I am already lying just by claiming Blake as mine.
I say a silent prayer for forgiveness before I answer the first question.
“Did you date the defendant?” the prosecutor asks.
“No.”
“Did you have intimate relations with the defendant, Mr. Killborne?”
“No.”
“No? Not even a kiss?”
“No.”
“Nor a hug?”
“No,” I answer flatly.
“Oh?” He smirks, devilish. “Then how do you explain this photo? Exhibit 33.”
It is the photo Gabe showed me. One of the best nights of my life. Jack is holding me tight. I wear that tight dress. The whore in red.
My heart skips a beat as my very soul aches to return to that moment. I would do so many things differently.
Gabe leaked the picture. It has circulated the Internet and been a hot item for debate, causing many to doubt my speech. But our attorneys prepared me for this question.
“I remember that photo. Gabe used it to blackmail me. He said it would ruin my reputation as a chaste woman due to my dress and fake eyelashes. Do you think women deserve to be assaulted because of what they wear?”
He objects. The judge agrees and requests I not ask the questions. The prosecutor rephrases.
“Do not deflect, Miss Montgomery. Answer the question.”
“I don’t understand your question. I see nothing wrong with the photo.”
He laughs loud and mockingly.
“Mr. Killborne is holding you in a suggestive manner. He is kissing your neck.” He displays an enlarged photo and parades it in front of the jury. “No reasonable person would look at this couple and believe they are just friends.”
“Objection, your honor,” our attorney barks. “Argumentative.”
“Overruled.”
The prosecutor tries again.
“Explain this picture, Ms. Montgomery?”
“I wouldn’t call it a hug. He was guiding me through the crowd and whispering in my ear. It was loud there. The picture is dark, or you would see there is no kiss. Blake, my fiancé, was there. He saw no problem.”
The courtroom gasps.
Jack subtly grimaces, like the lie on my lips wounded him.
But I am what I was bred to be: A polished speaker.
I don’t flinch. I’ll cut Jack to save him.
The prosecutor narrows his eyes. “Then why did you go on a date with Gabe months later if you were already seeing Blake?”
