The Beginning of the End - Chapter 41

Kevin was required to check in with the State’s Attorney’s Office on a regular basis as part of his “deal.”  And I was also spending a lot of time with the State’s Attorney’s Office – but for my case.  It was an odd situation, since technically Kevin and I were on opposite sides of the law. “I’m not sure Kevin should be at your preliminary hearing,” Nancy told me one day on the phone.

I felt a flutter of panic and I clutched the receiver tightly.  “Why not?”

There was a moment of silence on the other end, and I could almost sense Nancy trying to find the right words.

 “Look, dasi, his involvement in a criminal drug case could seriously hurt yours.  The last thing we need is for the defense to find out about his case.”

“But he doesn’t have a case… he’s only a witness…” I protested.             

Nancy cut me off gently.  “He was arrested with drugs in his system and paraphernalia.  In the place you also resided.  Whether or not there is a case against him is irrelevant.”  She sighed deeply.  “Look, I know this is hard, but I’ll be there with you.  And I won’t let anything happen.  I just don’t think it’s a good idea for him to be there.”            

I knew she was right.  And as much as I wanted Kevin there with me, I wanted to put that asshole away more.             

“Okay.”           

A date had finally been set for the preliminary hearing, and I would be facing it alone.  I hung up the phone and walked across the parking lot to our room.  Despite the beautiful weather, Kevin kept the curtains closed tightly as a testament to his paranoia.  I couldn’t blame him, although I was starting to feel ambivalent about the whole situation.  The only thing that was on my mind was facing my attacker, and that left no room to worry about anything else.            

I smiled as I saw Tanya jogging toward me.            

“Hey, girlfriend!”  she called, waving.           

I waved back, and waited for her to reach me.             

“Kev still home?”             

“Yeah,” I replied.  “He doesn’t get out much anymore.”            

The fact was, he didn’t get out at all.  He lost his job at the casino, and was too paranoid to look for a new one.  Occasionally he would meet one of Arturo’s guys to make a buy, but other than that he spent all of his time locked in the room with the tv as his best friend.  I worried about him, but I hoped that once his case was over, he would return to his old social self.             

I opened the door and found Kevin at his usual spot, sitting at the table scraping the pipe.  He looked up and his face instantly changed when he saw Tanya.  “Hey!  Got anything?” he asked hopefully.      Tanya shook her head.  “Not now.  Maybe later.  You got any cash?”            

Kevin stopped what he was doing and looked at me.  “Babe?”            

I sighed.  I had once again become the sole provider.  “I work tonight.  But we need money for rent…”            

Tanya shrugged.  “I’ll pitch in,” she offered.  “What time do you get off?”            

“One.”            

“So you start at five?”            

I nodded.            

“Hell, I’ll let you go then.  You probably need to get ready.  I’ll be back around one-thirty.”             

I watched her leave and Kevin locked the door behind her.  Then he turned to me.  “Any news?”        

I told him about my conversation with Nancy, and how she thought it would be best if he did not show up.  His face contorted into a mask of anger and frustration.            

“Fuck that.  I’m not sending you alone,” he insisted.           

I sighed.  “Babe, it’s ok.  She’s probably right.  I’ll be fine.”            

He melted into the chair.  “Once again, I let you down.”            

I went up and put my arms around him.  “No, you didn’t.”  I assured him.  “I love you, you know that.  This is not your fault.  Nancy will be there, and I’ll be fine.”           

“So, when is the hearing?”            

“Next Tuesday.  Ten o’clock.”  I took a deep breath.  “All I have to do is get them to find probable cause for an indictment.  Nancy said it won’t be easy, that there will be some tough questions, but I’ll get through it.  I want this guy put away forever.  So he can never hurt anyone again.”  Especially me, I thought.            

Kevin nodded and gave me a kiss.  “I love you too.”            

I smiled and got up to get ready for work.  Eight more days, I thought, and the hardest part will be behind me.            

Until then, I would work and party.