24

Christina

I chewed on the last fragments of a hangnail as the defense attorney laid in on Donna's friend, Lynette. "So, you're saying you agreed to be a part of this profane business scheme?"

"Objection," the prosecutor said, pushing himself up from his chair. I wished I was the one prosecuting Simon and his gang, but the state had taken over the case.

The judge waved the prosecutor down. "Overruled. However, Mr. Freeman," the judge said to the other attorney. "I will ask that you refrain from giving sermons in my courtroom."

I balled my fist and silently cheered the judge for pointing out to the jury what the defense was trying to do: blame the victims. So far, the defense's case was that Donna and her friends had entered into an agreement with Simon and weren't happy when the business went sour.

While Lynette and her friend Cheyanne both agreed to testify against Simon, Donna refused. I was disappointed. I wouldn't lie about that, but I understood why she did it. I realized my sister had never been able to stand up for herself. She ran from her problems. I was no longer angry with her for it. I accepted who she was and what she was capable of.

As I sat in that courtroom and listened to the defense try to make these women falter, I grew angry.

Leaning forward in my pew, I tapped the back of the prosecutor's chair. He turned and narrowed his eyes at me. When he didn't ask me what I wanted, I told him anyway. "You need to call for a short recess," I said.

"Why would I want to do that?"

I refrained from rolling my eyes. "Because I want to speak to Lynette. I think I know what to say to turn this testimony around."

"You do? And you think you can do a better job than me?"

"No. I just know what to say to her."

His mouth flattened, and I was certain he wouldn't do it. But when he turned around, he stood from his chair. "Your honor, I'd like to request a short recess."

"Why?"

"Um, I need a minute with the witness."

"Denied. Carry on, Mr. Freeman."

I sunk lower in my seat and bit my hangnail until it bled. I hissed and shook my hand.

Someone opened the courtroom doors, but I didn't turn around, trying to catch Lynette's eyes to encourage her to not be intimated. She was not at fault here.

A man sat next to me and put his hand on my knee. I recognized his long fingers and smooth nails.

"Hey," he said and rubbed my knee. "How's it going?"

I shook my head. "Not good. Lynette is sinking, and I don't know how to save her. I tried to ask for a recess, but the judge denied it."

Mr. Freeman continued his line of questioning, or rather, blaming Lynette. "Did you ever refuse to… um…" he smirked, and it irritated me. "… perform your end of the arrangement?"

Lynette pressed her lips together. "Yes," she said. "Sometimes if I wasn't feeling well, or—"

"Just a yes or no will suffice," said the attorney. Then he walked back to his desk and riffled through his papers with a cocky grin on his face.

I poked the prosecutor again. "You've got to do something to get this back on track."

"Leave me to my job, Ms. Polito," he answered, annoyed.

"I would if you were doing it right."

"What was that?" he hissed.

"You heard me."

He narrowed his eyes again. "Get out."

"No. Do your fucking job so we can all get the hell out of here except for that creep, Simon ."

"Simon? Is this personal, Ms. Polito?"

"It's none of your concern."

He shook his head and turned back to face forward.

"What was that about?" asked Will.

"I want this prosecutor to do his fucking job, that's what."

"I get that. But something in your voice did make this sound personal toward Simon. Is this only for your sister?"

I waved his unwanted inquiry away when the defense asked Lynette another leading question. "Don't you think not holding up your end of the bargain meant that you were not fulfilling your obligations? Does that not mean that my client had the right to withhold payment?"

What the hell?!

"Objection!" I shouted from my seat, and the judge turned toward me. "Excuse me?"

The prosecutor dropped his head into his hands and sighed.

"My apologies, your honor. But he is leading the witness and that line of questioning is uncalled for."

This time, the judge raised his eyebrows. "That may be the case, Ms.—"

"Polito," I added.

"Right. But you are out of line. Another outburst from you and I will ask you to leave my courtroom."

"I understand, your honor." I sat back down, crossed my legs, and bit my tongue, both literally and figuratively as the defense went on with his line of questioning.

I glanced over at the jury box and examined their faces. One shook his head and yawned as though my little outburst had just woken him from a nap, and it probably had. Two of the women watched Lynette intently, but I couldn't tell if they were sympathetic to her testimony or judgmental. The rest seemed unphased while one nodded when our eyes connected.

My heart sank as I worried Simon would get away with this, too. No one had ever held him accountable for what he'd done in high school, including me, and it ate me up inside.

I hadn't realized my fingernails were pressed into the palm of my hand until Will unfolded my fingers, one by one, and placed his hand into mine.

He squeezed it, and I squeezed his back. "I've got you," he said, and I nodded, feeling my throat tightening.

A few minutes later, the courtroom door opened, and for some reason, this time, I turned around.

I blinked when I saw her, unsure if I'd conjured her up in my desperation. But my sister walked through the doors, her eyes scanning the rows of seats until they landed on me.

She didn't walk toward Will and me, instead she remained at the back. Her eyes pleaded something, and I wished I'd known her better to guess what that would be.

"Excuse me," I said to Will and brushed past him as I tiptoed down to the end of my row. When I reached my sister, I grabbed her hand. "Come sit with us. There's plenty of room."

"How's it going?" she asked, ignoring my suggestion, and staring at her friend.

"Um. Fine. Lynette is holding up."

She turned to look at me. "For a lawyer, you're a terrible liar."

My lips cracked into a grin. "Only when I'm around my big sister."

She blinked and inhaled sharply. After a few seconds of deep breaths, she said, "I think I want to testify."

My heart soared, but I pulled it back into my chest. It beat like a caged butterfly. "What do you mean, ‘you think?'"

"Well, if it will help, I want to do something. But if it's not—"

"Yes," I said, gripping her hand. "It will help. The more who can testify against him, the better his chances of being sent away. But it won't be easy."

"What do you mean?"

"The defense is a prick, which isn't surprising since he's representing Simon. So, if you want to do this, I'm going to help prepare you for it."

"You would do that for me?"

"Of course, Donna. You're my sister, and it's time I started acting like it."

Donna bit her lip but squared her shoulders. "Ok, tell me what to do."

"I will. But first, we need to call a recess. Wait here."

I walked back to my row and scooted over to my seat.

"Is everything all right?" Will asked.

"Yes. More than all right." I smiled at him, then tapped the prosecutor on the shoulder.

He ignored me at first, but I poked his back twice more.

"Are you serious right now?" he seethed when he turned his beady eyes at me.

I smiled. "I've got another witness for you. The third woman who was in the house. My sister."

The prosecutor looked behind me. "She hasn't been prepared. How do I know she won't blurt the wrong thing out? It's too late."

I knew what it felt like to not speak out against Simon. It was a regret I still felt in my bones today. I didn't want my sister to live through that, especially now that she had made the difficult decision to do this.

"I will prep her. I know that man and I know my sister. She will be ready. I promise."

"I don't know you, nor do I trust you. You know that, right?"

"Right. But you're losing right now and if you don't try this, I will bring it before the judge that you ignored a potential witness."

He sighed with such exasperation that I thought the judge's microphone would pick it up. "Fine."

He turned back around and stood. "Your honor, I would like to request that we convene for today and resume tomorrow morning. A witness has come forward."

"Absolutely not," said the defense. "I've not had a chance to review this witness or their testimony."

"Yes, he has," I whispered harshly to the prosecutor.

"Excuse me, your honor," he said and turned to me.

The judge rolled his eyes. "Ms. Polito might as well take the seat beside you. It seems she is quite invested in this case."

I knew he'd meant that sarcastically, but I wasn't going to let that statement go. I would take advantage. "Thank you, your honor. I think I will."

I ushered myself through to the end of the row and sat beside the prosecutor. He closed his eyes, surely trying to contain his annoyance, but also wanting to hear what I had to say.

"Donna Polito's statement was taken by the police. The defense has read her statement and therefore is not unprepared for what she has to say."

"Your honor," the prosecutor began. "The defense has had the opportunity to hear Ms. Polito's statement from the police report. This is not new evidence."

The judge looked at me and then at my sister. "If she keeps to the topics and statements she made to the police, I will allow it."

I closed my eyes briefly as relief washed through me. "Ask for extra time," I reminded the prosecutor.

"Your honor—" The judge raised his hand.

"I know what you're going to say, and I'm denying you. We will take a break for lunch now and reconvene in two hours. That will give you enough time since this witness has already given her statement."

"Fine," I grumbled under my breath, while the prosecutor replied, "Thank you, your honor."

"Which room can I use to prep her?" I asked him.

"Take her to my office. Wecan talk there."

I walked back to my sister. "The judge will allow you to testify. I'll make sure you're ready."

She nodded.

I felt a hand on my waist. "Do you need me to stay?"

I didn't need Will to stay, but I wanted him to. "Yes. We are all meeting inside the prosecutor's office. Follow me."

I led Will and my sister to the District Attorney's office. When we all sat down, he started asking her questions immediately. She wrung her hands while she spoke. Without questioning whether it was a good idea or not, I put my hand in hers and rubbed her skin with my thumb. With a nod, I said, "You've got this. You can do it."

She licked her lips and nodded, too.

When the prosecutor asked her if Simon had assaulted her, she hesitated. "I never told him no, even though I wanted to. But he has assaulted other women in the past."

My sister looked up at me, and heat rushed from my neck to my cheeks. I felt their eyes and their judgment on me, and I wanted it gone. I wanted to crawl beneath my chair or hide.

Donna hadn't done it on purpose, but that one look was enough to point the finger at me.

I cleared my throat. "We can't bring in evidence from past crimes if they are unrelated to this one."

"Well, we do not know if it is unrelated," said the prosecutor. Sure, now he was trying to do his job.

I looked him square in the eye. "It's unrelated."

"All right," he drawled.

"Ok, let's go over some of the questions the defense will likely ask."

The prosecutor and I went over the questions with Donna, reassuring her that she did not have to be ashamed of her responses. She looked down at the floor and bit her lip. I grabbed her shoulders and turned to face her, waiting for her to look at me.

"You are not the one on trial here, do you understand?" I said. "You have nothing to be embarrassed of. He is the guilty one. Not you."

She swallowed and nodded.

Looking at his watch, the prosecutor stood from his desk. "It's time to go."

Donna inhaled and stared at me. "Thank you."

My brow furrowed. "You have nothing to thank me for."

"I do. For helping me when no one else did and prepping me, even though I'd left you and my friends behind. I may not deserve a second chance, but I hope you'll give me one."

Tears welled in my eyes, and I embraced my sister. "I think we both were to blame for our distance. But I forgive you for your part and hope you will forgive me for mine."

She nodded and buried her head in my neck.

When she sniffed, I pulled her away. "Go get him, Donna. Show him that he didn't break you. Show him he should have never messed with you."

She smiled. "You always were the badass."

"Nah. I just never knew when to shut my mouth."

She laughed as we walked back inside the courtroom.

Will grabbed my hand as we sat down behind the prosecutor and waited for him to call Donna to the stand.

I watched Simon stare at her with a tiny smirk on his face and I wanted to wipe it off of him.

He turned to me and said, "You and your sister have shit on me."

I ignored him, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of knowing his threat had me worried. If he got away with this, what else would he do? His crimes kept escalating and the line of women he hurt was growing. It had to stop. Today.

"Ms. Polito, you were the first woman he contracted, correct?" the prosecutor asked after Donna was sworn in and introduced to the jury.

"Yes," she said, softly.

"Please speak closer to the microphone so we can hear you."

She leaned forward. "Yes."

"How much money were you paid in the first month?"

"Four thousand dollars."

"Wow, that's quite a sum for simply lying on your back."

I wanted to scream, Objection !, but I bit my tongue and swung my crossed leg back and forth to release my pent-up energy.

"Simon made more than eight for doing absolutely nothing," my sister replied.

Yes! I hissed in my head, but while I controlled my tongue, I couldn't help my smile.

The attorney was taken aback by her quick retort, but recovered quickly. "I wouldn't call arranging the business nothing."

"I would."

The attorney frowned and turned to the judge. "Can you please instruct the witness to only answer the questions I pose?"

"Perhaps you may want to try a different line of questioning, Mr. Freeman. It sounds to me like she is answering your questions."

The attorney exhaled and tried to look offended, but I read the anger on his face.

Good. Donna was getting to him.

"Who paid for your meals and clothing, Ms. Polito? Was it not my client?"

"Yes. But only because he never allowed me to leave the house."

"Your honor! She can only answer the questions I ask, and not anything else."

I smirked at his little outburst and looked at the jury. Some shook their hands at Simon, and a woman nodded and smiled at Donna.

I inhaled and exhaled slowly, realizing that the trial was finally turning around.

"I am finished with this witness, your honor. She can go."

"I will remind you, Mr. Freeman, that I'm the one who dismisses witnesses, not you."

"My apologies, your honor."

"You are free to leave, Ms. Polito."

"Your honor, before she leaves, I have one more question to ask Ms. Polito," said the prosecutor.

"Go ahead."

The prosecutor stood up. "Ms. Polito, did Mr. Graff try to kill you?"

"Objection!" cried Simon's attorney. "Ms. Polito was in the basement when the incident occurred. She could not possibly testify as to my client's intention. She saw nothing."

"That's because he had locked her under the floorboards, not the basement, your honor."

The attorney turned to the prosecutor. "You are trying to admit evidence into this trial that we agreed wasn't admissible."

"I am not, your honor. However, since Mr. Freeman pointed out that Ms. Polito had not seen Mr. Graff commit the crime, he opened the door for me. As such, I would like to call another witness to the stand. Mr. William Nash."

I turned to look at Will, whose eyes were nearly as large as mine. During the pre-trial, the police did not want Will involved as he was not authorized to go into the house. He was only supposed to knock on Simon's door.

The judge considered the prosecutor's request. "I'll allow it. But again, stick to Mr. Nash's statement to the police only."

I wasn't sure if the judge had read Will's statement, but it was quite damning.

"Your honor," the attorney pleaded, obviously having read Will's statement, and wanting him as far away from the stand as possible. But the judge held up his hand.

"You opened the door, Mr. Freeman. Now, it's up to you to close it."

Simon pulled his attorney close to him and whispered something in his ear. The attorney shook his head and looked down at the desk. The frown on his face would have made me smile if I wasn't worried about Will.

As Will was sworn in, his shoulders were relaxed and his face serene. He didn't look half as nervous as I was. I wondered if it was just his way of dealing with stressful situations or if he really wasn't worried.

The prosecutor stood and approached the bench. "Mr. Nash, you were inside of the house when Mr. Graff started the fire?"

"Objection. My client did not start the fire."

"I'll rephrase, your honor." The prosecutor cleared his throat. "Mr. Nash, were you standing in front of Mr. Graff when the lantern hit the ground?"

"Yes."

"Can you describe what happened?"

"Mr. Graff hit the lantern with his hip, knocking it to the ground and starting the fire."

"Obj—"

The judge raised his hand. "You will have your chance to cross-examine the witness in a moment, Mr. Freeman."

The attorney mumbled something under his breath but allowed the prosecutor to continue.

"What happened next?"

"Simon ran away from the fire and through the back door."

"Knowing the women were underneath the wooden floors?"

"Yes."

"Did he tell you where they were so you could get them out of the house?"

"No. But when I dropped down to the ground, I heard their screams."

Someone gasped in the jury box, and I closed my eyes. It was horrifying to think how close Donna, Lynette, and Cheyanne had come to dying that day.

"Thank you, Mr. Nash. That is all."

"Mr. Freeman, your witness."

Simon's attorney nearly knocked his chair to the crowd when he stood up. "Mr. Nash, please tell the jury, what is your badge number?"

"I am not a police officer."

He raised his eyes mockingly. "Oh. So, you were inside my client's house? Did he invite you in?"

"No. I—"

The attorney raised his hand. "Please only answer the question."

Will gnashed his teeth and skewered the attorney with his eyes. This usually didn't bode well with juries when the witness was hostile, but the jury seemed to dislike Mr. Freeman enough to not care that Will wanted to murder him.

"So, as you were trespassing in my client's home, you confronted him, and he was trying to get away from you?"

"That's not what happened. He knocked the lantern on purpose. He was trying to kill those women."

He narrowed his eyes mockingly. "Are you saying you knew what my client was thinking?"

"No. He had poured oil on the floor before the police's arrival. He planned to destroy all evidence of his crimes, including those women."

"That is such a wild tale, Mr. Nash. And completely untrue."

"No. It is true. I saw it with my own eyes. The floor lit up as it would if oil had been poured on it."

"You are not a qualified expert to testify on wood floor fires, are you?"

"I don't think there are any experts in that field, but I know what I saw."

Despite the attorney's slick smile, the jury frowned. One had covered her mouth, and another took notes.

"What is that you do, Mr. Nash?"

"I'm a bodyguard."

"Oh, and that makes you qualified to make this statement?"

"No. But my ten years in the military with special training in combat, hostile situations, and terrorists, does."

The attorney's eyes went wide. "Your honor, that was not in his police report."

"They never asked. You did."

The judge fought back a smile and cleared his throat. "Do you have any more questions for this witness, Mr. Freeman?"

The attorney walked back to his desk and ruffled through some papers. He hadn't lost his cool this entire time, but now he was wiping sweat from his brow. "Mr. Freeman, is that all?"

"Just one more minute," he called out.

As he rifled through his papers, he grew angrier and angrier until Simon whispered harshly, "Come on, man. Do something."

"Mr. Freeman, if there's nothing else, I am going to release this witness."

When the attorney nodded, my heart jumped out of my chest.

"Mr. Nash, you are free to go."

Will stepped out of the box and adjusted his tie. Everyone on the jury stared at him. Some with pure admiration and others with obvious lust. I narrowed my eyes at those witnesses.

"Hey, you look upset," he said when he sat down beside me. "Did the testimony not go well?"

I looked at him and smiled. "You were amazing. It was perfect."

"Your honor," the prosecutor began. "In light of Mr. Nash's testimony, I would like to add another charge to the list: gross negligence."

"What?!"

The attorney hadn't even objected, too dumbfounded by the request. I raised my eyebrows and saluted him. "Nice job," I whispered.

"What does this mean?" Will asked.

"If he's found guilty, not only will he go to prison, but the women can sue for damages."

Will sat back and smiled.

Simon shouted at his attorney, and the judge hammered his gavel. "Order."

Then, after a loud exhale, he said, "Everyone in my chambers right now."

I stood up, but the judge pointed his gavel at me. "Not you, Ms. Polito."

I sat down, smirking. I knew I really shouldn't have been allowed in, but I'd hoped no one would say anything.

As we waited inside the courtroom, Simon leaned back and called out to me. "You may be smiling now, but when this is all over, I'll be the one laughing. Your sister and her friends are done."

Will tensed beside me. "He can't threaten you like that. I won't allow it."

I squeezed his knee. "Don't worry, darling. I won't allow it, either. But I have a feeling we won't have to do anything." I nodded toward the back door where the judge and the lawyers walked back inside. Neither of them was smiling, but Mr. Freeman was the only one openly frowning.

I couldn't stop the hope from growing inside of me. When the prosecutor sat down, I immediately tapped his shoulder. "Yes, Christina?"

"So? What happened?"

He shushed me and the judge called the court to order. "After some discussion, I've decided to allow the prosecution to add the count of gross negligence to the charges."

I closed my eyes. Donna tapped my shoulder. "What does this mean?"

I smiled. "It means that Simon is fucked."

The trial continued for two more days as the defense called on witnesses to disprove Donna and Will's testimony, but none were credible. Some members of the jury yawned, while others tapped their fingers against the ledge. One even openly sneered at Simon.

Three days later, the prosecutor called us. "The jury is ready to share their verdict. Come down to the courthouse."

Will drove me there, and he held down my knee when it started to bounce. "They're going to make the right decision."

I nodded. Then, turning to the backseat, I looked at my sister. She wore a dress today and had styled her hair. She looked beautiful. Outwardly, she looked calm, but her fingers gripped her seatbelt. "Are you all right?" I asked.

"Yes."

"No matter what that jury decides, you did the right thing."

"I know. I just don't know what I'm going to do after this."

"We'll figure it out. Together."

She looked at me and nodded. "Sounds good."

We sat behind the prosecutor's desk and waited for the judge and jury to file in.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, have you come to a unanimous decision?"

"We have, your honor," said the jury foreperson.

"In the count of human trafficking, how do you find the defendant?"

"We find the defendant, Simon Graff, guilty."

A loud gasp rang through the room, and I wasn't sure if it had come from Simon or his attorney.

"In the count of gross negligence, how do you find the defendant?"

"We find the defendant, Simon Graff, guilty."

I reached for my sister's hand beside me and she inhaled sharply. "I can't believe it," she whispered, and her voice cracked. "I can't believe he's going to prison for what he did to us."

I shook our clasped hands as tears welled up in my eyes. "You did it."

She turned her body toward me. "We did it." Then she looked behind me to Will. "All of us. We couldn't have done it alone."

Lynette and Cheyanne, who preferred to sit in the back during the trial, rushed up behind us and wrapped their arms around my neck and Donna's. "I don't fucking believe it. This stuff never works out for people like me."

I squeezed her arm. "You were great. You held your own when he came after you. I'm so proud of you all."

"A round of drinks on me," said Will beside me.

"Now that's a great idea," said Cheyanne.

As we all stood up, I caught Simon's eye. He narrowed his gaze and mouthed, "Fuck you."

I smiled. We'd done it. We left the bastard with nothing but his hatred.

I turned to leave, but noticed Will wasn't beside me. He stood staring at Simon as the guard ushered him out of the courtroom.

"Are you coming?" I asked.

"I'll be right there," he said. "Head over to The Fox and the Fiddle. I have an account there. They'll look after you until I arrive."

"Will you be long?"

"That depends."

"On what?"

He didn't answer. Instead, he looked back at me and smiled. "I'll be with you shortly. I promise."

He walked toward one of the guards at the back of the room and slipped something into his hands. The guard glanced down and his eyes widened.

What was he up to?