My Old Friend

Chapter 7

TIM POV: I stare at the case file for at least an hour before I come up with a possible approach. I begin to jot down what I'm thinking quickly, before it can escape my head. In the middle of writing, the doorbell rings, taking an eraser to everything I was thinking. I sigh, get up, and walk to the front door. I look at the clock to see it's midnight. Who the hell is out at midnight in this town? I open my door to see it's none other than my mother.

"Did you hear?" She starts. I let out a little laugh and let her inside.

"Hear what?" I ask as I walk her back into my living room. The place is a wreck, in part to my laziness, and lack of company recently. We sit down on the leather couch that is in desperate need of cleaning.

"She's back." She says, half whispering. I laugh as a little knot forms in my throat. It can't be her. It's probably someone else. There's no way she'd come back to this place. She hated it here.

"Who's back?" I try to clarify. She rolls her eyes and grabs my arm.

"Audrey. She's staying with her mom till things get sorted out." She says. The knot gets even tighter. There's no way...

"Till what gets sorted out?" I ask before thinking. I should just leave her alone and move on.

"She and her boyfriend were having problems." She says. I nod. I knew it. "I think it would be... well... beneficial if you two had a bit of a talk. You know, patch some wounds?" She says. I take a deep breath.

"Mom, It's not going to happen." I say. She frowns. "I mean, you literally just said she has a boyfriend."

"Had." She corrects.

"Well, aren't they trying to work it out?" I ask. Audrey doesn't normally just let relationships fall apart. I mean, unless she's changed that much.

"He abused the hell out of her, Tim. Of course, she's not trying to work it out." She says. The knot becomes a noose as I think about the way she used to be. That was one of her worst fears.

"Shit..." I say under my breath while massaging my jaw. I stand up and look out the window at the bright moon. It illuminates the sky like the sun.

"He took all of her savings, knocked her out, and left. He left her with a single, maxed-out credit card. That's it. Her mother had to go and pick her up so she didn't starve herself to death." She says.

"Is she okay?" I ask seriously. I turn back towards her and sit on the window sill. She shrugs.

"She definitely different." She says.

"How so?" I ask.

"She calls me Ms. McGraw now instead of Betty. She's not nearly as peppy as before." She starts. I cringe.

How different can she be? Maybe I should pay a visit just to see for myself...

I stop myself before I end up doing something I'll regret. She doesn't want me around her, so I won't force my presence on her.

"When is she leaving?" I ask. Mom takes a bit of shock.

"I don't know. Not any time soon." She says. "You should stop by." She suggests. I shake my head immediately.

"Stop." I demand. She frowns.

"Tim, you were in love with her. You can't tell me that that feeling has faded away over that last seven years, because what you two had-" She begins.

"She didn't want it, alright? I'm not going to force myself on her." I say, getting up and walking into my office. She follows me.

"I'll bring her over tomorrow." She threatens as I sit down at my desk. She stands in the doorway as I put my glasses on and re-read my previous statement for opening arguments.