Zero conviction

The room was almost empty, except for the two opposite chairs and a table standing in between. It was dark and Tommy was sitting alone in one of those chairs in what seemed to be a very calm manner. He wasn't fazed at all, nor was he bothered by the situation, but rather finds it to his amusement. A few moments later, Inspector Sunny came in, with a pack of cigarettes and a file in his other hand. He grabbed the chair opposite Tommy and sat on it, while his heavy weight landed on the chair like a sack of potatoes. He took a short glance at Tommy who was just staring at his movements, and then brought out a cigarette from the pack and hangs it in between his lips, his thick mustache shifted from the angle of his upper lip which made a funny expression that made Tommy chuckle. He lit the cigarette and thick smoke filled the thin air. He offered Tommy a cigarette but he declined.

"Not a smoker, I guess," He said

"Thanks, but huh... I don't think so" Tommy said with a shrug off his shoulders which made Sunny laugh a little.

"So, there are a few questions concerning your whereabouts on Saturday night." He said briefly and then continued. "Where were you at exactly 8 pm?"

Tommy didn't respond. His eyes shifted away from the direction of the inspector.

"You were spotted at a nightclub in Allen Avenue at around a few minutes past eight. According to eyewitnesses, you had too many to drink with your associates and later got involved in a club fight that made you exit the building that night. Is that true?" He added. Tommy didn't respond either. Sunny was starting to get furious at his non-compliance. He brought out a picture from the file he was holding and dropped it on the table in front of Tommy.

"Do you know whose vehicle this is?" Sunny asked. Tommy shifted his eyes to the picture and then shifted from his seat. "No, I don't think so" he lied

"No? It doesn't even look familiar, does it?" Sunny said with a note of sarcasm, and Tommy shook his head in denial. "Look kid, the best way you can help yourself out of this situation is if you cooperate with us" Sunny added.

"What situation exactly, are you talking about officer? I haven't done anything wrong" Tommy said calmly.

"The plate number of the vehicle in this picture as you can see matches the one on your vehicle. Same vehicle, same model, same color. Now! Tell me, is this your vehicle or not?" Sunny said with a change of tone. But Tommy didn't respond. "Answer me when I ask you a question boy!" The inspector blurted out.

"Look officer, it seems like you don't know who I am. So, I'll save you the trouble when my father gets here" Tommy said with a smirk on his face. This seemed to annoy the inspector the more.

"Let me tell you something, you spoilt brat! I don't give a damn who your father is, but when I ask you a fucking question! You give me a fucking answer!" The inspector shouted angrily and stood up from his seat with the burning cigarette still in his left hand. He moved closer to the edge of the table and stared right into Tommy's face hoping to shake him down, but he didn't even flinch. And he was starting to get on Sunny's nerves. "Oh boy! The fucking nerves you think you've got" He muttered, as he tried to wipe the sweat on his forehead. He tried to grab Tommy by his collar, just when someone barged in.

"I don't think you should be doing that," said a voice from behind. "Unless you want a lawsuit on your table" he continued.

"Are you?" Sunny said looking confused.

"I'm the one who's going to sue you for harassment charges if you don't take your hands off my client right away." the man in a neat grey suit spoke in a condescending tone. Sunny slowly took his hands off Tommy looking confused.

"Alright, let's get on with it, shall we? So, inspector, what are the charges you have on the ground against my client?" He continued. "I believe, there must be a mixup somewhere."

"Mixup! Haha, I see. That's what you lawyers do ehn. You just come in here with your fancy suits on with no acknowledgment of what the situation is whatsoever...right?." Sunny spoke with a loud voice.

"That's not the answer to my question inspector, and neither am I here to sympathize with you on how to do your job properly. Because firmly, I'm here to do mine. So either drop the lecture on morality 101 and tell us why my client is being wrongfully detained, or you take it up with me in court which I promise, will not end well for you." He threatened as he shifted his face towards Tommy.

Inspector sunny pointed to the file on the table, in a gesture for Lawyer Banks to go through. He picked up the file and glanced through the details before he continued. "Okay, inspector. So first of all, these are inconclusive. No witness was able to place my client at the scene, these can't be enough to detain my client!"

"It damn sure is. An eyewitness placed him and the other suspects getting into the same vehicle that was later found on the footage of the crime scene, a few minutes before the incident. And from our investigations, the vehicle was registered to his name." Inspector Sunny argued

"That could have been anybody behind the steering wheel inspector. It still doesn't prove that my client was the driver. You have detained my client for more than twelve hours without any conclusive evidence that he was even present at the scene of the crime. With that alone, my client has plausible deniability over any charges against him." Lawyer Banks countered. "I hereby request for him to be granted bail right away," he said confidently. Tommy looked at the lawyer with a satisfying look. He almost laughed at the inspector. Inspector Sunny, however, was unable to get any information out of him, and he knew for a fact that sooner or later, his father would send a more than qualified lawyer to bail him out.

Thirty minutes later, Tommy was released on bail from police custody along with his associates as a result of inconclusive evidence that was unable to place him and the rest of the suspects at the scene of the crime. The news was all over the media outlets, and Senator Atkins was left fuming by the way the situation quickly escalated. He had requested to see Tommy in his office immediately after he got released.

"What on earth have you gotten yourself into this time now?" The Senator spoke with anger in his eyes.

"Dad. It's not what it looks like" Tommy gave a slow response

"Then, what does it look like?" He demanded

"I... I was, hmmm..." Tommy stuttered

"Don't test my patience, Thomas!" The senator blurted out. "I demand you tell me exactly what happened right now at this moment without leaving any facts out."

"I... I was hanging out with a couple of friends, and then.." he paused. "On our way back, we.. there was an accident. Our car mistakenly ran into someone. I think it was... It happened all of a sudden. I swear, dad! They just came out of nowhere and jumped in front of our vehicle." He spoke with uneasiness in his voice.

"They?" The senator questioned as he sensed a twist in his words.

"I think... I think it was a woman and a child" Tommy spoke with dismay.

"And what happened afterward?" The senator asked

"I... We panicked." Tommy stuttered.

"Were you the driver Thomas?"

Tommy didn't respond.

"Answer me right now!" The senator shouted.

"Y...Yes, dad" he said feeling ashamed.

"Unbelievable! Were you drunk driving again?" The senator asked him with intent. And he nodded his head. "How many times have I warned you not to ever drive again under the influence? The hell! I even hired a driver for you!" The senator exclaimed. "Where did you get the car by the way? Your mother? Haha! I can't believe this woman! You are both trying to tarnish my image before my election even comes up. Why!!" He said angrily.

"Just get out of my office right away. Get out! Now!" He shouted at Tommy, and he shamefully walked out away from the senator's presence. The senator was left fuming by the situation, so he called lawyer Banks to discuss how to proceed with action if at all Tommy was going to be summoned to the court for any lawsuit. He wasn't going to sit and allow any of this mess to backfire on him during his campaign. He had worked too hard to afford any mistakes this time.