Peyton's Place

We arrived at The Public Defender's Office....

''Wow...It smells the same...Like stale coffee.."mused Nelson..

"Same paint on the walls too!" said Beverly...

They walked past the office of a young lawyer, who was obviously overworked... His desk was filled with files ,his coat was stretched across another chair and his file cabinets were bulging...

"This was the office you and I shared Nelson..." said Olivia...

"I remember.."said Nelson...

"I remember thinking...I've got a law degree from Penn and this is the best I can do..."mused Beverly...

Josie and I just listened...Hard to believe these three started their careers so humbly....

"My ex-husband hated to come down here...He ridiculed me for years because I was a Public Defender....That really made me start putting resume's out there until I finally got an offer at a big
corporate firm downtown.." said Olivia..

"After you left Auntay, I started putting my resume out there too...I remember you helping me with it over at my apartment...I couldn't bear being at your house with that bum ass asshole you married."said Beverly..

"Guess you didn't like Elwood,huh Beverly?" I joked..

Josie laughed...

"Liv, when you left...I really felt alone...I knew Beverly wasn't going to be there much longer....Ms. Celeste had become and ADA and Larry North had left for Texas and the Innocence Project....and when Beverly left to go work for Immigration in Washington D.C.  I was very depressed....I even called Larry North and inquired about working for the Innocence Project.."said Nelson...

 "YOU DID?" asked Olivia in amazement!!!!

"WHAT DID HE SAY?" asked Beverly..

"He asked for a resume, which I scanned to him......Then he asked me about Bev...I told him she accepted a job in D.C. at Immigration and he hung up....I never heard from him..."said Nelson..

Olivia ,Beverly and Josie cracked up laughing...

 "I'm sorry Nelson, That is sooooo funny, that is sooo like Larry North.." said Olivia...Hysterical..

 "You weren't even my boyfriend then....."laughed Beverly...

"But you didn't go to D.C. to work at Immigration.."said Josie..

"Nope....By then, I had hooked up with Auntay and became her partner...but Nelson didn't know that for about a month...When we ran into each other again and I told him about the partnership and gave him my new address....He was sooo happy...I didn't know why.." joked Beverly, who kissed her husband..

''Nahhhh Snookums....I know why....If I had had any sense...I would have been happy too...Had no idea my future husband was looking me in the face.." said Beverly..

Nelson smiled..

''I knew it Nelson.."said Olivia ,rubbing his back...




II-

"Oh My God....Yall still together...Olivia and Beverly...The Auntie and Niecy Show!.."came a voice...a familiar voice..

"Hello Ms. Peyton Young...I hear you're the big cheese over here now.." said a smiling Olivia...

''HA!  Not as big a deal as you and Beverly are...You're like our heroes...Everybody knows you two started here....and now you got your own practice and you're on the news nationwide, taking on big cases..."said Peyton Young...a carmel colored , shapely and attractive Black woman.... She was the Senior Attorney here at the Public Defender's office...

"Let me introduce you to my staff....You know my niece ,Beverly..."

she said..

"But of course...We were rivals at a time for uh Mr. East over there....I see he still hangs with you two.."said Peyton...

"I'm Mrs. East now...We got married a few months ago..."said Beverly....

''WHATTTTTT??? You and Nelson???...Yall Married? Wowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!  He finally got his Beverly huh?  He was crazy about you....I never knew if you really liked him or just was passing the time with him...Guess you really liked him too, huh? " she said.... "Oh, excuse me.." she said and ran to a trash can and vomited.....

She ran in the kitchen and washed her hands and ran a cool towel across her face...

"I'm so sorry...Something I ate doesn't agree with me.." she said..

Olivia and Josie looked at her funny....

"Josie here, Josie Boyd is our Para -Legal....She supports me and Beverly...and this man here is my husband..Donnie Ray Alexander.. He's our firm's investigator..

"Pleased to meet you.." I said..

"Ohhhh Olivia!!! Olivia ,you got married again!!!..Good for you Liv...I didn't care for your first husband..."said Peyton..

"Nobody did!" said Beverly...

We all laughed...

''So I heard you have a Duplex with an office below it.."said Peyton...

"Yes... Nelson and Beverly live on the first floor above the office..

and my husband and I,

Live a floor above them..."said Olivia..

''So Nelson works with you guys too?" asked Peyton..

"Not yet...He works for Robert Foxworth and Associates...but I'm going to steal him from them eventually..."said Olivia...

''So what brings you here? Slumming?" asked Peyton..

"We are representing Arthur Trout, The Attorney accused of killing Micheal Stratton..."said Olivia..

"Oh, excuse me.." she said and ran to a trash can and vomited again.....

She ran in the kitchen and washed her hands and ran a cool towel across her face...

"I'm sorry ,I appear to be under the weather..." she laughed nervously...

 ''Peyton....How far gone are you?" asked Olivia..

"You know huh?" she said..

"I've been pregnant twice!!!....Two miscarriages....I know what it's like..."said Olivia..

III-

We walked past the office of the over worked Public Defender...

''Dex....Take Five...I need this room for a few minutes...."said Peyton..

He gladly left....

''How did you know?" she asked..

''We didn't know you were pregnant? Congratulations.."said Beverly...

"We came to ask you about your engagement to Mike Stratton...Last year...It ended so abruptly..."I said..

"Yes it did...he dropped me for States Attorney Peters...And before you ask....Yes..I was angry, yes they had to get a restraining order out on me....but after I had the abortion....I left him alone...Thing is..HE WOULDN'T LEAVE ME ALONE....He kept calling me late at night, dropping by unannounced with wine...and well, one thing led to another..."said Peyton..

''Peyton!  Is...Is he the father of this baby?" asked Nelson..

''Give that boy a cigar...Beverly , you got a bright one there.."said Peyton..

Beverly hugged Nelson...

and gave him a soft kiss

Olivia smiled..

''Peyton....Again? He got you pregnant again?   Did he know?" asked Olivia..

"I don't know...I emailed him and  I tried to tell him, but that damn Personal assistant of Kathryn Peters, Barbara Jessup, would never let me get close to him..."said Peyton..

"But she knew right?" I asked.

"She knows everything..  She sent me a check to get this taken care of...I've been debating whether to do that or to go on and have it...I don't know..."said Peyton....

"Peyton , Did you know he was allergic to Walnut Oil?" I asked..

''To what?  He started a vegan diet a year or two ago and he said he had some serious allergies, but I never knew just what... Why do you ask?" she said..

''He was poisoned with Walnut Oil....He was kissed and the lipstick had Walnut Oil in it...He went into shock...Someone got him an epi-pen, only it was filled with Walnut Oil.too!...It killed him!" said Olivia..

"Damn...What a way to go...Killed by a kiss...but where do you find Lipstick with Walnut Oil in it?" asked Peyton...

''Apparently some have it  in it's base..I've never checked out my lipstick's ingredients.."said Beverly.

''Me neither...Who does that?"asked Peyton...

"That's the question we asked.." said Olivia..

"Yeah..."said Beverly.

 ''Apparently, whoever killed him knew and checked their labels.."I said...

"Ohhhhhhhhhhhh, excuse me..." said Peyton , who ran into the restroom off to the side...This time she vomited into the toilet and flushed it....She ran some cold water and took a dixie cup and washed her mouth out...She then ran some cold water across her face and dried it off with a paper towel....

"The second time I was pregnant....I had morning sickness like that.." said Olivia..

"I remember.."said Beverly smiling...

Josie went outside...She came back with a bottle of Ginger Ale...She passed it to Peyton.

"Drink this...This will settle your stomach..." she said.

"Thank you!" she said..

"Oh Peyton...I'm sorry..."said Olivia..

''Don't be...I uh got a job offer....From our old friend, Larry North out in San-Francisco....I might take it..I need a change of scenary..." said Peyton... "I gotta decide if I'm going to have this baby or get rid of it.." she said..

"You've got to decide quick.."said Beverly...

''I know....Oh Excuse me.." she said.. and ran to a trash can and vomited again.....

She ran in the kitchen and washed her hands and ran a cool towel across her face...

She tied the hefty trash can liner up and put it out in the hallway.....She replaced it with a new one..

"I've filled that bag up this morning.." she said..

"Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh honeyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy.."said Olivia..rubbing her back.

"I didn't kill Micheal...If that's what you're getting at...He was a bastard...but he was the father of my future child..I just don't have that kind of hate or anger in me.I didn't know about his specific allergies." she said dryly...

"I believe you!!!.....Come on guys let's go...Take care of yourself Peyton..."I said..

"Here's my number...Call me if you need anything...You hear me?" said Olivia..

"Thanks girl, I will!...Nice seeing you again Bev, Nelson..."she said..

''Same Here Peyton, Take care of yourself.."said Beverly who hugged her...

 "Bye Peyton..."said Nelson..

"Nice meeting you Peyton.." said Josie..

''Same Here Josie..."she said.

Peyton waved as we drove off..

IV-

A night later we were all at Aqua bar with some friends, Gary Lockwood and Yvette Jones..

 and our client, Arthur Trout and his girlfriend, Samantha...

Drinks were being served....

In addition to Olivia's drinks...I was paying for Gary and Yvette's as promised..

''I needed this night out..We've been working hard preparing for this case.." said Olivia..

"Yeah It begins Monday...That Jury selection was grueling enough..This ADA Billie Lawrence is something...She's worse than Rockland Cambridge  and Margaret Barnes..."said Beverly...

"But I beat her once...Remember Liv?" said Nelson...

"I do...Years ago...I was second chair on your case..." said Olivia, smiling..

"I remember that....I had just begun working at the public defender's office....I was in court watching..I must admit Nelson...I was a little turned on by you that day.." said Beverly...

"Just a little,Baby Girl?" laughed Yvette Jones..

"Just a little.."joked Beverly, who hugged her new husband tightly....

Nelson blushed and smiled.

 Yvette thought the two of them were so cute!

''Well I hope the three of you can beat her again..." said Arthur Trout..

''How did Jury selection go?" asked Samantha..

''I think we may have gotten 7 of the jurors we wanted." said Josie..

"We used one of your tricks Yvette...We expressed interest in a juror we knew she'd reject and picked the juror we wanted.."said Olivia...

"The old bait and switch....I taught my young charges that.."laughed Yvette..

''So...You nervous about the trial Monday?" asked Gary to Arthur..

"No...I've gone up against Olivia and Beverly many times...In and Out of court...and I always said...If I ever found myself in trouble...These two are the ones I'd want in my corner.."he said..

 ''Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.."said Olivia..

''He likes us Auntay...He really likes us..."joked Beverly...

"Well you got two good ones and Nelson is third chair on this...I think you'll be just fine.."said Gary.

''Hey man, thanks again for your heads up...Thanks to you...I'm one hundred percent certain that ADA Lawrence has no clue as to what our strategy is...Even after we cleaned the place...We stopped talking about what we were going to do...We wrote everything down and then shred it.."I said..

"You weren't taking any chances huh?" laughed Yvette...

"None and I think I know who killed Mike Stratton..."I said..

 "You do?" asked Samantha.

"You do?" asked Arthur...

Gary smiled slyly..

"If Donnie Ray says he knows....He knows.."said Gary....

And sipped his drink...

"Come to trial...It'll all come out.." I said.

"Enough Shop Talk...Vettie are you going to go public with Gary?" asked Olivia..

"Interesting minds want to know..."joked Beverly...

Josie laughed...

"We are public...My younguns know...You and your staff know...The only person who doesn't know is Rockland..and does he need to know?"laughed Yvette..

"I keep telling her I want to tell him...Maybe he'd stop waking us up at 2:00 in the morning.."said Gary...

''He still doing that?" asked Nelson..

''No, Not sense he and your mom got back together Beverly.."said Gary...

Beverly laughed..

"He's as Happy as a clam now of days.." she said..

''Called me "Livy" And Not Mrs. Alexander.."laughed Olivia.

Everybody was loose and happy tonight...The calm before the storm..

I thought about Peyton...Pregnant, has an abortion...dumped for a more prestigious lawyer...and then impregnated again by the same guy on the eve of his engagement..

Mike Stratton really was an asshole..and if anybody had a motive to kill him ,Peyton did

...but she didn't kill him...Neither did his fiance, States Attorney Peters...

..but it was as clear as day to me who did...I couldn't wait for the trial to start..

(CONCLUSION NEXT)