“Why are you here Duffy?” Alice said.

“We found something.”

Alice cocked an eyebrow, “what? Another dead body to frame me for? Well I have a fucking alibi this time!”

“No,” Duffy said shaking her head, “someone bought Bette and Tina’s old house recently and they found something buried in the bushes.”

Alice was too stunned to even speak. What did they find?

“It was a metal pole,” Duffy said, “we assumed from the extent of the injuries of Jenny’s head that she was pushed off the balcony, but when we found the metal pole, and saw that it had dried blood on it that exactly matched Jenny’s DNA, we discovered that she was actually killed by a hit to the head with a metal pole.”

“What is this clue now?” Alice snarled standing up and slapping her hands on the table, “Alice with a metal pole in the swimming pool. Is that what this is huh? First you drag me through fucking trials convincing the jury that I pushed Jenny fucking Schecter off a balcony, and now what? You wanna do a retrial where you prove I hit her upside the head with a damn stick? What will you win from that huh? I’m already here! What you want me on death row? Well save yourself the trouble because I’d rather hang myself then let you fuckers inject me for a crime I didn’t commit!”

“Alice,” Duffy said calmly, “we ran the prints on the pole. It was touched by every single construction worker that was working on the house at the time, and several of the other suspects who maybe moved it out of the way or something. Your prints weren’t on there.”

Alice sat down, “what?”

“Your prints weren’t on the pole,” Duffy said looking up at Alice with tears in her eyes, “you’re innocent.”

Alice stammered a bit and gave up trying to finish her thought.

“I went to the appeal courts myself,” Duffy said, “with this horrible mistake it was easy to do. You’ll be released from here tomorrow morning.”

Alice looked up at Duffy as tears spilled out of her eyes, “I’m getting out?”

“Yes.”

Alice dropped her head and started sobbing, “and to what exactly?”

Duffy drooped her shoulders and shrugged sadly.

“I’ve been in jail for seven years Duffy,” Alice said, “Shane is the only friend who visits me and it’s all because Molly has kept her out of trouble. Helena is raging alcoholic who doesn’t even remember who she is anymore. Kit calls me once a week because she can’t get away from her businesses to see me. Bette and Tina are on the other side of the country. Max moved back to his hometown to raise his daughter. And Tasha…”

Duffy watched sadly as Alice started sobbing the moment she mentioned Tasha’s name.

“She tried to defend me,” Alice sobbed, “she worked her ass off looking for evidence to save me. She used all her savings to hire me a good lawyer but it was no good. All the evidence she found blamed me. And eventually we couldn’t maintain our relationship any longer. That was five years ago but it burns me like it happened yesterday.”

“I’m sorry,” Duffy said.

“Sorry? Sorry for condemning an innocent woman and ruining her whole entire life?” Alice snapped standing up, “what am I gonna go home to Duffy? Two friends who can’t really help me because one’s living with her girlfriend and the other is working all the time? An ex-girlfriend who’s probably married and has children now, living a happy life? In fact she probably married Jamie!” Alice scoffed, “I couldn’t bear to see that. But I’ll go home to L.A, just to help you find the real murderer; the person that should have been in here losing everything!”

Alice stood up and started walking towards the door without even muttering a goodbye.

“Hey,” Duffy said as Alice put her hand on the door to leave, “if it’s any consolation, Tasha is not married.”

TBC???