I Am Not My Skin [ UNDER EDITING ]

Chapter 18:

Cassidy jumped in the back seat and was quiet for a while. I could tell she felt a little uncomfortable and was ready to go back inside her home, but luckily Maya was there to remind her that we were not bad guys. And it was nice that she could see at least one familiar face, Maya calmed her. This was it, the moment of truth. I knew I had to calm myself and go into this open-minded, and as my mother always says, “there are two sides to a story” I guess now was the time to finally hear Cassidy's. It was hard to look into her eyes knowing what she put Jamal through just because of one simple lie.

A lie that made his life change, forever.

"Hey Maya, hey guys. So uh, you must be Maya's big sister Drew." She spoke softly, tugging at her dress. And the last thing I wanted was to make her feel uncomfortable with us. I wanted her to understand why we were all there.

And yet, I did not want to scare her off. Even though she lied, she could still help us by telling the entire truth. After all, she was the only one who could set Jamal free, and if she would agree to helping us was up to her. I hated feeling this helpless and not in control of the situation right now, I was never one to just sit around with my arms crossed.

"Hey, yes I am and thank you for coming to see us Cassidy, it means a lot that you came. It really does, did Maya tell you why I wanted to speak with you?" I asked, we couldn't drag this conversation any longer, time was of the essence. The next morning I had to be in early for work and both Cassidy and Maya had to go to school. But, I'd be stressed if we just leave everything behind. I had one goal and that was to make sure that Jamal would be out and be free, as free as a bird, and as he always should have been.

"Uh yes, Maya told me. I'm so sorry, please don't hate me for it. My dad made me do it because," her head bowed down as her eyes fell onto her feet, I could tell she was ashamed of her actions. "Because he made a deal with someone, I think he was an officer. I don't know who he is but when he told me that day what to do, he forced me and told me that if I didn't, I'd be out on the streets. I knew Jamal because sometimes he would come and pick Maya up from school, that was the only thing I knew about him." She paused to take a breath.

She then said again. "We always said hello just briefly, he was always so nice to me and he always loved to smile, and when they told me what to tell everyone I didn't want to. I couldn't because it was never true, Jamal never raped me or touched me." She cried, I knew it, I always knew it that Jamal couldn't have been a part of such an act, their accusations were wrong.

Mrs. Brown raised him well, so well that he wouldn't have even hurt a fly. He was such a lovely and gentle soul, his smile was so warm and could put anyone at ease just by a glance.

"Hey, Cassidy. This is officer Johnny, don't worry he's one of the good ones, he will be the one to help us. Please, only you can help Jamal out of this, only you can and you know how to. Please don't do it for me, do it for Jamal and the kindness he has shown to you. I am desperate to get him out of that place. It's a hell hole and he isn't happy there, it's weird you know, because now he never even smile at us. He was always so full of love and light, always smiling and so bright. His light is slowly but surely beginning to fade away."

I sighed, to think of how cold it must be in those cells for Jamal, he was so used to sleeping comfortably in a nice and warm bed, the food he ate and the things he did. He was full of adventure and now I can only imagine how stuck he must be feeling, so trapped as though he was a criminal. They put him in a cage and locked him away, and every time I see him my heart sinks even more. My baby was fading and fading fast.

"All right, well I have to go back in now. Bye you guys, bye Maya." She unlocked the back door and ran across the street, and now there was nothing for us to do but wait for Cassidy to go down to the station. Everything now depended on her fully.

When the next day came I was already at work. My shift started very early, I was anxious and kept looking at my phone, it was beginning to distract my work. I paced up and down the hospital rooms as well as the cafeteria, I was anxiously awaiting on some news. Tick tock,  I could hear the clock as I gathered my thoughts, numb to any feeling. I just hoped and prayed that this nightmare will soon come to an end, I didn't sleep much last night I was so worried that Cassidy might pull out and be scared off by her parents yet again.

Work was very hard to focus on, I couldn't get my mind on anything else today other than the poor Jamal. My mom prayed with me in the kitchen this morning before I left for work, right after Maya and I returned home we found her sitting wide awake in the living room.

I knew she wouldn't be asleep when we returned, but we still told her everything. Like always, she smiled and nodded and told us that everything will be all right and that before we knew it, Jamal would be back home with us again. I just wish it was true and that maybe I wake up in the hopes of it, and tell myself that this was all just one nightmare, and that nothing happened that faithful morning it all changed. It changed so many lives, Jamal's, Mrs. Browns, mine, my family as well as the entire community.

I was anxious and couldn't bear waiting any longer, and luckily my phone had rang and it was an unknown number. Everything was foggy but I could hear as Maya screamed over the phone. "Come Drew, come and see. He's out, Jamal is free." I nearly fainted with the news and it didn't even hit me to ask, but how? How was he out so soon, I knew Cassidy would be going down to the station but weren't there procedures one would have to go through first? And then I thought about what Johnny had told me in the car, Carter, it can only be him who would pull stunts such as these.

I rushed as quickly as I can over to the police station. The cab driver could only go so fast and it put me on edge, I had to get there and see my baby free.