Chapter 98 #3
A rush of excitement coursed through my fingertips.
I would have to disappoint them.
“She had wanted to convince him to join forces against their fathers to ruin their careers and lives.”
For the first time, Arnold no longer looked bored, and Joseph seemed completely lost.
Kutolski also looked confused, almost amused.
“Why would the defendant try to persuade someone who doesn’t like her to do something like that?”
I held Arnold’s gaze, looking back and forth between him and Joseph.
“Because what Arnold Fitzek and Joseph Richter did carries more weight than the grudge between Quillon Veritas and Troy Fitzek.”
Another Day in Paradise
JOYNER, Cat vs Cat
People began to turn their heads toward the two of them.
Among them was Tony, who probably had absolutely no idea of the disastrous chain reaction he had set off with his loyalty to his father.
While the gears in Joseph’s head still seemed to be turning, realization crossed Arnold’s face just before he furrowed his bushy brows and pushed himself up on his cane.
“Your Honor, this is unacceptable!”
The judge turned to me, giving me no time to savor the feeling of triumph in my chest.
“Mr. Rydell. I ask that you refrain from involving any further individuals in the case and stick to the subject at hand.”
He didn’t seem to realize that I knew how corruption in courtrooms worked and that he had no right to interrupt me.
“Your Honor,” I replied sharply, holding his gaze, aware that he was planning to receive not my money, but Arnold’s, in a briefcase tonight.
And I was ready to make him realize that I could stop that, because I had been part of this system long enough.
“Don’t you want to know why Troy tried to attack Miss Veritas?
What was so important that her knowledge posed a threat to him? ”
The judge stared at me.
He hesitated.
I didn’t care what he was about to decide.
The time to speak up was now, and I wouldn’t let anything or anyone stand in my way.
Resolutely, I turned to the audience.
“Quillon Veritas was in possession of something that will rule out her father as the successor to lead the law school, that could have put Troy in danger, and that will put his father behind bars.”
Arnold wanted to say something, but Kutolski was quicker.
“And what exactly is that supposed to be, Mr. Rydell?”
For another second, I savored the fear-filled look on Arnold’s face and the frozen expression on Joseph’s, who seemed to be holding his breath. Then I fixed my gaze on the two of them.
“She found it in the attic of the Fitzek estate. Along with my daughter, who can attest to that.”
Now Arnold’s face paled as well.
He knew nothing of Troy’s writings. Of course he didn’t.
“A diary by Troy Fitzek, in which he documented the murder of three people of Jewish descent. The genocide victims were Troy’s childhood friend and his father. As well as Troy's mother. All shot by Arnold Fitzek.”
“Your Honor!” Arnold blurted out, and he shot up again.
Joseph, as white as a sheet, looked as if he were no longer even present.
I suppose Maplecrest belongs to you now, Monica.
But she looked just as disturbed at Arnold as the rest of the courtroom.
“That’s ridiculous!” he blurted out.
“Be seated, Mr. Fitzek!”
The judge now sounded agitated, and a murmur rippled through the crowd, followed by whispers and shocked glances directed at the two men.
Miss DeLoughrey stood up and brought the notebook to the judge.
“What do you think you’re doing, boy!” Arnold croaked at me and tried to step out of the row, whereupon Monica on the other side of the room immediately shot up, but two officers were waiting for him with handcuffs at the end of the row. “Don’t believe a word this man says!”
“Mr. Fitzek. You’re under arrest for the suspected murder of three individuals. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.”
“What the hell…”
Arnold glared at the two men in uniform as if he deeply despised them, then turned to the judge, who, however, was studying the diary with a fixed gaze.
“Your Honor!”
The first police officer reached for Arnold’s hand, but he pulled away, whereupon the officer grabbed him more roughly, turned him around, and handcuffed him without much effort.
“Your Honor! This is outrageous! I will sue you and the Supreme Court!”
The men dragged him down the center aisle, but he broke free – not without glaring back at me, as if I were the one who had put him in this situation – and walked on by himself before they managed to grab him again.
The people in the courtroom weren’t just whispering anymore. They began discussing wildly, while undercover reporters rushed out of the room and after the police officers.
Miss DeLoughrey smiled at me with a proud nod.
But the only pride I longed for was that of the woman I would have fought my way through every courthouse in the world for.
TWO MONTHS LATER
Now you are in wonderland,
reaching out to me your hand.
But I am tied to what I vowed.
That I will make my feather proud.
– Leaking Batteries Diary