The Accused by SkyWriter

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Author's Chapter Notes:

Wowee, it has been a long ass minute since I've added anything to this story.

Honestly, life has been one giant adjustment since my Mums passing back two years ago and I couldn't do half of the things that I was doing before she passed. I lost my love and passion for most of the things I enjoyed including this....I replaced them with new things, escapsisms (I seriously read over 60 books last yr) etc. But now Im here again, picking back up, feeling ready to do some things I used to enjoy without them having memories attached.

Sooooooo here's 71 -- I kinda stopped just when my story was developing nicely. If any of my old readers are still reading, thanks for holding on and to you new guys, thanks for reading :)

Great, I thought under my breath as I walked past the front door a little while after Michael disappeared. I heard the doors open and I braced myself for round-two.

But no, no no…

It was Katherine Jackson.

Maybe it would have been a different kind of round two. Imagine when I had to explain once again that her son had disappeared on my watch.

I was still dressed in my clothes from the arraignment and so was Katherine. She looked just as surprised to see me as I was to see her.

“Hello Malania,” she greeted me. I wondered if she’d already seen her son.

“Hi Mrs. Jackson,” I replied. I was never going to give her a reason to think I was rude or impolite.

“Is my son about?” she wondered.

I shrugged. “I’m not sure, he went for a walk as soon as we got home. He asked for some space,” I told her honestly.

Given what had happened just a few weeks earlier, his emotional ups and downs made me uneasy and a little frightened of what they could spiral to.

“You let him go off on his own when he was so upset?”

I frowned at her. When would this woman understand what my relationship was with her son.

“Mrs Jackson, I am not on your son’s pay role. I’m not his babysitter. I can’t stop him from doing what he wants. I don’t have some special kind of power over him, you know?”

I knew she meant well and that her main priority was her son especially given his circumstance, but I couldn’t help but to feel constantly hurt by her unfairness to me.

“I mean, he just came from court—he probably needs to talk and to-“

“Oh,” I rolled my eyes, “don’t think I didn’t try to get him to talk to me – he is hell-bent on feeling sorry for Diane and Casey Hargrove and he didn’t want to stand for me negating his guilt…”

Katherine’s expression changed. “Guilt?” she pressed, coming inside closer, finding a way to the sitting area that was just inside the foyer. It was where I had first met her.

I gathered that she had a little trouble standing for too long.

“He feels guilty about sharing personal things that were supposed to stay just between the two of them,” I explained.

She shifted a little in brown French provincial style chair. I resolutely took a seat too.

“I see…”

“Mrs Jackson,” I began, throwing caution to the wind. “I think we got off on the wrong foot.”

She stared at me expectantly – her expression changed slightly. She, like her son, had an incredibly disarming stare that made me almost second-guess my olive branch.

“I love Michael and I don’t want anything from him but the love he has for me too. I don’t expect you to immediately believe that because I’m sure every girl he has ever been with has said the same --- but I hope I’ll prove it to you over time.”

She looked down to her hands for a moment as if she were considering my words. “Well, none of the women my son have ever chosen have been bold enough to speak to me as confidently as you have, so I suppose you’re already different.”

I wasn’t sure if she was being kind or if she was making a subtle dig at me.

“Full disclosure,” I told her bluntly, “I met Michael four or so years ago as a fan, I followed his tour for years, not groupie-style, just innocently because he helped me in my time of need.” I explained, “I saw him the night the allegations broke in Mexico, I knew about it before he did and accidentally spilled the news – everyone in his life scattered and all I could think of doing was being there for him, showing some solidarity and as a result, he invited me to stay at Hayvenhurst when he arrived home.”

Katherine smiled and registered a little amusement on her face. “Oh, that was you.”

I rose an eyebrow.

“Our chef took food to you, Michael tried to keep it quiet because he doesn’t like me to ask too many questions He is very private.”

“Yeah… that was me. My friend left me stranded outside of Hayvenhurst… Michael heard our disagreement and heard her leave… he came to talk to me.”

“Did you ever meet Diane?” Katherine asked, curiously.

“I didn’t meet her, but I encountered her. She was rude, jealous and spoke to Michael awfully… I didn’t care for her then and I can’t stand by and accept that Michael feels guilt over what’s happening.”

“That’s his heart.”

“I know… I feel for the child, but I don’t feel for the woman.” I replied.

“She was a beautiful little girl,” Katherine lamented, “its an awful shame how she is being used, especially being so sick.”

I shrugged. “I hate all of that too, but my priority is making sure Michael doesn’t go to jail. I’m sure you are on the same page there with me.”

She nodded in agreement. “Yes,” she replied. “We are definitely on the same page there.”

“I really don’t want there to be bad blood between you and I, Mrs. Jackson,” I said bluntly. “I know you don’t agree with what happened with Michael a few weeks back – but I need you to understand that he was in a very, very dark place and he made me see when I needed professional help and I trusted him and I hope you know that I wasn’t calling 911 for drama. I couldn’t bare to lose him-“

“I know,” she cut me off. “He just hides so much from me,” she admitted dropping her guard. She looked a little forlorn, sitting across from me, showing a softer and more loving side. “He shuts me out so its hard for me to see him the way you saw him—its hard for me to believe he could be so self-destructive.”

“I would have come to you for help that day, but the first time we met, you didn’t like me-“ I felt more confident talking to her, airing my feelings and feeling less intimidated.

“Its not that I didn’t like you-“

“Well, I think it was more to do with your concerns about Michael dating someone fresh from the crazy house when he was should have been focusing on the trial.”

I saw a smile rouse its way upon Katherine’s lips. She shook her head. “I suppose it was all a bit surprising to me, Michael had mentioned nothing of you and suddenly I was reading all of this stuff in the newspaper—with your brother and it just seemed out of character, I was concerned.”

“Maybe when I know you better, I will tell you more about my side of things,” I told her, “I will try my best to encourage Michael to include you in his feelings and even in the trial, but I know he is just trying to protect you, Mrs. Jackson. He blocked me out of the details for awhile too, he just doesn’t want to upset us.”

“You’re right. Michael has always tried to protect me from seeing his emotions, even when he was a little boy—“

Interrupting our conversation was the door opening and Kaito stepping inside. “Mike??” he called out, not realizing we were just outside the entry way in a sitting area.

“Kaito!” I exclaimed. I hadn’t seen my brother in a few days and was happy to see him. I could have only assumed he was with my parents.

“Mal!” he grinned, “hey,” I stood up and gave him a hug. He kissed my cheek hello and glanced over at Katherine. As though she were royalty, he bowed, or at least his tiny bit of respectful Japanese culture. I almost laughed.

“Mrs. Jackson, this is my brother, Kaito. Kaito, Mrs. Jackson—“

She stood up, steadying herself on the chair as she reached to shake his hand. “You’re the boy that got my son in to trouble at the bar,” I thought for a moment that she was serious but I could tell that she had a little glint in her eye and she was teasing him.

“Yes, I am so sorry,” he apologized looking completely horrified. “It was a very hard night.”

Katherine cracked a smile.

“To be fair to my brother, someone called Michael a paedophile and I think I would have been inclined to attack too-“

“No, there’s no excuse,” Kaito said quickly.

“Its okay,” Katherine said sincerely, “its nice to meet you.” I could tell that she was taken by just how big my brother was.

“I am sorry I didn’t make it today,” Kaito said to me more than to Katherine. “How’s Mike? Is he around?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know… maybe you can find him?” I said bitterly.

He raised an eyebrow at me as if he were asking me silently if his mother knew he had pulled another disappearing act.

“Did everything go okay?” he asked us.

“Yes, it was fine.” I replied, not really wanting to get in to things with Michael’s mother there.

There was some discomfort in the room and Kaito had picked up on it. “Well,” he began, “I’ll go see if I can catch up with Michael some place and see how he’s going.”

“No need,” said a voice behind us. It belonged to Michael. We all turned around. He had a habit of sneaking in to a room at times.

“Are you okay?” I asked at the same time his mother did.

“I’m fine. I don’t need to be baby sat, I just need to digest the day, can you both just settle down?”

“You know,” I started as he was about to walk past us to the stairs, “you can have your alone time, that’s no problem, but darn it, Michael there’s no need to be mean to me or your mother for actually caring about you when you won’t even care for you.”

Without another word, he climbed the stairs. We exchanged helpless looks before Kaito spoke up.

“Nah man, that ain’t right. Maybe he wants a man-to-man talk.”

I knew Michael was too scared of Kaito physically to be as rude to him as he had been to me.

He set off after Michael. Unless he’d been watching the news, he hadn’t been updated on what the day had uncovered in the courtroom.

I looked at Katherine helplessly, “See?” I told her with a little smile, “Michael does what he likes and he has tantrums at me now and then, too”

She smiled back tightly. “He isn’t usually this way,” she explained, “he usually pretends he’s fine, he’s never lashed out like this.”

May not for you, I thought to myself.

“He’s also never been through something like this before, he’s on edge, I guess.” I offered. She nodded in agreement.

More than anything, I was feeling calmer and less anxious around Katherine – as if she had finally realized that I wasn’t a bad guy. I relaxed a little, feeling like perhaps she would look to me as a friend and not a foe when it came to her son’s future.

Chapter End Notes:

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