I set up my food stall next to a jewellery tent at the Santo Padre town festival. Diana was helping me to unpack all of the baking we had made for this event. Albert slept in a front pack strapped to me while Miguel was taking Cristobal to the festival rides.
Fundraising wasn't my forte but this festival was the pride and joy of the town and everyone, including the Mayans, came to celebrate and eat everything they could. I only had a week before my trial starts and so far I hadn't had ample opportunity to give Angel his gift. As a last ditch effort, I thought a little guilt trip could work. The sign at the front of the table said the charity we were fundraising for - Families Together - Help us reunite children and their families.
It was a bit on the nose but all I needed was something emotive enough to get Angel to buy one slice. I had a special separated container that held a single serve of each bakery item, the only difference was the root of Water Hemlock that had been added. I had been very careful in grating the roots I had foraged and boiling them down to a sweet smelling syrup. They were highly concentrated and well above the known levels of fatal dosage.
I looked up from putting the last plate down and saw the Mayans approaching us. Bishop hugged Diana and gave me a small nod before talking to her again. One of the men came over to me and held out his hand. I recognised him from the time they kidnapped me and from the funeral, as a few had come to pay their respects.
"You're Nestor's sister right?" He asked and I nodded. "Sorry for your loss. I'm Gilly."
"Thanks." I said weakly, not shaking his outstretched hand.
Thankfully Diana was more engaging and sparked up conversations that included all the men as they crowded around. I plated up the sweets that they asked for and handed them over. I covertly added the special baked goods to the plate I was handing over to Angel. They looked just like the other plates.
"Two dollars." I said to Angel as I held the plate out. "So many families ripped apart, it's a shame."
"Excuse me?" He growled as he pulled the notes out.
I pointed to the sign at the front acting dumb. "The fundraiser, to stop families getting separated."
He grunted and walked off with his plate, hoeing the food into his mouth. I sat back down behind the stall and wiped away all the crumbs so no one got cross contaminated. I checked the time on my watch and just had to wait now. Miguel came back with an excited Cristobal telling us all about the bouncy castles he played on.
He had finally calmed down and was nibbling on chocolate brownie when screaming broke out. Miguel's guards closed in from their watch points on high alert. I saw a crowd of people down towards the stage area and the gossip started to trickle back to us.
"A man collapsed. Is anyone a doctor?" A lady called out as she made her way through the stalls.
We all shook our heads. I wasn't a clinical doctor unless they were dead, only then could I help. Marcus pushed his way through the lines and pinned a stare at me before looking at Miguel.
"It's Angel." Marcus said and both of their eyes flickered to me. "An ambulance is on its way."
I checked my watch and saw 20 minutes had passed since he was at the stall. Yeah, he didn't have a hope even if an ambulance was already here. I had to work hard to stop a smile from forming as I stared back at the men staring at me.
Miguel leant into me closely and whispered, "Did you have anything to do with this?"
"It would appear to be divine intervention." I said just as quietly. "Poor Angel must have had an undiagnosed condition."
"I'll bet he did." He chuckled before leaning away again and nodding to Marcus.
Marcus made his way back through the crowds to the Mayan's while we stayed at the stall. I needed to stay here so I didn't bring any attention by an early departure. It wasn't until an hour later that Marcus returned.
"He didn't make it." He said taking a seat next to his wife. "The paramedic said it looked like a seizure. Sudden but not unheard of."
"Give it a day then call Rosenberg. See what this means for the trial." Miguel said to his consejero. "This could be the Hail Mary we needed."
Marcus nodded to Miguel but his cold stare in my direction went unnoticed by everyone but me. I really hoped this was the last time I had to do something like this. Nestor may have enjoyed killing people but I didn't, it was just Darwinism to me - survival of the fittest.
The mood had dropped a bit but soon festival goers seemed to forget about the death as bands began to play. The remaining food sold quickly so I could pack it up and leave. Miguel had already left with Marcus and Cristobal so I drove home in Nestor's Audi that had been in Miguel's garage unused. It was a reminder that I would need to go through his estate with the lawyers. I could have all the time in the world very soon if I'm behind bars.
}~{
I stood up as the jury came back into the courtroom. It was day three of my trial and it was straining my mentality. My old colleagues, Agent Ramirez, Agent Tolkien and the security guards from the hospital all gave their statements of the events. Other than it being recorded that I was a recluse, they all concluded I was professional and never had any issue with my work.
My lawyer kept grinning and repeating his mantra 'it's circumstantial at best.' I tried not to get my hopes up because of yesterday's blindside. Potter had supplied a pixelated photo of Albert with Emily in Oakland. Mr Rosenberg had been blasé about it and quickly requested the photograph be discarded as evidence. It was clear to us who was in the picture but that was because we knew what they looked like.
"That could be any woman with a baby. Unless you have a witness to testify to your allegations, this is defamation to my clients proven good character." Mr Rosenberg had all but growled at the prosecution's table.
We knew they didn't have a witness and so when I was called to the stand I lied. I held my hand over that bible and outright lied. When they asked if my son was kidnapped, I said no. When they asked if I knew the whereabouts of Emily Thomas, I said no. My voice held steady when I thought it would choke and I was glad I wasn't attached to a lie detector. After that we had adjourned for the day, while the jury left to decide my fate.
I felt a hand on my shoulder as I straightened my black business suit I only wore in court. It was a little tighter around the waist than the last time I wore it and I realised just how different my life had become in a short time. I put my hand on top of Miguel's and squeezed it gently before I watched the foreman stand.
Clerk Rammstein turned to him and asked, "Have you agreed upon your verdicts?"
"Yes." The foreman answered.
"Of the seven counts of felony tampering of evidence, how do you find the defendant?" The Clark asked.
"All seven, not guilty." The foreman answered and I felt relief then and fear for remaining charges.
"Of the seven counts of felony obstruction of justice, how do this find the defendant?" The clerk asked.
"On six counts, we find the defendant not guilty. On one count, the disposal of Mr Michael Ariza, we find the defendant guilty."
I felt my stomach drop. I couldn't hear the last charge as blood pumped through my ears. I felt a nudge from my lawyer and looked up with wide eyes to see the judge deliberating. He looked between his papers and myself before gesturing me to rise.
"Your mother was murdered as a young child." He said and I nodded. "It was never solved was it?"
"No, your honour." I answered.
"You have helped a great deal of families, through this very courtroom, thanks to your work." He said and I just wanted him to rip the bandaid off and tell me my sentence. "Felony obstruction of justice is done in secrecy and with malice yet you recorded the destruction of Mr Michael Ariza's body, even though he was a part of a murder investigation. I don't think that is very secretive, do you?"
I didn't know if the judge was trying to fuck with me or not, was he joking? "No sir, it's not secretive." I answered and he nodded.
"Then it would appear it is not classed as a felony. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, you are needed to reconvene and find your verdict for one count of obstruction of justice. Non-felonious." The judge said and they began to file out of the room.
I dropped my head with a sigh wondering what was going on. Surely Miguel hadn't paid off the judge. Then again, if he thought he could get away with it he would. Mere minutes later we stood as the jury entered the room once more.
Clerk Rammstein turned once more to the foreman and asked, "Have you agreed upon your verdict?"
"Yes." The foreman answered.
"On one count of misdemeanour obstruction of justice, how do you find the defendant?" The clerk asked.
"Guilty." He said and once more my stomach rolled.
What the hell was this about? It didn't change anything. I was fighting the rising panic attack and nausea when my lawyer clapped his hand on my shoulder. I shot up straight and found him smiling widely.
"You're free." He said and I saw Miguel smiling too.
"But they said guilty." I said confused.
"$150,000 fine in reparations to the family of Mr Ariza and 2 years community service." The lawyer smirked.
"Well I'm grateful but I wouldn't exactly call it free." I said feeling the panic ease off.
"The two years is in service to the medical examiners office." He chuckled and clapped my shoulder once more.
The room was clearing out and I stood as the judge left the room not before I saw a sly wink my way. I walked through the gate at the bar and was engulfed in Miguel's arms before I saw my dad behind him. It wasn't until we arrived at home that I realised it was over. The heavy weight that had been pressing on me for 4 weeks was finally gone.
I had thought the hugs and kisses I gave Albert and Cristobal this morning were going to be the last for a long time but seeing them again I actually cried. I picked up Albie and wrapped my other arm around Cristobal holding them both tight.
"I love you, both of you." I said to the boys.
"Congratulations." Marcus said as I stood up. "It's better than the community service I had to do."
I laughed and shrugged my shoulders. "I honestly thought I was going to vomit under the table. I still can't believe it."
Once Marcus got over the fact I had thought and acted independently to remove Angel, our relationship had gone back to normal. Since no one else died, the suspicion had passed over pretty quickly. His death was determined as natural cause by an epileptic seizure leading to cardiac arrest.
"You could have told me you had the judge in your pocket." I said to Miguel when we had a quiet moment.
"I don't." He said shaking his head.
"He's a friend of the family." My father said stepping into the conversation. "His son served with Nestor in the Navy. Three years ago he died suddenly and his insurance wouldn't pay out to his young family because they claimed he was using drugs."
"Ergot poisoning." I said shocked. "I testified against Humana Insurance in that case. His family received millions in reparations."
"As I said, friend of the family." My father smirked before leaving with a new blonde on his arm.
It was all too much, there was too much noise from the music, too much heat from the open doors and too much people. I took the stairs two at a time I shut the bedroom door behind me, needing some reprieve from the emotional roller coaster of the day.
Even pacing around our large bedroom, breathing deeply and telling myself it was over didn't calm the storm raging in my stomach. I raced to the toilet and heard the bedroom shut as I emptied my stomach into the toilet. Hands pulled my hair out of the way as I heaved everything up until only bile was left.
I couldn't look Miguel in the eye after having him witness that. I washed my mouth out and brushed my teeth before even acknowledging his presence.
"You don't have to stay and see this. I think I'll just have a rest, I'm not up for all that." I said pointing to the party going on beneath our floor.
"I can handle it." He chuckled. "I'll just imagine this is how it would have been with you when you were pregnant."
I froze as I thought about it. I had assumed the weeks of nausea were because of the anxiety of my looming trial. My body had stopped producing milk and I figured that was because of stress too. The crying? Stress. The mood swings? Stress. Everything I thought stress related could easily be pregnancy related.
"Shit." I said looking at Miguel wide eyed. "I need a test."