I was relieved when the cops permitted me to see Jeff, although I only had 15 minutes to speak with him.
He walks into the waiting area with handcuffs on his wrist and his eyebrows are arched in surprise to see me.
After spending more than 24 hours in a cell, he appeared to be really worn out and stressed out, and I could only imagine what he was going through.
I could remember the few hours I spent in the school cell before he came to release me on bail. I felt like I had reached my breaking point during those hours.
"Hey," He says as he approaches and gives me a thorough inspection.
"When I heard the news, I was shocked and worried about you."
"Well, this is me," I shrug, and despite his handcuffs, he gives me a side hug, which I hold for a few seconds.
He keeps staring at my bandaged hands as I let go of him, and we both sit facing one other.
"Guy, I'm fine," I respond to his anxious expression, and he lifts his eyeballs to gaze into my eyes.
"What is going to happen tomorrow? I begin interrogating him because I don't have much time to speak with him.
My heart falls as he sighs and shrugs, motioning, "Nothing about tomorrow."
"You are so brave to go live about the chief," He remarks, and I giggle a bit.
I don't need his praise though, all I want to know is what is happening so that I could offer support.
"Is the lawyer Dad hired for you still representing you?"
"No," He gulps and replies in a short manner.
"What the hell are you and my father up to?"
"Nothing to worry about, dude," He answers, and I roll my eyes in disbelief.
"Guy, you wanna rot in jail primarily for the crime committed by my father, just like Ren's father?"
"There's nothing I can do to change that," He says, scowling at me.
I respond aggressively, "Then you need to explain to me what the fuck is going on."
He then started to explain,
"Since you passed out after providing the statement and the cops discovered no proof after scouring the mansion again. Your father is attempting to show the court that everything you said was said when you were under the influence of alcohol. He has your medical records and other evidence to support this claim."
"How about you then?" I inquire, peering into his eyes for a prompt response while he scans the area to see if anybody else is observing us.
"His plan is for me to be found guilty in court so that he can be set free," He whispers to me.
"Therefore, I will have to represent myself in court tomorrow while that lawyer will defend and represent the chief."
"What!" I exclaim.
"Yeah, if the judge finds me guilty, then..." He shrugs, not wanting to finish that when his eyes are red with tears.
"But you can defend yourself by giving the officers evidence," I say to which he nods no.
"Come on! You've been his PA for a while, I'm sure you know his warehouse or where he gets the cocaine..." I was expressing my concern when he interrupted.
"That's what you don't get, Man," He clarifies. "Your father has some powerful drug lords who he works with, he is not doing this alone."
"But you can expose them all,"
"Then neither you nor Olivia is saved," He says, and I sigh deeply.
"Now that I've regained consciousness, you know I can be your witness," I respond.
"The chief is doing everything he can to protect you and Olivia by covering these men up, and if I expose him, the cops will become more interested in the case, which won't be good." He continues. "That's not how it works,"
I give him a close look as tears start to form in my eyes. Of fact, he joined my father in drug peddling a few months ago out of necessity, but he is mostly going to jail for my father's crime.
"I'm not sure what will happen tomorrow," I could feel a tear trickling down my cheek as he continued. "I just want you to believe that I fell in love with your sister, even though I betrayed and lied to her,"
Like in everything, Jeff and I are of the same feather. We never engaged in meaningful relationships in the past, but after I met Karen, I could relate to what he meant now,
because we falling in love with them is unimaginable.
"I know exactly how you feel, dude," I respond softly. "Because I also fall in love," I add, and we both laugh a bit.
"It's just that love isn't always enough," I claim, reflecting on the idea that we betrayed Karen and Olivia's confidence.
They say keeping little things from the person you love to protect them can grow into huge problems.
Before Jeff could say anything further, the officer returned and indicated that my time was over.
We both get to my feet and look at each other.
I can't help but give him a bear hug.
Nobody knows what will happen tomorrow, but there is a good probability he will be found guilty. I'm just wondering whether that will be the last time I see him as a free man.
I pull back from the hug, and without saying anything, he follows the officer back to the cell, and I can't take my gaze away from him until he's gone.
I make a loud sniffing motion while attempting to contain my emotions. My phone begins to ring for an incoming call at this moment.
I checked to see that it was my mother calling.
I pick up and say, "Hey Mom."
"Can you please come outside?" I scoff a little, wondering how she could ask me to come out knowing I had just recovered consciousness.
I kindly reply, "I'm not at the hospital right now."
"I know, just come out of the damn station boy," She orders, and I gasp in surprise. How in the world does she know that I visited Jeff?
I begin to rush outdoors since I'm eager to see her.
When I step outside, I'm shocked to see her leaning against a Lexus ES 350. My mother is the only close relative I haven't described from the start.
My mother is a stunning woman of average height and curvaceous figure, with a fair and perfect skin tone. Her eyes are dark brown, and her face is oval, with high cheekbones and a straight nose, which Olivia takes after.
"My baby boy," She says as I approach closer to embrace her tightly.
"Why on earth would you even think of coming here when you are just getting better?" She alerts me as I remain silent, not letting go of the big hug.
"We're worried about you," She continues, and when I look in the direction of the car, I spot Olivia in the front seat.
"I don't want to go back to that hospital," I pout, finally taking a step back and looking her in the eyes.
"You haven't been discharged yet, Michael," She says, seeming concerned while I gaze over her in her suit jumpsuit and heels.
"I came here, I'm fine," I argue with a shrug.
"All right, let's get in the car." She concurred, and I grinned with delight.
My heart aches as I open the door and climb inside, remembering how I kept our father's worst secret from Olivia.
There is no question that she is disappointed in me as she chooses to stay silent and refuses to get out of the car. At this point, Mom gets behind the wheel.
As Mom start the car, I expressed my regret to Olly and said, "I'm deeply sorry."
"I don't want you to go through such, it was so hard for me when I found out more about Dad,"
"What do you suppose I am going through right now, then?"
"You being on an air of innocence was all I wanted,"
She shouts, her voice quivering, "You made me a fool all this time!"
"I'm so sorry," I keep saying in desperation.
"Well, Mom also knew about it all this while," She shrugs furiously and I immediately slam my eyes toward Mom in disbelief.
"What! Mom?" I say as she focuses on the road.
She argues, "All I was trying to do was protect you guys."
I shake my head in awe since I can recall attempting to keep it a secret from her as well, not realizing she already knew.
"Did you also know that Dad had Karen's father arrested and sentenced to 20 years in prison after framing him for theft?"
"What!!!" Olivia gasped in shock and turned to face me.
She should get ready to learn more about our father since she does not want to be duped.
"You have to answer me, Mother," I say as Mom decides to remain silent, her attention fixed on the road.
"Can we at least get home to deal with this if you don't want us to get killed?" She declares.
"I haven't been behind the wheel in this town in a long time," She adds.
I smirk since I can see from her answer that she is also aware of it.
As she drives, I also discovered we aren't on the route to the mansion. This makes me wonder whether she's taking me back to the hospital.
I swiftly called to attention, "I told you I'm not going back to the hospital ma'am."
"Relax, boy," She answers. "All of your father's assets have been restrained until further notice due to your statements," She is stating, and by deciding against going back to the hospital, my mind is at peace.
"I had got some of your things the law approved, and we have to stay somewhere else," She adds.