9

Janet

We walked up to the house doors.

Gil sighed as he used a pocket knife to cut through the yellow tape.

He looked back at us. "Look, we can go in. It's already been sealed. They found no further evidence. We go in, you explain exactly what happened and we get the camera footage and go."

Bethany had been quiet this whole morning.

I turned to her as Gil put the key in the door. "You don't have to do this. We can come back a later day."

"Courts tomorrow Janet." She responded lowly. "There is no later day."

That was another thing, 'Janet' was now a reoccurring thing.

Probably because we hadn't had a discussion about how we left things. I was just so angry, that I said things I didn't mean.

However, I knew that this was not the time.

Gil opened the door and Bethany walked in front of us as she entered.

She stopped once she got into the living room and pointed to the floor. "I came down the stairs again after— uh after Nadia stabbed him again and I paced. The blood right there is from the dress I had on. It stained the carpet when I took it off."

Bethany took a deep breath as she began to climb the steps. She studied a portrait of her and Tommy and Nadia on the way up.

Gil broke the silence. "No offense but Nadia doesn't look nothing like Tommy. That man is brown skin and that little girl is light skin."

Bethany looked at Gil. "Never said that Tommy was Nadia's father. He just portrayed the role."

She went upstairs and Gil and I shared a look.

"What if the camera footage isn't here?" I asked Gil.

Gil rolled his eyes. "I don't know, shit. How you kill someone and not get the footage of the murder? She could have been grabbed it. Just a dummy move in my opinion."

"What's up with your attitude right now?"

"I'm over this whole situation. She's a bullshitter at its finest and I don't have time. I was nice yesterday cause Princess Nadia was here, but I ain't forgot that she stood in my face and lied to me Dunk."

Gil had a point, but still, I could see Bethany's dilemma in this situation.

I mean, of course I didn't see much logic in it at first, but after thinking on it yesterday night... I found logic in it.

If she would have told the truth, Nadia would have been brought up. Which Bethany didn't want to happen at all.

Instead of answering, I instead walked up the steps and Gil followed.

We found Bethany in a large room. She was clearly staring at something, but when she saw us come in she quickly diverted her attention elsewhere.

"Uh, he was right here when Nadia stabbed him." She pointed to the wall and then the floor. "He fell right here by the closet door."

Gil and I took note of everything, I could really care less for this hands on explanation.

I just wanted to make sure we had the footage and nobody else got their hands on it, like the D.A.

She went into the closet and pointed at the safe that sat there. "The gun was in here. Why's the safe still here?"

Gil answered her question. "We couldn't open it, plus why open it when we thought we had a murder weapon and a suspect."

Bethany disregarded the shade Gil threw her way and she squatted and opened it.

She pulled the safe door open and the gun and knife sat there. She closed her eyes as she looked down at the ground. "Oh thank God."

Gil and I shot brief looks at each other and I asked a question. "So there's the murder weapons. What do we do?"

Gil quickly closed the safe. "What do you mean Dunk? We take this shit. It doesn't need to be here. Someone might find it. Where's the camera footage?"

Bethany stood and walked out into the hall. She turned a knob and it was locked.

She nodded and mumbled. "Locked, how it should be." We followed Bethany as she went back down the steps. Midway she stopped and looked at us. "Don't follow me. I'll be right back."

Gil nodded and I shook my head. "No, stop hiding things from us. That's the reason we're even here to begin with."

Bethany looked at me before answering lowly. "Fine, but what y'all see, is not to be touched. Seriously, him being dead or not, don't touch that shit."

When Bethany said that, I knew that we were about to see something we wanted to touch.

We followed her down the stairs and came upon the basement door. It had a number pad above the door handle, and we watched as she typed in the numbers.

The door opened and we all went down the steps of the basement. Before we got to the bottom of the steps Bethany hit a switch and lights came on in the room.

My eyes widened as I saw nothing but drugs packaged up and aligned against the walls of the room.

"Shit, this is a FBI goldmine." Gil muttered to me.

I nodded. "What the hell is it though?"

"Pure cocaine." Bethany answered my question as she grabbed a key from between two packages. "Hadn't been broken down yet, so he kept it down here in the basement."

"I was honestly expected a bloody room, filled with death." Gil began as he looked around. "Since you are just a lying murderer ya know."

Bethany whipped around and faced us as she finally snapped. "Shut the hell up about it already. I fucking lied. You act like I killed your fucking dog or something. Get over it already damn!"

"Rawr. The bear has come out." Gil taunted her. "Janet, tame your beast."

"Stop." I told both of them. "Can we not fight right now?"

"Ah please, you're no better than him at this point." Bethany stormed passed me.

"Really?" I looked at Gil in disappointment.

"No." Gil shot me away. "I don't want to hear a fucking speech. I don't appreciate being lied to."

We walked up the steps of the basement. "Well, how many times does she have to apologize?"

I shut the door to the basement behind me and Gil turned around and faced me. "Okay look, I don't give a damn how quick you forgive her. She is none of my girlfriend, and honestly I don't care how mad she gets. I was blindsided on that fucking stand Dunk."

"And you're acting like a child Gil." I exclaimed as I walked around him and up the steps. "What's the whole problem anyway? Not like you're facing jail time."

We both walked up the stairs in silence and when we got back to the room Bethany was watching a tape.

As I got closer, I realized that it was the night of the murder. We saw everything that they described. Even saw Nadia run down the hall to pack her things.

Just before Bethany shot the man, she paused the video and shook her head. "I can't watch that shit. I can't relive that again."

Honestly, I don't think she was talking to us, but more so to herself.

She took the CD out of the monitor as she shut the computer down. Bethany began pacing. "What did I do? What the hell did I do?"

Gil and I just looked at her. We both had a feeling that she didn't want to be touched right now.

Finally Gil went and touched her shoulder, but Bethany yanked back. "Look B, it's alright."

Ah, now he wants to hang his asshole card up.

"Gil, don't give me your pity. I don't want it. It's not even worth the headache it brings, I understand what I did was wrong. I'm sorry I lied, but can y'all stop fucking crucifying me for it?" Bethany asked as she looked between Gil and I.

"Can you give us a second please?" I asked Gil.

He nodded and walked out the room.

I continued as I talked to Bethany. "I understand why you did it and I—."

"Bullshit Janet." She cut me off as she let out a breath in disbelief. "Just because you want to win a case like mines, doesn't mean sell me your bullshit of a understanding story."

"Bethany, I did not take this case for publicity!" I objected.

"Oh really?" Bethany asked me. "So you didn't hear the name Tommy Renfro, and jump at the opportunity? Tell me you didn't, and I'll drop it."

I fell silent, because I didn't want to lie to Bethany.

She nodded. "Yeah thought so."

When she tried to walk past me, I grabbed her arm and pulled her back. "Can we please stop this?"

"I'm not going to beg you to forgive me." She told me. "It's not cool, that one minute you're all 'Oh Bethany it's alright, everything's going to be okay', but the next it's something different."

I took what she said into account. "Okay, I've been an asshole. I could have let you explain."

She scoffed. "Hm? Really?"

"Drop the sarcasm." I warned her.

Bethany immediately raised her hands in surrender. "I'm just saying Janet—."

"And can you stop with this whole Janet thing. I was pissed off and I said what I said, and I didn't mean it Beth. I'm sorry, I should have listened to the whole story."

I watched as Beth softened. She nodded as she excepted my apology. "I'm sorry too JJ."

"Okay so now that you aren't ya know, a liar and murder, you have to talk to Gil."

Bethany chuckled. "I'll talk to him, but only when his head is out of his ass."

<> <> <> <> <>

I shot up at the sound of something shattering.

What the hell?

Quickly, I called out. "Bethany?!"

As I got out of my bed, I looked at my clock and saw that it was 2 in the morning.

I got out my bed and headed to Beth's room. She wasn't in there so I rushed down the steps.

When I walked into the kitchen Bethany had a phone to her ears as tears fell down her face. "Momma what do you mean?"

"Is everything alright?" I asked her.

Bethany looked up at me and shook her head but instead only answered her mother. "Momma, I'm on my way. Stay there, I'm on my way."

She hung up the phone and the panic that resided on her face shot chills up my body. I had never seen Bethany in such a panic, in such a frenzy before. At least not to this extent.

"Bethany what's wrong?" I asked her as she looked up at the ceiling trying to blink away some tears.

"They took her JJ." She finally got out. "They took my baby."

I walked around the counter but stopped when I realized that Bethany had dropped a glass on the ground. "Who took Nadia?"

"This man is dead, and somehow finds a way still a pain in my ass Janet. Why would they do this? Not my baby Janet." She broke down and I stepped around the glass to hold her. "Not my baby."

"Come on Beth, we gotta go." I spoke as I held her. "We have to go to your moms."

Beth shook her head. "What if she's in on this?"

I furrowed my eyebrows. "Huh?"

"My mother. What if she's in on this JJ? Something doesn't feel right. Something just isn't right." Beth emphasized to me.

I didn't want to lie to her and tell her it wasn't possible. Cause hell, it was possible. It definitely wouldn't be a shocker.

"Hey, don't worry yourself on that right now. We need to find Nadia." I changed the subject as I realized that Bethany was already dressed. "Were you going somewhere?"

"For a walk." She answered lowly. "I always do when I can't sleep."

I nodded and went to change quickly. When I made it back down the steps, we got into the car and headed to Beth's mothers house.

As I drove I looked over at Beth, who was staring out the window.

I put my hand on top of hers. "Stop over thinking it. We will find her."

"I shouldn't have let her go to my mother. If I would have kept her, my baby would still be alright. She'd still be here." Beth mumbled as she began crying again.

"We'll get her back Beth. We'll find her." I promised her.

I said it.

Although, I didn't quite know if it was a promise I could keep, we would try our very best to.

—

In school updates? Issa gooooo!

Lol guys, I learn nothing 🤣🤷🏾‍♀️.