"To be wealthy and honoured in an unjust society is a disgrace."
― Confucius, The Analects (Very Starling City elite, no?)

Disclaimer: I don't own Arrow. Thanks to everyone enjoying this. Judge Hankerson is the judge who condemned Barry in the Flash, and I used his actor's name as his Christian one. I know nothing about trials, this is all creative licence and canon-inspired. The bits on Moira and Robert's families (the names of their parents and those of Moira's brothers plus their attitudes all come from the Earth 27 wiki.)

Read, enjoy and review!

Chapter Twenty-Six

Wealthy and Honoured

Felicity knelt down in front of William to kiss his forehead and smile softly at him as she brushed a lock of hair out of his bangs.

"I don't understand why I can't come and see Nana," he complained. "And why'm I staying home from school with Raisa? I'm not sick."

"You can't come because only adults are allowed in the courthouse," Felicity explained. And because Moira had specifically requested that her grandson be kept away from her while she was in prison and being tried, not wanting the young boy to remember her that way if she was found guilty and sentenced to death. "And you're staying home from school to keep Raisa company while the rest of us are busy. She's been feeling lonely. You don't want her to be sad, do you?" That one was an out and out lie to make him feel better, but there was no way that they could risk sending him into the school today, despite Will being one of those rare kids who enjoyed going to school, same as Felicity had been when she was a kid.

Tempers had flared back up again as Moira's trial approached, with literal mobs armed with posters and signs forming in front of Queen Consolidated and Verdant, and even outside the free clinic where Tommy and Aly worked. Tommy was getting less of the impact, given that he had changed his name to Aly's surname and was keeping his head down and out of the media, but he had still been the victim of quite a few attacks and slurs. No way were she and Oliver going to let their son leave the safety of the mansion's grounds and risk him being hurt or worse by an angry and grieving Glades resident.

"No," Will sighed, pouting unhappily. "When'll you two be home?"

"We'll come back for lunch," Oliver replied, entering the room as he buttoned up his suit jacket. "And then we'll hopefully be back in time for dinner. I'm thinking we have pizza, just this once?"

Will's eyes lit up in excitement at the suggestion of the rare treat. He liked it all the more because, when they had pizza they made it from scratch, rather than ordering it from Mario's or one of the other pizzerias in the city. It was different, and to children, different was equal to fun. As was getting messy with permission.

"Yeah!" He exclaimed. "Will Nana be with you? I haven't seen her in ages!"

She exchanged a loaded look with her husband. "Maybe," she answered vaguely after a second, rising to her feet before Will could press for clarification. "I'm sorry, baby, but we gotta go now or we'll be late. We'll see you at lunchtime, okay?"

"Okay," Will sighed in response before throwing his slim arms around her waist. "Love you Mommy."

She smiled lovingly down at him. God, she had the sweetest child on earth. "I love you too, William," she answered, kissing the top of his head and running a hand over his back before he released her and went over to embrace his father and also murmur his goodbyes and declarations of love that Oliver returned, a hint of the worried tension in his blue eyes lightening a bit as he echoed Felicity's own response.

Sara had joined them, Thea, Roy and Dig at the courthouse, a guilty expression on her face. Felicity noticed automatically that she was leaning slightly on her left leg, leaving herself more vulnerable to having her legs swept out from beneath her. She'd injured her leg while they were in Russia rescuing Dig's ex-wife-turned-girlfriend Lyla from a gulag with Anatoly's help. Sara had kindly gone out patrolling in the guise of Artemis, and stumbled across Count Vertigo, who had escaped during the Undertaking. The insane drug lord had been planning on poisoning the city by lacing the flu vaccines with a new version of his beloved vertigo. Unfortunately for him, Sara had overheard his plan and taken him and his operation out, but she'd been stabbed with a scalpel in her right thigh during the fight, resulting in a slight limp.

It could've been far worse however, and she'd taken out the operation without killing anybody, while Cecil Adams a.k.a The Count had been returned to Iron Heights Prison with both of his legs broken in multiple places and a mangled wrist that was unlikely to ever be fully healed given Iron Heights' lack of interest in healing their inmates' injuries properly. They certainly weren't going to waste money on physiotherapy for him of all people.

"Ollie, Felicity, I'm so sorry," she greeted them with an upset tone. "Dad just told me this morning. Laurel is second chair for the prosecution."

Oliver inhaled sharply while Felicity scowled, a Japanese word that had the tone of a swear slipping from her lips as she clenched her fists. They hadn't heard about that.

"Can they do that?" Dig frowned. "Given that Laurel was engaged to Moira's son? Isn't it a conflict of interest?"

Sara shrugged helplessly. "I don't know," she stated. "I'm really sorry."

"Not your fault, Sara," Felicity sighed, mouth twisted unhappily. "Come on, we'd better get inside."

They entered and took seats in the front row, just behind Moira and Jean. The moment they were seated Oliver leaned forward to whisper to Jean.

"Laurel is the prosecution's second chair," he revealed. "Can you object on grounds of conflict of interest?"

"It's too late," she replied in a low tone. "If I'd known earlier I could've, but they hid it and now it's too late."

"Damn it," Oliver swore.

"I might be able to use it to discredit her, though," Jean went on. "Given you split up with her and she's known to have a grudge against your family on that grounds. Let me see how it goes."

"Alright," Oliver sighed, settling back against the back of the bench. Felicity reached out to grasp his hand supportively, rubbing her thumb over the back of his hand comfortingly.

"Your mom is innocent, Oliver," she murmured. "The jury will recognize that. The evidence will show she was trying to protect her family. She'll be okay."

He nodded tensely, stomach sick with nerves. If Moira was found guilty, she could receive the death penalty for the crime. It terrified him. His family had been through so much in the past years, losing her would be the last straw and Oliver knew it. At his side, with Roy on her far side, Thea was pale, digging her nails so hard into Roy's hand that tiny pinpricks of blood welled up, though he said nothing, his other arm draped over her shoulders supportively. Despite hating the thought of his baby sister being with anybody, Oliver appreciated Roy for that. His steady support for Thea over the past couple of months had done wonders in getting Oliver to like the guy.

The Judge entered and took his place as the bailiff announced him.

"All rise for the Honourable Judge Kenneth Hankerson!" He barked, making the audience rise to their feet. The judge was a respected Central City judge, having held his post since 1988, about twenty-four years, and was known rigid in his morals, never accepting a bribe and leveraging heavy penalties towards anybody who tried to corrupt him. He was a candidate for the Supreme Court next time a spot opened up.

He hadn't refused Moira's bail, but he had set it far too high for them to risk given their current finances and expectations for being fined. Oliver and Thea had wanted to do it anyway, and Felicity had been inclined to do so as well, but Moira had insisted they not do so, saying they were better off keeping the money in reserve for later.

Truthfully, Felicity was pretty sure that Moira didn't expect to be found not guilty. She might not even want to. Felicity of all people knew what guilt did to a person, how it ate away at your soul and allowed depression to take over your mind. She saw the look of a walking dead woman who had accepted her fate in Moira's blue eyes, and it frightened her. Was she even planning on really trying to live through this?

"Be seated," Judge Hankerson stated, gesturing for them to sit.

"Docket ending 4587, State versus Moira Queen," the bailiff informed him, handing over the ticket. Hankerson nodded.

"Very well. The prosecution may present their opening arguments," he announced.

DA Adam Donner, the first chair, rose to his feet and strode to the front of the room, turning himself to be facing the jury and audience. He pointed a remote at the TV screen set up in the corner and clicked it on, revealing Moira's press conference to announce the Undertaking.

"...have been complicit in an undertaking with one horrible purpose- to destroy the Glades and everyone in it," he paused the scene there.

"And it worked," he stated, looking towards the jury as he paced before their box. "The Glades were destroyed. Homes and lives were lost. All because of her actions. True, she had second thoughts; Remorse which compelled her to deliver this statement. But on behalf of the five hundred and three lives that were extinguished that day, I say, Moira Queen, your remorse comes too late." As he addressed her, he spun on his heel to point accusingly at the blonde woman, who bowed her head. Oliver reached out his free hand to rest it on her shoulder in comfort, shooting a vicious glare at the prosecutor.

Felicity hated to give a compliment to an opponent, but credit where credit was due. The guy was a good speaker. The jury were certainly impressed, to her dismay.

"Mr. Donner, please take your seat," Judge Hankerson, his expression blank, ordered. "Ms. Loring, the defence may present your opening arguments."

"Thank you, Your Honour," Jean replied respectfully as she rose to her feet and strode to the centre of the room, taking the remote and fidgeting with it for several moments until it played again from the beginning.

"For the last five years, under the threat for my life and the lives of my family..."

Jean turned away after pausing the screen. "Why wouldn't those threats silence her?" She asked. "Why wouldn't Moira Queen be terrified? Malcolm Merlyn killed her first husband, abducted her second. His actions caused her daughter-in-law to be stranded on a deserted island for five years, leaving her grandson to grow up without his mother and her son broken-hearted by the dual losses of his wife and father. Why wouldn't she be in fear for her life? For the lives of her family? What would you do? If it were your children in the crosshairs of a mad man's rage?"

Jean was good too. The jury members' expressions softened as they looked towards Moira, who had an uncharacteristically small air to her, shoulders slumped and hands clasped together, complexion pale despite her make up. It was a change from her usual attitude, and Felicity quietly wondered how much was real, and how much was put on to gain sympathy. Oh, Felicity had no doubt that Moira was afraid of the outcome of the trial, and that she was deeply remorseful over her actions during the time leading up to the Undertaking. But she also had no doubt that the older woman would be well able to hide those emotions if she tried, having grown up doing the PR dance.

"Ms. Loring, the defence will present their case," Judge Hankerson, who was frustratingly inscrutable, declared once Jean had made it clear that she was finished her opening arguments.

"My thanks, Your Honour," Jean repeated. "First, I wish to show evidence of Malcolm Merlyn's threats and danger towards not just the Queen family, but even his own. I call Thomas Jackson to the stand."

/\\\

Tommy took his seat after being sworn in by the bailiff, and Jean Loring stepped up to the box to stand before him. She flashed him a reassuring smile as she began her questioning.

"Doctor Jackson, you were born Thomas Merlyn, son of Rebecca and Malcolm Merlyn, correct?" She asked.

He nodded, grimacing. "Yes, I was," he confirmed. "After the Undertaking, however, I married my wife, Alyssa, and took her name. I didn't want anything to do with Malcolm, nor do I want our children to be linked with that son of a bitch."

"What was your relationship with your father life before the Undertaking, Doctor?"

He took a deep breath, seeking out Aly's loving and supportive gaze in the watching crowd before replying. "When I was a little kid, my dad was great. Very involved, very loving. A real family guy. Then my mom was murdered by some scumbag in the Glades, and he, he changed. He disappeared for several years, left me to be raised by the mansion staff. The day of the Undertaking, he told me that he went to a place named Nanda Parbat where he was taught how to fight. How to kill. He said that was where he was inspired to cause the Undertaking. When he came back he was different. Not the dad I remembered. He was harsh. Not physically, but emotionally. Nothing was ever good enough for him, and he frequently told me how much of a failure I was. How disappointed my mom would have been in me. How disappointed he was in the man I had become."

"What happened the day of the Undertaking, Tommy?" Jean asked gently.

"Malcolm asked me to come over to MGG to speak to him," Tommy said. "I figured that the Vigilante's attack on him had shaken him up, and... however difficult our relationship was, he was still my father. I didn't want him to be hurt. So I went. While I was there, Moira's press conference came on.

Malcolm was enraged. He threw the desk, slammed his fist into the wall. I demanded to know if it was true. If he'd really done what she claimed. Really killed those people, people I'd known my entire life. He admitted it. Then he, he made me listen to a voicemail my mom had left him while she was dying. Told me he'd listened to it over and over after learning she was dead. I think it must've made him snap. He was ranting, saying that everyone in the Glades had to die for what happened to her. Justifying his insanity by saying he was doing it for her."

He clenched his nails into his palms in rage at the thought. His mom had been the gentlest woman alive, so compassionate and giving. It disgusted Tommy to think that his father (God, their relation made him sick) tried to use her to excuse his brutal slaughter of hundreds of innocent people, people she had spent her life trying to help.

"Then the SWAT team arrived," Tommy went on. He described it all, how his father had murdered them with terrifying ease before turning on Tommy when he aimed the gun. How he'd plucked the gun from Tommy's hand and beaten him, leaving lying half-conscious in the corner as he dashed off. How 'Artemis' had arrived and checked him over before going to confront Malcolm while Tommy limped off to find his family, who lived close to the Glades before heading with Aly to the hospital to help tend the injured.

Then, as he wrapped up his story, Tommy took initiative and turned to the jury box. "My father was insane, a monster," he told them with utmost seriousness. "He had no qualms or remorse about killing anybody who got in his way. If I'd tried harder to stop him, he wouldn't just have beaten me unconscious, he'd have killed me and not batted an eyelash. He had no regret about murdering Robert Queen, his so-called best friend and my godfather along with half-a-dozen others including a twenty-year-old girl, no remorse for the trauma that Felicity Queen went through and the fact that her son spent the first years of his life without a mother, that Oliver, whom he'd known since he was a baby, went through the same as Malcom did on losing Mom.

I have absolutely no doubt that, if he thought she would try to defy him, he'd have made Moira watch as he killed her children and grandson before killing her too. If I had been in her shoes and it was Aly and my stepchildren being threatened, I don't think I would have been strong enough to speak out about what he'd done, even at the last minute."

Starling General Hospital: May 16, 1985

Moira Dearden, doted on only daughter of the affluent Dearden family, which had roots going back almost two centuries, married Robert Queen, the new CEO of the up and coming tech company Queen Industries, established by his father Jonas when Robert was a child and one of the so-called 'nouveau riche' when she was twenty years old. It was a business marriage.

Moira liked her husband well enough, but their marriage was arranged by their parents to merge the failing Dearden Consolidated and upcoming Queen Industries, creating 'Queen Consolidated' in their place. It was a way for the Deardens to avoid the shame of having to declare bankruptcy, as DC was unable to adjust to the changing times and was on the verge of failing entirely, while QI was, with Robert at the helm, going from a small, Washington-based company to a multi-national one, with their first foreign subsidiary having just opened in London.

Soon after their honeymoon (a cruise on Robert's private yacht all around the world that created Moira's hatred of boats after a storm near the end of their trip gave her a concussion when a picture frame hit the back of her head after not being secured properly), Moira learned that she was pregnant. The day her son moved within her for the first time, Moira fell in love for the first time. The look of radiant happiness on Robert's expression when she revealed her pregnancy turned her feelings from friendship to love for him too, even if it never changed to her being in love with him.

Their families were delighted too.

Moira had three brothers: Patrick Junior, James 'Jimmy' and Liam Dearden. Patrick was, to be blunt, a wastrel who had died in a car crash while drunk (in later years, while Oliver and Thea were both going through their respective drug and alcohol phases, Moira would think of Patrick and breathe a deep sigh of relief when both of her children snapped out of their spirals before following their late uncle into the grave), while Jimmy was a free spirit who travelled and never managed to stay still more than a month at a time, and Liam was deep in gambling debts (which was a huge part of why their family had begun to struggle financially. At least, in comparison to how they used to be, they were struggling.).

Moira, on the other hand, was the exact opposite of her brothers, and her parents, Patrick Senior and Susanna, relied on her impeccable reputation to keep a lid on her brothers' activities. The pair saw their daughter's marriage and coming child as a way to wipe the slate clean in the eyes of the media, and restore the prominence of the Dearden family name (conveniently forgetting that the two were Queens, not Deardens).

Meanwhile, the humbler Jonas and Theodora Queen, who had come from middle-class origins and established their money and the new family business through saving, hard work and careful investment (plus their daughter-in-law's inheritance), were simply happy to have a grandchild to dote on. They'd been wary of Patrick's suggestion of their children marrying for the sake of the businesses, but it had turned out well. Robert was still as much of a ladies' man as he'd been before his marriage, but he was discreet about it, and in his own way, he did love Moira.

He loved her even more for carrying and giving birth to his son.

They put careful thought into names for their child. It was only right and proper that they pick Jonas for his middle name, after Robert's father who had started their family's climb, but his first name was more difficult to choose. More than once, Patrick Snr. and Susanna dropped subtle (and some not so subtle) hints that they should honour Moira's own father as well, but Moira didn't want to. In most respects she bent to her parents' will, ever the dutiful daughter, but giving her son the name of her father and eldest brother, the brother who had gotten himself (along with an innocent bystander, whose death had been covered up by the family with help from a hefty settlement to the man's family) was not to her taste.

Finally, on May 16th, 1985, after sixteen hours' worth of labour (helped by the copious amount of drugs Moira received in her private room at Starling General Hospital), Moira and Robert's son came into the world.

The nurse, a smiling woman named Alicia Bray, helped Robert, who looked almost teary with happiness, snip the umbilical cord before he carried the tiny bundle over to where Moira was eagerly waiting.

"Look at him, Moira," Robert said gruffly. "Isn't he amazing?"

"He's beautiful," she breathed in response, her eyes fixed on the bundle as tears fell freely down her cheeks. "Hello darling. Hello, my beautiful baby boy. I'm your mama."

While they were entranced with their son, their parents had been allowed into the room by the nurse.

"Oh, is that my grandbaby?" Theodora squealed excitedly. "Let me see! Oh, it's a boy! Oh, isn't he just the most precious thing you've ever seen?"

"He really is," Moira agreed totally with her mother-in-law, whose displays of exuberance she usually disliked.

"Well done, Moira dear," Susanna declared, a pleased smile resting on her usually frowning lips.

"Aye, well done," Jonas agreed.

"What name did you choose, then?" Patrick asked, studying his grandson critically.

"Mom, Dad, Patrick, Susanna," Robert said, taking their son from Moira's arms and adjusting him to show off the tiny face to his grandparents. "Meet Oliver Jonas Queen."

He was passed around to everyone and cooed over. Moira waited impatiently until he was at last returned to her arms. Everyone said their goodbyes, leaving her to rest, and Robert kissed her and ran a thumb over Oliver's tiny cheek, still looking amazed by the tiny being they had created together, and at long last she was left alone with her baby boy.

He snuffled and squirmed, getting comfortable in her arms and curling closer to her chest, nestling his head against her heart. Staring down at his red face, Moira Queen knew all the way down to her bones that, if it came to that, she would raze the world to the ground to protect her baby boy, and never regret it for a second so long as he was healthy and happy.

If all she ever did in her life was bring her child into the world, it would be a life well spent.

The trial felt a mixture of both long and short, lasting just short of a week. The defence went first, bringing up witnesses for both Moira and Malcolm's characters, who all talked about what a loving mother Moira was and how Malcolm was (to sum it up), a stone-cold bastard. One particularly damning piece of evidence was some camera footage from a hidden camera Felicity had confessed to putting in the mansion to keep an eye on Will. It was of Malcolm threatening Moira to make Walter stop looking into Tempest, verging on outright saying he would kill the other man if he didn't stop his investigation.

The prosecution tried to cast doubt on it all, of course. Oliver and Thea had been shocked and deeply betrayed by Moira's admission of her affair with Malcolm, but their anger had blown over quickly. Felicity was pretty sure that they'd have been angrier if not for the situation (the words, "death penalty" hung over their heads like a sword of Damocles), and also Felicity had quietly pointed out that Robert hadn't exactly been the image of fidelity himself. It didn't excuse it, but it made it more understandable. Truthfully, Felicity suspected it was more the additional proof of their mother's fallibility that upset the siblings than anything else. It was a hard fact to face, the knowledge that your parents were flawed and human too.

After the two days of defence, the prosecution called forth their own witnesses, disparaging Moira's character, trying to paint the image of a neglectful mother by bringing up Oliver's playboy days and Thea's DUI from early that year. In what the family considered to be a particularly low blow, they made several side comments about Thea's relationship with Roy, a petty criminal (Jean had objected to that phrasing based on the fact that Roy had never been charged), and even speaking about Felicity, how she was the daughter of a criminal who'd spent several years in foster care and had been arrested for hacking (again, Jean had objected due to the charges having been dropped and DA Donner had been sternly rebuked. Felicity, who had done background searches on the jury members and knew that two had also grown up in the system, was smug when she discovered via the CCTV cameras she'd hacked that he'd turned several of the poorer jury members against him with his prejudiced comments). Nor did Donner gain any sympathy from the parents on the jury when he basically (if not explicitly) said that it didn't matter whether of not Moira felt her children's lives were in danger.

Finally, after days of evidence being presented and the closing arguments being given, the jury was sent off to debate and decide on Moira's fate. The Queen family huddled together in silence, too tense and worried to say anything.

"I want you both to know," Moira said after a while, looking at her children. "That no matter what happens, I love you both so much, and I am so proud of the people you have become, of the partners you've chosen. I'm so happy to see how much joy Felicity and Will give you, Oliver, and how well you've come into yourself since meeting Roy and taking over Verdant this past year, Thea darling. Don't either of you ever forget that, alright?"

"Oh, Mom!" Thea let out a wet gasp and leaned forward to bury her head in Moira's neck, shaking and crying softly, while Oliver embraced them both. Felicity and Roy reached out to rest their hands on their partners' backs in comfort.

"If the worst comes to worst," Moira went on, voice choked with her own suppressed sobs. "I want you both to accept it. Don't let anything anyone says or does stop you both from moving forward with your lives. Alright? Promise me."

"Mom-" Oliver began to object, but she cut him off.

"Promise me," she turned to Felicity and Roy. "If this goes badly for us, please look after them for me."

"You don't need to ask," Felicity assured her steadily, years of practice all that was keeping her emotions in check.

Roy nodded, Thea now tucked under his arm. "I love Thea with everything in me, Mrs. Queen. I'll be at her side for as long as she'll let me stay."

Moira smiled softly, eyes sad. "I'm so very lucky to have seen my children find such wonderful partners."

The debate took an hour before the jury members returned and everyone waited in anticipation to learn the fate of Moira Queen.

"Has the jury reached a verdict?" Judge Hankerson asked formally.

"We have, Your Honour," the lead juror replied.

The family grasped hands, shoulders tense as they waited.

"In the charge of five hundred and two counts of conspiracy to commit murder, we find the defendant: guilty."

Thea moaned and Oliver's head fell forward. Moira released a shuddering breath.

"In the charge of five hundred and two counts of murder in the first degree, we find the defendant: not guilty."