Blue Fire (Edited)

Chapter 27: Court in Session

"We have to come up with a backup plan to find out who betrayed David all these years ago; that person may still be on the council and pose a threat to us now," Phillip stated quietly as he and Elaine huddled up in a booth at a random Chick-Fil-A. He had suggested the location since he was paranoid that the house could also be bugged by the said councilman. Together, they had just finished laying out their plan for his trial proceedings.

"I think we need to first get a list of all the councilmen who are suspects and find out if anyone had a motive," Elaine suggested.

"Great, and I know just the people," Phillip said, getting up and pulling her to her feet.

They got to the car, and he pulled out a business card from his wallet. She could see a cop's badge on the side, and the name read: Sophia Bells. Phillip proceeded to enter her address in the car's GPS system.

"Can we trust her?" Elaine wondered out loud.

"As far as I can tell, she has quite the temper but is trustworthy," Phillip answered.

The map navigated them to an impressive, lavish-looking apartment building in downtown Houston. Upon giving the valet his car keys, Phillip led her to the main front desk.

"We're here to visit Mrs. Sophia Bells," Phillip told the security guard manning the desk.

"Does she know to expect you?" he asked.

"No, but tell her Phillip and Elaine are here with very important information; it's a matter of life and death."

The security guard raised an eyebrow at Phillip's melodrama while picking up the phone and dialing a number. Phillip just stared at him coolly. The door to the security guard's right beeped, and he motioned for them to go through it. Phillip held the door for Elaine, and it opened up to a large, grand foyer with a crystal chandelier hanging in the center.

"How can a cop afford this?" she asked.

"She's an enforcer, and her husband is a councilman, I'm sure they make plenty," Phillip responded as they crossed the foyer and got to the elevators.

The elevator opened up on the 12th floor, to a long warmly lit hallway with a coffered ceiling. They reached the last door on the right, and Phillip rang the doorbell. Immediately, a gorgeous, slender, blue-eyed blonde woman yanked the door open and stood at the entrance without a word. After a moment, she motioned for them to enter. Elaine could see the anger radiating off her in waves. She glanced at Phillip to see if he wanted to run in the other direction. The woman was a deadly beauty. Instead, Phillip placed a hand on her waist and ushered her in while Sophia slammed the door behind them.

"Sophia, I understand you're angry with me," Phillip said, trying to soothe her.

"Angry... angry!" she said, pacing in front of them and pointing a finger at Phillip. "Angry is an understatement. I'm furious with you. Do you know what has happened to me because of your antics? To my husband? They think he was in on it as well. We were interrogated for two days straight, and now we've both been put on suspension until your trial is over on Monday... ugh, I could just..." Elaine could see her blue aura intensifying like her anger was fueling the flames. Elaine put her hand out, ready to put up a shield, while Phillip remained composed, unmoved, and crossed his arms, a stance she had seen him take many times during training.

"Stand down, all of you," someone commanded with an air of confidence as he descended the stairs to their right. For the first time, Elaine took in the apartment's interior. They stood in a circular foyer, with stairs to their right, a formal living area to their left, and a large floor-to-ceiling mirror ahead of them. The man crossed the landing and stood by Sophia's side.