Maximilian Mcdowell- ESQ.

Chapter 2- A day in the life.

"Angelina Witt?"

I looked up when I heard my name. The officer waved for me to follow, leading me down the narrow hall and to the visitation room. I sat down in front of bulletproof glass, and watched as my Anthony was walked out and sat down in front of me. So close... but so far away.

I picked up the phone and he did the same, giving me a weak smile, a shadow of the happy face that lingered in all of my photographs. "Did you talk to Maxi yet?" I asked, careful to control my tone of voice so as not to upset him. He nodded. "He came by this morning, early. We discussed different plans and options... but nothing is set in stone yet. We have a couple of days left to decide for sure, and he told me to think about his advice before I make up my mind." He swallowed some, or maybe it was a gulp. "He said we could request to move the case to a different county, maybe. That way the jury might not know quite so much about me, maybe less about the case too, even. But it's a stretch I guess. Or we could try pushing for a jury-less trial but... he thinks having a jury will work in my favor. Easier to make one out of 13 realize I'm innocent than 1 out of 1 I guess." He smiled again, and I gave him a slight chuckle.

"What do you think you're gonna do?"

"Move it, definitely. But I want... I need a jury. I just need to make them understand that I'm innocent."

After that, the conversation moved on to my life. My job, had I been seeing any friends lately... I lied, for his sake. Told him everything was normal, that my friends and I had just seen a movie the other day, and laughed along with him... in truth, my friends hadn't had anything to do with me since his arrest. Not that I missed them much, honestly. My time and my life was dedicated to looking up legal loopholes, laws that could help him out. That... and sleeping.

Later, I found myself at a tea-shop that I hadn't been in in ages. I ordered a mint tea, hot, and took a seat near the window. Outside the sun beat down and couples wandered in between the antique stores and small family shops that littered the area. I sipped my tea, slowly, watching a couple of young teenagers walk, hand in hand, down the street. When was the last time I'd been on a date? I honestly couldn't remember. Not that it mattered. There was less than any room in my life for a relationship right now.

I walked home again, taking the long way. Anything to put of my nightly ritual just a bit longer. My phone startled me by ringing to life, blaring out a happy tune that felt totally out of sync with my thoughts.

"Hello?" I answered in a high tone, trying to sound happy.

"Ann?"

I breathed a sigh of relief. It was Maxi, and judging by what he called me, he wasn't calling for any official reasons. "Hey Maxi! What's up?"

I could hear the tense smile on his face, even over the phone. "Research. Trying to find out what evidence we might be up against, see who the witnesses are... it looks like they have 9 now."

I winced. Nine witnesses... nine people who claimed to have proof that Anthony was a murderer. "Is that including me?"

"Yeah. Lucky for us. The number may grow if I can find some people who can testify that he was nowhere near there but..."

That but didn't need to be finished. Both of us knew the situation- he claimed to have been home alone. I had been out, finishing up a late night of work, and when I'd gotten home he'd already been in bed. No one had come to visit, no one had gotten a call from him... it was messy. "Anyway," Maxi said over the phone, "I didn't call to talk about the case."

"So why did you call?"

"I wanted to see if... if maybe you wanted to come over tonight. Watch a movie. Something. I can tell how stressed you are about all this and that's not good. Not healthy either, for what that's worth."

I nodded before remembering that he wouldn't be able to see it over the phone. "Sure. Absolutely. What time?"

"I mean... right now if you want. I'm on my way, you shouldn't beat me by too much."

"Alright. I'll see you then. Bye."

"Bye Ann."

I hung up and plastered a fake smile on my face, redirecting myself toward Maxi's apartment.

Maxi lived in the same town as Anthony and I, obviously. His apartment, however, was in the nicer side of town, and was far larger than mine. It had two bedrooms, one of which served as his library, a large and luxurious living room with a balcony that overlooked one of the three parks in our town, a kitchen with two ovens, and a bathroom that made mine look like an outhouse. When I got there, he was already there and he buzzed me in. I entered the apartment to find him wearing his suit still, playing with his dog.

"Ann! Good to see you again." He smiled as he said it, speaking in a far more excited tone than he usually used. This wasn't lawyer Maxi, this was friend Maxi, and the difference was exceptional. "Have a seat anywhere."

I sat at a stool in his kitchen and laughed as Sailor, his dog, came to greet me.

"You two ladies relax in here, I'm going to go change."

He walked toward his room and closed the door, leaving me alone with Sailor, who I petted absentmindedly as I looked around. His wall was littered with news-paper clippings and pictures, from college, from high school, stories about crimes and court cases, his wins, his losses... and of course, a section dedicated to Anthony. I gave that one only a passing glance before moving on to my favorite thing to look at in his house, his music collection. He had an iPod set up to speakers throughout the apartment, so he could play music wherever he went. I turned it on and scrolled through his songs, finally picking one by Animal Collective, something that I hoped would sound calming without making things horrendously sad and awkward.

He walked back out wearing some sweatpants and a loose white shirt, and having exchanged his cooler glasses for large nerdy looking ones. I grinned at him, remembering yet again just how cute he could look when he let his guard down. His hair, dirty blond and shoulder length, was curly and tangled now, and he didn't bother to fix it before sitting down and calling Sailor over to him. I walked into the living room as well, flopping down onto his sofa with an audible sigh. The smell of leather, cologne, and dog fur greeted me as I planted my face into it, and it was delightful. Far more so than my own lonely apartment.

"What would you like to watch?"

"Anything." I said, sitting up slightly. "Nothing sad though. Or... crime related. If that's okay."

"Hm... Jurassic Park it is."

He stood and put it in the DVD player, then sat back down. "Pizza okay?"

"Pizza is great."

"You order. I'll pay."

I didn't realize how late it was until far after midnight. I stood to leave and Maxi shook his head authoritatively. "I can't let you walk home this late. C'mon. Just stay here."

I shook my head back at him. "I will be perfectly okay Maximilian Mcdowell. Trust."

"Ann it's 3:45 AM. Just... stay here for the rest of the night and go home in the morning. It's safer and smarter."

I groaned. "Fine. But you're not sleeping on the couch, I am."

He smiled and walked to his room, coming back with a blanket and two pillows. I made myself snug and comfy on his couch, and he turned off the light and went back to his room, leaving Sailor with me. That night, I dreamt of the court-room, the trial... and I dreamt of failure. The sting in the back of my throat, the fear... I woke up crying, only to find Sailor licking my face gently, curled up on my chest. I petted her again, thankful after all that I had stayed the night.