Chapter 31

Dr. Myer's was staring at the ground as he walked towards the police officer's car. He just couldn't bear the thought of Cody having to repeat all the details in front of a court- in front of the guy who did this.

"Dr. Myer's! How did it go?" The police officer handed him a much-needed coffee and got into the car. Cody's dad followed him in, and they spoke as he drove.

"Well…it's not going to be fun. For any of them…but I just can't imagine this happening! I'm a psychologist, I should know when these things happen!" Dr. Myer's had been beating himself up about it all night.

"Sometimes you see the clues, and just ignore it because something like this couldn't have happened to someone close to us. But you know, Doctor, from what I hear, your daughter wasn't giving us that many clues." He took a sip of coffee at a red light and continued. "You couldn't have known."

"But I should have." Cody's dad sighed and put down his cup desolately. "Cody's my daughter, I should have protected her. I knew something was wrong when she was living with my wife, but I was so caught up in the divorce I wasn't paying attention. I should have realized that my daughter came first."

"Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda. It's in the past, Dr. Myer's. Now we have to deal with the present."
Sebastien and Cody were discharged from the hospital on an out-patient basis, so they could testify in court. The next day they all arrived at the courthouse, resigned to what they had to do. All of Top Gun were there, as well as Jake and Cody's mother. First up was Sebastien.

"Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?" asked the bailiff.

"I do." Seb sat down, looking around apprehensively.

"Mr. Dubé, can you describe the circumstances of your first meeting with my client, Jake Holds?"

Sebastien cleared his throat, and starting speaking. "Well… I had asked Cody to cover for me while I worked at Arnie's to help out with the rent…" His story went on until he reached Jake's doorstep. "Cody started talking to him-"

Jake's lawyer interrupted him. "Was Ms. Myer's not…flirting with him?"

Sebastien blanched, but he was under oath to tell the truth. "She was sacrificing a lot just to help me. She did what she felt she had to do to get me out of this situation."

"But didn't Ms. Myer's come into Jake's life? She was the one on his doorstep, after all."

"Cody did what she had to! If anything, it's my fault she was at Jake's not her's! If I hadn't lied about my family, we'd never have been in this mess. You don't know how much I regret that now." Jake's lawyer nodded slowly, and resumed his pacing as Sebastien spoke. "Jake told her he'd pretend to be the band if she…if she came with him after the dance. Cody hesitated and he twisted her wrist, he even threatened to hurt me if she didn't agree."

Sebastien stepped off the stand after a few questions, and then Squib was up.

"We were all talking about the Hamstead tournament- this tennis tourney in the UK- and Megan was about to go practise when Sebastien stood up. He walked over to this guy and they looked pretty mad…he shoved Seb out of the way and he landed right on his arm. It knocked him right out of contention for the Hamstead. Then Jake headed for Cody and I…she was sitting in my lap and he pulled her up and away from me…I couldn't do anything, because Codes told me not to fight him. But then he cracked her wrist, and…" Squib stopped, seething in rage. "He knocked her out. The second she hit the floor I was on top of it. I don't regret that at all. He deserved it."

Then Megan and Adena showed up to tell the court about how Jake showed up in Cody's room, and she'd broken her leg trying to get away from him. A few of jurors were crying and clutching soaking wet tissues. Cody, as well as the rest of Top Gun were paying strict attention to the case. Then it was Cody's turn.

"Ms. Myer's, would you like to start from when you met Mr. Jake Holds?"

She showed no sign of breaking down, no sign of fear. "Jake and I met at a party. My mom was never home, and she didn't care where I went as long as I was home by midnight. If she noticed at all. So, Jake and I started spending a lot of time around each other. At first, it was just because he seemed like a nice guy. Then things started changing and he started hitting a lot…he threatened my family, my friends. It was then when I knew there was no getting away from him, not when he brought other people into it. A few months later, there was another party. He gave me beer in a Pepsi can, and I ended up getting drunk. He raped me that night. The next morning I woke up naked on his bed and bruised all over. I guess I tried to fight back…it's hard to remember. I grabbed my clothes and walked home. A week later my dad came and took me Cascadia, and I finally got away from him."

"Court will reconvene when the jury has come up with a verdict." The judge slammed her gavel down and bustled into her office, as everyone filed out.

Coach Gunnerson was waiting on the court steps as they all emerged, silent and pensive. After a short conversation with them, he got them caught up on campus news. "We've just got two new people in Group A, so don't be surprised if you see some other people when you get back to Cascadia."

Sebastien pried his eyes away from the floor and looked up- competition. "What're their names?"

"Cameron White and Tanis McTaggert."