Squee

A FEW DAYS LATER-

Nelson was doing his thing...He was questioning potential witnesses....He Olivia and Beverly had agreed on what kind of juror they wanted...

Young ,White or Black female...The type that parties...He was playing a shell game with ADA Miles Ellis..

He would act like he had found a juror he really wanted...Knowing Miles would reject them...

Miles unwittingly went for the okey doke and rejected that juror...

 Olivia would smile and nod approvingly when a juror was found that we did like...

 So would Beverly....

Josie would just smile...

Miles Ellis was busy checking the girls out....

Nelson was going for broke...We wound up getting 7 young and attractive young ladies...Five white and two African-American for our jury...

This was better than Olivia had hoped for...She was thinking they would be fortunate if they got four or five..

Miles got two African American Males about our age and one white working class male..

The last three were middle age white women, the motherly type...Not our ideal, but workable..

We now had a jury!

We congratulated Nelson afterwords...

"You did your thing boyyyyy." I said and patted him on the back...

"Baby I'm sooo proud of you.."said Beverly...

kissing him passionately...

Nelson blushed and giggled..

Olivia hugged him...

"You are the greatest...I'm so glad you're married to my niece....We've come full circle...In the beginning...It was I who was mentoring and teaching you...Now you're teaching me and Bev."said Olivia ,who planted a kiss on his cheek..

"Ummmmph!" moaned Miles Ellis...Wishing he was Nelson at that moment...

He was enthralled with Olivia, Beverly and Josie..

He kept staring at Josie and then he remembered where he had seen her before...

The Willie Childs case!!!...She was with Yvette and crew...Yvette had told him that Josie was a para-legal ,was in law school in an accelerated program and that she worked for Olivia and Beverly...

To keep his mind on his trial at hand ,he questioned Lt. Tragg, still steaming about Dr. Oakley's interview a few days earlier in which he torched him...

"There's that damn quack, Oakley...I oughta belt him one."snarled Lt. Tragg..."Emptying parking meters....He ought to be changing bed pans in a nursing home...How is that?" he bellowed..

"Forget him...Did you go back over that crime scene like I asked you?" asked Miles Ellis.

"Yes I did..Nothing appeared to be amiss..but I can't help but think somebody was at that scene...The scene was compromised...I'd hate to have to arrest Olivia's husband.....I actually like the guy...He's ex-police..."said Lt.Tragg.

"Arrest him for what?" asked Miles Ellis..

"Interfering with an active crime scene...Obstruction of Justice..."said Lt. Tragg...

"He's a licensed Private Investigator, working for a defense attorney.....He's within his rights to investigate...You'd get nowhere with that...Didn't you arrest a P.I. before?  Did you learn nothing from that?" asked Miles Ellis, who had heard about the entire debacle with Kevin Morris and Dr. Hazel Baylor

 when he was working at his last firm...

Lieutenant Tragg said nothing...

Dr. Oakley walked by both of them.....

"Ouuuu the nerve of that guy..."growled Lt. Tragg..

"Forget about him...Concern yourself with this case...Find me something on that girl..Anything damaging...."said Miles Ellis.

 "Vanessa has surprisingly been good...She hasn't left the apartment I have her holed up in...I have a hum unit in her car and on her phone..I can track her movements at all times and I call her...She realizes the seriousness of this.."said Dr. Oakley.

 "The Judge told me that the District Attorney took the death penalty off the table...And he down graded the charges from First Degree Murder to Second Degree Murder."said Olivia.

 "At worst she faces Life No parole or Life with provision for parole if convicted...We can negotiate that if that should happen."said Beverly..

 "I need to find her brother's friend...This Squee person...Do you know his real name?" I asked..

"No, you'd have to ask her..."said Dr. Oakley..

"We have the jury we wanted...Now we have to work on our defense strategy...."said Nelson...

"Bev, we've seen discovery....It isn't much..."said Olivia..

"Considering the circumstances...It doesn't have to be...But I know what you mean Auntay.."said Beverly..

II-

Miles Ellis walked over to Josie,who wasn't part of the conversation...

He admired her cleavage and her sexy body...

"Hey...I thought I recognized you....You were with Yvette Jones and her team

a few weeks ago during the Willie Childs murder case...weren't you?" he said..

"Yes...I'm a para legal...."said Josie..

"I hear you're in Law School...In an accelerated course..."said Miles..

"I am...I'm at Drexel University."said Josie..

"That means you've had a lot of on the job training...How long you been with Liv and Bev?" he asked.

"I was there from the beginning..

"When Liv bought the Duplex /Office that we work out of..."

" Me and Beverly helped her move the furniture in and get the office set up.."said Josie..

 Remembering those early days...That seemed like a life time ago..

"You were there before Donnie Ray and Nelson?"asked Miles..

"Donnie Ray came a few months after we got set up...

He and Ms. Olivia were dating then...He came on as our Investigator..

and after a few months, they got married..

Beverly wasn't even dating Nelson yet...She had been dating a couple of guys...

Nelson was just trying....

A few months after Donnie Ray and Ms. Olivia got married..Beverly and Nelson got hooked up...They got married last year...With me being in law school and going to court with Liv and Bev and all..They needed an office manager...So they hired Beverly's mom..

Ms. Alfreda.."said Josie..

"That's Olivia's sister right?" asked Miles Ellis...

"Noooo...Olivia's older brother is Beverly's father..."said Josie..

"Ohhhh my, thus Aunt and Niece...So uh, I know once you graduate...Olivia has promised you a job right?" said Miles..

"Yup.."said Josie..

''Well here is my card....If you need some help studying for the bar..Call me..Drop by my place...."said Miles..

Josie was no fool, She knew she was being hit on...

"Just to study huh?" she said slyly...

"Yeah and relax....Heh heh heh..." he said...Smiling raffishly...

"Hmmm, Imagine that!" was all she would say...And she walked away....

Miles trousers were standing out like a circus tent....Josie was hot...He thought...

He saw Beverly walk by....

She is a straight up snack...He mused....That damn Nelson is a lucky man..He thought...

But Olivia...Olivia sucked the air out of a room..He thought....

He grabbed his brief case and left the courtroom...Too many fine women here for him...

III-

Back at our office....

 Olivia and Beverly and Nelson sat in the conference room and began strategizing on how they were going to defend Vanessa...

Josie went home and changed her clothes and came back and joined them...

In the conference room , under the watchful eye of Alfreda...Who was so proud of  her girls, Olivia and Beverly...who had come so far...

IV-

I found Vanessa in the place, Dr. Oakley had her staying in.....

I smiled , wondering why so many of these old rich guys kept a secret residence on the other side of town...

I'm certain I knew the answer...

Vanessa let me in....She seemed to be glad to have someone to talk to....

"Mr. Alexander..what brings you here?" she asked..

"Squee....Who is he?  What is his real name?" I asked..

She almost looked disappointed.

"Squee....That is or was my brother's lieutenant...His best friend....really his lackey...That's what I call him...If my brother said jump..His next question is how high?" said Vanessa..

"So you didn't like him?" I asked..

"Oh No No No...Squee is like family....He and my brother have been friends since childhood..I think though he liked me a little bit more than he should have....My brother didn't know...Squee had it bad for me...I uh unfortunately felt absolutely nothing for him....Sociopath or not..I still feel attraction for people like everybody else..I have sexual urges like everybody else." said Vanessa.

"But you felt nothing for Squee?" I asked..

"Not a thing!  He took me aside a couple of times and asked me to be his girl, to go out with him....I usually laughed in his face....I like a guy who is his own man...Not my brother's guy....Dating him would be like dating my brother...Plus I know he'd tell my brother everything we did...So I told him no, quite a few times..but he never got it...He still likes me...Ever since my brother's death he's been calling me,asking me if I'm alright...Asking me if I remember anything, anything at all..Asking me if he can come see me....I told him no..He doesn't know I'm here...I don't want any bother...Dr. Oakley has my cell phone,so that Squee can't track me..He thinks this is a situation where he can be alone with me and coax me into going to bed with him...THAT IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN!" she said.

"The night you and your brother got in an argument...Tell me what you do remember.." I asked.

"My brother and Squee came in...A guy was trying to talk to me and My Brother and Squee ran him off..My brother was going on like he was my father..Talking about my dress was too short and I was showing too much cleavage..Squee told him to chill out and to take a break...

My brother was so angry, he walked outside..

Squee had a bottle of Lambrusco...He had a glass...He said ''Let's kill this bottle...'' So we did..

The whole time he asking me...''When are you going to let me hit that thang?  I been wanting to get with you for a minute now...I won't tell your brother...It'll be between me and you..Nobody will know..come on now.." 

 "I was like Squee come on ,you know I don't roll with you like that.."

We kept drinking and he ran his hands up my skirt...He was rubbing my legs and trying to pull at the waistband of my panties...I was so weak and woozy ,I didn't try to stop him...

I remember him begging me to come on and let's go in the men's room...I said-"Hell no!" He kept begging me for a kiss.....

"Come On Nessa, just one kiss...Come on Now..." he asked..

"Go on somewhere Squee..."I said... 

He was  still rubbing my legs and trying to pull at the waistband of my panties...

"What are you doing? Stop it.." I remember saying..

"I can't stop...I need you bad.." he said.

"Squee, calm yourself down...It's not going to happen.." I said...

 and then my head hit the table..

He told my brother he was calling an UBer and that he'd see to it that I got home safe..and I vaugely remember getting into an UBER in the back seat...And Squee riding in the front seat...but that's it..

That's all I remember. Next thing I know...I'm waking up on the floor of my loft in my underwear, with no idea how I got there...Covered in my brother's blood..."she said.

"Well here is the problem...I called UBER, Nobody remembers picking you up that night or taking you to your address...I thought maybe it was a Lyft...I called them...Nobody remembers picking you up that night or taking you to your address either.  I called Yellow Cab, Germantown Taxi Cab and a few others...Nothing...So you weren't in an UBER OR A TAXI for that matter....I checked the Traffic Cam photos for that night...and I pulled a license plate...

"It's YOUR CAR!!!  Somebody drove you home in YOUR CAR!!! Your car was parked in back of your loft and your back door was open ,so that's how you and whoever entered without being seen by any neighbors and not being caught on the street cam.."I said.

"Really? No way I was driving..I was tore up drunk!..." said Vanessa..

"And unconscious!  You were in your bra and panties...when the police came in...Covered in blood and your brother was lying on the floor , dead with a pair of sheers protruding from his neck..."I said.

"I don't sleep like that....I usually have a few baby dolls or a night shirt I sleep in.." said Vanessa.

The visual of her brother lying dead and bloody didn't bother her at all or register any thing resembling an emotion...What an empty vessel.

''What is Squee's real name?" I asked..

"William...William Rodgers .."said Vanessa..

"I'm gonna have a little talk with him about what happened that night......Don't try to call him and don't let him know where you are..."I said..

"Uh Okay! I won't..I'm pretty sure he brought me home...I don't know what else transired" said Vanessa... "Oh Mr. Donnie Ray.."said Vanessa.

"Yes?" I asked..

"Ms. Olivia is a very,very lucky woman...."was all she'd say...

"Duly noted..."I said.

V-

Dr. Hazel Baylor walked into our office...She dropped

some files on the table....

"I sent a copy of these files to Lt. Tragg since he's the case detective...I haven't heard anything from him..He probably hasn't opened his mail...Too busy with his press conferences...I'm probably not supposed to be talking to you...but screw him...I sent him the report...If he didn't read it...That's on him.."said Hazel.

I was coming in the door just then...

 "This is the results of the urinalysis.."said Olivia.

 "We've been waiting for this." said Beverly...

 "I feel very nervous.."said Josie..

"Me? I'm curious.."I said.

"This is the results of her urinalysis...Which I took the night of the murder...at Valhalla..Her urine was full of Rohypnol ..The Date Rape drug.Well Like alcohol, the drug is considered a date rape drug of choice; attackers slip the drug into victims’ drinks to promote inhibition. The drug is given to unwary victims (male or female)  without their consent. The victim is physically incapacitated and has impaired judgment. This makes victims more vulnerable to assault and rape. Because of the memory loss and confusion under the influence of this drug, Rape cases are difficult to prosecute. Recently, screening for Rohypnol has improved."

  "Rohypnol is an odorless, colorless, tasteless drug. If you or someone you trust did not open the container, do not eat or drink its contents. Never leave an open drink unattended and avoid punch bowls which may be spiked. If you experience any of the symptoms associated with Rohypnol, have someone take you to the health center or hospital immediately." said Hazel...

It was a cautionary tale that both Beverly and Josie knew first hand..

"So She was roofied?" I said.

"Yes and there is more...That glass we found at the murder scene had traces of Rohypnolin it...It was mixed with Lombrusco...and there was two latent fingerprints on it...The bottle was in the trash...It had been wiped clean of prints and DNA....but of the prints we found on the glass...There can be no doubt..They belong to William Rodgers.

 Her panties had loads of semen in them, which is a DNA match for William Rodgers also" said Hazel.  "And his saliva was found on her bra...." added Hazel..

"That's ''Squee" that's William Rodgers real name...Vanessa's brother's friend...but how did you know that so fast Hazel?" I asked.

"Because He has a record...When he attended Community College he was arrested and accused of date rape...Drugging a young woman and raping her...Charges were dropped and a settlement was made out of court..but his prints and DNA are still on file." said Hazel...

"You know this guy Donnie Ray?" asked Olivia..

"No...but I'm going to get to know him." I said.

(CONCLUSION NEXT)