Best Friends

The Trial

AUTHORS POV

Amelia woke up early that morning. She was nervous as hell. She had to face her fathers killer in court, again. And now, he tried to kill her. It pained her that this one man has had such a negative impact on her life, and he always will. He made his mark on her life, and she can never change that no matter how hard she tries to shut it out. Owen was going to the trial too because he was there when Amelia got shot. Charlotte was staying the night at Maggie's house since Amelia didn't want her in that atmosphere. She knew that Charlotte wouldn't remember or comprehend anything, but she couldn't bear to let her daughter be in the same room as her fathers killer, and it pained her that Owen had to be there. She wanted her family as far away from Charles as possible, but it seemed as if all they had to do was get closer before it got better. Amelia got out of bed and walked downstairs. She made a cup of coffee and then one for Owen. She sat at the table quietly and sipped the coffee. It was so quiet in the house you could hear the clock tick. The minutes ticking away, the closer it got to the trial. Amelias attorney said it should be a rather quick trial since there is plenty of evidence against Charles. Amelia still didn't want to go. It has been 3 weeks since she got shot and she barely talks about it. After completing physical therapy she still struggles a little bit but her leg function is almost back to normal. Amelia heard footsteps coming down the stairs and knew it was her husband. She barely wanted to talk at the trial let alone now. She went silent when she didn't know what to do. Owen, of course, knew her all too well and knew she would shut him out today. He wanted to be there for her all he could, but in the back of his mind he knew she wanted to be alone. He walked into the kitchen and saw Amelia sitting at the table, and grabbed the cup of coffee she made for him.
"Thanks for the coffee," he said gently and sat down next to her.
"No problem," Amelia answered.
"Good morning," Owen said.
"Good morning," Amelia said. The two exchanged small talk before getting ready. Amelia put on a dress and Owen put on a nice shirt and pants and they walked out to the car. They were both silent as they parked. Owen grabbed his wife's hand and she looked over at him.
"We got this right?" She asked.
"Yes we got this," he reassured her, hoping it was the truth. They got out and sat down next to each other. Under the table Owen grabbed Amelia's hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. All Amelia could think about was safety. She wanted to be safe. She wanted her husband and daughter to be safe. No matter how many ups and downs she had with her mother she wanted her to be safe too. Meredith, Maggie, the kids. Everyone. She wanted everyone she loved to be safe. But she knew it wasn't the truth, and that isn't how the real world works.

"Do you remember when dad died?" Derek asked Amelia as they were sitting in his room. He was 18 and home from college and she was 11.
"Yeah," Amelia said, "I remember trying to scream and get to him, but I just couldn't move. I couldn't get to him. I wanted to scream and run and try to chase those guys down, but I couldn't."
"It's because I held you so tight. I thought if you screamed or made any noise that they would hear us and hurt you and me. I was so scared for you," Derek admitted. Derek knew from that moment he had to protect his little sister. He was always her protector.

Derek was Amelia's protector for a long time. He helped her with school and getting a job, and helped her recover from her addiction. Derek was her biggest support, and he was gone. That's how Amelia knew the idea of safety wasn't the truth, because if someone as good as a brother as Derek could have died so young, then safety wasn't forever, and without Derek, that's what she was worried about. The trial went on all day. It was about 6 hours long, excluding the recesses and breaks. Amelia and Owen sat down next to each other waiting for the verdict. Owen knew if Charles walked free Amelia would never recover. Amelia knew the same about herself.
"By the court of law today we find Charles Cohen guilty of attempted murder, and will be sentenced to 75 years in prison for repeated murder," the judge stated. The court went silent. It was a lot more years than Amelia expected, or anyone expected, but that basically meant life. He was 55 now, and he wouldn't live another 75 years. The Hunts felt relief that they would be safe from his antics, and their daughter would grow up in a world with him behind bars.