“Thank you for continuing to help my niece,” Mr. Easton said, leading us into the living room.
Erica smiled. “Of course. We didn’t fight this hard to give up now. There is much work to be done. While I know we can’t take back the guilty verdict, we are going to do everything we can to make sure everyone knows she was telling the truth. My goal is to get her conviction overturned. She deserves that justice.”
“I agree.” Mr. Easton looked behind him and called out. “Penny! Alayah! The lawyers are here!”
I swallowed hard as I heard footsteps approaching. Erica stood, and so did I. When they rounded the corner, it felt like my feet were stuck in place. I couldn’t move. I didn’t think I was even breathing at this point. Today she was dressed in a pair of joggers and a tank top. Her curls were pulled into a sleek, high ponytail.
Those beautiful brown eyes bore into me, holding me captive.
“Who is this?” Mrs. Easton asked.
I couldn’t answer her because I couldn’t find my voice.
“This is Killian Lake,” Erica said, “my co-counsel.”
She slapped my arm, breaking me from my trancelike state. I averted my eyes long enough to speak.
“I apologize,” I said, extending my hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Easton.”
My eyes fell back on Alayah, who was still looking at me with her arms now crossed and a frown on her face.
“You two know each other?” Mr. Easton asked, looking between the two of us.
Alayah nodded. “We went to school together.” She stared at me for a moment before taking a seat next to her uncle. “Why are y’all here?” she asked quietly.
Erica spoke up. “I just wanted to touch base with you on a few things. I know you disclosed some things to me that you may not have disclosed to your aunt and uncle. I would need your permission to discuss them now.”
Alayah gave a hard swallow, letting me know that she knew exactly what Erica was referring to. Slowly, she nodded. Mr. and Mrs. Easton looked back and forth between each other.
“What’s she talking about, Alayah?” her aunt asked.
Alayah took a deep breath. “I was pregnant,” she said just above a whisper. “I had a miscarriage.”
Both the Eastons’ eyes widened.
“When did this happen?” Mrs. Easton asked. “Why didn’t we know about this?”
“I was a fresh seventeen. I didn’t need a parent notified.”
“Did Kennedy know?” Mr. Easton asked.
Alayah shook her head. “No. Rodney took me to the hospital. My mama was working that night. The girls were asleep. I’d been having really bad cramps all day long, and it just got worst that night. I couldn’t sleep because I was in so much pain. When I got up to use the bathroom, there was just so much blood on my sheets. I didn’t want to ask him for help, but I knew something was wrong.”
Tears welled in her eyes as she paused in her story. I was shocked to hear it because it wasn’t in the court records or any of her files.
“I was in denial about the pregnancy. I knew my period was late, and I just couldn’t face the fact that I could be carrying that man’s child. The girls were asleep, so he left them in the house and made me get in the car and drove me to the hospital on the other side of town. They told me I was having an active miscarriage at eight weeks. Everything moved so fast. Within thirty minutes of being seen, the baby was gone. They gave me a D and C, kept me for a few hours, and then sent me home with meds. Rodney didn’t even go in with me. It would have been so easy to just tell them what he was doing to me, but I was scared. He told me before I went inside that if I said anything, I’d be sorry.”
The Eastons sat with shocked expressions. The room was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. Nobody was expecting that. Erica cleared her throat before speaking again.
“I’ve contacted the hospital he took you to. They do have it in their records that you were seen. I put in a formal request with a judge to have those records subpoenaed, and it was granted.” She reached into her bag and produced the documents. “Hopefully, we can find some DNA record of the baby on file. Do you remember signing a consent form for genetic testing or anything like that?”
Alayah shook her head. “I was pretty much in a daze by the time it was over. The doctors were talking, but it all sounded like gibberish to me. I just wanted to get out of there, so I just signed the papers and agreed to whatever they said.”
Erica nodded. “Okay, so if they did genetic testing, your baby’s DNA is on file. It’s logged into their system. You would have gotten a notice or something explaining your results.”
“I never got anything,” Alayah said. She paused for a moment, seemingly contemplating her next words. “So…you could do a DNA test?”
“Yes. Since we can’t get a sample from Rodney, we can try to get DNA from a family member. I suspect they will say no. Worst-case scenario, we would have to get a court order to have one of them tested. The tough part is getting enough evidence to prove any new findings would have changed the outcome of the first trial. Now, the judge that signed off on the subpoena owed me a favor, but I can only ask for so much without bringing him something substantial.”
