Castle's partner

The Trial

"Whatever," I say, not wanting to argue anymore.

Beckett stops, seeing her cause is lost.

"Are you hungry?" Castle changes the subject.

I let loose a little grin.

"I don't know. Hey Ryan, do you remember what you said you would do when I woke up?"

"No...what?"

"You're no fun. You said you would take me to El Palmar."

"Oh yeah, I did didn't I? How about this, I'll go get it and bring it back here so you don't have to move?"

"I guess if you want to..."

He smiles. "I'll be back soon."

"I'll go with you," Castle says.

As they leave, I am left with Beckett and Espo.

Then Espo goes to take care of something, and I am alone with Beckett.

"Beckett?"

"Yeah?"

I hesitate. I look at her, and then look away.

"I'm scared. For the trial."

"Hey, Samantha, look at me."

I slowly raise my gaze to meet hers.

She takes my hands and pauses for a second before speaking.

"There's nothing to be afraid of. We are all going to be there."

"I know. That's what scares me. It would be the perfect time for someone to-"

"Nothing is going to happen to us. You have to trust me okay?"

I nod.

A few minutes later, Ryan and Castle come back with the food.

They eat in the kitchen while I eat alone in my room, though they offered to stay with me. I declined.

------------------------------------------------------

I wait in the back room for the trial to start.

My hands shake as I squeeze them together in my lap. My breath is shaky too, though I try to hide it.

"Hey." Beckett rests a hand on my new dress, the one I got with Alexis. I haven't worn it before today.

I barely acknowledge her presence.

Then Castle walks in, and he hands me a cup.

"Here. I know you don't particularly like coffee but it takes the edge off the nerves."

I nod gratefully.

They wait for me as I slowly drink it.

Then Beckett takes my hand.

"We'll be here for you no matter what happens. Always. But it's time."

Wordlessly I stand up and hug both of them before walking into the court room.

I am first on the witness stand after I take the oath.

First, the prosecutor, my lawyer, asks me questions.

"Samantha, how old are you?"

"Fifteen," I say in a small voice, not looking at him.

"Who do you live with?"

"Kevin Ryan and Jenny O'Malley."

"Do you feel safe there?"

I nod, and he smiles at me.

"Samantha, what makes you happy?"

I pause, a little thrown off by the question.

What does make me happy? I can't remember the last time I didn't have a weight on my shoulders, preventing me from feeling happy. So I answer as honestly as I can.

"Solving crimes. And my family."

"Tell me about your family, what are they like?"

"Well, Jenny and Ryan are engaged. They are really kind and funny. And Espo, he's like a cactus. He seems really tough and strong, and he is, but he has a soft side. He's ex-military, so he's seen a lot, but he still smiles and makes me laugh when I'm sad. He is like Beckett, they both have hard shells but are soft on the inside. Beckett is selfless, and her, Espo, and Ryan are the best cops in New York. Castle, he seems like a two year old that always wants to play. But when you have a real conversation with him, he is the smartest person you will ever talk to besides his daughter Alexis. She is the closest thing to a sister I have. She's brilliant. And Martha loves all of us unconditionally. She knows everything about us all the time. Lanie, I go to her about a lot of things. She's a heck of an M. E. and an even better aunt. And then there's-"

I cut myself off.

"Who?" The lawyer asks.

"No one." I say.

"Samantha, you are under oath."

Of course I am.

"Ummm, I was going to say Oliver."

"Who's Oliver?"

"He was my boyfriend."

"Did you breakup?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

I shake my head a little.

"I didn't want to see him in pain every time I got hurt."

"I see. Did you love him?"

I take a deep breath.

"Yes. He made me happy. And he's like me. We both have experienced pain."

My lawyer smiles, and it is now I realize what he just did. He made sure I felt comfortable. It's a method cops use in interrogations. Talking about people you love calms you down.

"Okay. Now tell me about Brandon. What did he do to you?"

I don't want to say. Not in front of everyone.

Then Beckett's words come floating back to me, and I look out into the crowd.

They are all there, even Oliver.

"Brandon, he did a lot of things."

I ignore him, I refuse to look at him.

"He beat me every day when I came home from school. And then it got worse. He would touch me, and one day he raped me. That's the day I ran away."

I feel my bottom lip starting to tremble, the memories are very painful. A tear rolls down my cheek.

"Is there anything you would like to say to Brandon?"

Yes, there are a lot. None of which are appropriate for a courtroom. So I settle on the next best thing.  Wiping away my tear, I make eye contact with Brandon, and his face remains emotionless.

"Vincit omnia veritas. Truth conquers all."

And I'm done.

I head back to my seat, and now it's his turn.

"Brandon, are the things that the girl has said true?"

"Hell yeah they are. I also killed my daughter."

I hear a collective murmur from a shocked jury.

Questions continue to be asked, and all the while I sit, watching.

Waiting.

Hoping.