Riley's POV
Daddy opened the car door and took a firm grip on my hand. He shielded me as I got out of the car. I stood close behind him. All the cameras and people trying to talk to us was VERY loud. I don't like loud.
I grabbed on to daddy's arm with my free hand.
"Loud daddy!" I yelled.
We were still by the car. Daddy turned around and hugged me and pressed me up against the car.
"Security is coming to help get these people away" daddy said.
Soon we weren't pinned up against the car and we were walking towards the courtroom. There was 4 guards walking in a diamond around me and daddy. That didn't help with the noise.
We finally got to the door and someone was there to let us in. Daddy had me walk in first and he followed right behind me along with 2 other guards.
Once we got inside I quickly went to the bathroom and locked the door. I slid down the bathroom door and took a couple deep breaths to try and collect myself. After a few minutes there was a knock on the door.
"Riley? Are you okay?" Daddy said.
"Too many people. To loud." I said
"Okay can I come in please." Daddy said rattling the door knob.
I stood up and got really lightheaded but opened the door.
"I'm really lightheaded." I said leaning against the door.
"Okay, okay. Let's go sit down somewhere and get you some water." Daddy said.
Daddy wrapped his around me as we slowly walked over to a bench.
"I'll be right back." Daddy said as he walked down the hall.
He came back with a cup of water.
"Take small sips." He said handing it to me.
My lightheadedness went away and we sat there in silence.
"How much longer?"
"About an hour. Or less. When you are ready we need to go talk with our lawyers."
"Okay. Let's go." I said standing up
I leaned into daddy as we walked down the hallway and into a room.
There was 2 men and 1 woman. Daddy shook their hands.
"Hi Riley, let's go for a walk." The woman said.
"My name is Sarah." She said as we walked out of the room.
"So. I wanted to talk with you about what she should expect today. Your dad said you had plenty of questions about the trial. And I'll have answers for you."
"How many people are going to be in there?"
"Probably around 50 or so. But don't worry. Most people are just going to be sitting in the back."
"How many breaks do we get."
"2, 1 in the first half and 1 I. The second."
Riley continued asking questions until it was time for the trial
*start of trial*
"Please rise...."
I stood up out of my chair. I waited for the judge to tell us we could sit. I looked over to the door that was opening. I saw lawyers, and then I saw them. They had handcuffs on but they were in nice clothes. I felt daddy's hand on my shoulder as they walked by.
"It's okay. I'm right here" daddy whispered in my ear.
We finally sat down and I played with a fidget toy while I waited for them to tell me when I needed to talk.
Daniel's POV
"Daniel Jefferson please take the stand." Our lawyer Michael said as I stood up from my seat.
After I said the oath I sat in the chair.
"Mr.Jefferson. Can you please tell us where this all began."
"Well after Riley's family passed away she moved in with her aunt and uncle as we all know. At first, everything seemed as normal as they could be for someone who lost their enter family. I thought that it was probably hitting her hard. I had noticed that she wore heavier clothes that covered most of her body but I also noticed she started wearing makeup on her face. Riley therapist had come into the school and talked with all of Riley's teachers about her Age Regression and how to handle it. I of course asked Kate more questions about it after the meeting." I said before Micheal interrupted me.
"Mr.Jefferson, why did you feel the need to go out of your way to have a better understanding of the condition." Micheal asked.
"Well me and Riley had and still have a very close relationship. I knew she was struggling and I wanted to be of the most help possible for her." I asked
"Continue with the story."
"That same day I checked in with Riley to see how she was doing like I did everyday. She continued to tell me she missed her family and she didn't like living with her aunt and uncle and that she didn't think they liked her. I reached out to Kate and she said that they don't support her AG enough and she doesn't go into little space often. A couple days later I was talking with a colleague Josh Miller and that when we saw Riley come in differently than she had in the past. She looked scared, tired, and unsure of what do to. She can over to us and broke down in Josh's arms before we took her to my office to ask her what was wrong." I said.
"At this point did you have any idea she was being abused." Micheal asked.
"I had some suspicions but I had no proof. That is until Riley shows her eye to us and said that her aunt and uncle did it to her. We took her to the police station and everyone got interviewed, when we tried to leave we saw them. They said multiple threats to both Riley and I. Luckily Riley was in little space when it happened so she doesn't fully remember it. Every since then Riley had been living with me since Kate decided she would feel more comfortable with me than a complete stranger." I said.
"Thank you."
"Thank you Mr.Jefferson. Now, Riley would you like to come up to the stand and answer some questions for me?" Our lawyer said as I walked back to me seat.
Riley's POV:
I got up out of my chair and slowly walked over to the stand. I looked over at daddy who was smiling at me and gave me a thumbs up.
I said the oath and sat down.
"So Riley, what was it like when you started living with your aunt and uncle?"
"Um, it was okay at first. They didn't really talk to me much. They gave me a room and then that was it for awhile. Everything started changing when I started needing things from them." I said looking down.
"When you say needing things, what do you mean?"
"When I would have nightmares, I would cry out for them and they would yell at me saying they were trying to sleep. Or when it was time for my therapy appointments they would ether not take me or tell me that I was weak for needing it. They never liked playing with me. And they would hit me when I did something wrong." I said looking up to see my aunt and uncle staring at me.
"Okay. And how is your living situation now."
"I love it! Daddy is so much nicer to me than them." I said smiling at daddy.
"THATS NOT YOUR FATHER! QUIT CALLING HIM THAT. YOUR FATHER DIED, MY BROTHER IS DEAD!" My aunt yelled at me as she stood up from her chair.
"It's not my fault!" I cried as I covered my ears.
I shut my eyes as tight as I could and tried to block out all of the noise. I get someone pick me up and carry me I'm guessing back to my seat. I looked up and daddy was cradling me in his arms while the police officers took my aunt away.
"Well, I think it is time for a recess." The judge said.
