“I told you. Gabe blackmailed me with the photo in your hand. My fiancé can testify to his attendance at the street race the night of the photograph.”
There is a rumble through the courtroom. Some attendees nod.
The jury whisper to one another.
My attorney gives me the signal, and I pounce on their collective doubt, reciting the words as well as I’ve been trained to give a sermon.
“I have a right to wear a spandex dress without being sexually assaulted.”
The prosecutor cuts me off as the courtroom erupts in discussion.
I speak louder, above the crowd. “Gabe made me ashamed to tell my fiancé about the blackmail. Victims of sex crimes are often groomed!”
“Order! Order!” The judge slams his gavel. “The jury will dismiss Miss Montgomery’s last statement.”
I stand up and look at Blake seated in the front row.
“I love you!” I cry out, clutching my chest.
He stands and blows me a kiss, his expression reflecting our shared pain and trauma.
Just as our lawyers coached.
“I love you, too, Morgan.”
I close my eyes and pretend his words comforted my heart, but really, my heart bleeds because Jack is close by. Ifeelhis disgust. It’s as if we are connected with an invisible thread, and I can sense his emotions like a physical force.
I don’t dare look. I may breakdown if I see an ounce of sadness in those blue eyes I love so much.
“I said order in the court!” booms the judge. “Strike the witness’ last statement. We’re taking a recess!”
Most of us leave the courtroom while the judge and the two sides talk privately.
Blake holds my hand as we stare out of the window, side-by-side praying.
Outside, we see hysteria. People debating. Some protesters let their signs fall. The media speaks into their cameras hurriedly, like a bomb was dropped.
The prosecutor’s case weakened. I just don’t know how much.
But I feel something in the air. Something powerful.
For hours, we wait, until...
A man re-opens the courtroom doors.
My heart pounds against my eardrums as I walk to my seat.
“We have a deal,” says the prosecutor.
Jack pleads ‘no contest,’ which denies guilt or innocence. He agrees to pay a fine and do two-thousand hours of community service.
It’s a blessing built on lies.
Gabe’s civil case will stay active, but hopefully he’ll accept a settlement, paid by the church. That’s better than a second trial. Daddy said he’d pay, and I said I’d obey.
I have been, and my father kept his end of the bargain.
The lawyers hug in victory. People shake hands. Noel jumps over the partition, embracing Jack and slapping his back. Tommy next. Julie’s there, too, giving him a longer embrace. He’s ecstatic, smiling ear to ear. He can walk out of the courtroom.
