The Brooch

Mama Woods Takes The Stand Pt 2

You ever have someone tell you, you did something so out of your character? Moreover, you have absolutely no recollection of doing that or could you ever fathom doing what they said you did in the first place?

As you can see that's exactly how Mama Woods felt. She found herself in the hot seat like cheese stuck on a grill and sweating like an ape in the jungle, while being questioned by her own lawyer.

"Lawd... help me." She muttered. "I can't do this." She suddenly blurted out.

"Scarlet?"

"No Darren! I'm sorry." She uttered. "I'm sorry." She mouthed towards her family. "I don't recall anythang!" She cried.

"Scarlet_"

"Darren, I thought I could get up here and jest have everythang come rushin back to me! But... I got nuthin." She said shaking her head. "The onlay thang, I have is whut my mumma informed me. And whut Mrs. Crowder is accusing me of. You might as well throw away the key and toss the book at me."

"Scarlet, if we could jest take a minute and__"

"Ain't enough minutes in the day to make me remember, Darren!" Mama Woods fussed. "The onlay thang I remember, besides whut I told ya... is wakin up days later in a hospital. And my mumma and daddy were standin over me."

Mama Woods blankly looked at the jury....

"I wont to remember. Foe my children's sake. Foe me. I even wont to remember for Mrs. Crowder. If you can believe that! At least so I kin say, yes! Yes I did willingly take the brooch. Or no! I did not! I desperately wont to remember for my child, Maple. That brooch, means the world to her. If you could only see, how much love and care she has put into caring for that brooch. Yes! We had the brooch in our possession. But foe years, we had no clue whut Mrs. Crowder was spoutin had any kind of truth to it. She neva confront me! She neva said you took my possession! She neva once demanded it back. She neva did till that day, Maple caught her in our house tryin to confiscate it herself. Even after that.. Look... Y'all know me!" Mama Woods said looking to the crowd. "You know my ways! You know if I knew for one second that I willingly took the brooch from Mrs. Crowder when I was a youngin on her weddin day, I would have__"

Mama Woods stopped in mid sentence. Her eye suddenly caught Mr. Kransten's gold tooth that he was picking at, reflecting with the sun. There was something in the shine! Mama Woods gasped!

"Scarlet?" Mr. Smarten said looking at a dazed Mama Woods...

Mama Woods didn't respond. All of a sudden she got up from the seat.

"Scarlet? Where are you goin?" Mr. Smarten asked.

"Mrs. Woods, you are not through..." judge Bloomfurd called out...

Mama Woods didn't answer..

"Well where the blazes? Where is she goin?" An uneasy Mrs. Crowder griped.

Mama Woods kept walking. She walked as if she were in a dream, all the way up to a starting to wig out Mr. Kransten. Mrs. Crowder jumped from her chair that was next to Mr. Kransten.

"Keep away from me!" She cried.

Mrs. Crowder hid to the side! Mama Woods didn't move. And she didn't go after Mrs. Crowder. She instead did something so out of the ordinary. Out of her delicate ways. When she reached the plaintiff's desk all the way, She grabbed a now very nervous Mr. Kransten. The crowd gasped.

"Mrs. Woods!" The judge fussed.

Mama Woods kept on. All of a sudden she leaned over and she put her hands on his face and opened his mouth. Wide!

The crowd rustled with wonder..

"She's! She's gone crazy!" Mrs. Crowder shouted!

"Scar honey?" Daddy Woods came beside her.

Mama Woods didn't respond. She kept staring and putting her hand in a troubled Mr. Kransten's stank mouth...

"Sanford... would you please go get Mrs. Woods." An irritable Judge Bloomfurd groaned.

"Mumma?" Maple stood up and called out.

"Maple the glass room." Mama Woods murmured.

"Whut?"

"The dream..." Mama Woods said still prying open Mr. Kransten's mouth. "The dream!" She said finally letting go and looking at Maple with tears in her eyes.

But before she could utter another word, judge Bloomfurd has called for yet another recess. He ordered the bailiff to take Mama Woods out the room with her lawyer, to see if she was fit to keep speaking.

As Sanford pulled Mama Woods away, she kept looking at her family. Especially towards Maple, as she smiled and shouted...

"The room of light!"

The door shut. Mama Woods was no longer in the room. And the judge allowed only her husband to follow. As the crowd rustled and gossiped... Maple stood by the windows bewildered what her Mama meant...

Time seemed to have been ticking slowly. Once again, Maple could feel her heart pounding out of her chest with worry.

Uncle Jeffy walked up to her...

"The room of light, was just a dream, I told Mumma." Maple whispered dumbfounded looking into her Uncle's curious eyes.

"Whut did she mean by it?" Uncle Jeffy asked.

"I don't know." Maple whispered. "I... don't know."

"Well the way she looked at you, it was almost as if you did." Uncle Jeffy whispered.

"I told her, I saw her there..."

"Where?"

"In a crazy dream!" Maple grumbled.

"Well whut was the room light?"

"I dunno!" Maple exasperated. " I jest know it was the room where I saw Mumma and I saw granddaddy and Mumma was walkin towards a room. She was frightened about it. So was I! And the room was slightly opened and__"

Maple started to reflect back to that dream... suddenly she remembered seeing in the crack of the door...

"The brooch!" Maple gasped!

"All rise!" Baliff Sanford interrupting spoke.

Mama Woods was now back in the courtroom. Maple had to sit down in silence as a confused Uncle Jeffy sat beside her.

The judge looked at Mama Woods and said...

"Are you alright and ready to proceed?"

"Yes yo honor." A bright eyed Mama Woods replied. "More than ready!"

"Then take a seat!"

"Scarlet?" Mr. Smarten whispered. "Are you sure you wont to continue?"

"Yes." She confidently nodded and placing her hand calmly on his. "Proceed."

"Okay." Mr. Smarten hesitantly nodded. "Scarlet, is there anythang you would like to add from whut you were sayin earlier?"

"Yes." She smiled.

"And would you please tell the court, whut is that?"

"I didn't take the brooch!" She said smiling towards Maple. "I know whut happened. I remember now. It wasn't me."

The crowd began to loudly rustle yet again...

"You didn't take the brooch?" Mr. Smarten questioned.

"No." Mama Woods confidently smiled.

"Then who?"

"It was...." Mama Woods stared at a bitter in disdain Mrs. Crowder as she uttered smiling big at her lawyer... "It was Mrs. Crowder, herself!"

The crowd gasped!

"Liar!" Mrs. Crowder angrily roared jumping from her chair!

"Order in the court!" Judge Bloomfurd yelled as the crowed got louder and louder as Mrs. Crowder ranted!

"And she didn't do it alone..." Mama Woods boldly replied.