A few days later was the trial. Though they'd searched long and hard and Peter had thought hard, he and Mike had been unable to come up with any proof.
Mike was worried, but trying to keep up the optimistic attitude. He felt responsible for his sister and nephew and if Peter didn't get out of this jam, he wasn't sure what they'd do. He also knew that Peter depended on him, since he was acting as the lawyer. Not wanting to let anyone down, he remained optimistic.
Peter tried his hardest to keep a positive view on the situation, especially when Nicole or Thomas visited him, but he was worried. This was the toughest situation that he'd been in, and he wasn't certain he'd be able to get out of it. He was more scared then he'd been in his whole life. And it wasn't just for him, but for Nicole and Thomas.
The night before the trial began, Nicole found it hard to sleep. She tossed and turned in bed, rolled over, kicked her socks off, put them back on, and was unable to sleep for several hours. Partly because she was concerned for her husband and son, but also because the large, uncomfortable bed felt strange when it wasn't shared with someone.
When she finally did sleep, it was only for a few hours, and it was restless. When she awoke again, it was quite early, but she got up anyway.
Nicole dressed in a respectable looking outfit and dressed Thomas nicely in a suit. She tried to be optimistic about everything, but she knew she wasn't fooling Thomas.
She and Peter had decided to allow Thomas to come to the trial. After all, it was partly about his future, and they knew it would be pointless to try to conceal the truth from him forever.
Nicole had found it hard to figure out exactly what Thomas had thought about the situation. Sometimes he acted the same, sometimes introspective. But whenever she tried to ask him, to dig inside, he refused to open up.
This was unusual for Thomas, who was usually so open about what he thought. But now Nicole was finding that when he wanted to close himself, he could. And he was.
Sometime around ten in the morning, there was a knock on the door. When she answered it, she found Davy standing on the front steps.
"Where's everyone else?" she asked. "I expected Mike and Micky to be here, too." They'd decided to all go to the trial together. Davy shrugged.
"Mike left early. 'E said 'e wanted to talk to Petah about a few things first. And I don't know where Micky is. I 'aven't seen 'im all morning," he replied.
"Well, I guess we should get going," Nicole said. She called Thomas and the three of them drove to the courthouse downtown.
When they parked near the courthouse, Nicole saw that the front steps were crowded with reporters. Wishing to avoid them, the drove the car around the building and went in through a rear entrance.
They'd arrived early and the room was just beginning to fill with people. At the front of the room, they could see Kimberly and another man looking over some papers and talking.
Nicole gasped and, grabbing Davy, she ducked back out of the courtroom.
"What is it?" Davy asked.
"That man," she gasped, whispering. "The other lawyer - that's Bob."
"You mean-?" Davy asked. She nodded. "Oh, my."
"Let's sit in the back. I don't want him to know that we're here," she explained. They sat in the very back row of the courtroom and tried their hardest to be inconspicuous.
A few minutes later, Mike came in. He noticed the three of them at the back of the courtroom and walked over to them.
"Why are you sitting back here?" he asked. Nicole whispered something in his ear. Mike's eyes grew wide. "Really?" he asked, and she nodded. "Oh boy."
"We were trying to be inconspicuous," Davy explained, and Mike nodded.
"Good idea," he replied. Then he observed that there were only three people. "Where's Micky?"
"'E's not with you?" Davy asked, and Mike shook his head. "I 'aven't seen 'im all morning. I thought maybe 'e was with you."
"No, I haven't seen him either," Mike replied. He frowned. "I didn't think he'd wanna miss this. Oh well. I'm sure he'll get here eventually," he decided, shrugging.
About a half hour later, the court room was nearly filled. Mike , Bob, and Kimberly were seated at the front of the courtroom. The bailiff entered the court, leading Peter with him.
Peter looked around the court. He'd expected the others to be right in the front row, supporting him, but they were nowhere to be seen. He sat down next to Mike.
Nicole watched the bailiff lead Peter in, feeling mixed emotions. She hated to see him in such a vulnerable position, and she knew he probably hated to be in it. She saw his eyes scan the courtroom, and she knew he was probably looking for them. She raised her arm halfway, wanting to call attention to him, but stopped herself. She didn't want Bob to see them.
There was a few moments of silence in the courtroom before the judge entered, and Peter leaned over to Mike.
"Where are they?" he whispered.
"In the back, "Mike replied. Before he could say anything, the judge entered the room.
"All rise for the honorable judge Louis Centris," the bailiff announced, and the courtroom rose. The judge, an old, large (by large I mean fat), balding man, entered the room, strode up to the bench, and sat down. The rest of the room sat with him.
Bob began to gather his papers together. Peter leaned over to Mike.
"Why are they all the way in the back?" he whispered. Before Mike could answer, Bob stood up. He met eyes with Peter for a few seconds.
Peter looked into Bob's deep brown eyes, and Bob looked deep into his. At first he was confused. He didn't understand why this man was looking at him in such a way. In those eyes, he read smugness. But why?
Then Peter saw the rest of his face. Memories flooded back, and remembered. That was the man...that was Thomas' father. He looked at Mike in surprise. Mike nodded silently.
So that was why they were all the way in the back.
Bob turned and faced the jury, adjusting the blue silk tie around his neck, and smoothing the crease in the jacket of his navy blue armani suit.
He'd waited a long time for this moment. Nicole had been his. His girl, his love. She'd dared to defy him, dared to leave, and now he wanted her back. The only way he could have her was to dispose of the man she called husband.
"Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury," he began calmly and confidently. "A great injustice has been done. A sweet, innocent young lady has had her pride forced from her. Yes, forced from her. And by who, you ask? By none other than the man sitting right over there." He pointed to Peter, and the jury gasped, as he'd hoped.
"Allow me to let you in on how it happened," Bob continued. "As some of you may now, the county beach volleyball tournament championship was last week." He paused for a moment and took a few steps to his right so he could address some of the other jurors. "Not only were there many volleyball players at this tournament, there were also quite a few spectators." He took a step back for a moment.
"My client was one of those spectators," he continued, turning and gesturing toward Kimberly so that the jury would know who he was talking about. "She and some friends went to see the tournament. But she became separated. In need of a ride, she approached the man you see seated over there." He turned and gestured toward Peter. "At first, she was grateful, because he agreed to give her a ride. But it turned out he had other motives in mind. "
He paused so that the jury could consider this before he continued. "When they reached my client's house, she graciously invited him inside for a drink, to which he accepted. But before she had even gotten the drinks out, he had started to come on to her, and with in a matter of moments, my client found herself lying on her bed, naked and... well, I won't disturb you with the gruesome details, but she was raped.
"The question I pose to you, members of the jury, is not merely whether or not this man is guilty, but whether or not we will allow men to get away with this indecency. Whether women will be forced to allow their bodies to be the possessions of any man that wants them. If we allow this man to be proclaimed innocent, then we disturb the fate of all women. Thank you." Finished, Bob sat down.
After Bob had finished, the judge looked over at Mike, nodding silently. Mike nodded. Nervously, he cleared his throat and stood up. He strolled over to the jury.
"Ladies and gentlemen," he began. "The speech you have just listened to told a story of an evil man and an innocent woman. But such is not the whole story. This man," he gestured towards Peter," is not as evil as some might assume. He is an innocent man, caught in a trap. Yes, a trap.
"The day in question, my client was sitting on the beach when he was approached by a woman," he gestured toward Kimberly," and in the events that followed, he was forced to make a decision. A decision between himself and his loyalty to his wife. He had to decide whether to save himself or to be loyal to his wife. He chose his wife over himself.
"The dilemma he was posed was this: either agree to an affair with this woman or face accusation and possibly a jail sentence." He paused for a moment so the jury could take in the information. "Now, I know what you're thinking. I thought it, too. Why would she do such a thing? What possible motivation could she have for that? Well, the truth is this. Several years ago before they were married, his wife had a son with another man. They were young at that point, teenagers, and he rejected both her and the son. Afraid, she fled, and that is when she met my client, her current husband.
"Several months later, before she had even given birth, this man sought her out and demanded that she return to her. She refused. He left.
"Now you are probably wondering what this has to do with anything. And I'll tell you. That man, the father of her first son, is sitting in this courtroom right now." He pointed to Bob. The jury and the audience gasped. Mike smiled slightly, seeing Bob's glaring eyes stare back at him. "I'll let you figure out what happens now," he finished, and sat down.
