Beyond Innocence Read Free

formulating her next question. “Why didn’t you testify? Tell the jury you didn’t do it?” Two questions, but really only one. She needed him to tell her he didn’t do this thing. That no matter how far he had fallen, he hadn’t sunk to the depths of inhumanity, hadn’t raped and killed an innocent girl who’d never done harm to anyone.
    “Lawyers told me not to. Said if I did, the jury would find out my whole record. I guess I shouldn’t have listened to them.” He shook his head. “I don’t know.” He met her eyes. “I didn’t hurt her. I didn’t touch a hair on her head. I swear it to you.”
    His eyes begged for a response from her. She sifted through her doubts, searching for the truth. A memory surfaced. Her eighth birthday. The woman who’d given birth to them was nowhere to be found. Instead, Eric had met her after school and walked her to the shady convenience store near their dilapidated building. “Wait here,” he’d said. He was inside only a moment, then he emerged in a flash, grabbed her hand, and took off running. “Hurry, let’s get home. I have a surprise for your birthday.” When they were safely inside and all three locks were bolted, he presented a handful of candy bars, with a flourish.
    Even her eight-year-old brain knew he didn’t have the money to buy her anything, but she hadn’t cared. He loved her enough to be there, to try to make her birthday something special. Her adult self would be revolted at the thought of taking stolen property, however trivial. She’d been disgusted by Eric’s behavior many times throughout the years. He lied, he cheated, he stole. But murder? Rape? She couldn’t fathom either. Not from the boy who had stolen candy so his sister could have a special day.
    She locked eyes with him. “I believe you.”

Chapter Two
     
    Late that evening, Serena waited for the red-eye back to Florida. She hated airports. The first time in her life she’d flown on a plane she’d been leaving a tragic past to head to an uncertain future. The whole gravity thing didn’t help matters.
    She’d been thirteen years old. Not only had she never been on a plane, no one in her circle of influence ever had. Of course, that circle was small. After the court declared her junkie mother unfit, she and Eric had spent several years in foster care. Sometimes together, sometimes apart.
    When the folks from the agency came to visit, they took pictures. She stood still and listened while they made comments to the foster parents about how attractive her mocha skin was, how acceptable. How it would make it so much easier to find her a permanent home. She wondered why they didn’t know she could hear them. She wasn’t stupid, but in her young brain, that permanent home would always include her older brother. Her protector.
    When the time came to seal the deal, Eric wasn’t part of it. Platitudes like, “He’ll be happier in a place that’s more for boys,” and, “You’ll both be able to visit and share your experiences,” didn’t soothe the pain. Serena had grown to love Don and Marion Clark, the couple who’d adopted her. They were Mom and Dad, but she’d never gotten over the pain of losing the only real family she’d ever had.
    Years had passed before she’d seen Eric again. She’d almost learned to forget her past when it came roaring back in the form of a late night phone call.
    “Honey, sorry to wake you, but I think it’s important.”
    The urgency in Marion’s voice had been a cold blast of wake up. Serena shook herself awake and waited with panic for the only kind of news that comes in the middle of the night.
    “It’s your brother, Eric. He’s in trouble.”
    That was the first time. Two months post graduation from the local community college, she was only one week into her job at the bank, but she didn’t hesitate. She had walked into her boss’s office the next morning and, in vague terms, explained she had a family emergency that required her to