"No, those were the girls she killed" Nathalie informed and the gang's eyes wide opened along with her parents'.
"Are you saying the defendant murdered five girls when she was thirteen?" Alice asked.
"Objection!" Mr. West shouted.
"I'll allow it, answer the question" The judge said and Jade looked down holding her face.
"No, she killed the first two while she was twelve, they were her birthday present and she was really excited to do it" Nathalie informed and the gang looked at each other completely disgusted, Beck didn't really know what to believe, part of him felt she was being honest but at the same time he felt everything she was saying felt too convenient.
"Why didn't you say this before? I understand these cases were part of your sentence" Alice commented.
"Of course they were but my Hannah was a kid, I didn't want her in prison and she is not stupid, she would never confess to that" Nathalie said. "But she is an adult now and she must own up to her faults just like her father and I did"
"Okay well, unfortunately that crime is not part of this trial so let's get back to our murders" The prosecutor said. "Did Jade ever mention anything about killing people these days?"
"Yeah I told you, she was bored and she always said she wanted to fulfill her purpose in life" Nathalie said and Jade shook her head angrily. "I tried to talk her out of it because I never wanted her to be in prison but one day she just showed up and said she'd started her own legacy"
"Legacy?" Alice asked.
"Yes, she wanted everyone to remember her for her own crimes, as her own person, not for us" Nathalie explained. "So she started killing those girls, she knew she'd be caught eventually but she told me she wanted to get to at least twenty five before the police found her"
"That's why you went to the CEO and told him who she was?" The prosecutor asked.
"Yes, listen I know what I did to all those girls and I'm not proud of it, I have made peace with my god and I thought the least I could do was stop the monster I created" Nathalie affirmed with tears in her eyes. "It's not her fault to be like this, it's ours but she is what she is now and we can't turn back time, we can only stop her from doing more harm"
"May I ask what happened to your hands?" The lawyer asked.
"She did it, she cut my hands as revenge for telling on her" Nathalie said and Mr. West turned to Jade so she looked back at him nervously, she couldn't entirely deny it. "And not only that, she's dating another inmate and together they've made my life hell since the day she arrived, I thought we would reconnect but she was furious with me for accusing her"
"Your own daughter cut your hands off?" The lawyer asked shocked and Nathalie nodded as she cried.
"She really is ruthless, you have no idea what she's capable of! She's done so many things since she arrived and started the romance with the gang leader" Nathalie said. "Ask her about that dead guard, Tom, she knows more than you think…I know she did it" she affirmed and Beck felt his heart beating faster just like Jade, only they knew that what the woman was saying was true.
"How can you be so sure?" The lawyer asked.
"Because he raped her, I heard him talking about it to another guard" Nathalie said and Jade's parents immediately turned to her because she hadn't told them anything; she was simply looking down ashamedly and angrily as her eyes filled with tears.
"What?" Tori whispered shocked and Beck took a breath to remain calm.
"Jade…" Her father said to her but she didn't look at him, she couldn't.
"So you think she killed him as revenge for her rape?" The lawyer asked.
"I have no doubt" Nathalie responded. "He was found with his penis in his mouth, he bled to death in the basement, which is where he'd raped her according to what I heard"
"Objection! This trial is not an accusation party, we are here to deal with the murders of the girls" Mr. West said.
"I have to agree with the defense, the new accusations are not to be taken into account for this trial" The judge said.
"Just stop her please, she won't stop and you need to do something to keep her away from everyone, only you can stop all this slaughter" Nathalie affirmed.
"Yes we can, thank you" Alice said.
Michael Johnson was called to the stand and he basically repeated the same story his wife had said, he talked about his past crimes, Jade's crimes and how she'd told him all about her plans but he said he never accused her because he wanted her to be safe. By the time their testimonies were over Jade knew her case was screwed, there was nothing she could say to change the jury's minds. They thought she was a psycho.
"This can't be happening, they can't just sit there and lie like this" Jade said to her parents as she walked in circles anxiously during the recess.
"Apparently they can" Adeline commented. "And they are convincing"
"You didn't believe what they said about me, did you?" Jade asked. "I never said I wanted to kill you, they said it to make you hate me"
"And the other things? Were you raped?" Adeline asked fearfully and Jade looked at her not knowing what to respond but then a couple of tears started streaming down her face as she nodded.
"Oh god" Mr. West said shocked and took a breath.
"Oh my god, honey" Adeline said and hugged her so Jade hugged her back. "I'm so sorry"
"Why didn't you tell us?" Her father asked.
"I didn't want you to be worried, it'd happened anyway" Jade said as she broke the hug. "And he paid for it" she said and her parents looked at each other, they knew she'd actually killed him.
"Deny everything, they can't know he raped you or your motive will be clear" Her father said and then they saw Beck and the gang approaching.
"What do you want?" Adeline asked coldly as she wiped the tears away.
"We wanted to talk to Jade" Tori said shyly and Jade turned to them emotionlessly.
"Are you ready to give your speeches and send me to death row?" She asked and they looked at each other.
"We don't want you to die, we just want justice" Andre affirmed.
"Did you cut her hands for real?" Robbie asked surprised and she rolled her eyes.
"Not directly" Jade said. "My…girlfriend did" she informed and they looked at each other not knowing what to respond.
"Why?" Adeline asked, she didn't feel sorry for her but she found it gruesome.
"She spent half an hour drawing on my belly with a burning knife, I can show you the scars" Jade commented, it was clear she didn't feel guilty. "Amanda made her pay"
"That woman is sadistic, are you sure you can trust her?" Mr. West asked.
"She's only helped me all this time, I know I can" She affirmed.
"What did she draw on you?" Tori asked.
"Five names, you've already heard them" She responded coldly.
"Hold on, why would she write that?" Adeline asked confused but deep inside she knew the answer.
"Did you actually kill those girls she talked about?" Cat asked nervously and Jade looked at her not knowing what to respond.
"I don't want to talk about that" Jade said and looked down so her parents looked at each other suspiciously.
"Jade, those crimes are not in this trial but I need to know the truth" Her father said and she looked at him nervously. "Did you harm those girls? Did you kill them?"
"Dad…" Jade said with a shaky voice and he took a breath.
"Answer me" He demanded and Jade hesitated for several seconds but she finally spoke.
"Yes" She said ashamedly and looked down so her mother sat down from the shock and the gang looked at each other. "But you have to listen to me, it's not how they said it"
"Did you or did you not kill them?" Her father asked coldly and she stared at him scared.
"Yes" Jade admitted and her father took a breath.
"Oh my god you were a kid, how does a kid even do that? How sick do you need to be?" Andre asked shocked.
"No you don't understand" Jade said.
"Then explain it" Adeline demanded upset.
"The first two were my birthday present, the day the picture you saw on TV was taken" Jade informed. "They forced me to do it, they threatened me with a chainsaw…they said if I didn't, they would chop my hands off" she informed and they stared at her not knowing what to believe. "You have to believe me, I had to do it…I had no way out, they were gonna die anyway and I would have lost my hands, they weren't joking"
"And what about the other three?" Beck asked coldly and she looked down.
"They needed my help" Jade said and they looked at her confused. "They were suffering and they had more in store, I knew what my parents would do, they would have been burnt to death or buried alive or ripped into pieces, I heard them planning it" She commented.
"So you killed them first out of mercy? Are you serious?" Adeline asked and Jade looked at her sadly as she nodded.
"I know you don't believe me but it's the truth, I just wanted to help them" Jade said.
"You could have set them free instead" Tori commented.
"I was scared and they wouldn't have made it too far anyway, they were really weak and hurt" Jade informed. "I did what I had to do, I don't regret it…I know they would have suffered a lot more if I hadn't"
"What did you do to them?" Beck asked debating what to believe, the level of cruelty would tell him the truth.
"I…shot one of them in the head and I stabbed the others, my parents had taken the gun away, they knew what I was doing so they made it harder each time and the next time I let the girl go, she still could run…and that's how they found us" Jade explained. "So yes, I have killed before but I did not kill these five girls and I didn't kill the others for fun, I never enjoyed what they did to them! Nathalie lied"
"Well, that's…unexpected" Her father admitted. "But I believe you"
"So do I" Adeline said and took a breath. "I just have to process it, I'm sorry" she said and walked away while Jade looked at her mortified.
"Mom…" Jade said but Adeline didn't stop, she just walked faster. "So now what?" she asked her father and he sighed.
"You have to deny these crimes, it doesn't matter why you did it…You did it and that doesn't help you, you were thirteen and a thirteen year old who murders five girls is likely to do it again, they won't believe a word you say" Her father affirmed. "So just stick to your story, they killed them all and they are trying to get back at you by lying"
"Are you sure it's a good idea?" She asked and he nodded while the gang looked at each other nervously.
"Yes, you need to understand that if they learn you were capable of taking a life when you were a child, whatever the circumstances were, this case is doomed and so are you" He affirmed. "I wouldn't normally advise this but you have to lie and you better be convincing"
Now you know! ;)
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