Between The Yees And The Haws 2 - Tales From The Courtroom

III

"Where are we goin'?" Mary-Rose asked her sister as she hoisted her up on her cow. Leigh-Anne climbed up after her with tears streaming down her face. Blood dripped down from her shoulder to the dirt road below her.

"Anywhere but here."

"You can't bring her up there, she don't know anyone! How is she supposed to give her story if she don't have one?" Yee Yee yelled from the jury. West shushed her.

"You hadn't contributed enough, Yee Yee. We've called upon our next witness."

"I saw what I saw." Leigh-Anne snapped at her on her way up to the witness stand. Leigh-Anne took a deep breath.

She hadn't told the court that she and Abigail had seen the murder of Cletus. The people of the bar knew, since they were the ones to burst in and declare it. If she said they were the ones to have seen it, the judge might suspect that she and Abigail were somehow involved. And maybe there was another reason as to why she didn't want to give Edward this kind of support.

Leigh-Anne was a woman of justice. She knew Sally had murdered this man's best friend. And that he had every right to be angry and even a right to kill her. But the thought of a man driving a knife into a woman was enough to drive Leigh-Anne crazy. And it threatened to change her story completely.

"Leigh-Anne darlin', where'd ya put the milk?" Mrs. Hufflesticks called from the bedroom.

"What?" Leigh-Anne called back.

"The MILK, honey, where's the milk?"

"Mama, I can't hear you!"

"Would you come in here then?" Her mother called. Leigh-Anne walked into the bedroom. "You milked Bessie today, didn't ya?" Her mother asked. Leigh-Anne nodded. "Where'd ya put it? The milk?"

"Oh! It's on one of the stables outside!"

"Outside? Leigh-Anne, my lord, get it in the house! And when you do, come back in here. I want to talk to ya about something." She said. Leigh-Anne nodded and headed out to the stables. Mary-Rose was there, brushing one of the horses.

"Did mom tell you about him yet?" Mary-Rose asked her sister. Leigh-Anne raised an eyebrow.

"Who?"

"Oh. I guess not."

"Who she gonna tell me about?" Leigh-Anne asked.

"Your husband." Mary-Rose said softly.

"My huh?" Leigh-Anne said.

"She wants you to get married. To Boone."

"The Hedgepeth's kid? No way. I don't think I've properly met him once, I ain't marryin' him."

"I ain't the one you should be tellin' that to." Her sister said. Leigh-Anne grabbed the bucket of milk and stormed inside.

"So you just gon' pawn me off on some guy I barely know?" She screamed, knocking over the knick knacks on the shelf next to her mother's bedroom.

"What? Is this about Boone?" Her mother asked.

"How could you? You know I ain't wanna get married anyways!"

"That ain't your decision, honey."

"Like fuckin' HELL it ain't my decision! Ain't no way-"

"Leigh-Anne, for Christ's sake, calm down! Sugar, just listen to me, okay? Can you do that?" Her mother said calmly. Leigh-Anne was breathing heavily, but didn't say anything. "All's I'm asking - ALL'S I'm asking - is for you to give him a chance. To get to know him." She said. "Just a chance."

"According to Abigail Rider, she and you witnessed the murder of Cletus Cowpussy by the hands of Sally Elizabeth. Do you second this?" Jude Buck asked her. Leigh-Anne looked over to Edward, who's hands were in shackles. Vanilla Bean patted his back and whispered something to him, to which he nodded.

Maybe she assured him that everything was going to be okay. That Leigh-Anne would second that statement, and it would be over before he knew it. With two witnesses, it's pretty much all the court has. And Edward might not be sentenced to death.

The sight of Edward made her flinch, knowing he used his knife on a sweet Catholic girl who obviously didn't mean to kill his best friend. On Sally Elizabeth, who was one of her friends. Not a best friend, sure. But a friend. Who maybe had what was coming to her.

But the knife. She looked at his hands. They were in shackles now, but when they were free they had taken a life. She rubbed her left shoulder and winced at the pain of the wound left by a knife in her own past.

"A chance, I told my mama." Leigh-Anne sobbed. "That's what I gave you."

"Well darlin', I'm sorry I wasn't the perfect guy." Boone said through gritted teeth. "But perfect guy or not, you're marryin' me." He walked over to her slowly.

"No...I'm NOT. You fucking lunatic!" She screamed, tossing a vase at his torso and missing. She tried to run but was surrounded by the Hedgepeth's living room walls. The front door was blocked by the man in front of her, who reached into his jacket pocket.

"My sweet pea...I don't think you're understandin' the magnitude of the situation." Boone smiled. "Where ya gonna go? Back to mama? She's just gon' send you right back to me, darlin'." He stepped closer to her. "You're nothin' without me, you know that right?"

"Please..." She said, softer this time. She fell to the floor, defeated. "Don't hurt me." Her slouching didn't last long when she caught sight of the glinting object Boone had pulled out from his jacket pocket. "HELP!" She screamed. "A KNIFE! HE HAS A KNIFE! HE'S GONNA FUCKING KILL ME!"

"Shh...shhh...they can't hear you, honey." He stepped closer. "If you ain't gon' live the rest of your life with me..." And closer. "You ain't gon' live the rest of your life." He grabbed her by the shoulders and she began to sob loudly.

"PLEASE!" She yelled. He pulled his arm back, aiming for her heart.

With a sudden surge of strength, she grabbed his arm and moved it quickly. The knife landed in her shoulder. Leigh-Anne let out a strangled cry, pain shooting through what felt like her entire body. He pulled the knife out of her, frustrated and ready to try again. She used the rest of her strength to finally push his weight off of her, bolting towards the door and slamming it behind her.

"Leigh-Anne?" She heard a voice in the front yard say. "I heard screaming' are you-" Leigh-Anne turned to face Mary-Rose, who's eyes widened when she saw the knife in her sister. Blood was streaming down Leigh-Anne's arm, and with her other one she grabbed Mary-Rose and ran.

"Don't look back for the love of GOD don't look back." She yelled. Mary-Rose stayed silent, running with her sister all the way back to their farm.

Leigh-Anne caught sight of Bessie and grabbed a blanket from the barn, tossing it over the cow's back. She hoisted Mary-Rose up, climbing up after her.

"Where are we goin'?"

"Anywhere but here."

"I will ask you again, Ms. Hufflesticks. Did you or did you not see Sally Elizabeth murder Cletus Cowpussy?" Judge Buck asked her. Leigh-Anne made direct eye contact with Edward. Her heart felt heavy as she knew what was coming, what her body would make her say. It was almost involuntary. Almost.

"No, your honor. I didn't see a thing."