32. Chapter 32

Chapter 32

ALEX

S exual relations? He grabbed my ass, and I crushed his balls! That’s what he calls sexual relations. I couldn’t help it, I laughed, full on belly laughed. All the questions this guy was asking were so stupid. My dad already left the courtroom, so I don’t care anymore how bad this gets.

I hissed, this time while looking straight at Tanner exactly as my counsel instructed me not to do to fuel the anger. “Sexual relations? Is this a joke? He grabbed my ass in a crowded bar. I grabbed his balls and dropped his pathetic ass to his knees and listened to him cry like a fucking baby.”

It got loud in the courtroom and the judge started hitting his gavel. I was chewing my bottom lip so hard I thought it might be bleeding. I calmed myself down enough to release it.

The judge quickly turned to me and sternly warned, “Ms. Kennedy, you will not use that kind of language in my courtroom. Now if you need a minute, let me know and we can take a recess but do not continue using that kind of language or I will hold you in contempt.”

I took a deep breath and gained some of my composure back.

“I’m sorry your honor…" I looked to the judge for just a second "…I won’t do it again. I apologize.” I mean I wouldn’t laugh again, probably.

The judge said, “Let’s continue.” I returned my focus to Tanner to see he wasn’t smiling anymore, which made me smile.

Attorney: “Ms. Kennedy, are you admitting you assaulted my client?”

Whatever the little pussy wants to call it, I guess.

“I’m saying I defended myself from any further assault on my person.” I corrected the attorney as I cocked my head, thinking how could someone ever defend a piece of shit like Tanner.

Attorney: “Just answer yes or no please.”

“Yes or no, please!” You get what you give, fucker.

Matt jumped up and barked, “I object your honor, the question has already been asked and answered. She already said she grabbed the defendant by his testicles.” Matt winked at me and rolled his eyes because he knew he couldn’t stop anything that I was about to do but he could at least help a girl out. The judge said sustained and the questions continued .

Attorney: “Ms. Kennedy, the night you were allegedly drugged, isn’t it true that you actually have a drinking problem, and you were just drunk and since you had already had a sexual encounter with the defendant, you willingly went into a private room with him and were engaging in an aggressive sexual act?”

I wish I couldn’t feel my heart beating in my eyes right now. How do I get control of this? I honestly felt like attacking him right now. Concentrate. Move, countermove. Get a grip Alex. Take a deep breath this is it. Don’t look at Roman.

“No. I’ve never had a sexual encounter with Mr. Ellington. I was assaulted by Mr. Ellington after he put drugs in my water. I was drinking water that night. If I do have a drinking problem, however, I’m pretty sure I would never drink enough alcohol to go home with a pathetic loser like Tanner Ellington. Plus, alcohol doesn’t put you in a coma. Doctors are generally smart enough to know when someone has alcohol in their system, and they still haven’t identified what it was he used on me. On top of that, he’s such a pussy that he had to drug me to force sex on me. Tanner would never have been able to do that to me unless he drugged me. I would’ve kicked his fucking ass. Even if I slept with everyone in Sebastians or everyone in the town for that matter, I still never would’ve wanted to sleep with a pathetic rapist like Tanner Ellington.”

I guess I never heard the judge or anyone else for that matter because Matt and Jack were both up at the stand telling me to shut up.

***

ROMA N

I was trying not to laugh but she wiped the smirk off Tanner’s face and that was cause for a chuckle. Alex, quit trying to be a smartass and just answer the question. Maggie and Abby were giggling but stopped when Matt and Jack turned around and told them to stop. The room grew noisy. I thought the judge was going to hit his gavel and get mad again when suddenly Alex went on a personal attack. She called him a pussy and a rapist and said that she could kick his ass. Maggie and Abby were both clinging to my arms with a death grip. Matt, Jack, the other attorney, the DA and the judge were all trying to get her to stop but she tuned all of them out. It wasn’t until the judge's third contempt warning of jailtime did Matt and Jack run up to the stand and stop her. It was like she was possessed. I didn't understand what that was about. Not that it wasn’t all true, but it wasn’t going to get her anywhere. There was more to this. The room grew even louder with people talking and the judge was hitting his gavel. Then he told everyone to leave the courtroom except the attorneys and their clients.

Out in the hall there was a look of complete and utter shock on everyone's faces.

Harrison walked up to me and said, “She’s a badass! She didn’t give a fuck what happened to her as long as she got her jabs in.”

I had to admit he was right, but I didn’t know what this was leading up to.

“It was pretty funny watching Tanner get exactly what was coming to him.” I concurred but something still felt very off about that display.

Maggie went into comradery mode. “She took her power back, that’s for sure.”

She did something all right.

Grant came over and patted me on the back and said, “She can take care of herself, can’t she? ”

I took him to the side and asked, wondering if he knew what this was all about. “She’s provoking him, isn’t she?” It was the first thing that popped into my head. Grant nodded and I watched his jaw tick.

“It looks that way. I’m not sure what she’s trying to get him to do, but she can’t be doing this alone. There has to be someone in on this with her.”

“It’s not you, is it?”

I mean he has all the damn secrets.

He almost seemed offended. “I would never put Alex in harm's way, so no.”

That’s good to know. I probably shouldn’t be provoking the mafia hitman, myself.

“Do you think she’s in danger now?” He was worried enough about her to put a detail on Tanner, so I would assume he thinks she’s in more danger now.

“Yes. I think these people are dangerous and we need to protect her.” I finally agreed with Grant, and we returned to the rest of the group.

I asked my mom if she knew anything about this and she said no. I gave the once over to everyone in the crowd who was here to support Alex. She may have confided in someone.

I walked over to her brother. “Hey Edward, how’s your dad?” I doubt her family would’ve let her go along with this, but I wanted to feel him out anyway.

He snorted and said, “Alex did a real number on Tanner in there. Dad’s outside. Thank God he wasn’t in the courtroom for that bullshit, though.” Edward seemed almost proud of his sister to be honest. I'm not so sure I feel good about that or unnerved.

I nodded. I can’t imagine how her father felt listening to that. She must’ve been keeping her cool in there for his benefit. I know how close she is to her father, and that couldn’t have been good for either one of them.

“I think she planned this. I don’t know what her plan is. She refuses tell me shit, but I think she was provoking him.”

Edward shook his head and rolled his eyes before saying, “Yeah, that doesn’t surprise me. After her divorce Alex didn’t give a shit about anything. I had no idea how affected she was by that whole fiasco.”

I guess her brother didn’t know anything either.

There’s that divorce thing again too. I was lucky to have a mother that did her damndest to protect me from a divorce. I can’t imagine changing so dramatically after a breakup until my mother forewarned me, “A divorce isn’t the same as a breakup.” She was right about that.

***

ALEX

Okay, sorry. No. Not sorry at all. I stood as tall as my five-foot four-inch stature could and planted my hands firmly on my hips.

Matt yelled, “Alex, what the hell were you thinking?” I rolled my eyes and looked away before answering.

“That I was going to stand up for myself." I threw my arms down to my sides aggressively— fists clenched tight. "This is my life, not the rules of the court. I don’t care if they fine me or arrest me. I’m going to say what I have to say to that asshole. Everything I said was the truth. Just because no one liked the words I used doesn’t make it any less true.” I snapped back.

Jack was more controlled but still loud as he threw his arms in the air. “Well, you have a $500 fine to pay and you’re lucky that’s all. The DA is going to talk to the judge and claim PTSD or something. ”

Who gives a fuck about $500?

“I don’t care about the fine, like I said.” I was calmer now, stretching out my fingers as I looked at the nail marks in my palms.

“Well, you may have screwed up your case. Tanner could get off on a technicality,” Jack informed me. I laughed. I never thought he was going to get charged with anything in the first place.

“What technicality? Hurt feelings? Emasculation? If he gets off it’s because his brother got him off. The doctors can attest to the drugs in my system. Bruce can attest to his assault. Steve can attest to the fact that I was drinking water that night. I’m going to make sure the bastard goes to jail.” My breathing was so labored that I could barely catch my breath, and I was still seeing red.

Matt looked at me like I was crazy. “Oh yeah? How’re you going to do that? They may never let you testify again!”

Yep, don’t fucking care about that either.

“I don’t want to testify again. Don’t need to.” I crossed my arms with an indignant look on my face. I needed to get out of this room and away from Tanner is what I needed. Part one is done. I needed air and space.

“Alex, what are you up to?” Matt gently took my arm, turning me toward him.

I shook my head, trying to contain the tears that I knew were starting to pool in the corner of my eyes as the adrenaline was beginning to filter out. “I’ll tell you when I ask you to represent me.” I managed to choke out.

Jack looked at me confused and stated the obvious, “We represent you now, Alex.”

“As a defendant.” I whispered. They looked at each other with more worry than concern .

“Alex, please tell me you aren’t planning on doing something stupid.” Matt inquired anxiously.

Doesn't get much stupider than this, I thought.

“Don’t you think I already have? The ball’s in his court now.” I blinked away the tears before they could fall. The confused look on their faces was going to have to stay that way until the time comes.

The DA came back over and said, “The judge is sympathetic to you Alex, but you made a mockery of his courtroom and he’s angry about that. He told the attorneys that he’s going to recommend five years if it goes to trial unless we can come to a plea agreement now. But he said if it goes to trial and you pull something like what you just pulled, you’d be removed from the courtroom, and you wouldn’t get to defend yourself and he’d get off. Knowing that, how do you feel about him taking a plea?”

“What’s the plea? If he’s not going to get five years, what’s he going to get?” I needed to know what the options were before this would really work.

He said, “He’ll get one year. He’ll probably serve six months and do community service. He’ll need to enter a rehabilitation program for sex offender’s and register on the national sex offender’s list.”

Even though I wanted to say he could go fuck himself, I didn’t want to go through a trial and that was exactly what I was looking for. I wanted him to come after me, one way or another. I know he will too. I could see it in his eyes. I heard him say he could’ve fucked me up and then fucked me to his brother. The only focus I had in that courtroom was on him. I had tunnel vision on him alone and I zoned in on his every word. I could feel his anger and his vengeance. That’s all those two seem to know. I got out of my head for a second, looked square at the DA and replied, “Yes, offer him the deal.”