~ PETE ~
Virginia had beautiful seasons but no breath taking sunsets like this. It was quarter pass five and I had barely caught any sleep the night before. All I could think about throughout the weekend were the events that will happen on Monday. I start working on the homicide case with Sheila today. The thought of that made me anxious. Humidity from hot flash throughout the night made my pillow damp. The majestic rays from the sunset did little to distract me from my tormenting thoughts. She was married now, I needed to thread likely with this.
A hand passed over my back drifting me from my own thoughts. I turned on my side to face Agnes fully dozing with reckless abandon. Most people looked peaceful while sleeping. Agnes looked exhausted. She always looked exhausted. I couldn't blame her though. If she wasn't cleaning something, she was cooking it. She was the most selfless woman I've ever met. That was one thing that attracted me to her. Sometimes I wondered if she ever had her own needs or aspirations aside from this life. This entire weekend, I noticed she was extra distant. Probably pissed at the real reason I decided to take up the training program. I noticed her body countenance when she met Sheila. She'd seen her in pictures and heard all about her back home. There was already some underlining resentment but meeting her in person, I expected her to be more mature. She was always mature in cases like this.
Some part of me had hoped Sheila won't come to the party. The other, from the strings I pulled, wanted her to be there so badly but when the D-day actually came, seeing her there made me freeze. All these years had nothing on her. She looked breathe taking, she always looked breathe taking... Her healthy set of black curls was tied back to a low bun behind her ears, giving more exposure to that heavenly neckline. The half-opened short-sleeve shirt that hugged her bosom emanated the right amount of sexiness and that didn't help matters and Ohhh...the shirt was silk; her favourite type of fabric. Good to see her taste didn't change even after all these years. The immaculate pen skirt that hugged her curves glorifying that glass-hour figure the more made her stand out in any crowd she found herself in or at least to me. She always stood out to me….and of course...., the bloody bastard who finally put a ring on it.
I remember my reaction to seeing Graine attached to her name on that form. For years, I've been searching for her and praying she didn't settle down just yet. I had hoped she could still do that with me. She was mine... She'd always been mine. I didn't take much to it when I first saw that name on that form then out of sheer curiosity, I decided to look her up on the net and to my greatest shock, I had finally found my Shella….
Agnes groaned again. Oh yess...Agnes. I guess I couldn't get too mad at her for settling down, I too had Agnes but at least I was honest with myself to know she could never take her place. She could never be the one.
I avoided speaking with her throughout the party dissolving any rumours of our pre-announced friendship to any ear who cared for that gist but when I finally did, I regretted it. I should have just exchanged pleasantries and let Bustaine be cocky but unfortunately, Mac Peterson is a cocky motherfucker as well. The nag to school people who thought they could school me in matters most of us have refused to do some soul searching on for own personal validation took a hold on me. A flash of Laura's face came to my subconscious. I couldn't help but chuckle. That poor woman really thought of this profession as decent. That we are really in it to serve justice....."Pffhhh...." delusional ....anyways....anything that makes you sleep at night.
Then there was Bustaine...he wasn't ignorant nor validation seeking. No. He wasn't the type to lie to himself. A man at that age who has been in this line of work for years knows the real meaning of what it entails and how dirty you have to get to do what you had to do to win and he certainly looked like the winning type. He just didn't like being challenged. Neither did I.
The beeping sound of the alarm drifted me away from my thoughts. Agnes was still death asleep. The weekend was a long one. I woke up quietly in order not to disturb her, took a shower, microwave a burger from the left overs in the fridge and headed for the firm.
"You could have at least giving me a head's up. That's what's partnering means"
She was deliberately doing this. Of course I knew she wasn't going to make things easy for me.
"Remind me Pete, how many times did you interrogate clients in your office-that's if at all you had one" she said that obnoxiously while strolling to her office deliberately snubbing me.
"And you didn't know..." I tried to look for words that wouldn't sound rude. I came in at forty-five minutes past six. Normally, opening hours begin from eight for secretaries and eight-thirty for attorneys. Partners could be from nine downwards based on how full their desks were. And a suspect was brought in for questioning at six and I wasn't told by my partner whom I'm supposed to be working with. She knew fully well I was waiting for her in the associate blue pen.
"How am I to know the great SANDOR D.KRAUSS couldn't afford a proper investigation room."
"Well now you know." Her provocative grin even made things worst.
"I'm not going to say shit to that. I need heads up on the case". I took a sit by her desks.
"If you came early you would have known". She threw the case file in my face and proceeded to look for another file on the shelf. Trying not to start a quarrel by addressing that, I ignored and picked the file up glancing through it.
"This testimonial belongs to whom?"
"Her ex… apparently, he admits to being at the house the day she was murdered but he also said he threw him out quickly after receiving a texts".
"Was that the only reason she threw him out?"
she dropped the alien file she had been looking for, for hours on her table.
"They had an argument". She ventured into searching for another file. She sounded completely detached from the conversation.
"Did he tell you what the argument was about?"
"Look Pete-…." She exhaled before continuing, exasperated from the search. "If you were interested in knowing all this, you shouldn't have been late" her arms were at her side in a I-am-tired-of-your-foolish-questions-way.
"I wasn't late!" I reminded her.
"Whatever, sit down and study the file. Everything is in the case file or you don't know how to read as well".
Again, I was going to avoid the fight she was looking for but what I wasn't going to do, was tolerate her obnoxiousness which will eventually mess up this case. If we need to work together, we need to have some ground rules.
"Listen, I know this is the last thing you wanted especially with this case"
Her back stiffened. "Yes I asked around. I hear she was your friend. Your best friend"
"You're good at doing that…asking around…" she cut me short in an annoyed tone that conveyed she didn't like that I did that.
"Anywayssss...…Trusts me, I don't want this as well" I lied.
"If I could reverse it trusts me, I would. I tried to but what is done is already done. Instead of messing up a case like this-that I know is dear to you, I think working together will be good. I know you're a good attorney, one of the bests I hear but I also have things to offer and if you just give me a chance, this case will get close in no time and you'll be able to give your friend the justice she deserves. Fighting won't take it anywhere"
She didn't respond for a second. She turned slowly around and eyed me in an I-don't-give-a-fuck -about-that-speech-you-just-made. Her navy-green eyes were ice-cube cold. It sent chills down my spine.
"We don't have a problem. Keep to time and do the needful. That's not so much to ask" That sounded more like a warning than a peaceful conclusion but I will take it….for now.