. It appears we are once again faced with the right to privacy issue. The claim, true or false should be discussed between Mr. and Mrs. Brooks, not through the media. No further comments for now. I am certain Vernon Brooks will have a statement for you soon.” Xavier turned and entered the last sedan.
Nicole was there, waiting with tears in her eyes. He gathered her into his arms and kissed her forehead.
“What is all of this really about, Xavier?”
“I don’t know, sweetheart. We savor this victory and move on to the next battle until we bring our enemies down.”
“Whoever is doing this is not after you. They want to destroy the Brooks’.”
“You are a Brooks. Your enemy is my enemy. We don’t take prisoners.”
The vehicles pulled up to the mansion as the family poured out and gathered in the family room.
“Gwen, I have never touched that woman. We shared some long hours at Brooks International and we had some moments, but I never even looked at her in that way.”
Gwen walked over to her husband, put her arms around his neck and proceeded to kiss him until all doubt of her belief in him was gone.
“You two need to get a room, or something,” Taylor joked.
It eased the tension in the room.
Avery kissed his wife on the nose. “I don’t know what this is about.”
“I have an idea.” Naverone stepped into the room.
“Of course you do,” Constance smirked. “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”
“You know one of the first things a dog learns?” Naverone stepped to Constance. “Never bite the hand that feeds you.”
“Advice coming from one of Vernon’s whores.”
Naverone kicked Constance’s feet from under her, then placed her booted foot at her throat when she fell to the floor. “I’m a lot of things, Mrs. Brooks. But I’m nobody’s whore.”
“Whoa.” Nick ran over. “Naverone, let her up.” The woman hesitated. “Let her up, now,” Nick ordered.
Naverone slowly stepped back. She put her tablet on the able then pushed play. “I’m not married to anyone,” she said to Constance, “but you are.” She stepped back as photo after photo of Constance and a man played across the screen.
“You are involved with a dangerous man. What he might do to you pales in comparison to what I will do if you ever attempt to use our daughter again. You have 24 hours to file divorce papers. If you do not, I will. If I file, you will not receive a dime.”
“Vernon.”
“Don’t.” Vernon shook his head once. “I’m five minutes from putting a contract on you and your man. 24 hours.” He turned his back and looked at his watch. “The clock is ticking.”
Gwen stepped around to see the photos. She gasped.
“Who is he, Mother?” Vernon asked.
Gwen looked at the picture again, shocked at the sight of the man. She glanced over at Avery. “I don’t believe this?”
Avery looked at the picture then stared back at Constance and sighed. He knew in that moment, who was targeting his family and why. He took his wife into his arms.
“One of you needs to answer my question.” Vernon’s calm demeanor was deadly.
“His name is Isaac Singleton,” Xavier stated as he walked into the room with Nicole. “Cannon was the man who approached me about the London project, however, I believe Singleton is the mastermind behind the threat.”
“He is also the man who hired Trish’s new attorney,” Nicole added.
“Mr. Singleton is the new owner of B7 Beats.” Taylor looked at her mother.
“Okay, everyone calm down for a moment,” James attempted to diffuse the possible explosion. He looked at his parents, who were now clutching hands. “This man seems to have a vendetta against this family. Nick and I are the only two he has not contacted.”
“That we are aware of,” Nick stated. “He seems to be working in a clandestine fashion.”
Naverone placed the other pictures on the table. “Mrs. Brooks.” She looked up at Constance. “You are being used to get revenge on the Brooks’.”
“I don’t believe that,” Constance proclaimed. “Isaac loves me.”
“He loves your connection to the Brooks’,” Naverone stated. “Everything this man has done in the last five years has been directed at bringing the Brooks’ down from grace, from the scandal with Nicole to the contract dispute with Taylor and now this paternity claim against your father-in-law. I have proof that this Stacy Crane has been working with Singleton’s people for a few years now. He’s Hayworth’s new partner in the London project Nicole is involved with. It’s all a scheme of some type to disgrace the Brooks’.”
“Why?” Nicole asked. “I don’t know this man. Why would he want to destroy my reputation?”
Xavier took her hand. “It’s not about you, sweetheart.” He looked at Vernon. Looking at the picture, he could see why. But, it wasn’t his place to say.
“Mother?” Vernon asked as he glared at his parents. “Who is this man?”
Gwen looked around at her family. Her answer would impact them no matter how it was said.
Avery squeezed her hand as she took a step toward Vernon. A moment ago, she was letting him know she loved and supported him no matter what the court document stated. Now it was him letting her know he was supporting her, for what she had to do now was not going to be easy.
Gwen reached for Vernon’s face with a gentle touch to his cheek. “Isaac Singleton is your biological father.”
The room was silent. No one moved or said a word.
Suddenly, Taylor’s voice hitched as she
turned to glare at her mother. “You’ve been sleeping with my grandfather?”
Epilogue
Atlanta, GA
"I wondered when you would show up," Isaac turned slowly in his chair to face the man who’d walked into his home uninvited.
Vernon stood in the doorway, legs braced apart, with his hands in his pockets, dressed as if he’d stepped off the pages of Men Weekly. "Disagreements are handled among men. You targeted my family. I call that a coward." He took a seat in front of the desk, crossed one leg over his knee and stared at the man behind the desk. "Allow me to demonstrate." The intensity in his eyes turned deadly. "The wife you can have, my siblings can take care of themselves. My Pop will wipe the floor with you. Mess with my daughter and I will kill you, your family and any remnants of your existence."
Isaac grinned, "Idle threats are beneath you Vernon, after all, you are a Singleton."
"Brooks," Vernon coolly corrected him. "Never issue threats." He stood. "We advise you of our intentions. He buttoned his suit jacket. "You've been warned." He turned to walk out.
Isaac stood. "You should know what this is about before you leave."
Vernon stopped and looked at the man. "When you dared to involve my daughter your reasons ceased to have merit."
"Funny you don't feel the same about your son."
Vernon watched as the man's featured turned dark. "I don't have a son."
Isaac stepped to the front of the desk. "Come now Vernon. You can't believe you could sleep with your brother's wife and there would be no consequences." He leaned against the desk, folding his arms across his chest and grinning.
Vernon held the eyes that looked so much like his and raised an eyebrow. A cynical laugh escaped from Isaac as he stood, bracing his legs a part. "The devil is always found in the details, son. Check James Jr.'s birthday, then count backwards."
Vernon stepped over to Isaac. "Stay away from my family."
"You are allowing another man to raise your son. Like father like son"
The punch landed before Vernon knew his intention. As he stood over the man responsible for his creation he growled. "Stay away from my brother and his son. Defy me and I promise you will not like the consequences." He stepped away from the man. "Oh, the men you have stationed around your house, they're not dead, just immobilized for an hour or two. Your goons cannot protect you from me.”