Get Somebody New (31 page)

I had felt like
strangling Marlena’s ass but I didn’t. I walked away to keep from killing her
ass. She was very alive when I left.  Something else was going on, because
after sitting in jail all day, I still hadn’t been questioned. They also had me
isolated from the other inmates.

Monday
morning an officer came and said my lawyer was there to visit me. That was
interesting since I hadn’t contacted a lawyer because they wouldn’t let me call
anyone. I went anyway to find out who the hell it was. When I walked in and saw
Randall sitting on the other side of the table, I did an about face.

“You can take
the cuffs off of him.” He told the officer, who complied.

“You got a
lot of nerve coming here man. What are you doing here?”

“I know I’m
the last person you want to see.”

“You got that
right. You probably got something to do with me being in here. Do you? I
haven’t even been questioned yet.”

“What?”

“I haven’t
seen or talked to anybody.”

“So that’s
why I had to threaten them to let me see you.”

“Randall why
are you here?”

“Jazz, I’m
sorry. I was wrong for what I did at the police station. I was wrong for all of
that and I want to make it right. Let me defend you. I know you have no reason
to believe you can trust me and I understand. I love Zeke and he loves you, I
understand that now. I want him to be happy and I want to right my wrongs
against you. I know you didn’t do
this.”       

“What brought
this on?”

“Let’s just
say Zeke made me understand it.”

“I don’t
trust you and don’t need your help. I’ll get my own lawyer. You can kiss my
ass.”

“Jazz stop
being a jerk for a second and listen. I’m trying to help you! Do you want to
get out or stay in here because you’re mad at me?”

“Man who the
hell you think I am? You’re asking for an ass whipping.”

“Oh shut up,
sit down, and listen.”

“What?”

“I’ve looked
into your case. The only thing they have is that they found your cell phone at
the scene. That’s why they arrested you.”

“Oh, shit! I
know exactly when I dropped it. I found out about her stealing my royalties and
keeping a second set of fake books. I told her I was gonna sue. Plus I took the
pictures she used to blackmail me.  She attacked me and we got into a
scuffle. That’s when I left to keep from really having to whip her ass.”

“Zeke and
Alton told me about her blackmailing you to make you sleep with her. So she did
it with pictures?”

“Yeah,
explicit pictures of …ummm…well, ummm of me and Zeke getting busy. She also
threatened to ruin me in the industry.”

“Damn, she
was ruthless!”

“I still said
no. Then she threatened Zeke’s career. She knew about the movie and said she
had friends everywhere.”

“Are you
serious? Wow. She had no boundaries.”

“That’s why I
left Zeke. You were just a convenient excuse. I am in some real trouble, huh?”

“All is not
lost. First you need an alibi. Where did you go after you left there?”

“I went
home.”

“Did anybody
see you?”

“There was a
security guard there I think, but we have to use a key card to enter and exit.”

“Were the
gates working the night you went home?”

“Yeah.”

“Did you go anywhere
else that night?”

“No, I didn’t
leave again until Saturday morning. I went to the bank and put the envelope in
my safety deposit box, and then went to the studio to work on a track.”

“Alright I’ll
get to work. I guarantee I’ll get you out of here.”

“If you’re
really gonna help me then I guess I can say thanks.”

“You’re
welcome. I owe you, Jazz.”

“Yeah you
do!”

When I was
finally interrogated, Jamal’s punk ass was the first to walk into the room. He
tried like hell to get me to say I killed Marlena. I wasn’t about to say that
because it was a lie, especially under the rotten circumstances that I came to
be with her in the first place. Eventually I grew tired of his dumb assed
attempts to use reverse psychology and just stopped responding altogether. I
looked at both of them like fools when they asked me anything else. That
irritated the hell out of both of them. I hadn’t killed anybody and nothing was
going to make me say I did.

“We got all
the evidence we need so you should make it easier on yourself and confess. If
you go to trial the D.A. will ask for the death penalty.” Jamal said.

They had
nothing and I knew that.  Jamal was a controlling little prick and he was
taking things way too far. Nothing was going to make me fear him. Fear didn’t
exist where I came from.

“Okay, you
want to play games. You’re going down Mr. ThugLife believe that!” He said with
a dumb smirk, believing he’d said something clever. He reminded me of a corny,
Black, Jethro Bodine from the Beverly Hillbillies. I just looked at his dumb
ass. He threw a temper tantrum and left the room and I had to laugh at him.
Since they pretty well knew they weren’t getting anything out of me they took
me back to my cell.

Randall was a
fast worker I had to give him that. He came back within 2 days with all kinds
of information.

“I can pretty
much knock this out real quick.”

“What did you
find?”

“Well I got
the electronic key card log report for your building and it shows the time you
swiped the card to go into the building and when you left the next day. The
police confirmed that Marlena couldn’t have been killed before 10 P.M. because
she made an outgoing call from her cell phone to her personal assistant. They
spoke with her assistant, who confirmed the call time and duration.  Your
alibi is solid.  I spoke to the doorman who recalled seeing you come home.
I’ve checked him out backward and forward and he has no credibility issues.
Actually, he is a decorated war hero, which is even better.”

 I did a
bit of digging into Marlena’s past to see what kind of person she was. Nobody I
talked to had a kind word to say about her at all. I spoke to Shay and a few of
Marlena’s other employees. Everyone seemed to have an axe to grind with her.
They accused her of cheating them out of commissions, neglecting to pay bonuses
that were overdue, coming on to women’s husbands’ right in their faces, and
threatening employees with termination for refusing to do personal favors
outside of their job descriptions. She was a hell cat!”

“The Police
finally questioned me. I gave them the silent treatment. Jamal was trying to
scare me, saying they had evidence and I needed to confess. He was really
agitated.”

“Jamal? He’s
not a detective, nor is he on this case. He shouldn’t have been questioning you
about anything. I’m glad you didn’t say anything. I’ll take care of him. One
more thing Jazz, when you slept with her did you use protection?”

“I used a
condom and it wasn’t torn or broken. I know because I inspected it myself. I
knew better than to trust her. I wrapped it up in some paper towels and took it
home to throw it in my own trash too. I also didn’t ejaculate.”

“The police
did find semen evidence. That’s doesn’t prove anything because it’s been
established that she did have another male visitor after you left.  You
haven’t given them a DNA sample have you?”

“Hell no.
They tried to trick one out of me by offering me a cigarette and a soda. I know
how they try to use that trick to get your DNA on it then swab it after you’re
done.”

“Damn Good!
If they get a DNA sample, I need to be present to oversee the collection.”

“Thanks for
all you’re doing, I appreciate it.”

“Like I said,
I owe you.”

“Yeah you
do!”

Nadiah

I realized
immediately that I’d made a mistake with my new man. He would have had to
actually come up a notch to be crazy. I was waiting for him with fire in my
eyes. He was going to learn just whom he was dealing with. Finally I heard his
key in the front door. I stood right there waiting for him because it was about
to be on.      

“Here you
are! I don’t know who in the hell you think I am but I am about to show you.
First of all, where the hell do you get off going in my purse and following me?
I can play just as crazy as you can. Trust me, I am not afraid of you.”

“Are you
done?”

“What? I
might be done, I might not be. If I have something to say, I’m gonna say it and
you’re gonna listen. What the hell do you mean am I done?”

“I was just
asking so I’d have an idea of when you’re gonna shut the fuck up!”

I was
speechless because I wasn’t used to any man being bold enough to say something
like that to me.”

“I know you
didn’t just tell me to shut the fuck up did you?”

“I’m not sure
if you are hard of hearing, or just a dumb ass who can’t comprehend. Let me get
a bit closer so you can hear me. I’ve said what I had to say and I’m done. You
can save your ‘I am woman hear me roar’ bullshit for someone who gives a damn
because I don’t. I’m tired of listening to you so I am telling you so you can
understand. Shut the hell up, bitch!”

Whenever I
hear the word bitch directed at me my hand automatically goes up and swings. I
slapped him across the right side of his face. He reached out with his right
hand and grabbed me by my neck.

“Bitch I will
kill you! Do you hear me? Don’t you ever put your hands on me again.” He said
before he released his tight grip on my neck.

I slapped him
again for grabbing me. He slapped me back so hard I fell to the ground. I
brought my fist straight up between his legs and punched him in the balls as
hard as I could. He was momentarily stunned and looked at me with a menacing
glare, which I returned with equal intensity. He looked like he’d snapped but
something clicked in his brain and he simply turned around and began walking
away. Of course I was mad and riled up by then so I followed him and spoke my
peace.

Suddenly in
the middle of a sentence he turned around and slapped me in my mouth. I felt my
lip when it split and the blood begin to seep into my mouth. I knew I was going
to have to kill that bastard so it was best if I just left.

I went into
the closet and got the largest suitcase there.

“What do you
think you’re doing?”

“I’m leaving
before I have to kill you.”

“Girl you’re
not going anywhere. Put that suitcase back in the closet.”

I paid him no
attention as I packed my belongings.

“Bitch did
you hear me? I said you’re not going anywhere now put the suitcase back!”

When he
called me a bitch that time, I didn’t hit him. I knew if I hit him he was going
to hit me back and I wasn’t going to back down. I was also convinced he was
much crazier than I was. I kept packing my belongings through my tears.

“So you’re
not going to do what I told you and put the suitcase back?”

“NO! I’m not!
You can’t make me either!” I shouted.

He grabbed
the suitcase and threw it and all the clothes into the closet. Without missing
a beat I went into the closet and put everything back in and put it back on the
bed and continued packing.

“I’m only
gonna tell you one more time to put the suitcase back and sit down because you
are not going anywhere woman!”

“Fuck you.
I’m leaving.”

If I wasn’t
convinced he was beyond crazy, what he did next confirmed it.

“Come here
bitch!” He said as he charged toward me.

“No, Stop!
Get off me. Let me go! What are you doing? Stop!” I screamed while hitting him
everywhere I could.

“I’m gonna
give you what you want.”

That insane
bastard picked me up and sat me in the suitcase and proceeded to bend my legs
and maneuver my body into it. I kicked and screamed but he laid on my upper
body while he folded my legs into the suitcase and then did the same for my top
half. He then closed the top and zipped me inside the suitcase. I tried to get
out but I was too tightly bound by the suitcase to move.

“Since you
want to pack your shit and leave, I’m gonna do you a favor and pack your ass up
and put you out.”

“You crazy
bastard let me out of here! Let me out of here!”

“Shut the
hell up!”

“No! No! No!
No! No! No! Nooooooooooooooo!” I screamed since it was all I could do.”

I felt him
hit the suitcase. Luckily, he hit where my leg was.

“If you were looking
for my mouth, that wasn’t it! Ha ha!”

“Damn you
still won’t shut up!”

I heard him
unzipping the suitcase and tried to lift myself up but he was prepared and
pushed me back in. He quickly reached down and placed a piece of tape over my
mouth and closed the case back. I knew I had been defeated but I wasn’t about
to give in.

That crazy
man left me in that suitcase for almost 24 hours. When he came in from work the
next day I heard him come in and run some bath water. Just as I thought he was
going to take a bath I felt him pick the suitcase up. I couldn’t ask where he
was taking me because my mouth was taped shut. All of a sudden I felt water. He
put the suitcase in the bathtub and was dunking it in and out of the water. He
placed the case on its side and I couldn’t take anymore. I started crying
because I figured he was about to drown me. I didn’t want to go out like that.
He unzipped the corner of the suitcase and took the tape off of my mouth.

“What do you
have to say to me?”

“I’m sorry.
I’m sorry. I won’t talk to her anymore.”

“What else?”

“I’m gonna
obey you.” I said as the bitterness of the words made me cringe.

“And you’re
gonna shut up when I tell you to?”

“Yes.”

“Yes what?”

“Yes period.”

“Wrong
answer!” He said.

“Yes Sir! Yes
Sir!” I said shamefully.