Issues // H.S. // A.U.

Chapter Thirty-Six

TRIGGER WARNING : MENTIONS OF SEXUAL ASSUALT AND RAPE IN A TRIAL SETTING

HARRY

Mickie had testified just a few hours prior, and that was hard enough to watch. Being up on the stand myself wasn't all that bad. I was questioned as a witness, the defense coming at me for being Dani's boyfriend and possibly lying on her behalf. Even though I was testifying for Mickie's case, he focused almost entirely on my relationship with Dani.

A bad feeling settled inside me while I was answering his questions, knowing that when it was her turn to testify he was going to bring out all the stops to discredit her. I was going to have to keep my own emotions in check if I was going to be in here for that.

Last night, Dani hadn't slept at all. I didn't expect her to, so I just held her all night. I made sure she knew I was there the entire time, so if she did fall asleep maybe her mind would register she was safe and she would avoid her nightmares.

Her outfit today was painstakingly chosen, black pants with a sweater that didn't reveal anything. She knew from the meetings and mock trials she had participated in with our lawyer that she was going to be questioned about her entire sexual history. She had warned me of it the night she had come home from the grueling questioning she had gotten.

Now she was standing in front of everyone, her hand raised as she swore an oath. Sitting down, she sought out my eyes, exhaling deeply before turning her attention to the prosecution. For over an hour she answered every question thrown her way, reliving her biggest nightmare in front of an audience. I could see how hard it was for her to say it out loud, even after telling numerous people already. It would always be difficult for her, but the determination in her eyes was as clear as day.

She was going to make that bastard weep.

His parents had shown up every day of the trial so far, Dani pointing them out to me the first day. They hadn't so much as looked at her, but now they were forced to. I wondered what they were thinking right now. Did they think their golden boy son was being wrongly accused? That all of these woman were lying? Women that they knew. A senator's daughter, a past girlfriend... the girl they fostered years ago?

Or did they realize that the boy they raised was a monster, that somehow he turned into someone's personal nightmare right under their nose. Did they support him? Were they ashamed of him? What did they think his punishment should be?

What I did see was the anguish in the mom's face while Dani relived her time with them. I knew it was like a stab in her heart realizing just how bad it was for Dani. They had probably had a very clear picture of the girl who they had tried to take in only to have her steal something as important as her wedding ring. She was troubled and they just couldn't help her like they thought they could.

Now Dani was destroying that reality. She was telling her story. The story. To everyone in the room to hear.

I sat next to Darla the entire time, her hand taking mine after watching Dani breakdown the first time. It felt as though my heart was being torn apart little by little. The distance between us felt too great while she was in this pain. Her hand was holding me together.

The breath that left Dani when the prosecution rested was heavy. Half of it was done, but now we waited as the defense got ready. The silence in the courtroom was loud. Dani had stunned a lot of people with her words, the idea that a thirteen year old girl was betrayed the way she was by just as young a boy was hard to digest. That Clint's reign of terror had started at the beginning of his teenage years was unbelievable.

"Miss Prescott," The defense started, Dani sitting up straighter and staring him directly in the eyes, "Your father was arrested when you were eleven?"