Morix: Web of Mistrust

Turnabout Deception, Part 3

March 12

Courtroom No. 1

11:05 AM

Cotoli Morix

The best way that I would describe the man who made his way up to the witness stand in the moments that followed would be broody. He had his hands shoved in his pockets, and he seemed content with ignoring all of us, avoiding eye contact as much as possible until he had found a place behind the podium. I looked over to Chrysalis, and she was glaring at him with suspicion in her eyes. It seemed I wasn't the only one who found his behavior already to be rather strange. 

The man, who I assumed was the Jeff Lent person that Prosecutor Shield had already mentioned, was incredibly pale, as if he hadn't seen the sun in weeks. His hands were shoved into his pockets, and he stared solemnly at the space ahead of him. His hair was dark and neatly combed, but there was something about him that seemed malicious. He wore a suit consisting of all black fabric over a white button-up shirt. His eyes were a striking pale blue, as if they were staring directly into the soul itself. Another glance over to my sister's direction told me that she didn't like him in the slightest. 

I couldn't blame her. There was an aura about him that was peculiar, to say the least. I didn't know how to describe it, but I was oddly happy that he hadn't looked in my direction. A shiver threatened to run down my spine if we made eye contact. Luckily, he didn't seem to care much for me, instead staring blankly ahead of him as if nothing else mattered. It was rather interesting, to say the least. 

"Please state your name and occupation for the court," Judge Frost instructed, looking down at Mr. Lent with a small frown. As far as I could tell, he was experiencing the same bad feeling that the rest of us were. I didn't think I had ever seen him looking so nervous. 

"Jeff Lent. Security guard," Mr. Lent replied bluntly, still refusing to look at anyone. He moved his focus upwards slightly, but that still wasn't enough for anyone to get direct eye contact out of him. I couldn't tell if that was for the best or not, but I wasn't going to ask questions as long as he was around. I didn't want to risk him growing upset. 

"Security guard?" Judge Frost echoed. "What do you mean by that? Were you hired by the defendant to look after his house?"

Mr. Lent nodded. "Yeah. That's what I said, isn't it?" he asked, sounding exasperated already. He rolled his eyes and shook his head, clearly not happy to be here. "You really should try to listen a bit more."

"The witness will be more respectful in the future," Prosecutor Shield replied, his voice deadpan and quietly angry. He shook his head before turning his attention up to Judge Frost. "Now, witness... How about you tell us more about what happened at the time of the crime? You were there, if I have been understanding correctly. 

"I was there. What about it?" Mr. Lent questioned. He didn't show much emotion in his tone, and I already got the feeling that cross-examining his testimony was going to be far from easy. 

"Please offer more details about what you were doing there," Prosecutor Shield pressed, clearly getting frustrated already. He seemed to want Mr. Lent gone as much as the rest of us, and I noticed that his hands had clenched into tight fists perhaps out of anger. 

Mr. Lent shrugged. "I was there because I was hired by the defendant. It's that simple. My services don't come cheap, but I do a good job when I am hired," he replied. 

"You don't work for a given company then?" I asked, taken aback. "You provide security based on your own terms and who buys your services? For the most part, I've only ever heard about security guards who work with larger companies or as part of a given force who defend people out of public obligation or for regular pay. A freelance security guard is certainly a new concept to me, I must admit."