Chapter 80: Support System In Company
"Yes..." Donna nods, with the phone to her ear, "I understand... May I ask when the next will be? ... Alright... Yes, I will get into contact with the house owner, and request for their consent forms and testimonial submissions... Thank you very much, I understand completely... We may or may not get a lawyer, if Judge Harris is still going to be taking this case... Alright, thank you. Goodbye." She hangs up, and sighs as she sits next to Yuri, with Luther in his chair. The three of them are in Donna and Luther's small apartment; a bit quaint, but more than adequate for their temporary stay.
"Trial is still suspended." Donna reported, "The attackers are still in custody, and the police are still looking for the remaining two suspects." She gestures with her hands, "The judge is still horribly ill, and he still can't come in and finish the trial."
"Unfortunately, Jamal says they had their faces covered," Yuri said, "The crowbar, duct tape, and can of paint that they used was purchased from a Home Depot, but so far, the detectives haven't turned up anything."
"Doubtful that they will." Luther said, "The officer also said there wasn't any fingerprints to go on. What about that other witness? What was her story?"
"She's a bartender at the Land of Oz," Yuri answered, "Jamal claimed she was dressed as Glenda – in like, a pink sort of get-up and such."
"And why did she not want to testify?" Luther asked.
"Luther, the Land of Oz is a pretty lewd establishment," Yuri says, "She either didn't want to come forward about her line of work, or she really couldn't find the time. Wouldn't have done much good though, with how the trial went at all..."
"I just can't understand where that judge could get off reading off false charges like that. God only knows what would've happened if it went on."
"Not just with Merrick," Luther said, "That judge was obviously against the gays."
"I'm no law expert, but I just know they were crossing all kinds of ethical lines and conundrums." Donna said, "I mean, it's like we NEED to get a lawyer just to make sure things go right!"
"And what they did to Jamal..." Yuri said, "If Jamal was under any suspicion of recurring drug abuse at all, it should have been reported to me and Adam immediately before any action was taken other than arrest."
"I thought they had to report to my parents, seeing as they're the owners of the house." Donna said.
"They live in Germany, so me and Adam are Jamal's codependents for any such incident. He or I need to vouch and take responsibility if Jamal were to get into trouble."
"Which reminds me, you and I will have to sign a few papers about Jamal's suspicion." Donna added, "And my parents will have to mail or fax their responses, testifying that they know Jamal hasn't violated his probation."
"Christ..." Luther shook his head, "Like we don't already have enough to worry about."
"How can things get so complicated so fast??"
"Donna, Merrick is only getting worse." Yuri says, "This morning, Jamal texted me that Merrick might actually lose his mind because of his temper. Can't you... I don't know, work your psychology on him?"
"I would, always, but Merrick doesn't do therapy." Donna said sadly, "He will not respond to any approach I try with him."
"That boy needs to get a drink, or Xanax or something."
"Drinks don't work." Yuri said, "Merfolk can't get intoxicated like we do. He's already tried. Last night, when Jamal and Nick tried talking to him, he got so mad, he almost knocked Jamal in for a loop. He stopped himself before anything happened, but it's starting to get out of hand."
"I understand he's mortified, but... Were in the world does all of this anger come from?? To the point where he can barely control himself?"
"He says he gets it from his father." Luther said.
"How do YOU know?" Donna asked, a little taken aback.
"I talk to the kid." He shrugged.
"*I* talk to him too, you know!"
"No. You analyze. I talk. Trust me, he's a guy, I can relate to that." He said, "Merrick said his father was very strict with him, really a hardass. He's always had a short fuse ever since Merrick was a... I don't know, a baby merman? He said once a young rogue merman asked him for help, and his father just outright bellowed at him because he was an outcast."
"Merrick at least understands his temper is a huge problem and he's holding it back as best as he can, but with everything that's happened, I don't know how he can really take."
"How bad has it gotten, really?" Donna asked, "He broke the wood wall at your house, and he nearly knocked out Jamal – who is twice as large as him – to what extent can Merrick do?"
"He told me he's having what he describes as... Blackouts."
"Blackouts?" Luther quirked a brow, "What does that, what's that supposed to mean?"
"Like... He gets very pissed off one moment, and then he blinks, and something's broken, and his arms or legs are sore and strained all of a sudden."
"My goodness..." Donna puts a hand to her mouth.
"Any input, Donna? What's happening with him?"
"He's trying to suppress his anger AND process his frustration and sadness at the same time – the former is unhealthy enough, but with Merrick's case, with HIS temperament, what he's doing is becoming extremely dangerous. If it keeps up like this, it might bring back his PTSD and even risk hurting other people when it comes up again."
"Adam told me that when he got that violent... He took down a guy about Jamal's size with one punch – knocked the wind out of him." Yuri sighed, "Donna, I'm worried about him... What if he injures somebody, and he lands himself into trouble, that would just make him hate humans all the more."
"Maybe he needs some time to go to the ocean." Luther said, "Let him spend some time with his roots instead of getting frustrated on land."
"That may be for the best..." Donna nodded, "But I don't think he's going to listen to anyone at this point..."
"If it comes down to it... We have a friend in the police – the bailiff from the courtroom."
"Oh, really?" Luther asked, "How do they know him?"
"He was apart of the Agency that kidnapped and tortured Merrick and Adam..."
"Oh... Yes..." Donna bowed her head.
"He was one of the security guards, but when the Agency was disbanded, he got a job with the police. He's willing to pull a few strings if we really need to; even Merrick could appreciate that."
"And the judge was going to have him escort Merrick out?" Luther asked, "Didn't you just say Merrick could take him out?"
"That is why we were lucky enough for the trial to be interrupted." Yuri said, "I honestly don't know if he'd have the guts to even touch Merrick. Or if Merrick was going to start a fight and get detained... Oh my God..." Yuri moaned as she slips her mouth and nose into her hands.
---Several Days Later---
Some time later after work, Luther sighs as he stands there in the hall of the hospital, once again, watching over his precious son as he lies there, inanimate, unmoving, the beeps somewhat hearable from outside.
"Oh, um, Mr Bryant?"
Luther turns, and sees a handful of men, including Harold, one of Adam's groomsmen.
"Oh, hello Harold." Luther nods to them, "You here to..."
"We uh..." Harold says with the other Fish House workers that have arrived, "We came to bring him this..." He holds up a large F-H bucket with a bunch of souvenirs, treats, tackle, merchandise, and so on, "You think it'd be ok if we... See him, and..."
"Yes, go on, of course..." Luther mumbled as he nodded, "Just-Just please be careful, try not to unhinge anything..."
"Ok... Come on, guys." Harold then bring them in through the door, each guy taking in a single fish card to leave for Adam – different species of fish and sea animals from the gift shop of the Fish House, small fold-up prints to write a short message. Captain always preferred things this way – make a school of smaller fish cards rather than leaving one big card for everyone to sign. One of the men closes the door as they carefully surround Adam.
"He looks a lot better, yeah?" Asked one of them.
"Yeah..." Harold nods, "It's only been a couple and a half weeks since it happened... And you can't even see the heavy number they put on his face."
"What'd you say, he had TWO black eyes?" Another one asked, "Busted knee and a bunch of gashes, right?"
"His uh... Roommate, Dr Yuri," Harold said, "She says he's recovering a lot faster than he should. Literally, he's having a speedy recovery."
"He must have a kick-ass immune system." Another fishboy said.
"Bet he goes bareback all the time, yeah??" One of them grinned.
"Hey, come on, not cool." Some of them softly slap the smart-aleck.
"Where uh..." One of them mumbles as he looks over the small table, already holding a large vase full of flowers and other little tokens of well wishing, "Where we gonna put all our cards?"
"Um... Hey, how bout some tape? Maybe we can get some tape and put them up?"
