Chapter 59
Dean
The suit was a rental and smelled like one too. It was the first time in a long time I was wearing something other than orange.
I lowered my head to my hands and hunched forward, sitting on a bench in a quiet holding cell in the back of the courthouse. My only company was the clinking sound coming from the lightbulb outside the cell.
I was the only one of Antonio’s fighters who went on trial. None of the others were ever caught because there was little evidence of others being involved.
Many of his other men, associates above my pay grade, were also on trial for crimes worse than mine in much bigger court cases with media present and a multitude of lawyers on their sides. Their arrests had created a giant void in Antonio’s usual business dealings.
His death was another reason everything halted.
In a way, his kids’ wish for his empire to crumble had worked, but it hadn’t been their doing.
I didn’t know why I was giving them headspace. They were gone and I had my own shit to deal with.
The jury had all the information they needed and spent the past half hour discussing it.
All I could do, besides thinking about my ex-boss, was replay what happened in court earlier today to ease the tension in my head.
Aiden Miller was terrible at playing the victim.
He wore a brace on his leg and used a crutch to get around. There were also scars on his jaw from the reconstruction surgery, and his dirty blonde hair was shaved into a buzz cut.
When he was called to the stand, he pulled on a facade so pathetic I was ready to risk life in prison just to break his leg again right in front of everyone present in the courtroom.
Instead, I looked to the back of the room where Lily, Kira, and Seb sat in the furthest row, each wearing their own masks of hate directed at Aiden.
He was there as a witness to my “violent death threats” and to show what I had done to him, painting him as an innocent in all of this until my lawyer, DA Anna Davis — hired by Antonio’s widow, Julia — started asking him questions too.
“You mentioned in your statement that my client was capable of doing those things to you because of his alleged involvement in illegal fighting. Is that true?” Ms. Davis began.
“Yes.”
“How do you know about these alleged fights, Mr. Miller?”
Aiden hesitated. “I heard about them.”
“So, you weren’t there, gambling illegally, to witness my client participating in any fights?”
“N-no—”
“Meaning you can’t be certain that he was involved in those fights beneath The Den?”
“I heard about it from a friend.” Aiden’s face was bright red.
“But you never witnessed or participated in the illegal gambling on these fights yourself?”
“No—I told you, I heard—”
“Is it true that you were charged with the domestic assault of your partner and the use of a firearm on her friend on August 16th of last year?” She flipped casually through her notes to double-check. “Which is what you are on probation for?”
Aiden went to respond but was cut off by the other lawyer. “Objection; relevance?”
The judge, sitting back in his seat, nodded once. “I’ll allow it.”
“Yes.” Aiden’s throat bobbed nervously. He was squirming like a fucking bug. “But he did this to me. I think that’s proof enough that he’s an illegal fighter.”
“Mr. Miller,” she placed a hand on her hip. “Getting your ass handed to you by someone good at fighting doesn’t make them an illegal fighter.”
Hushed giggles and laughter flitted around the courtroom while Seb barked a laugh.
I looked down, pressing my lips together as I fought hard not to smile.
“Order,” the judge drawled. “Ms. Davis, please refrain from using derogatory language in my courtroom.”
Anna smiled. “Yes, your honor. My apologies… Mr. Miller, is it possible you are only here because you seek revenge for what my client did to you?”
“No. He is an illegal fighter.”
“How can you prove that when you said yourself you never went to one of these fights where illegal gambling took place? Just a reminder, you’re under oath.”
“I saw him—I mean, I heard about—”
“That’s all, your honor,” Ms. Davis said simply before taking a seat, leaving Aiden dumbfounded.
I massaged my thumb into my right palm, where a thick, long knife scar remained. Sometimes the nerves in my hand played up and created a tingling numbness in my fingers. Massaging and flexing my hand temporarily relieved it, but the sensation was forever.
My eyes tracked to the small tattoo of two birds on my left wrist. They were a positive reminder not to give up hope because maybe Ms. Davis’s closing statement would be enough.
She had reminded the jury of all the mitigating factors surrounding the charges I was facing.
My past with an alcoholic and abusive father; my father’s suicide that provided no closure to a hellish upbringing (I didn’t mention that his death did, in fact, give me plenty of closure); caring for my mother; my willingness to help with the police investigation and the threats that brought on my own life; the loss of my home and Mom.
I hated that even in death, she was used as leverage to fix my problem.
At least she wasn’t here to see all of this.
Footsteps echoed in the hall outside the cell, and I stood expectantly.
The courtroom officers came into view. One unlocked the door, and the other walked into the cell to cuff my wrists before they escorted me back to the courtroom. My heart was in my throat the entire time.
Ms. Davis stood at our table as I entered the room. The look on her face gave away nothing about how she felt about my chances. Her track record of getting Antonio out of sticky situations in the past had never failed. It’s why Julia, his wife, had suggested I accept the lawyer for myself.
“Breathe,” she muttered once I reached the desk. “You look tense.”
“Can you blame me?” I waited for the officer to remove the cuffs and leave. “This isn’t gonna be good…”
“You don’t know that.”
I inhaled slowly, remaining on my feet as the judge entered the room. It didn’t take him long to call up the jury foreman.
My heart was no longer in my throat. It seemed to have stopped completely. I wouldn’t be surprised if I looked down and found it on the floor. Alongside my stomach.
I looked down and closed my eyes, trying to think of something else to focus on. Lily was the first and only thing that came to my mind. That woman had saved my life in her own small way. She had given me something to fight and live for.
The judge’s voice interrupted my thoughts. “How do you find?”
“For the charges of aggravated harassment in the second degree, we find the defendant guilty.”
That verdict wasn’t a surprise. It covered everything on record of me intimidating someone. From threatening a cop to Aiden’s assault.
I took the hit with my jaw clenched, nodding faintly as I prepared for the next one.
Ms. Davis briefly placed a hand on my shoulder in reassurance.
“For all charges related to Mr. Moretto’s involvement with Mr. Gimello’s fighting ring and the illegal work outside of that fighting ring, we, the jury, find the defendant not guilty.”
There was a silent shift in the room. And a few disgruntled murmurs from the opposing side.
I paused and fought hard to keep any look of shock from my face as I glanced at Ms. Davis to make sure I heard correctly.
She gave me the subtlest of winks and fixed her attention forward.
I wasn’t sure if I imagined it. Had they heard what was said in every testimony? Did they even consider my record?
The judge finalized the moment with my punishment regarding the aggravated harassment charge — twenty-four months under house arrest, a one-thousand-dollar fine, and community service. For aggravated assault. What I did should’ve gotten me at least a year in prison, not house arrest.
I was struggling to believe any of it was real as I took a seat again, breathing a heavy sigh before I looked at the judge.
Based on his expression, he didn’t exactly believe the verdict either, but he tapped the anvil anyway.
I pushed open the door of the small and empty room, tugging my tie loose and unbuttoning my collar as I went. “What the fuck just happened?”
Ms. Davis, ever calm and professional, strode in behind me with her black briefcase in hand and a look of confidence on her face. “Antonio protected his assets.” She closed the door and sent me a knowing look.
It took me a second to realize what she meant.
“The jury. They were—”
“Smart people. Just don’t mention it to anyone.”
“I’m free because of another crime.”
“They believed you were remorseful, and that you’re a decent young man.” She shrugged her shoulders and made to leave again. “Take the win, Dean.”
I rubbed at my forehead, unsure of how to feel until she opened the door to three very eager people on the other side. It was hard to stay perplexed when a smile pulled at my lips at the sight of them. Of her.
Lily grinned and hurried past Ms. Davis with a skip in her step. She collided with my body, and I wrapped her in my arms, lifting her high off the ground.
She cupped my face and kissed me from above.
It was Seb thumping my shoulder with the energy of an excited kid that pulled us apart again. I set her on the ground before he tackled me with a hug of his own, knocking the wind from my lungs as he held on tight.
“Holy fuck, man. What the fuck?” He made the gesture of his mind being blown as he stepped back. “I am thoroughly flabbergasted.”
“Congratulations!” Kira beamed, offering me a slightly less suffocating hug.
“I’m not sure if I should be congratulated.” I glanced at Ms. Davis as she closed the door on her way out.
Lily slid her arm around my waist. “Why?”
“Antonio pulled some strings beyond the grave.”
“Spooky,” Seb said, wiggling his eyebrows.
“Do I want to know how that happened?” Mark muttered after casually approaching me in the large courthouse hallway.