CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
I’m Innocent! Simone . . .
“I apologize. I got down here as fast as I could. I was on my way to New Beginnings when Jasmine phoned me. How are you holding up?”
“Mr. Bartlett, what is going on? I am falling apart. I didn’t murder anyone. I’ve dreamed of hurting her. I know I did not touch her. Did I?”
“That’s what you need to tell me,” he replies as he loosens his tie.
“It’s physically impossible. She’s in Virginia, and we’re in Connecticut.”
“Where were you May twenty-first?” he asks as he takes a seat across from me at the table.
“May twenty-first? Isn’t that the day of Mimas’s funeral? Yeah, that was the day of Mimas’s funeral. I was in—” My eyes widen, and I stop in mid-sentence.
“Were you anywhere near Terianne Knowles?”
I shake my head. “This isn’t going to look good or even sound convincing.”
“I am here for you and will do everything in my power to get you out of here. I cannot do that unless you’re open and honest with me. I need you to tell me everything.”
Dropping my face into my hands, I can feel the sweat on them against my flushed face. Shaking my head again, I murmur, “This can’t be happening.”
“This is serious, Simone. I need you to talk to me. Were you anywhere near Ms. Knowles?”
“Yes! Yes, I was. I attacked her at Mimas’s house and at the service. I threatened her in front of everyone. I even wished death on her. I did not, and I repeat, I did not murder her. In my visions and dreams I did, but I know I didn’t. Did I?”
“You don’t remember?”
“The images in my head seem real. I just don’t recall actually doing it, though,” I reveal.
Mr. Bartlett leans forward a little. “I am not going to beat around the bush. You could be facing serious time. This is felony murder. Ms. Knowles was stabbed to death. Although the police do not have a murder weapon, they do have a sweater with your hair and the victim’s blood on it. Have you ever seen this sweater?” He pulls a folder out of his briefcase and displays a photo of the sweater Mimas gave me as a gift. There are bloodstains on it now.
It feels like my stomach jumps into my spine. With tears blurring my vision, I confess, “Yes, that is my sweater. It was a dream. I thought it was a dream. I didn’t think I actually did it.”
“Tell me about this dream.”
“I took the knife with blood on it from Terianne’s face and wiped it on my sweater after Dr. Binet handed it to me. I had just carved Terianne’s face as if I were peeling an apple. That was my dream. Pieces of that dream have been haunting me. There’s no way I did it. I thought it was from the hypnosis. Even though I went only four times, I just thought it was from that.”
“Ms. Knowles was found with multiple stab wounds at three-twenty-four Alexander Street at about one fifty p.m. eastern standard time on Monday and was declared dead half an hour later, according to local authorities.”
“That’s Mimas’s address. And I wasn’t there on Monday. We left on Sunday.”
“She was found on Monday. However, she expired eleven hours prior,” Mr. Bartlett informs me.
“There’s no way I could have done it. I was in the hotel room with the girls. We stayed up talking all night long. None of us went to sleep that evening except Kathy. The reason I remember so vividly is that we painted her face while she was sound asleep. I didn’t do this. My dreams and talks with Dr. Binet don’t even mirror what you’re saying. With the exception of the sweater. That probably played in my head because I lost it and she made a joke about me leaving it behind after I handled Terianne. I don’t know. All this is making me feel and seem crazy. I didn’t do that to Terianne. I wouldn’t be able to function without throwing up just thinking about it. That’s how I know it was just a dream or my mind playing tricks on me. Ask the girls. I was there with them. Yes, I wished death on her, and I even dreamed about it, but I didn’t kill her.”
Mr. Bartlett thinks for a second before saying, “I will speak to the girls. Who can vouch for you?”
“Candice, Tracy, Kathy, and I were up talking . . . until Kathy fell asleep. But Candice and Tracy will tell you, we stayed up all night talking, drinking wine, and watching television. In fact, The Temptations was on really late. It was my very first time seeing it. Actually, none of us had seen it before. It is what kept us up all night.”
“This is good. I will have my team look into all this. This might be the piece or pieces of the puzzle that we need to get you out of here.”
“It’s the truth, Mr. Bartlett. I swear to you. I am not lying.”
He waves his hand. “No need to swear. I believe you. What I need you to do now is tell me everything you recall from the hypnosis sessions with Dr. Binet.”
“Just what I told you. Days after each session, pieces of me going to Mimas’s house and attacking Terianne with a knife replayed over and over in my mind. Up until now I wasn’t able to piece it all together, because I hadn’t really thought about it. I believe Dr. Binet recorded our sessions. It will confirm everything I am saying. She even asked me questions while I was under. Yeah, she did . . . And that’s when she made the joke about my sweater, now that I am thinking about it.”
“This is good. Now, there’s a hearing in the morning. I am going to see if I can find a loophole in the paperwork so you’re not extradited, and then we will work our way backward.”
“Extradited. What is that?”
“In English, because the crime took place in Virginia, the authorities want you in that state, but they cannot take you there legally without a court order.”
“Mr. Bartlett, I cannot go back there. I did not do this. Please don’t let them take me. Please help me,” I plead.
“My job is to do everything in my power to see that you stay here and your name is cleared of any wrongdoing. I will do everything I can to make that happen.”
“But how? If the Virginia authorities sent for me, isn’t it a done deal?”
“My task at hand is to find a technicality in the paperwork, and I will do just that.”
“What if that doesn’t work, Mr. Bartlett? Oh, my God! They’re going to throw me in some jail with criminals, when I didn’t do this.”
“I will petition the court to waive extradition, which would allow me a week or so to get this straightened out. Right now, I need you to try to remain calm and to get some rest. I know it’s easier said than done. I just need you to try. I will get you out of here. I promise.”
* * *
Mr. Bartlett is the best attorney hands down. He was able to postpone extradition. As crazy as it sounds, there was definitely a technicality in the paperwork. Thank God for miracles, and for God looking down on me, because the state of Virginia neglected to include the governor’s authenticity certificate in the paperwork. I am now in the car with Mr. Derek and Ms. J, on my way home to my baby girl. Well, to Candice’s. I cannot believe that all this happened and that Mr. Dee and Ms. J stayed at the precinct all night, waiting for me. They got to the court when I was being released.