Three For Three

THREE MONTHS LATER-

We went home to Philadelphia....Olivia and Beverly both got involved in other cases...We never forgot about the Richard Lingdon case...And in time..Sylvia Glenn called us...

Richard Lingdon's trial was beginning...Olivia, Beverly and I headed back out to Cali...Nelson unfortunately couldn't join us this time...He was involved in a big trial with his friend..Chance Howard, who was acting as his second...

Olivia and I both wondered how Beverly would hold up having to joust with Larry North and Nelson not being there....

Beverly didn't seem to be the least bit worried...She didn't mention Larry North at all..

To our surprise....Larry North met us at the airport...

 "Hey guys...I know you're surprised to see me huh? Sylvia and I uh mended our fences..I'm back on the team." he said...

He looked good..He had on a fantastic suit...Had a nice fresh fragrance on and looked tan and fit...

"California is good for you Larry." I said...

"Yeah,I guess it is..Hello Livy...We still friends?" he asked..smiling sheepishly.

"Sure Larry...I can't stay mad at you..."she said smiling and hugging him....

He didn't bother to say anything at all to Beverly....

"Hi Larry." she said...

"You guys still mad at each other?" asked Olivia..

"No...I'm good...Nelson told me that you called him a few weeks ago and you personally apologized to him..and that was all I asked you to do...So if you're willing to bury the hatchet...I can bury it."said Beverly...

Larry smiled.. "Sure...Well, Sylvia is waiting for you..So uh...Let's get going.." he said.

Olivia and I got in the back seat.....Beverly got up front....

Larry slyly put his arms around Beverly's waist....This guy didn't know how to quit while he was ahead.

She sighed loudly....

Here we go again I thought...

"You just can't keep your hands off of me can you?" she asked..

He smiled slyly...

"No I can't...You can't stop looking so damn sexy..." he said..

"Let's go see Syl."said Beverly....

We pulled off...He kept his arm around her waist....He tried to inch his hands up her dress,She removed them..He squeezed her gently...and tried to kiss her cheek..She moved away...

This guy just didn't quit did he?

I found the whole thing amusing...but I could look at Olivia and tell that for the first time..She was getting a little weary of Larry and how he was manhandling Beverly...

Sylvia lived in a two story house with a garage in San Francisco......She had a wonderful meal prepared for us when we got to her house...

"Girl..you put your foot in this damn food..."I said...

"Thank you Mr. Donnie Ray....This isn't the swank hotel you're used to..but it's cozy...There are two rooms..One for you and Ms. Olivia and another for you Beverly.."she said..

"This food is good and we don't mind...Thank you for putting us up."said Olivia..

"Yes, Thank you.."said Beverly...

"How about me?" joked Larry....

"Yeah......right?" said Sylvia laughing...."You have a bigger house than I do." she said smiling.

Thankfully...We were able to eat and enjoy a good meal without any jousting between Beverly and Larry North....

Olivia sat on one side of her and I sat on the other side of her...Larry sat next to me and Sylvia rounded the table out...

Next time we had to ride with him...I was riding up front...Livy and Bev were sitting together so that Shortcake could have some peace....Even I was perturbed with his antics...

Olivia and I insisted on washing and drying the dishes after the meal...

Larry North pulled Beverly to the side after dinner ...

"Seems Like I'm always saying I'm sorry to you Beverly.." he said..

"And I'm always forgiving you."she said and smiled..

"So you forgive me?" he asked..

"It took me three months to calm down..but yeah...I'm like my Auntay...I can't stay mad at you..."she said.

"I don't know what is wrong with me....I-I-I just get so frustrated..I want you so bad Beverly..."he said.

"You're mean. You've said things that have hurt my feelings Larry..Even if I don't have sex with you...We could still be friends...We were friends once...But you've been mean and you've said some hurtful things to me.."she said..

"I'm sorry Bev...Can we just start over?/" he said..

"No..we can't...Let's just move forward..." said Beverly...

"Can I have a hug?" he asked...

"I don't think that's a good idea...You'll ,you'll get all excited and get an erection and I don't want to feel that and have you grinding on me."she said..

"Where is your room? We could uh go upstairs ,in private and uh just talk...Maybe we could uh just hug in your room..." he said..

"It's upstairs...Larry..Stop it okay...There are other women...I'm not the only woman in the world...I thought you and Sylvia were kind of groovin...She's a pretty girl.."she said.

"We almost were until she found out how twisted I am over you...That ship has sailed..."he said..

"Well...Meet somebody else..This is California..I know there are a lot of women out here.."said Beverly...

"Hey how is Soloman?" he asked changing the subject..

"He's as happy as a clam...Married, got a cute baby boy...."laughed Beverly...

"He's married to Celeste Tate isn't he?" he asked.

"Yes."said Beverly...

"Your Aunt's girl...That's nice...I'm happy for him..."he said.

There was a silence between them...

''Still can't have that hug huh Bev?" he asked..

''No Larry..That wouldn't be good for either of us."she said softly...

"Scared you'd like it?" he asked.

"Yeah..that's it!" she said and they both laughed.

"Good Night Beverly... Good Night everybody...See you in court."he said and quietly left.

I hugged Beverly she leaned her head into my shoulder...

"Well...That went well.You okay Shortcake?" I asked..

"Yeah D.R. Shortcake is tired though."she said.

"It went well for now...Bev is sitting in the back with me the next time we have to ride with him."said Olivia..

"Thank You Auntay...He's becoming scary...I'm afraid now that if I did give him some..I'd never get rid of him."said Beverly...

We all laughed.


II-

The Third Trial of Richard Lingdon opened up to much fan fare...After all He had been convicted twice and twice sentenced to death....If he struck out this time...He most assuredly would be doomed and out of options...

Olivia told me that she was amazed at how little investigating and challenging the public defenders did that defended him in both trials...they let the prosecutor do anything he wanted and practically worked with him to send Richie to death row she said.

I knew my wife and I knew she was going to be different..  Richard Lingdon was all but a lost case until with the help of a jail house lawyer his case caught the attention of the "Innocence Project" and Larry North who assigned Sylvia Glenn, a very tenacious and promising young attorney he had been mentoring (and trying to bed) to the case...

She was no short than brilliant in court...Both Olivia and Beverly thought so....It was weird watching Livy and Bev acting as seconds to another lawyer...

Larry North was practically demoted to doing nothing but serving court papers to them...As she had said...Sylvia was taking the lead in the case...

ADA Brett Wilkens was as brilliant and tenacious as Sylvia and It took both Olivia and Beverly to tie him up...

And tie him up they did...They paraded ,against his wishes...nine people who placed Richard Lingdon at a bar in the hours that Barry Van was being beat to death at the motel....Plus phone records from Richard Lingdon's cell showing he made no calls to anyone and received no calls after he left work that night.

For my part, I managed to find at least two hotel residents from that night who heard the beating...Neither recalled seeing Richie Lingdon anywhere near the beatdown...

ADA Wilkens said merely...

''We know that the defendent wasn't on the scene..We know that Mikey Gloss committed this murder..but he was paid to do so by Richard Lingdon...IT WAS A CONSPIRACY!" he bellowed...

And that was what we were waiting for...

Olivia called inmate Jessie Gibson to the stand...

His testimony hadn't been heard in either trial....ADA Wilkens tried to keep his testimony from being heard,arguing that it wasn't relevant, but the judge over-ruled him and allowed his testimony to be heard.

"Mr. Gibson...You were cell mates with Mikey Gloss in San Quentin is that right?" asked Olivia..

"Yeah ,In San Quentin and in Soledad and again in San Quentin..."he said...

"So you guys have history..You were friends..."she asked..

"I wouldn't say that...We just shared a cell a couple of times...We aint close..."he said.

"Did he tell you that Richard Lingdon had nothing to do with this..and that he tossed his name in the hat so that he might be spared the death penalty?" asked Olivia...

"Yeah...and not just once...he told me that a couple of times...He felt bad that Richie was being sentenced to die..but he said it was either him or Richie." he said.

ADA Wilkens blistered him on cross..bringing up his own Manslaughter sentence and asking the jury if they thought they could take the word of an inmate....

Olivia then said that taking Mikey Gloss's word was no better and in fact the same thing...

These two were having quite a battle..

Days later it was Beverly's turn ...She called Mikey Gloss to the stand...

He smiled at her...He was checking out her figure and her breasts.....She was used to this by now..

"Mr.Gloss...Did you or did you not kill Barry Van?" she asked him...

"Yeah...I was convicted of it.."he answered and laughed..He was a classic definition of a psychopath!

"Did Richard Lingdon pay you to do it?"she asked him directly...

"Yeah..He paid me ten grand...He and Vann was fighting over a girl...A Lola Darling."he said and smiled..

"You mean this girl?" said Beverly who pulled out a glossy of her...

"Yeah, that's her."he said.

"I have two people who were semi permanent residents of the motel who say it was YOU and Mr. Van who were beefing over Lola Darling.."said Beverly...

His face sunk to the ground...

''No More questions."she said.

The next day...Sylvia called Mikey Gloss to the stand....

"Did Richard Lingdon pay you ten thousand dollars?"

"Yeah...You seen my bank statement.." he said..

"I'm going to ask you again...and remember...You're under oath...Did Richard Lingdon pay you ten thousand dollars?"she asked..

He was now irritated..

"YEAH!"he shouted..

"That's not true....You stole that money from the motel...We found records supporting that....and we found records that you forged...Mr. Vann found out you were stealing from him...That's why he fired you wasn't it?? It wasn't over the girl,although that didn't help you...."said Olivia...

"No..No..I'm telling you...He paid me to do it..He called me from the bar." he said."To make sure that the job was done."he said.

"You didn't say that in your first or second trial...Plus we have his cell phone records from that night...He didn't make any calls at all from the time he went to that bar and the time they had to take him home..He was drunk....There were no calls to you and he didn't pay you....You were angry that Barry Van fired you and dressed you down in front of Lola.."said Beverly..

"Is that what she said...?She's a liar...Why isn't she in here?? I'm tellin you...I was paid...I WAS PAID!!"he yelled..

The girls rested their case...

Larry North was allowed to do the sumnation along with Sylvia Glenn.....

The ADA, exasperated as he could be with his star witness wouldn't even look at him....

It took a jury 26 minutes to find Richard Lingdon innocent of all charges...The judge ordered him released immediately....

He burst into tears and hugged all of the women, Sylvia, Olivia and Beverly...

"Oh My God..Oh My God,...Thank you soooo much...I was days away from getting a needle for something I didn't do..because of that lying scumbag .You saved my life Ms. Sylvia, Ms. Olivia, Ms. Beverly...and Mr. North." he said.

"What are you going to do now?" asked Olivia...

"I'm going south...towards Los Angelas....Where the beer flows long and I don't know any of the local players..."he said.

"Sounds like a plan." I said and hugged him and shook his hand..

"Thanks to your investigative work Mr. Donnie Ray...I'm a free man,I sure could have used a guy like you during my first trial."he said.

"Your second one too."I said laughing..

We both laughed...

Beverly hugged him as the cameras snapped...It was a historic event...Sylvia,Olivia,Beverly,Larry and I had our pictures snapped and had to wade through a throng of reporters....

Mikey Gloss looked like he'd swallowed a canary...He was handcuffed and dragged out of the court and to an uncertain future...

 "I'm tellin you...I was paid...I WAS PAID!!"he yelled..as bailifs hustled him out of the courtroom..."Please...I'm tellin you...I was paid...I WAS PAID!!"he continued to yell..

Olivia and I kissed passionately....I was trying to devour her lips....

"Ummmmmmm Donnie Ray...I should win more of these cases." said Olivia,moaning softly...

"I don't care if you win or lose....I'd still be kissing you."I said as we continued..oblivious to everyone around .."

''Ouuuuu..I like that." she said smiling.

 "Livy...You're three for three in these death row cases." said Larry....

She raised her hand to acknowledge that she heard him...She was still kissing me...

Larry went to kiss Sylvia ,who gave him a soft kiss on the lips...They seamed to linger a little longer in that embrace than I would have expected... As they broke their embrace..She smiled at him seductively and then walked away...

He looked a bit surprised himself..

He looked at Beverly....

"Can I have a hug now at least Bev?" he asked..

''Can you uh control yourself if I let you hug me?"asked Beverly...

He surprisingly said..

"No...I can not...In fact..I'm a little excited right now....I don't know if it was from that kiss from Sylvia or the thought of having  that sexy body of yours pressing up against me...Uh...It was nice seeing you again Beverly...Livy..Donnie Ray....I'll be seeing you. Have a safe trip back to Philly and uh Tell Soloman I said What's up?" he said and he turned and walked out of the courthouse...

Beverly smiled and shook her head...

"Always full of surprises Mr. North." she said.

 Sylvia looked at Beverly...

"You know...He wanted to date me...and he was very close...very close to being my man, but then I saw what a butthead he is..outside of the courtroom and I decided not to...He'll never know how close he came to being my man.."she said.

"Same here...He'll never know how close he came to being mine...I knocked on his door and he had another woman in his bed...A woman I knew..She was one of our co-workers..." said Beverly...

 "Ouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu... Oh My God... Funny thing though...That man has some soft lips...He knows how to kiss a woman" said Sylvia Glenn..

"Yes he does..I'll give him that."said Beverly....and the two women shared a laugh..

"Sad thing is..Larry North is a brilliant attorney...Very brilliant and tenacious and skilled..."Said Olivia..

''He is..He'll do anything it takes to get the job done and he's willing to share the spotlight..All the things that make him a brilliant attorney just flies out the window once he's out of court...Out of the courtroom he's a total butt head."she said.

"But nobody is all bad...You think you might give the butthead another chance someday? It uh looked like you have already." I asked her..

"I don't know...We've talked and we've gone out for drinks since you guys were here the last time...Anything is possible...but I don't live in people's shadows...He's got to get HER out of his system first."she said smiling at Beverly..." And then ahhhhh maybe....But I don't plan to wait around for him either..There are a lot of good men out there."she said.

"I heard that!  "said Beverly and the two women high fived...

''Give him a chance Sylvia...He's not a totally bad guy... I think you two would make a nice couple."said Beverly...

''You do?...Huh? Who knows?  That's all up to him."said Sylvia.

''Wow..We didn't get to go shoe shopping...but hey look...I'll be in Philly in a few months...I have family in Cherry Hill,Maybe I'll look you gals up and we'll go shoe shopping in Philly or New York."she said smiling..

"It's a date girlfriend."said Olivia...

She hugged Olivia ,Beverly and me..

''Well ,let me get you guys to the airport... Bev, you can sit up front with me...I won't put my arms around you or try to put my hands up your dress."she said laughing..

"Oh thank goodness." she said..

We all laughed....

"But me and Donnie Ray are going to squeeze her and hug her and kiss her all the way home on the flight back."said Olivia ,hugging her niece...

"Can't help you with them."she said laughing...

I smiled..

"Take care Sylvia...Nice working with you again..."I said as we got in her car and pulled off.

EPILOUGE:

 Mikey Glass was tried for Capital Murder ,convicted again and sentenced to Life without possibility of parole..Again he beat the death penalty.....Some people are just lucky....Depending on how you look at it!

We did put in a good word for Jessie Gibson...and he was given a parole date...He is expected to be released in the spring...

Josie ,our office manager said to Olivia and Beverly...

"You guys go to San Fransisco twice and you don't buy any shoes? Unbelievable.."she laughed..

"I know right?" joked Beverly...

''Somebody did however want to plant their shoes under Bev's bed."laughed Olivia...

"That's cold Auntay..."said Beverly laughing and hugging her Aunt..

"That Larry North guy?" asked Josie..

"No grass grows under your feet Josie."I joked, hugging her..

"He called here for you Bev..About an hour ago..."said Josie...

"Oh God...Kill me now."said Beverly...

Olivia ,Josie and I cracked up laughing..

"Oh My God...What did he want?" asked Olivia...

''He wanted Soloman Foster's number....I gave it to him...He did say to tell you hi Bev."laughed Josie.

 He could never forget Bev.....I just smiled...Loved my girls..