There are many women who can do this, even for those men who have committed the crimes that they are accused and convicted of, but am I one of them?
But what’s the alternative, I think to myself.
Do I just leave him there?
Do I just leave him there, knowing that he’s innocent and unable to do anything from the inside?
But what can I do on the outside?
This whole time, I thought I’d done a lot but now everything is falling apart.
Meredith has been fired for being too involved and too much on the defense’s side. Luckily, they have still not found out about the preliminary DNA testing, but that makes convincing the DA’s office to test the DNA that much harder. Keenan knows that Owen should be a suspect but, for some reason, he is fighting against it.
I drive home with a heavy heart. I feel stuck and out of control. I love Nicholas and I will never leave him but I also feel like everything that I’m doing has no purpose and no end.
The future seems bleak and dark and without a single hope. With the evidence they have against him now, things will only get worse.
They will take his case to trial and find him guilty. His sentence will be life without the possibility of parole.
There will be endless appeals but the chances of winning one of them are slim.
What happens to us?
Can we spend a lifetime together separated by bars?
Never speaking to each other in private?
Never holding hands?
Never touching each other?
I open the door to my apartment hoping that Sydney is not there. All I want to do is be alone right now. I want to have a cup of tea and curl up in bed and hope that this has all been a terrible dream.
“Olive,” a man says when I walk into the kitchen.
Leaning against the counter, he tilts his head slightly down as his piercing eyes look deeply into mine.
My bag falls to the floor. I shake my head and cover my mouth with my hands in disbelief. He takes two steps over to me, wrapping his arms around my shoulders. My whole body starts to shake.
“Don’t cry,” he says, kissing my hair. “Don’t cry, my sweet girl.”
“What…are…you…doing here?” I mumble into his shirt.
I hold him as close as possible.
When he tries to pull away, I refuse to let him go.
“Don’t go,” I whisper.
“I’m not going anywhere for a long time,” Nicholas says.
His arms hold me close against his chest as my hands run up and down his back feeling every part of him just to make sure that he’s real.
“What are you doing here?” I ask, looking up at him.
When he presses his lips onto mine, my mouth opens and the world outside of us begins to spin. His body is hot to the touch, a perfect complement to my own cold one. He turns my head slightly to the side and kisses me harder and more passionately.
“What are you doing here?” I ask him again, through our kiss. “I went to see you today and you weren’t there.”
“You did? Oh, I'm so sorry.”
“The guard didn’t tell me anything and I thought that you got hurt again,” I say. I glance up at him and suddenly see a mischievous wink. My heart skips a beat.
“What happened? How did you get out?”
I know what he’s going to say before he says it. The guard didn’t tell me anything because they wanted to know if I already knew.
But how?
How did he escape?
And why is he here? This is the first place they’re going to look for him.
29
Olive
When I find out…
“Okay, Olive,” Nicholas says, steadying my face with his hands. I feel my eyes flickering and wildly staring at his. In return, his gaze is stoic, almost distant.
“Olive, I didn’t run away,” he says. His words slowly seep in.
“What happened?”
“I was released. There was a big investigation by the state of the district attorney’s office for corruption and bribery. He’s still in the process of stepping down since the state is trying to save face, but he’s no longer working there. When Nancy reached out to the new DA and they reviewed the case against me and compared the DNA evidence they had to Owen’s they found a match to both crime scenes. Nancy said that they didn’t want to hold me after that.”
My feet seem to crumble under me and I melt onto the floor. Nicholas kneels down to me, taking me into his arms.
“Everything is okay, Olive. I’m here with you. I’m free.”
I nuzzle my head into his shoulder still unable to believe that this is real.
I feel his hands with mine and slowly move up his arms, pinching every moment to make sure that it’s really him. When I get to his biceps, he flexes them, surprising me.
We both laugh and when our eyes meet again, I see a happiness in his that I haven’t seen in a long time. He tilts my head up to his and brings his lips as close as possible without actually touching mine.
I feel his breath on me and inhale the sweet aroma that is his scent.
Unable to make the moment last any longer, I push myself up and kiss him.
He kisses me back almost immediately, smiling slightly against my mouth. We kiss for a long time right there on the floor. I want to take it further, but I also want to just enjoy his lips for as long as possible.
His warm breath fills my mouth and our tongues intertwine and become one. I bury my hands in his hair and he runs his up and down my shirt.
After a few minutes of making out like teenagers, he slips his hand under my shirt. I straighten my back and kiss him harder. He reciprocates by gently lowering me onto the hardwood floor and draping his body over mine.
“I missed this,” I whisper.
“Me, too.”
We stay in the moment for a long time. Kissing and not kissing, more like nuzzling and just enjoying being with one another.
But after a little bit, the clothes that separate us start to get in the way. We discard them quickly and move to the bed.
He lies down on the sheets next to me and looks at my breasts. He runs his fingers up and down the outline of my curves and I revel in his six pack and his wide, broad shoulders.
He laughs when I pinch his butt and then climbs on top of me and flexes it when I grab it harder.
He grabs my thighs and opens them up.
He wraps them around his hips and I arch my back and pull him inside of me.
He looks at me for a long time and then kisses me again. His kiss is slow and moves in sync with his hips.
With each thrust, my body seems to open up a little more and welcome him in a little further. I run my hands up his back and dig my fingers into his flesh when I feel myself getting close.
He looks at me for a moment and I wait for him to say, “Tell me to stop,” those words that have echoed in my mind ever since the first time he had ever spoken them to me.
But he doesn’t.
Instead, he puts his lips on mine and moans my name.
My body suddenly fills with fire. It’s so hot, I feel like I’m surrounded by flames. He thrusts again and again and the temperature only increases. He whispers my name over and over again.
I flip him over and climb on top of him. I press my hands into his chest and arch my back as I sit on top of him. Now, I can feel his full girth as I start to move my thighs up and down.
“I love you,” he whispers.
“I love you, too,” I say, tilting my head and letting my hair fall down my back.
He runs his hands up and down my stomach, cupping my breasts and eventually pulling me closer to him.
A warm sensation starts to build in my core. It’s familiar of course, but this time, it overwhelms me.
Taking me completely by surprise, I yell out his name and collapse on top of him in a state of euphoria and contentment.
Later that evening, after we get dressed, there’s
a knock on the door. I think that it’s probably Sydney and she might have forgotten her keys but it’s actually Meredith.
“I knew your address and one of your neighbors was walking out so she let me in,” she says.
“We’ve got quite a secure building here,” I joke. She laughs. I invite her in and introduce her to Nicholas.
She extends her hand but instead of shaking it, he comes right over and gives her a big warm hug.
“Thank you so much for everything you have done for me. Olive told me all about it and I wouldn’t be here without you.”
“You’re welcome,” she says shyly. “I was just so drawn to your story right from the beginning and the more I started investigating the more I knew I had to do the right thing.”
We order takeout and while we wait, Meredith tells us all about what has been happening back at the office.
“I knew that something was going on with Keenan starting about two years ago,” she says. “He used to really care about his job but then he got distracted and absentminded. At first, we at the office all thought that he was just going through a midlife crisis or having an affair or both but then I heard rumors that he was in a lot of financial trouble. He owed debts to a lot of bad people around town. The worst of the worst, as you can imagine.”
I nod and urge her to continue.
“Is that why he wanted to frame me for what happened to David and Nina?” Nicholas asks.
“I don’t think the corruption and the bribery necessarily had to do with that. I know that when it came to you, he was set in his ways. He just believed that you did it and that was it. That’s one of the reasons he refused to test the DNA. He didn't want to have proof of something to the contrary.”
“So, what happened?” I ask.
“We, at the office, mainly me but another paralegal as well, we started gathering evidence secretly. Just anything that we found suspicious. And when we thought we had a good case, we turned that over to the authorities. He suspected something because that’s when he fired me.”
I shake my head. “I thought that he fired you because he found out that we tested the DNA.”
“No.” She smiles. “I wouldn’t have gotten my job back if that were the case. Luckily, no one knows about that and hopefully no one ever will.”
“So, what’s going to happen now?” Nicholas asks.
“The new DA is working on the case against Owen. He gave Robert immunity in exchange for his testimony and I think he’s working on the same deal for Ricky.”
“Wow, that’s great,” I say.
“They are going to officially serve him the papers and arrest him at the jail tomorrow,” Meredith says. “He’s already incarcerated so the two states will have to work out some sort of arrangement. I guess he’ll first stand trial for what he did to you, Olive, and then be extradited here to face the murder charges.”
A feeling of euphoria mixed with relief sweeps over my whole body and I finally relax.
Owen will finally get what is coming to him. He will finally get what he deserves.
30
Olive
When we prepare for her wedding…
After Nicholas’ release, we spend every waking moment together and we still can’t get enough of each other.
We sleep in late.
We go to lunch and then spend our afternoons in bed.
We laugh and talk and lose ourselves in each other and it’s never enough.
We go to the movies and eat dinner and sleep in each other’s arms. He lives in my room and Sydney doesn’t seem to mind. James wasn’t able to get a job in Boston but did get one in New York and they plan on moving there after they get married.
At first, her pregnancy doesn’t seem very difficult but then the exhaustion sets in. So, she has been spending most of her days planning the wedding and taking long naps.
I keep meaning to talk to her about marrying him again, but every time I see them, they actually look happy.
When I talk about it to Nicholas, he doesn’t offer much advice outside of saying that some people can get over infidelity and maybe even learn to be happy in the future especially now that they’re having a baby.
I want to argue with him but in reality, I don’t know if my arguments are right.
Deep in my heart, I know that she deserves someone who will love every part of her the way that Nicholas loves me and I don’t see that in James. But given everything else that’s going on, the baby and her mother cutting her out of her inheritance if she breaks up with him, maybe Sydney is doing what’s right for her.
With James away in New York, working crazy hours, Sydney mainly stays in her room. Tonight, I insist on her joining us for dinner and a movie. Reluctantly, she agrees.
“I don’t want to be some third wheel,” she says, carrying her blanket from her bed to the couch.
“Well, first of all, you’re not a third wheel, there’s two of you in there,” I joke.
This makes her laugh and snuggle into the couch. Nicholas brings us both tea and sits down next to me, draping his arm over my shoulder.
“You two are so cute,” she says.
Her tone is casual but there’s a sadness in her eyes. I want to ask her about it but it doesn’t feel like she wants to talk about it.
“So, how’s everything going for the wedding?” Nicholas asks. “Is there anything else we can do?”
Sydney shrugs and just stares at the screen as the Netflix logo loads. “No, not really. There isn’t even much for me to do. Mom’s taking care of everything.”
And that’s exactly what she means. Her mother has picked out the flowers, arranged for the venue, and chosen the band.
Her mother made all of the catering arrangements including the kind of signature drink they will have and the look and the filling of the wedding cake.
At first, Sydney seemed to resist all of this but after a bit, she just gave up and ignored that it was happening.
“Agh!” Sydney yells out in pain. Her face contorts as she tries to breathe but she can’t.
“Oh, no!” she yelps, grabbing her stomach. “Something’s wrong…agh!”
“We have to get her to the hospital now,” Nicholas says, standing up.
“No hospital,” Sydney says. “No, I can’t go to the hospital….agh!” She bends in half, cradling her stomach.
“Syd, something is wrong. Something might be happening to the baby we have to get you help.”
She continues to refuse, insisting that everything is fine while we get her into the car and Nicholas rushes to the hospital.
He drops us off at the emergency entrance and I help her inside. A nurse quickly puts her into a wheelchair and takes her away.
It takes me almost forty minutes to fill out all of Sydney’s paperwork. Mainly, because I don’t know a lot of the answers, especially when it comes to her family’s medical history, but also because I can’t focus on any of it at this moment. My thoughts keep going back to her and what is going on with her baby.
I hold Nicholas’ hand and hope more than anything that both she and the baby are going to be fine. I keep trying James’s number and leave him five messages but he still doesn’t reply. But when Nicholas tries, he answers.
“He’s actually in Boston,” Nicholas says, hanging up. “He’ll be here soon.”
“What do you mean he’s in Boston? Isn’t he working at his new job in New York? Sydney said that he has crazy hours there.”
Nicholas doesn’t meet my eyes and instead just looks down.
“He’s cheating on her again, isn’t he?” I ask.
He doesn’t respond. He doesn’t have to. I am pretty certain that he is.
Nicholas takes my hand into his. “I'm sorry he’s such an asshole,” he whispers. “I had no idea he was really like this. I wish I had never introduced them.”
“Me, too,” I whisper. Except that’s not really true. Without them meeting, then we would’ve never met either.
Hours pass. Sydney’s
mom comes by but doesn’t stay. She says that she has an event that she can’t miss but will be by later. It’s a shitty thing to do but I’m glad that I don’t have to make small talk with her in the waiting room.
“Where is he?” I turn to Nicholas. “Have you heard anything?”
He shakes his head and dials his number again. When Nicholas gets up and takes the call privately, a doctor walks up to me.
He asks if I’m the next of kin. I tell him that she’s my best friend and roommate and her mother isn’t here.
“Good,” the doctor says, smiling slightly. “She told me that under no circumstances does she want to see her.”
I nod and furrow my brow, not sure what is going on.
He shows me to her room and I motion to Nicholas to come over after he’s done. In the middle of the room, I see her sitting up in the adjustable bed. Her face is almost without color but there’s a smile on her face. I let out a small sigh of relief.
“You are one lucky girl,” the doctor says. “If you didn’t get here when you did, you would’ve lost the baby.”
She nods and looks at Nicholas with tears in her eyes.
She stays in the hospital overnight and I curl up on the chair next to her. James never comes over and neither does her mother. I tell Nicholas to go home but he stays and sleeps out in the waiting room. When the nurses wake Sydney up with a breakfast tray, and I take a sip of her coffee, she tells me that she has made a decision.
“I’m not getting married.”
“What do you mean? Your wedding is in five days.”
She shrugs.
“What about everything you said?”
“What happened last night was everything that I needed to know about both my mother and James. I needed them, but they were nowhere to be found.”
I’m about to say something but it’s hard to argue with the truth.
“I don’t need them in my life especially if having them means only existing on their terms.”
Tell me to Lie Page 12
