Family of Hamilton-ON HIATUS

On trial pt. 1

A/N

It's midnight somewhere so here you go guys!!!!

~~~DANIA'S POV~~~

I woke up with a start as my alarm starting blaring, I had finally fallen asleep around 3 am and was still very tired. I got dressed quickly making sure I looked nice and presentable as Sandy would've said. I did minimal makeup and left my hair down. I grabbed my purse and rolled downstairs.

"Morning kiddo" Lin said smiling at me. He was also dressed rather nicely today and was currently making fruit salads to go. He handed me one "We are in a rush today, sorry. Our lawyer wants to talk to you one more time before you take the stand."

I nodded "I doubt I could've eaten much anyway, I am way too nervous. Where is Mami?"

"She is going to meet us there" he replied smiling. "She went to drop off Sebastian at my folks place. Chris is coming to drive us to the courthouse. Oh and check your phone, it's been buzzing off the hook."

I had left my phone to charge in the kitchen overnight and went and picked it up. I had 7 text messages waiting for me!

Jazz_Jaz: Good luck today girl! We are praying for ya and know you will do just fine. Don't let those lawyers get in your head. Keep your chin up and we love you!

OakSmash: Girl you got this! Those lawyers don't know what they are messing with today. Just be yourself and tell them everything, they will have to believe you!

Katiebug: I wish I could be there with you but mom said NO. I guess she's right, you'd probably be too nervous if me and Skye were there. We are still getting together this weekend right?

Abuelo: Good morning! I hope you rested well. Abuela and I are going to be there with you in spirit. No worries little one, they are not going to hurt you.

Alex_Lac: My little songbird, keep a song in your heart all day. Sing it inside your head when you get nervous. Music is the best thing when the craziness outside tries to come inside. We are all rooting for you!

DrWilson: Dear be yourself on the stand today. Remember all details are important, even the small ones. Tell your side of the story, that's all they care about. They want to hear what happened to you.

Skye_Blue: I want to be there so bad! Uncle Chris has something for you when you see him shortly. I gave it to him yesterday night when he took me home. I will be thinking about you and praying when I know you'll be on the stand. Love ya girl!

Double D: Thanks! I wish you could be here too. I am so nervous that I'll forget something. I will call you later. Love ya too!

I shut down my phone after that forgoing my usual morning twitter routine that Papi had started with me. I nibbled at a piece of pineapple as we headed toward the door. We made a left turn instead of a right when we got to the lobby.

"Chris is meeting us at the back. There are loads of reporters out front since they know you are testifying today. I want to avoid the media circus" he sighed.

"Me too, thanks Papi" I said squeezing his hand. Soon we were in Chris' car and he smiled "The box on the seat is yours from Skye. I have no idea what is in it."

I smiled "Thanks! She told me she had left something with you." I tored open the box and removed the tissue paper. Inside was a really pretty bracelet with a charm on it. It was one half of a best friends heart. I smiled knowing she had the other half. "She got me a charm bracelet with a best friends heart."

"That's cool" Lin said smiling "you've got a great friend right there. She and Katie are the best."

I nodded "I did hit the friend jackpot with those too. What the hell?" I cussed as I saw the swarm of people outside the courthouse.

"LANGUAGE" Lin said chuckling as he always tried to admonish me when I cussed. "They are all trying to catch a glimpse of you. We are going to the side though where the elevator is. We are meeting our lawyer upstairs near the courtroom. Your mami should be there by now so we best hurry."

~~~VANESSA'S POV~~~

I had made sure to arrive early so that Mr Penn and I could discuss his plan of attack. I was concerned that all of this would overwhelm Dania and I wanted to make sure he knew that we didn't want to over stress her. Soon Lin and Dania joined us and Mr Penn turned to speak to Dania.

"Don't get nervous up there, we are here to make sure the truth is told. Just be honest and tell the judge everything you can remember. Also don't let Mr Gruff or Keegan rattle your cage, pay them no attention. Look at your parents" Mr Penn said offering a good suggestion. "I will be questioning you first so relax and know your in good hands."

I went over and gave her a reassuring hug "We are going to be there with you the whole time. If it gets to much just give us a signal and we'll go from there. No one can hurt you inside the courtroom, they will end up in hot water if they try."

"Okay Mami" she whispered looking up at me with tears in her eyes. I had never seen her look so scared.

Soon we were moving out to the coutroom and we passed Keegan's girlfriend. She just stared after Dania in disbelief and I wondered what was up with that. Dania just seemed to brush it off and kept moving.

~~~DANIA'S POV~~~

Once the judge reminded both lawyers and the jury that I was underage I took the stand. I fiddled with my skirt hem as I took the oath. My voice shook as I spoke the words that swore me to telling the truth.

"Dania in your own words tell the court what happened on the night you were kidnapped from your home" Mr Penn said.

"I was outside with my best friend Skye. We were out in the front when I heard a gun shot and saw Skye go down. I thought she was dead and then I felt hands grab me and my chair and I was roughly shoved into a van. I had no idea where we were going or who had taken me until we arrived at this run down place. I was roughly picked back up and carried inside" I had to stop as I had begun to shake thinking about what came next.

"What happened next? Did you see Keegan or your father?" he asked

"Next I was taken to..to a room where Keegan was. He was so angry with me because he blamed me for what happened to Al & Sandy. He beat me over and over again until I begged him to stop" I whispered as my body began to shake. "Once he was done with me I was sent back to where my Papi was. He was in worse shape than I was, I had no idea what all had been done to him at the time."

"Did this abuse continue until you were rescued?" Mr Penn prodded

"Yes both of us were beaten by Keegan and his friends" I replied trying to catch my breath. I felt myself nearing a break down when Mr Penn took a deep breath. I looked up at did the same and tried to focus all my energy into what I needed to say. "Papi took the most of the beatings, he wanted to protect me however possible. When we were in the process of being rescued he put himself between me and the door in case Keegan got back to us. He was so weak" I said wiping at the tears now falling freely "but he was going to do whatever it took."

"No further questions" Mr Penn said

A/N

I had to break this up into at least 2 parts but most likely it will be 3 parts. Next will be Mr Gruff's cross examination. I feel that I did okay today at the audition but I won't know until tomorrow night if I made it or not.