Chapter 31 Olivia
Olivia
“Miss Bell, I asked you a question.” The old man distracts me from my thoughts. He stares at me through his glasses, waiting for an answer that I don’t want to give him.
“I’ve told you everything.” I feel sick to my stomach. I’ve answered every question they’ve thrown at me with complete honesty. Because Kade told me to.
The second I sat down, I’d planned to plead the fifth and not give them anything against him. But my eyes caught Kade’s, and he mouthed to me to tell the truth. I’ve looked at him every time before answering. And every time he’s given me an approving small smile and a nod.
“You’ve told us about many things, but you have not answered a simple question.
” The lawyer faces the jury and then looks back to me.
“Did this man, Kade Barrow, or Kade Maddox as you knew him, did he or did he not take you against your will on the night of the 16th?” His voice is sharp.
He takes his glasses off and purses his lips as he waits for me to answer.
“You don’t understand--” I keep trying to explain it to them, but they aren’t listening. Knowing now what he did… he saved me. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. He did what he thought was best. And he kept me safe.
“I understand this man held you captive, and that you are suffering because of it. This man is withholding information on a Gabriel Durand. He’s murdered his own partner in cold blood.
He’s committed crime after crime, and you’ve testified to those facts.
” His cold eyes bore into me as he asks, “Have you not?”
Tears prick my eyes and my heart squeezes with unbearable pain. I only did it because he told me to. Tears flow freely down my cheeks. I look back at Kade. He gives me a soft smile, and it breaks my heart. A sob is ripped from my throat.
“Yes,” I answer barely above a murmur.
The man looks between me and Kade with disgust.
“No further questions, your Honor.”
I grip onto the edge of my dress and hold my breath as I listen to the judge deliver his sentencing.
The hearing continues in a daze, as if it isn’t real.
“How do you find the defendant?” the judge asks.
The clerk looks straight ahead as he answers, “The jury finds the defendant guilty.”
My stomach sinks and churns with a sickness threatening to come up. The words sink in slowly, and my grip loosens. My lungs empty and refuse to fill.
The judge nods his head and addresses Kade.
“Kade Barrow, although you engaged in activity you felt was required while you were acting on behalf of the police force, you’ve testified to several illegal activities that were in clear and direct violation of the law.
You refused a direct order to abort, and therefore you will not be able to hide behind the guise of an officer of the law. ”
My ears fill with white noise and my vision goes black. My hands and body chill with a numbness as the judge sentences Kade to fifty years in prison.
Soft murmurs fill the courtroom, but I’m silent, refusing to believe what’s happening.
“The jury is thanked and excused. Court is adjourned.”
The gavel slams down hard with a loud bang and people stand around me. They’re going to get up and do whatever it is that’s waiting for them.
I stare at the back of Kade’s head, waiting for him to look at me.
But he doesn’t. He stands and walks behind the bailiff. He never turns.
My throat closes and my face heats.
A door opens to the left of the judge’s bench for them to walk through.
I just need one look from him. Just one sign that I mean anything to him. I need to know it was real between us. That I’m not crazy.
But they walk through the door and it closes behind them without him ever looking back at me.
I collapse forward and cover my face with my hands. I don’t care that they can see me. I don’t care who hears me. I break down like I never have before. My heart is beyond broken, it’s shattered.