Chapter 15
Melody sat Indian style on Major's bedroom floor surrounded by stacks of money.
Over the last week, the two of them had been moving nonstop, and after so many successful licks, she had honestly lost count.
Every time she thought she had seen the most money she'd ever have at one time, another bag seemed to appear.
Between the cash spread across the carpet and the duffle bag sitting beside her, Melody knew everything was going to be alright.
"Look at this shit. I told you, baby. We make one hell of a team," Major said from the bed while watching her count.
"Yeah, you might be right about that."
For all their problems, one thing she could never deny was that they made money together. No matter how much they fought, argued, or got on each other's nerves, they always seemed to find their way back to each other whenever business was involved.
After finishing the last stack, Melody secured the money with rubber bands and placed everything back inside the duffle bag. Once she was satisfied, she zipped it closed and stood.
"Where you about to go?" Major asked.
"I'm about to shower, then I gotta go meet my lawyer."
"Why you still gotta meet with him if the charges dropped?" Major frowned.
"I don't know. All I know is he called and asked if I could come by."
Melody headed toward the bathroom, turned on the shower, and got in. By the time she finished and stepped out, she felt refreshed enough to deal with whatever her lawyer wanted.
A few minutes later, she returned to Major's room wrapped in a towel.
Switching spots, he then went into the bathroom and got in the shower while she started getting dressed. After pulling on her jeans and sweater, Melody sat on the edge of the bed and started lacing her shoes.
That's when she heard Major's phone vibrate. At first, she ignored it, but after thinking about it, his phone had been buzzing all morning. Continuing to mind her business, Melody finished tying one shoe and moved to the other when the phone vibrated again, and again, and again.
The constant buzzing finally grabbed her attention. She looked toward the nightstand where the phone sat, lighting up every few seconds.
Curiosity slowly got the best of her, causing Melody to stand up and walk over to the nightstand.
When she picked up the phone, she noticed the caller wasn't saved under a name but instead under a single letter—T.
Holding the vibrating phone in her hand, she stared at the screen while debating whether she should answer or not.
The more she looked at it, the more questions started forming in her head because if the call wasn't important, there was no reason for somebody to be blowing his phone up back-to-back like that.
What really caught her attention, however, was the fact that the contact wasn't saved under a full name.
The single letter immediately felt suspicious, and before she knew it, her thumb hovered over the answer button.
Just as she was deciding whether to pick up the call, she heard the bathroom door open.
Melody quickly placed the phone back on the nightstand before Major could say anything. The last thing she wanted was to be standing there looking through his phone. Grabbing her purse and keys, she finished getting herself together.
"You coming back?"
"I don't know. Maybe," Melody shrugged.
"That mean no."
A small smile tugged at her lips as she headed for the door.
The cold air immediately hit her face once she stepped outside.
After climbing into her car, she started the engine and allowed it to warm up for a few minutes before pulling off.
The drive downtown gave her plenty of time to think, and despite trying not to, her mind kept drifting back to that phone call.
Maybe it was nothing. Maybe it was business.
Maybe she was overthinking it. At the same time, Major had already shown her he was a cheater, so she knew she wasn’t tweaking.
By the time Melody arrived at her lawyer's office, she had pushed the thought to the back of her mind.
After parking the car, she headed into the building and checked in with the receptionist before taking a seat in the waiting area.
The office was quiet, and after about ten minutes of waiting, her lawyer finally appeared and called her name.
Melody stood and followed him down the hallway. Once they reached his office, he motioned toward a chair.
"Have a seat. This shouldn't take too long."
Mr. Ellis smiled politely before opening a file that had her name printed across the tab. The smile disappeared, and the serious expression on his face caused Melody's stomach to tighten.
"What happened?" she asked.
"So, Ms. Young, I know you were under the impression that the charges against you had been dropped."
"They were."
"Not exactly."
"What’s that supposed to mean?" Melody frowned.
"The complaining witness may no longer wish to cooperate, but because of the nature of the allegations, the State has decided to continue pursuing the case."
"What?"
"Yes, the State picked the charges up."
Melody leaned back in her chair while trying to process what he had just said.
Ever since Patty agreed to stop cooperating, she had been operating under the assumption that the case was basically over.
Between the money she spent hiring him, the stress she'd been carrying, and everything Major claimed he did to get Patty to back off, she honestly believed the worst was behind her.
Hearing that the State could continue moving forward without Patty made her feel like she was right back where she started.
"Man, that's some bullshit!”
"I understand why you're upset."
"So even if she don't want to press charges, they still can?"
"Yes."
"That don't even make sense." Melody shook her head.
"It happens more often than people realize." He paused before going on.
"But there's something else you need to know."
"What now?"
"Based on everything I've seen so far, it seems like Judge Wallace has it out for you.”
“What? But how? This is technically my first charge.”
"You have prior incidents on your record, Ms. Young.
While they may not be convictions, they establish a pattern that the court can consider.
Unfortunately, I believe Judge Wallace views you as someone who repeatedly finds herself in violent situations, and more than likely, he's going to want to make an example out of you. "
"So, what exactly are you saying?”
"I’m saying that we need to start preparing for the possibility that this case becomes much more serious than we originally expected."
Melody sat back in her chair and stared at the wall behind him. A few weeks ago, she thought the charges would disappear. Instead, she was now being told the case was still alive, and all she could think about was Major and how ,if it wasn’t for him, she wouldn’t even be in that predicament.