But She Knew

Chapter 1

Tension filled the room. The defendant  leant back in his chair, a smile creeping over his pathetic face. I knew that he had the money to get out of here, I knew it just as well as anyone else in this room. But I had something better than money- I had cold hard evidence and a judge who wanted Jerry Anderson locked away for life.

"Your honor, the jury has come to a decision." Judge Martin simply nodded for them to continue. "We find the defendant... Guilty as charged."

The room erupted into a mix of cheering and shouting. I turned in time to watch Anderson jump out of his chair in anger, swearing to have the entire jury killed before the week ended. His eyes met mine as he smirked. A look that was all too familiar.

Officers escorted him past me, our eyes still connected. Leaning over as they past he laughed. "Go rest your pretty little head, Ms. Blake, while it's still connected to your body."

"That's enough, get him out of here." Judge Martin gave me a half smile then descended into the back room. I smiled then exited out to the hallway, waiting in front of the grand doors to where a crowd had gathered.

"Are you ready for the millions of news reporters and autographs you're about to be welcomed to?" Behind me came James, taking my hand in his. I could've pulled away from him, but I was afraid I'd collapse if he wasn't holding on to me.

"I was never one for the questions, but it's inevitable at this point."

"It's fine. I'll protect you," he smiled.

With that he pushed open the courtroom doors, and in a second we were blinded by camera lights. Questions were being thrown left and right, most of them more concerned about whether or not I was afraid Anderson's men would come after me, and none seemed to touch base on the case itself. James could probably tell how anxious I was becoming because he squeezed my hand firmly and led me to the podium set out for the interview.

"You all can rest assured that Mr. Jerry Anderson is being sent to the state penitentiary where he will be sentenced for life plus ten because of the numerous murders he has committed, alongside the drug dealing and human trafficking he has practiced. As for my own safety, I cannot lie and say that I am safe from Anderson's men, the Archists, but I won't stop until they are all behind bars. Being a lawyer, if you are on the rest side of the trial, is a civil duty. We put our lives out there to send the wrongdoers away in order to ensure the safety of the people. And that is what I will do."

A mixture of applause, screaming, and more questions broke the silence. But instead of hanging out to answer any of the number of insightful inquiries that were being shouted towards me, I allowed James to lead me to the limousine.
-------------------------------------------------------
Lucious stared in awe at the television. Laylah had locked away Jerry Anderson, one of those wannabe leaders that sold drugs not that far from Philly. He knew him because Frank Gathers and Anderson had beef which made the two groups enemies. But Lucious' eyes paid even more intense attention to where Laylah had her hand entangled in some white guys' hand. That man looked oddly familiar.

"That's who she left us for? For some sorry ass white wannabe singer? Psh." So that's why the guy looked so familiar. Luscious turned to find Hakeem standing in the doorway, lip curled as it was whenever he was mad. "One moment she's studying law here with us, then she just thinks she's too good for us. Should've known."

Lucious could say a lot of things, but he knew that more than half of them would be lies. And since the moment Laylah left, he already spent time convincing his sons that she was a fraud and unworthy to be around them. He destroyed their image of her to make them stronger, to make them realize that they didn't need anyone. And since that moment, he regretted it.

"She's gonna die, ya know? I've heard about Jerry Anderson, that guy got people lined up to kill for him. He a balla. That white bitch aint got it in her to survive. She played herself like a damn fool, huh dad?" Lucious gave a fake smile, then slapped Hakeem in the head. "Ow, man, what the hell was that for?"

Lucious wanted to yell at Hakeem to never speak on Laylah like that. That he was a punk ass little boy who knew nothing. But then he would have contradicted the stories he put in their minds about her. So he opted for the second reason he slapped Hakeem. Because Anderson was a crazy ass bitch, and Hakeem was right, Laylah had put herself into a tight spot by locking him up. But that didn't change the fact that Anderson was a dumb ass punk and that Lucious had been surrounded by realer men on the streets. And he didn't want his sons thinking some little white shit like Jerry Anderson was one of them.

"Don't call that waste of life a balla. You don't know nothing about ballas or the streets. Now get the hell out of my office, what did I tell you about coming in here without knocking?"

"Alright fine." Hakeem marched out like the little boy he still was.

Lucious sat at the corner of his desk. He watched the news title change from "Famous Lawyer Laylah Blake Sends Criminal Jerry Anderson to State Penitentiary for Life" to "Is Laylah Blake Dating the Upcoming Musician James Norman?" Lucious felt disgusted, betrayed. Laylah left and then found herself not any average white guy, but a musician who signed with Creedmoor. The company that Lucious' worst enemy ran- Billy Beretti. He couldn't wrap his head around why she would bother dealing with anyone associated with the man after all the crap Beretti put them through. But he knew the real reason he was mad was, because he never stopped loving Laylah.