Chapter Thirty-One – The Trial – Part One #3
Renner rises. He walks toward the witness stand, stopping a few paces away. “Mr. Knolson, you testified that you said ‘something’ to Doctor Larsen.”
He pauses, then tilts his head slightly. “Just to clarify for the court, was that comment, in fact, ‘I heard nyra pussy juice keeps a man hard for days’?”
Someone on the jury coughs. A woman in the second row frowns deeply. Luc stiffens.
“Objection!” the DA shouts. “Inflammatory!”
“Overruled,” Judge Conway replies quickly. “Answer the question.”
Luc shifts in his seat. “I don’t remember the exact words.”
“But you don’t deny saying something sexual?” Renner presses.
Luc shrugs. “It was a joke.”
“After that, Shane Larsen told you to get out of his house. Why didn't you leave?”
Luc swallows. “I was a little drunk. I didn’t understand he was telling me to leave.”
“But your girlfriend, Kacy, tried to make you leave. Is that correct?”
“Yes.”
“And why did you come back?”
Luc’s eyes flick between Renner, the DA, and the jury. “Like I said, I didn’t understand why Kacy was taking me out. I just wanted to talk to them, so I came back. I never meant to hurt anyone. ”
“And why did you go toward Dr. Larsen?”
“I tripped. It wasn’t on purpose.”
Renner steps closer. “And what happened after you tripped?”
Luc goes quiet. “I woke up in the hospital.”
Renner pauses, then turns slightly toward the jury. “You woke up in the hospital. Broken nose. Concussion. Swelling across the face. That’s what the photos show.”
Luc doesn’t respond.
“And how many times has your nose been broken before this?”
Luc hesitates. “I don’t know. Two... maybe three?”
“Three, to be exact,” Renner says. “According to your medical records, this is the third time your nose has been fractured. Not to mention the punctured lung and broken ribs from a bar fight in two thousand twenty-one. Do you remember that one?”
The DA stands. “Objection. Relevance.”
“Pattern of behavior, Your Honor,” Renner replies.
“Overruled.”
“You’ve been hospitalized four times for injuries sustained in violent encounters,” Renner continues. “You’ve never filed charges until now. Is that because this time the people involved were aegis?”
Luc’s eyes flick back and forth between Renner and the jury, like a tennis ball. “I didn’t think it needed charges before.”
“No, but this time you saw an opportunity.”
“Objection. Argumentative,” the DA says.
This time, Judge Conway agrees with him. “Sustained.”
“You’ve also been accused of domestic violence by two previous partners, correct?” Renner continues.
Luc stiffens. “Those were misunderstandings.”
“Police reports were filed. Neighbors called in complaints. In one case, ER staff documented deep scratch wounds across your arms and face, inflicted while your girlfriend tried to defend herself. That’s on the record.”
“Objection! Prior bad acts!” the DA shouts.
“Your Honor,” Renner says calmly, “the witness has placed his peaceful character at issue.”
“Overruled.”
Several jurors exchange glances. One crosses her arms tightly.
“And since May, police have responded twice to your current address for domestic disturbances. Screaming. Objects thrown. In one report, officers noted blood on the kitchen floor. You declined treatment. Isn’t that right?”
Luc’s jaw tightens. “Kacy and I fight. That doesn’t mean—”
“That you’re violent?”
Luc looks away .
Renner lets the silence stretch, then nods. “No further questions.”
“You may step down, Mr. Knolson,” Judge Conway says.
Luc adjusts his tie again and leaves the stand, eyes flicking toward the jury one last time.
“Prosecution, call your next witness,” Judge Conway says.
The DA straightens his jacket again. “The State calls Kacy Silvester.”
Another side door opens, and Kacy steps into the room, her expression tight as she crosses and takes the stand. She folds her hands in her lap.
The DA approaches, his tone soft. “Ms. Silvester, can you describe the events of the evening of May eleventh, two thousand twenty-five?”
She nods slowly. “It started normal. Relaxed. It was my first time at their house. There were neighbors, friends... the food was good. Everyone was having a nice time.”
“And what changed?”
She hesitates just slightly. “Luc had a little too much to drink. He made a couple of off-color comments. But he didn’t mean anything by them. It was just... him being stupid.”
The DA tilts his head. “Can you be more specific?”
She sighs. “He made some jokes about nyras. It was crass. But not threatening.”
“Did anyone respond to the comment?”
“Yes. They told us to leave.”
“Did you?”
“We started to,” she says, her voice tightening. “But Luc was drunk and confused. He didn’t think he’d done anything wrong and wanted to talk to them. He turned around and walked back into the yard.”
“What happened next?”
“One of them, Jayson, punched him. There wasn’t any warning. No attempt to talk. Just—” she gestures with her hand, voice rising slightly. “Violence. Right away.”
The DA slows. “And how did you feel in that moment?”
Kacy blinks. “I was scared.”
“Why?”
She glances toward the jury. “Because they’re huge. All three of them. And they just snapped. I didn’t know what they were going to do next. I thought—” she swallows, “—I thought maybe we’d both end up hurt.”
“You felt threatened?”
“Yes.”
“Even though Luc was the one who got hit?”
“I didn’t know where it would stop.”
“Did Luc touch Johane Larsen at any point?”
“No. Absolutely not. ”
The DA nods slowly. “So... just like Johane Larsen may have felt threatened by Luc without ever being touched, you felt threatened by the three aegis, without ever being touched by them.”
Kacy nods. “Yes. Exactly.”