Chapter Ten

Unwon Victory

It took a few minutes, but the old man Athena had met yesterday was finally in the courthouse. As he was ushered onto the stand, Athena took the time to get a sense for his state of mind.

The old man didn't seem any less erratic than he had yesterday. If anything, his irritation had increased. Athena briefly considered pulling out Widget and performing a therapy session on the witness, but she doubted that would go over well in this court. The people of this town were already suspicious of her. Athena shouldn't make herself seem any more alien to them than she already did.

Agreed. Though while we're on the subject, I'd love to know how you integrate psychoanalysis into court proceedings. Would you be willing to instruct me on how to conduct these sessions?

"Maybe later," Athena answered out the side of her mouth. Seeing as the purpose of the Mood Matrix was to help emotionally vulnerable witnesses, she had a hard time believing Gavin would possess any talent for it. And they still didn't know if he could use her ears while in control of her body.

Three strikes of the gavel. "The court recognizes Seamus Goodwin as a witness. Will the witness please state his name and occupation for the court?"

"What's the point of statin' anything if you've already said it?" the witness protested. He was a short man, head no taller than Athena's shoulder. Though that may have something to do with his hunched back. "Ya know my name, and the whole town knows how long I been retired. Let's put that damn hooligan in jail already!"

"I couldn't agree more," Prosecutor Marsanne spoke up from her day drinking. "Mr. Goodwin, we spoke yesterday about the events you witnessed when the murder occurred. Care to repeat what you told me?"

He did not look like he cared to, but he also seemed to understand he didn't have much choice in the matter. "Fine. Let me testify. I call this one 'The No-Good Kid'."

"Very well. Begin when ready."

The old man cleared his throat. It took a few seconds. "I was on my nightly walk a few nights ago, jus' minding my own business.

"Gonma and I are friends, so I thought I'd make a courtesy call. I knocked on her door, and nothing.

"Usually she's home this time o' night. It was strange, so I looked in the window.

"And inside... what do you know! I saw that no good kid.

"He had rage in his eyes, and was staring at poor Gonma's old dead body.

"I left soon as I could. It's no good to get attention from a dangerous outsider like that, and I ain't a fighter no more."

Athena slumped from her place at the bench. Yet another shoddy testimony she would have to make sense of. How did this town do it?

She voiced her objections. "Your Honor, I have the same complaint here as I did the last time. This testimony is too unclear. I need to cross-examine him for a better understanding of the case."

"Your Honor, the defense wants to harass an old man because she can't figure things out for herself. That, or she's stalling for time. We'd be better served going straight into the verdict."

The judge looked back and forth between the two attorneys, then shook his head. "I'm afraid I side with the defense on this one. Mr. Goodwin could have spoken more clearly. However," he fixed his stone gaze on Athena, "I expect you to be kind to this witness, Miss Pikes. He's the oldest member of our town, and a well respected veteran. If I catch you badgering the witness needlessly, your defense will be dismissed."

"W- yes, sir." Athena struggled to keep her thoughts on the matter to herself. "I know what I need to ask about already."

"Good. Then you may ask it. Which statement did you intend to press?"

Which statement? Athena wasn't good with order like this. Which one was it where he said...

If you wish to ask about the same thing I would, it's the fifth statement you're looking for. The one where the witness claims he saw the body.

"The fifth statement," Athena said, concurring with Gavin. "Mr. Goodwin, you said you saw Ms. Singh's dead body, but how? Weren't you just looking through a window? If she were lying on the floor, you shouldn't have been able to see it."

"...When did I say I ever saw it? I don't think I did, little missy."

"What? Yes, you did!" Athena slapped the bench with both hands, then pulled herself back. "Mr. Goodwin, please recall that you said you saw my client, and that he was standing over Ms. Singh's body."

"Don't get yourself twisted, little miss! I only said I saw that hooligan over there. The police told me that Gonma's body had been where he was standing. I didn't lie about nothing."

Athena sighed. "Well, that's a completely different problem. Mr. Goodwin, you're only supposed to testify about what you personally witnessed. Not anything the police might have told you. If you testify to a fact you didn't witness, that can be considered perjury. Please be careful in the future."

"Come now, little lawyer. It's an honest mistake. No need to threaten Mr. Goodwin," the prosecutor hopped to his defense. "The police were a tad careless, is all."

"Well, Miss Pikes? Is there anything relevant to be gleaned from this slip of the tongue?"

Athena had to think about it. "If this witness didn't actually see the body, all he saw was my client. Is that correct?"

"What, the hooligan? Yeah, he was there. Clear as day."

"Are you absolutely sure, Mr. Goodwin? Yesterday, when we spoke, you expressed some doubt." Athena could feel it. She was getting close. Prosecutor Marsanne had tried to coach the witness, but Athena knew her trick. "Can you say, with absolute certainty, that the man you saw in the victim's home the night of the crime was my client?"

In the end, the witness decided to ignore what the prosecutor said. He was going to be honest. "...No. But it's probably him! That boy's an outsider, and no one in this town would hurt Gonma. I saw a hooligan that night, and there's a hooligan right there. Case closed."

"Objection! This case is not closed." Athena felt her voice getting louder, but she was unable to stop herself. "We don't have any proof that my client was at the scene of the crime. We don't even have testimony stating the fact!"

Silence in the courtroom. A few moments later, the judge struck his gavel. He too had to clear his throat.

"...As long as there's room for doubt, I can't declare a verdict in this trial." The judge seemed to be siding with Athena, but she couldn't be less happy about what came next. "If neither side has anything more to present, I will call for further investigation. Proceedings will be suspended until the twenty-sixth."

The twenty-sixth? Athena couldn't do that. She'd be back to work at the agency by then. If she skipped work, Mr. Wright was bound to figure out what was going on. He'd be furious if he found out she'd taken a case behind his back. Athena knew she wasn't prepared to deal with the consequences of that.

But Athena had also promised Khadga and his sister that she wouldn't give up on him. She couldn't abandon them in the middle of the case!

Then I guess that leaves you with only one option.

"What? What option is there?"

End the case today. Don't let the proceedings suspend. If you want to find the truth and not have Phoenix intervene, now is your only chance.

Was there anything Athena could use to keep the trial going? She had to do something!

"If there are no objections, then I declare this court-"

"Hold it!"

All eyes turned to her. "Miss Pikes. What is going on here?"

"I... think I may be able to find the truth about what happened that night. I don't need more time."

"Oh, really?" Prosecutor Marsanne looked genuinely surprised. "And how do you plan to do that?"

Well, she didn't have much in way of evidence. If Athena wanted to prolong the trial, there really was only one thing she could do. "Mr. Goodwin wasn't the only one to check on the victim that night. There was someone else who heard the struggle."

"There was another witness to this crime?" The judge blinked. "Who was this other witness, if I may ask?"

The prosecutor must have known where Athena was going with this. But either she was prepared to fend the younger woman off, or she didn't care enough to protest. No matter what the reason, Prosecutor Marsanne was silent when Athena named her first witness.

"And that person was... Ms. Brenda Woods."

"Me?" Grammie spoke up from the gallery. "I thought the police said I wouldn't be called as a witness."

"We didn't think so either, but Mr. Goodwin saw far less than he had let on to the police, so I suppose it's your turn." The prosecutor took her final swig out of the bottle, speech starting to become slightly slurred. "Give me twenty minutes to prepare this witness, Your Honor. I need to make sure I'm familiar with the fine points of her testimony."

The judge shook his head in disbelief. "Very well, I suppose we can try to wrap this up before Christmas. I have a service to attend this evening, however, so please do make it quick." He raised his gavel once again.

"Court is now adjourned for twenty minutes."

"Well, that witness was a disappointment," Lida spoke up in the defendant's lobby. "Good thing he didn't actually see anything, huh?"

"I don't get it," Khadga grumbled. "If the police don't have anything on me anymore, why can't I go?"

Athena groaned. "It's because in our legal system, it isn't enough to prove someone did or did not do it in a trial. You also have to be able to explain exactly what happened. Unless the prosecution lets up, which they never do. And unfortunately, the default explanation is always the one the police give." It was then that the lawyer remembered something. "Speaking of the truth of this case..."

"Yeah? What is it?"

"When I went to speak with him yesterday, Mr. Goodwin told me something very interesting." Athena stared her client and his sister in the eye, doing what she could to steel her nerves. "But I'm afraid of what it means."

Lida looked uncharacteristically nervous. It showed through in the voice of her heart. "What do you mean?"

Should Athena say it? What if her clients turned on her?

Whatever this fact says about them, it doesn't mean they murdered the victim. If you want to save your client, it's time they told you what they know.

With Gavin's encouragement, Athena was ready. "He... he said Ms. Singh's only daughter died about fifty years ago."

The siblings turned to each other, alarm in their eyes. Athena had to know. "The two of you... you aren't Ms. Singh's grandchildren, are you?"

Silence. For one long moment, Athena was scared. She had no idea where she was going with this.

Strangely enough, Gavin didn't feel the same. What did he know that she didn't? And how?

"...You're smarter than I thought, Miss Cykes." The lawyer flinched.

It was Lida who admitted it. Khadga looked like he wanted to protest, but he only spoke after thinking it through. "Does this mean we have to tell you everything?"

Athena put her hands on her hips, essentially repeating what Gavin had already said. "If you don't want to go to prison for murder, I need to know the truth. Why did you claim to be Ms. Singh's relatives if you weren't?"

"It was Lida's idea," Khadga crossed his arms. "She's the one who's been conning people to pay for her college. I didn't even know until I saw her doing research for this scheme. I just wanted a cut! Why'd you get me into this, Lida?"

"Official reports said the lady's daughter was missing, not dead! I thought we could convince her we were her family, and that she would give us her daughter's inheritance because of it."

"But why Ms. Singh? She's not rich. She's just a forgetful old lady." Athena was struggling to keep up. Was that all that it was, here? Petty criminals who were in over their heads?

The older woman groaned. "We couldn't operate in our hometown. Too many people knew us there. And the fact she was so forgetful was supposed to work in our favor. She was supposed to meet us and then forget the details needed to track us down." Lida balled her hands into fists. "But she must have gotten the meeting day mixed up! She probably went to where I'd be in the city a day before we got to town, and by the time I was there and Khadga was in her house, we still hadn't realized the mistake we made."

"Wait, so... Khadga was in Ms. Singh's house that night? He's the one Mr. Goodwin saw?"

"Yeah, probably." Khadga acknowledged. Athena felt terrible. "But I didn't kill her, I promise."

"Then what happened?" Athena was trembling. She couldn't believe she'd been defending criminals. "I need to know, or I can't prove your innocence."

"Lida was going to meet with the mark while I went to check things out. We found her address on the internet. The reports were from the seventies, so we weren't sure she still lived in the same place. When I got there, I entered the back door. I thought the woman would be off with my sister."

Athena was beginning to see the truth from here. "...But she wasn't. She was about to start ironing when you came in."

"I didn't mean to startle her! Honest!" Athena tuned in to the voice of Khadga's heart. He was afraid for his own sake, but not sad. If Athena were to guess, she would say he didn't care about Ms. Singh's fate at all. "But when she saw me, she tripped on the carpet. The iron flew out of her hand. It... wasn't pretty."

"So her death was an accident. Why didn't you say so?"

Is it not obvious? He was afraid of being accused of murder. He was an intruder to her house, after all.

Something horrible occurred to Athena. "You're the one who buried her in her yard."

"I panicked! I didn't want anyone to know what happened, so I hid her body. I wanted to ditch the place, but Lida said we had to lead the police to her body. She thought we could still get some of her money if we kept up the grandkids disguise."

Athena saw Widget turn red on her neck. "You would have been found out, I'm almost sure of it. What you did was stupid and cost a scared old woman her life!"

Khadga replied, but all Athena could hear was Gavin. That may be, but the fact remains that this man is your client. He was wrongly accused of murder, and it's your job to prove it.

"But-"

Being innocent of murder doesn't necessarily make you're a good person, Miss Cykes. Whatever you think of this man's actions, your duty remains unchanged. The truth is still that your client didn't murder the victim. Prove that and get Mr. Pakhi the not guilty verdict he deserves.

"You knew. I don't know how, but you knew." Athena felt like a fool. Had everything about this case been a test? How much control did Gavin have over what was happening here?

"Huh?" Lida raised an eyebrow. "What Khadga did was stupid, I know. But we made sure her body was found, and we didn't actually steal from her. You can't let Khadga get a life sentence for being in the wrong place at the wrong time!"

"Excuse me, miss?"

A bailiff walked in to interrupt their conversation, and Athena felt a burst of paranoia. How much had the man heard?

"The trial is about to resume. Prosecutor Marsanne has an announcement."

Athena stumbled back to her place on the bench, feeling her eyes shift in and out of focus. What was she to do? What was the prosecutor going to tell the court? Should she reveal the truth? What would happen if she did?

And where was Grammie?

The lawyer looked around everywhere. Neither Grammie nor Juniper were still in the gallery, and the witness stand was empty. She looked to the prosecutor, who had a second bottle in her hand. It was already halfway empty.

The judge spoke first. "Prosecutor Marsanne, what is the meaning of this?"

"I dismissed Ms. Brenda Woods. Her testimony was inconclusive, and the woman was in need of a doctor."

"Oh no," Athena whispered. Louder, she asked, "Will she be alright?"

"I hope so. Though she won't be having a good Christmas." Prosecutor Marsanne's tone was callous, but the voice of her heart spoke of genuine concern. She felt more for her fellow human than Athena's own client did. That stung. "It's thanks to her testimony that I believe there is nothing more to be gained from this crime."

"And what do you mean by that?" The judge was curious.

"She said she heard the victim shout and an iron fall to the ground, but that there was no evidence of another person at the crime. She claims that Mr. Goodwin may have been mistaken."

"Where does that leave your case, Prosecutor Marsanne?"

The older woman hung her head back. "Up a creek, to be honest. I have no proof there was anyone with the victim at the time of the murder, and no evidence to indicate who buried her. This was a waste of everyone's Christmas Eve." And then, something Athena never thought she would hear a bona fide prosecutor say in her lifetime: "the prosecution rests, Your Honor. The police will continue to investigate if they must, but the defendant can go."

Athena couldn't believe this. It didn't feel like she was winning, but she was. And she didn't even get a chance to reveal the truth to the court.

Should she say something? Should she interrupt the verdict to expose her client for what he was?

"Well, this is an unfortunate turn of events. It's been a long time since you lost, hasn't it, Prosecutor?"

She shrugged. "I grew complacent. Lost my energy. So has Defflin Ender, if you ask me."

Don't speak. Doing so will ultimately lead to the same verdict, no? And it's not as if you can afford to stay any longer.

Athena was still mulling it over when the judge spoke. "Well, sparing any objection... I guess that brings us to the end of the line. This court hereby finds the defendant, whose name I forgot how to say...

"Not Guilty."

Too late. Athena resisted the urge to hang her head.

Not many people were in the room, so applause was piecemeal. And even if it had been wholehearted and abundant, Athena still wouldn't have been able to enjoy it. Not while knowing the things she did now.

As she was walking out, Athena stopped Prosecutor Marsanne. "I wasn't expecting you to do that."

"And why not? I'm not prideful, nor am I an idiot. I know when I've been beaten." She tipped the bottle towards Athena. "Good job."

"Thanks, but- I really didn't do much."

"Did more than my usual rival does. Of course, he's on vacation right now. Wish I had money for that... only reason I have these," she indicated her glass companion, "is because my brother owns an orchard few hours out. Said I'd spend Christmas with him, so if you'll excuse me..." Not waiting for the other woman to speak, Prosecutor Marsanne left the courthouse.

Athena felt empty inside. She knew she ought to visit Grammie, but she couldn't work up the will to do so.

Why so silent? You've won your second case in court as the lead defense. And it's not as if your client was guilty.

But that's the thing. In a way, he was. And for all Athena's trust in her client, she didn't believe for a second that the man was sorry for his actions.

Athena was silent when she encountered Lida and Khadga again, only speaking up to say congratulations and give them a figure to pay. It felt odd, accepting the money from a case directly. Usually it went through the agency first.

Maybe if she kept this case a secret, she would be able to forget about it. She could confess to Juniper that she hadn't taken it with her boss's permission, and ask her to never mention it to anyone. Athena trusted her. And it was one more reason to visit Grammie.

But before she did that, Athena had to know. "What did you know about this case that I didn't? And how?"

He avoided the question. In order to assess your abilities, I had to know the truth before I watched you find it. In my assessment, I found room for improvement, but potential nonetheless. You ought to be proud.

Athena was in control of her body at the moment. She was sure of that.

But even so... who was really running the show, here?

A/N's: And so ends the first arc of this story. If my current predictions are correct, there will be two more for a total of three, though the next two will likely be longer. But probably just as morally ambiguous, if Kristoph has his way. Athena's already beginning to make some questionable choices at his insistence.

Next up: the WAA Christmas party, where Athena reunites with Apollo and sees Phoenix in person again. I'm thinking about having Klavier there, too. Now wouldn't that be interesting?

Still, I hoped you liked this chapter. Sorry it was so long in coming. Thanks for reading, don't forget to review, and I'll see you on the far side!