Overdose

"She wasn't supposed to die."

The words I had repeated every time I entered that godforsaken court room, or any time I spoke to an officer about the events of Monday night. I guess part of it was my fault, I should've warned her about the dangers of what she was taking, but who would've thought she would get so insane to take it all at once. It was just supposed to take the edge off, help her cope with the struggles of this strange game we call life, yet she chose game over, not just for her, but for both of us. She stripped me of the rest of my life by swallowing one to many pills. How was I the culprit? How was I the one to blame when she was the one who killed herself? She should be the one suffering for what she did to me. She wasn't supposed to die.

"Ms. Boyle, can you recall exactly what happened during the night of September 20th?" This would be the 100th time I'd be telling this story in the span of 7 days. You'd think by now my defense would have it memorized.

"Of course. Around 11 me and Erika met up in the alleyway in between the parlor and Ricky's tattoo shop, our usual spot. Erika stood in the alley as I walked in, clutching the bottle of pills. She handed me the cash, I handed her the pills, and we went on with our night." I had to act like I was sad, mourning the loss of a beloved client. But I could care less.

"What was this pill Ms. Marley was purchasing from you?"

"That would be Percocet."

"Was there any Fentanyl in this pill that you were aware of?"

"No sir." First lie of today. I'd been doing it my entire career. Sneak a little fenty in the drugs I sell, clients don't even know what they're addicted to, and come right back to me. It's never my intention to kill, only my intention to get rich.

"You're aware that she had died of a Fentanyl overdose, correct?"

"Yes."

"All she had taken was your pill. Was she aware there was Fentanyl in it?"

"No, I didn't know either."

"So, was this just a tragic accident, or is somebody lying here?"

"A tragic accident." I let a crocodile tear drip down my cheek before wiping it with the sleeve of my navy blue blouse.

"I rest my case Your Honor. My client did not know there was Fentanyl in the pill. While she isn't entirely innocent, her intention was never to harm. Why should she be charged for something that wasn't her fault?" I looked at the jury, seeming so, so sad. I bet it was all for me. My lawyer was the best in the biz. Charming, intelligent, really easy to deceive. The jury left to decide. My excitement was through the roof. All I had to do was serve a couple years and pay a fine.

Yet that's not what happened. I sit in prison years later thinking about what I had gone wrong. Was it something I did? It couldn't be. It was all her fault. If she wasn't so greedy, I wouldn't be her. That's what went wrong. Erika's an insatiable idiot that led to my downfall.

"She wasn't supposed to die."