“So, um...you could have been my brother?” I let out a small giggle.
He threw me back onto my back and bore a stare into my eyes.
“I absolutely one hundred percent could NEVER have been your brother...” He pulled my hand down to his erect shaft and strategically wrapped my fingers around it. “..There is nothing brotherly about this. That is how it gets just about every single time I look at you.” Nope, definitely nothing brotherly about that!
Julian stayed with me that night but left early due to the fact that he had class and no clothes here to change into. I was thankful for the time alone to gather my thoughts enough to figure out how I was going to handle my lunch date with Mr. Hicks. I was still unsure why he had even agreed to meet with me. Did he want to see my face when he told me that I was hopeless? After hours of beating myself down with an endless array of ridiculous scenarios I decided it was time to check out for a while. Before I made it back to the comfortable silence of sleep Brea called to tell me that Jonathan had pretty much carried her all the way to Puerto Rico.
“What the hell Brea? What about your classes?”
“I have a paper due Friday, everything else is just lecture and review. I already called Tim and asked if I could borrow his notes for English, Music appreciation was canceled this week, the professor is sick, and Rebecca is going to fill me in on Political science. I will be back by Thursday.”
“Why did he drag you off to Puerto Rico in the first place?”
“He says you told him to.”
I was amazed by his serious mistranslation of my caveman comment.
“I never told him to take you to Puerto Rico! I told him to drag you off like a caveman and I was joking.”
Brea was laughing, I could hear Jonathan yelling at her to “Get off the phone and get back on my dick woman!”. I had a feeling he was only half way joking.
“Well, whatever you said. THANK YOU! I have to go. The baby is getting a serious lesson in sex education.”
“Uh, uncalled for!”
“Whatever, I just wanted you to know that I was OK.”
And then I heard Brea moan just before the phone hit the floor.
“Brea!” I called out but she was no longer listening, she was screaming Jonathans name in the background while sounds of wet flesh slapping together burned itself into my ear. Admittedly a part of me wanted to stay glued to the phone but decided it best not to embed the image of Brea bent over backwards filled the hilt with all things Jonathan into my head any more than it already was.
Chapter Twenty
Mr. Hicks sent me a text confirming our meeting and we both agreed to meet at The Hollow, a small French restaurant in Georgetown right up the street from his office, Bentley, Strathmore and Hicks. I pulled my hair back and put on my most capable outfit, a knee length pinstriped skirt, a pair of black pumps and the silky white button down blouse that I saved for job interviews.
I arrived to find that he was not alone, sitting next to him was a man about average height, , blonde hair very neatly groomed, glasses, suit, tie and a certain confidence that let you know that he thought he was important.
“Miss Hale.” the men rose. “This is District Attorney Mike Adler. Mike is the lead DA for Williamson County.”
Mr. Adler motioned for me to take a seat, both men sitting down right along with me.
“After we spoke yesterday morning, I thought it might be a good idea to have Mike sit in on our meeting today. I have briefed him with the news in which we spoke yesterday and he agreed to be here.”
I was feeling a bit overwhelmed but at the same time I was pleased to see that Mr. Hicks was willing to help without prejudice.
“I would actually like to hear the entire story from you Miss Hale. You have to understand that the State of Texas takes its convictions very seriously, your father admitted his guilt, so should I even consider giving this case a second glance you would need to provide me with some sort of incentive other than “I forgot”.
“I didn’t just forget Mr. Adler, I had a complete mental breakdown. I was just a little girl, I had lost my brother, my parents were miles away from me and I felt alone. Always so alone.”
“I see, I am assuming that you were seeing someone, a therapist or grief counselor perhaps, after said breakdown?”
“Many someone’s. I was diagnosed with Post traumatic Stress Disorder by most of them. Eventually I was seen by Dr. Schneider, who is my current doctor, and I was then diagnosed with rapid cycling Bi-Polar disorder. Something he felt was triggered by the events that had caused the PTSD. He was the one to suggest the visit with my father who was encouraged by his own doctor to admit to the truth that happened the day my mother was killed. It was an accident Mr. Adler, a horrible accident. Truthfully I don’t know if I will ever be able to forgive myself for the fact that my father has spent the better part of a decade suffering simply because I had a bad memory.”