Chapter 35
I’m surprised to find every seat in the courtroom completely full.
Every single employee at Regenerative Industries and every person Owen has ever helped with his money—and his big heart—is here.
Maybe I’m not so surprised, but it throws me a bit.
After all, this man murdered three people, and yet everyone still came to support him.
If I ever get close enough to Owen ever again, I’m going to throttle him for not fighting harder for himself.
Parker’s gaze drops to my clenched fists, and he laughs.
I’m not mad at all the people taking up every single seat, but I’m mad at Owen for ever doubting himself and the love that these people have for him.
“He’ll see it,” Parker whispers in my ear, giving me a big enough smile to flash that dimple of his.
“He better,” I mumble as a familiar face steps in front of us.
“Charlotte!” I shout, instinctively pulling her into a rough hug.
She chuckles into my hair, embracing me back.
“You’re here!” I squeal a little too enthusiastically. I didn’t think the head of the school, or any of the other people involved in Owen’s charities, would show up.
She smiles widely. “Of course I’m here.” She looks at Owen’s brother and back to me. “Parker told us everything, and there’s never been a moment when any of us doubted Mr. Mills and what he was trying to do. It doesn’t matter the outcome of this trial. We will be here to support him.”
I smile back at her, squeezing her one more time before she finds a seat amongst all the volunteers and workers from the charities set up by Regenerative Industries.
Even more people flood into the courtroom. Someone nudges my shoulder, and I turn to find Declan smiling. “Seems I need to meet this man properly.”
I snort. “Did you ever doubt my choices?”
“Well, yes.” There’s humor behind his words.
I scoff, shoving his arm.
“What can I say? On paper, the man is a murderer. How could I condone that relationship?”
“He has a fair point,” Parker chimes in next to me.
Noell snorts but refrains from comment.
“You shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, Dec,” I say. “Haven’t you learned that by now, simply from being around me for the last ten years?”
Noah laughs behind us, and I shoot him a quick wink before returning my attention to Declan.
“Fair point,” he replies.
I turn to Noah. “Is Peyton here?” My heart rate kicks up in preparation for that little shit bailing on us.
“I escorted Edwin here myself,” Noah says with a triumphant grin.
Parker shakes his head, and I can’t help the small giggle that escapes. It’s mostly relief. And a little bit for the use of Edwin’s name.
The judge enters the courtroom before I can say anything else, and a silence descends over everyone. The judge looks around at all the people filling every spare inch of the place and gives a questioning look to the security guards. They shrug as if this has never happened before.
The judge seems confused but drops it and, with a wave of her hand, ushers in the prosecutors and defendants.
I brace myself for Owen’s entrance, and Declan reaches for my hand and gives it a supportive squeeze.
Owen looks like he always did. Dressed in a suit, showered, with a stray strand of dark hair falling across his brow. My heart practically stalls at the sight of him, but the tears gather when he finally looks around the room at everyone who showed up.
For him.
I notice the subtle change in his expression. The sudden realization that maybe he’s not the monster he thinks he is.
A single tear falls down my face.
Peyton performs his role perfectly, and I silently swear to thank him for that sometime soon.
Everything else goes by the book, and the prosecution looks shell-shocked with the evidence presented.
All-in-all, it goes exactly how we’d hoped, but the jury is unreadable, and when we’re dismissed for a lunch break, my nerves take over.
Declan sticks by my side like glue, even when his phone is clearly blowing up with messages from work.
“You don’t want to get those?” I ask him, stuffing another bite of a cafeteria sandwich in my mouth, desperately trying not to think about how Owen is doing.
Declan shakes his head. “I only have a week left of this anyway.”
I scrunch my nose, my hand halting my next bite. “You’re resigning right after my trial?”
“What’s the point of staying any longer? You won’t be there, and I’ll likely be fired.”
I sigh. Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t convince Declan to do anything. He’s made up his mind, and when he does, it’s as though nothing could change it.
“I know that look,” he says as I stuff the last of my sandwich in my mouth.
I raise a brow and smirk.
“You don’t agree with my decision,” he says, slightly amused.
“Of course I don’t, dumbass.”
Declan’s eyebrows furrow at the insult, but he doesn’t stop me from continuing.
“You did nothing wrong. You followed protocol. It was me who didn’t.
And though we know the mission in Italy got thirty-five people killed, at least we know why now, and that it had nothing to do with you or me.
We were doomed from the start. And everything with Owen…
You didn’t even know what was going on because I chose not to tell you.
If you think for one moment you aren’t fit for the director position, I will quite literally throw you through that wall over there. ” I point past his head for emphasis.
He doesn’t fall for my antics and keeps his gaze on me. “What if I’m resigning because I want to?”
I glare at him. “If that’s true, which I know it’s not, then I’d support your decision.”
He huffs. “You think you know me so well, don’t you?”
“I’m pretty sure I know you better than you know yourself.”
He raises a brow in challenge.
“First, you like your coffee sweet as hell with extra whipped cream, even though you order it black in front of others.”
Declan pales, and I sit up straighter in my chair, ready to take the fucker out.
“I also know that though a million women throw themselves at you, you politely decline because you’ve been pining over Jax for the last five years.”
He scoffs.
Oh, I have him now. But I’m not done because Jax and Evan are headed our way, and their timing couldn’t be more perfect.
I hide my smirk, knowing Declan hasn’t spotted them yet. “And if you just told him, he and Evan both aren’t against adding more people to their little group.”
Declan’s mouth falls into his lap, and Jax steps beside him.
I lean back in the chair, crossing my arms, a triumphant grin on my face.
Jax’s gaze catches on my smile before he looks between the two of us, Declan’s eyes widening the longer Jax lingers.
Declan shakes his head at me, as if asking me to shut the fuck up.
I laugh but don’t miss the hand Jax casually places on the back of Declan’s chair.
“Don’t listen to her, Dec. Whatever it is she’s saying,” Jax comments.
“You have no idea what I just said,” I argue. “I actually think you’d fully support it.”
“If it has anything to do with sex, I’m in,” Evan says, coming up to the other side of Declan’s chair and resting his hand on it with the same casualness.
I stifle a laugh, slapping my hand over my mouth, and Declan suddenly looks horrified.
I wink at Evan. “It might.”
Evan finally looks down at Declan, and I notice the instant it clicks, though Jax seemed to figure it out the second he picked up on Declan’s wide eyes and my grin.
I shrug, standing up and grabbing my food tray. “I’m going to find Ella.” I’m still unable to hide my smile.
“I’m going to kill you,” Declan says through clenched teeth.
This time, I laugh without restraint as I walk away, back to the courtroom. Back to Owen.