BROKEN HOME :: OT4

la première étape

Chapter Nine ; la première étape

The prosecution does not have any witness to support their case, and so the idea of witness impeachment is erased. However, they have an evidence to suggest Michael had visited a local store filled with different gardening equipments. 

Tyler brings everyone around before sitting down and putting the tape in the player and the CCTV footage starts playing. Michael and Calum are sitting on opposite sides of the room, still not able to talk to each other without mentioning the events from earlier days.

"We are going to need you to be as honest as possible; why were you at that store?" asks Tyler and everyone's attention returns to Michael. With their notebook in hand, everyone is locking their eyes with him, making matters harder than they already are.

"I was.." he pauses and he looks around at everyone; he can feel it. He can feel the amount of trust that is put on in to the case and he smiles involuntarily because after years of nobody acknowledging him, there are people who actually care.

He looks back at Tyler who has a soft look on his face; he wonders how a boy like him ended up as a lawyer. He seemed too fragile, too caring to even have any association with law; law plays dirty and is run by money, not by truth.

"A couple of weeks ago, I started getting my mom sleeping pills to help her with you know.." he drifts off and his lawyer pushes him in to continuing; "One day she asked me to get her some pain killers as well and I did- I never thought she would even think about.."

"She overdosed on the pain killers and when I came back from uni,  the bathroom floor was stained." then followed a series of flashback in to Michael's mind.

He walks in to the immense flat which smelt awfully of expired tuna and he wonders where the source of the smell is from. He calls out for his mom as he haven't seen her all day and so he heads to the bedroom- nothing. He is on his way on to the kitchen when he saw some strands of hair coming out of the bathroom toilet. He quickly opens the door to discover his mother laying on the floor with white substances coming out of her mouth as well as her nose.

He doesn't say anything but he shakes as he fills the bathroom with water; he doesn't even think about calling the police because he knows what happened last time. Police were supposed to make him feel safe but his father doesn't make him feel safe at all.

He pulls her in to the tub and so starts washing her face; it takes around ten minutes of cleaning up before he takes her in to his car. He drives in to the ER with tear stained cheeks and they promise him; they promise to save her. And they are the only people whomever kept to their promise. 

Whilst they are pumping the liquid out of her body he goes to the local store and buys some detergent and cleans up the house because he knows, he knows if his father comes in with all the mess, he would be the one to get in trouble. He practically gave his mother her death sentence.

Present Michael looks down at his feet in shame while everyone scribbled down notes quickly; however, it is only Ashton who is paying close attention to his face. He looks for some minutes before closing his notebook and walks out of the house.

Nobody acknowledges the change and they keep re-watching the tape again and again. The problem is not the fact that they would not have anyone to witness; the problem is that a cleaning product can be used for other purposes as well. 

Everyone is dismissed to work independently and Michael walks upstairs for he doesn't want to do anything with Calum in the same room. The stubborn boy is still angry and still waiting for an apology.

"Hey, Michael," calls out Officer Hemmings, causing the accused boy to look back at the man. He is wearing a lip-ring for the first time and Michael thinks it suits him- but he doesn't say. "Just wanted to tell you that we are here for you. You don't deserve this, nobody deserves this."

Michael nods before continuing his journey; when he gets to his room, he closes the door behind him, connecting his back to the cold door as he gradually sits down against it. With his eyes closed, he takes a deep sigh; "You are a really good liar, did you know that?"

And Michael thinks shit, as the relief in his body jumps out and gets replaced by worry once again.