March 29
Courtroom No. 2
10:15 AM
Victoria von Graye
~ Witness Testimony ~
~ Seeing the Crime ~
-"I was walking through the park trying to explore the beauties of nature when I overheard two men yelling."
-"No matter how much I wanted to just walk away, I couldn't divert my attention for long enough to try, so I followed their voices."
-"That was when I saw the victim standing with the suspect... They were screaming at each other and clearly not happy."
-"The defendant pulled out a gun and shot the victim without a second thought when the argument reached a peak."
-"Afterward, he walked away, and I decided to leave too before he figured out that I had been watching the entire fight play out."
-"I feel like that makes it pretty obvious what happened that day, right? The victim was shot by the suspect, and I saw it clear as could be."
As soon as the testimony was over, the first thing Pieter did was let out a hefty sigh. "I think I've figured out why she didn't want to talk to us yesterday," he muttered. "She knew that we were going to realize that she was lying, and the best place for her to do that in her mind was the courtroom."
"It's certainly an interesting choice on her part," Chrysalis snorted. "But I think we can easily dismiss this testimony for the pile of lies that it is. If she had anything to do with this case, then perhaps she would have already figured out that there was a problem, but as long as she doesn't see it, then fine. We'll just have to rub it in her face."
"This is an intriguing testimony," Judge Frost declared, though she said nothing else on the matter. "I didn't anticipate being met with something like this when the witness was called to the stand."
"Regardless of what you thought was going to happen, I think this should clear up any doubts you may have had about this case," Ms. Clayton commented. She raised her free hand to send her pinwheel spinning all over again. "The defendant is guilty, and we all know it now. How about we wrap up this trial and send everyone home?"
"I don't think that's going to happen quite yet," I interjected. "We have yet to examine your testimony, and that has to happen before we can consider this to be fact."
"There's little point to it. After all, you already know the truth, and the prosecution knows it as well. The defendant is the one responsible for this case, and you can see it clear as day," Ms. Clayton said with a shake of her head. "I don't understand why you would want to waste everyone's time this way."
"I think that we can decide for ourselves if this is a waste of time or not," Chrysalis cut in with a frown. "Now, if you don't mind, the defense would like to hear you testify once again."
Ms. Clayton stared at her with an apathetic, deadpan stare at that, and I couldn't help but think once again how the pastel colors of her outfit clashed so fiercely with everything about her demeanor. Still, all she did was shrug a moment later. "Alright. If that's what you really want, I suppose I have no choice."
~ Cross-Examination ~
~ Seeing the Crime ~
-"I was walking through the park trying to explore the beauties of nature when I overheard two men yelling."
-"No matter how much I wanted to just walk away, I couldn't divert my attention for long enough to try, so I followed their voices."
-"That was when I saw the victim standing with the suspect... They were screaming at each other and clearly not happy."
-"The defendant pulled out a gun and shot the victim without a second thought when the argument reached a peak."
-"Afterward, he walked away, and I decided to leave too before he figured out that I had been watching the entire fight play out."
-"I feel like that makes it pretty obvious what happened that day, right? The victim was shot by the suspect, and I saw it clear as could be."
"Objection!"
"You say that you saw the defendant kill the victim... But I have a few questions for you about how all of this played out," I said with a frown on my face.
"There's not much room for questions. I believe that what I saw and explained is rather cut and dry. What is there to question?" Ms. Clayton questioned. She watched me with a glare hidden beneath her irises, and I could already tell that she didn't like where this was going, but at the same time, she had to have known it was coming. Given the circumstances, it would have been nearly impossible for her to have not already known that this was where everything was going to end up.
"The autopsy report stated rather clearly when the victim was killed, and at the time of his death, the defendant was nowhere near his body," Pieter cut in before I had the chance to explain. "He had an alibi with many other people who can vouch firmly for him that he didn't have the chance to shoot the victim. Unless the autopsy report was off long enough to miss something so crucial as the time of the victim's death by such a wide margin, we can say conclusively that the defendant was not the one who murdered the victim that day."
"You're staking all of this on the testimony of the people who came to the stand yesterday, aren't you?" Ms. Clayton asked, and I found myself wondering how she had managed to hear about that when she had seem so far away from the investigation up to this point. After all, the contradiction in her testimony was clear as day, and if she knew anythign about this case, it would have become apparent to her immediately. Still, she didn't seem to mind that, instead spinning on her pinwheel once again as she continued. "What makes you so sure that you can believe them?"
"We've already established that their testimony is reliable, and if they were lying, then three people would have had to hide the truth to keep everything buried," I countered. "They were all together at the time of the crime, and if there was a falsehood in what they were saying, then they would have been exposed by now. No lie can be perfectly executed, and that includes a story told by multiple people."
"I still find it to be rather suspicious... The three people who you say witnessed the defendant being with them at the time of the murder all knew him before this. In fact, they were friends of his from the start. I don't understand how you can be so confident they are innocent when they could just as easily be pulling the wool over your eyes to cover for him. They would have every reason to protect him, would they not? They know him, and they want him to stay out of trouble," Ms. Clayton countered.
"Why would they defend somebody who they knew committed a murder?" Chrysalis questioned in return. "That would only serve to put them in more danger in the long run, and yet, you still believe that they did it."
"I think that more people are guilty of crimes like that than you realize," Ms. Clayton told her, an edge of intensity sneaking its way into her voice. "You never know who is protecting who, and for all you know, even murderers have their defenders. Perhaps you've masked the truth as well and are simply afraid to admit it. Everybody has secrets that they want to protect both for themselves and those they love, even if it comes at the expense of others. You really believe that they wouldn't lie for the sake of defending those they cared for?"
Before I could stop myself, I found my thoughts rushing towards Nevada. I didn't say anything out loud, but somehow, I knew that Ms. Clayton could sense that my demeanor and outlook had shifted ever so slightly. People had protected Nevada when she committed a crime, hadn't they? I mean, I was partially involved with that. Granted, in her case, it had been crimes of self-defense and accidents more than anything else, and that was different from something intentional, but the fact remained that Ms. Clayton's words were pointing me in that direction.
And as ridiculous as it may have sounded, I couldn't help wondering if perhaps that was what she wanted us to think in the first place.
"I find it questionable that you're accusing others of having unreliable testimonies when you're saying something that has seemed impossible up to this point," Prosecutor Umber countered. "It doesn't seem possible at all that the defendant is the culprit given what we've heard before now, and yet, you claim to have been in the area at the scene of the crime despite how strange all of this looks? I don't know if you can really be accusing others of having unreliable testimonies given your position."
"I don't think you're in any position to do the same either," Ms. Clayton countered without missing a beat. "I've heard about you before. You're much the same as everyone else. You would lie for the sake of protecting someone you care about. In fact, you've done it before, and it almost ended with a murderer getting away with killing people from afar through the use of hired assassins. You were more than happy to obscure the truth because it defended someone that you cared for, and yet, here you are, barely bothered by your past deceit."
Prosecutor Umber looked visibly startled at that, though he didn't say anything as his eyes went wide and his hands shifted into a defensive motion. He didn't seem to know what he could even say to counter that, so Prosecutor Shield took over for him. "You said that you were in the area of the scene of the crime and even witnessed the murder as it occurred, and yet, you didn't think to call the police? You didn't even stop to wonder if perhaps it might be for the best to ask for any sort of help from someone who may have been able to stop the culprit?"
"People fear for their lives in situations like that, you know," Ms. Clayton pointed out. "Do you have any idea how much people fear the idea of death? If they think that someone is going to kill them for speaking out, then they are going to stay silent. I left behind the crime scene because I didn't know if he was going to come back and kill me or not. I didn't tell anyone what I had seen because I feared him coming after me and taking my life next. Anyone would have done the same thing."
"After you managed to escape though, you would have been able to call the police. Even if it wasn't an option initially, you would have had the chance to do that later... And yet, you did not. If you were there, then you would have been the first one to call the police at the time of the murder, but that wasn't the case. Instead, the call about the crime being discovered didn't come until ages after the victim had died from a completely different party. Do you have an explanation for that?" Pieter asked, raising an eyebrow in her direction curiously.
"People do not think rationally when they are in the heat of the moment. Imagine how you would feel after you witnessed someone's murder. Would you truly be in the headspace for something like that?" Ms. Clayton questioned. "Unless you are able to answer me honestly about if you would be able to look at the world logically so soon after witnessing someone's brutal murder... I believe that we can settle this matter here. I did not call the police because I was too startled by what I had seen that day."
Pieter immediately faltered, and I could tell easily that he hadn't expected the conversation to grow so intense so quickly. I didn't even know what I was supposed to say in response to something like that. How could she have gotten so cruel in the blink of an eye that way? I swallowed dryly, desperate to make everybody understand the truth of what had happened that day. It seemed clear as could be to me that she was lying to everyone, but she wouldn't be able to talk her way out of it forever.
Chrysalis found the words faster than I could though, and she slammed her hands on the defense bench before continuing. "You've said many things today under the idea that you saw the crime but didn't report it for some reason or another. However, if there's one thing your testimony has been lacking up to this point, it would be proof. Unless you can show without a shadow of a doubt that you actually saw what happened that day, I believe that we can consider this matter sealed... And it won't be in your favor."
"There's no evidence to show that the other witness' timeline was consistent either," Ms. Clayton told her. "For all you know, they could be lying or mistaken. There's no way for you to be sure that all of this is a lie. You may say that I'm simply making up excuses, but you don't have any evidence to prove that no matter how much you wish it was the truth. You know nothing about this case, and you know it."
"There is one thing we know though," I cut in. "If you truly wanted to talk about what you saw, then you would have reported it sooner."
"I told you before that I was too frazzled to call the police after witnessing someone's murder. I saw the defendant kill the victim in cold blood. Of course I was too distracted to want to address any of my potential concerns on the matter," Ms. Clayton said. She spun at her pinwheel once again, and I couldn't help thinking about just how sick I was of seeing that little toy twirl.
"I'm not talking about that," I told her. "I mean that you didn't say anything about being involved with the crime until the next day. You didn't breathe a word of your involvement until after the first day of the trial had already come and gone. I understand your words about not being able to communicate with the police because of your initial anxiety... But you should have said something sooner about your affiliation with the crime."
"I must agree," Prosecutor Shield said with a nod. "I would have expected you to come forward at some point later in the day after the crime took place, but that wasn't the case. Once the adrenaline wore off, you would have been able to tell the police the truth about what you saw, and yet... You chose to wait much longer than you should have. Why is that?"
Ms. Clayton remained silent for a long moment, and I slammed my hands against the defense bench to break the silence when it became clear that she had no intentions of responding on her own. "I think I can answer that question rather easily," I announced. "She didn't say anything because there was nothing that she could have said in the first place. She didn't have a word to speak before yesterday because she didn't see anything related to the victim's murder to begin with and has been lying to us this entire time!"
"You make a grave accusation, defense... Though I would be lying if I said that it didn't cross my mind up to this point," Prosecutor Umber remarked with a loose shrug. "There's clearly something off about the fact that this witness took so long to come forward. It seems even more peculiar that she seems to have a conveniently lined up excuse for everything that we say to counter her testimony, and yet, she hadn't provided any hard evidence that she was actually there."
"You're relying on my testimony to prove the defendant's guilty, and yet, you don't seem to care at all about disregarding my words... How disappointing," Ms. Clayton commented with a shake of her head. "I thought that the prosecution existed in the name of proving the defendant guilty no matter the cost, and yet, you barely seem to care at all that you're going to be pushing back against what I'm saying. This is going to lose you the case. You should be listening to me if anything."
"I'm here to find the truth, not just to prove the suspect guilty. If the defendant didn't kill the victim-and it seems rather clear that he did not-then I will not be acting against him," Prosecutor Umber said, carefully calming his voice to seem as sure of himself as possible. "That's what must be done in the name of honesty."
"Hm... I thought that you would have known better than that," Ms. Clayton sighed. "You've been more than content to obscure the truth in the past because of your own beliefs, and yet, you won't believe someone who comes to tell you what happened with honesty in their heart. You are so used to deceit that you refuse to believe the truth even when it comes to you on a silver platter."
"If you ask me, the comparison would make a lot more sense if the one who stands before us is lying through her teeth in the name of hiding what really happened that day," Chrysalis cut in with a heavy frown. "'You've hidden the truth in the past. Why won't you do the same for me? I thought that was what all of you are about.'"
Ms. Clayton sighed once more, and her exhale sent her pinwheel spinning. "You should know that the legal system is much less stable than you want it to believe. Everything is crumbling beneath your feet and has been for a very long time. You can't pretend that this situation is normal for much longer," she remarked. "I should have known to not come forward with my testimony if all I was going to be met with is doubt and deceit. And here I thought that the Prosecutor's Office could be trusted to the barest extent... I suppose I was wrong about that as well."
"Why does she keep going on like this?" I muttered, anger starting to mount deep within the pit of my stomach. I knew the reason that she was talking about it; she was trying to make as many people there as possible doubt the ones presiding over the case, and something told me that she had meant to do this from the start, at least to some degree. It was a ridiculous thing for me to imply, and yet, I couldn't help but feel like it was the truth. She hadn't wanted to talk to us the day before, and now, she didn't want anything to do with the prosecution either now. Her counters involved no evidence or hard proof; it was simply about instilling doubt in everyone involved with this case, and she knew what she was doing all too well.
"We can't let her get to us," Pieter said, though I could tell that he was trying to convince himself just as much as he was trying to convince us that everything was alright. "She wants to throw us off so that we don't get too close to the truth of what happened that day, but her tricks won't work forever. If we keep ourselves focused, then we're going to get to the crux of the matter eventually and she won't be able to outrun the truth she's been escaping when that time comes."
I nodded before taking in a careful breath, doing my best to ground myself before I continued to speak. "Witness, I think it would be best for us to talk only about what you saw the day of the murder. We're getting off track, and we can hardly afford to get distracted when someone's life is on the line," I told her. I was impressed with how calm I was acting, though I knew I was going to have to keep the charade up for much longer than I wanted to in order to show the truth.
"I must agree. Please refrain from getting off topic again in the future, witness," Judge Frost interjected. "The court is not here to listen to your opinions about the crime or the importance of the testimony that we have heard up to this point. We simply wish to know the facts of what you witnessed... And I believe it all starts with seeing hard proof that you truly were there at the scene of the crime on the day of the victim's murder. Do you have any evidence or testimony from others to show that you were at the park at all?"
"I was walking alone. If I want to truly understand the beauties of nature, then I must be silent as I enjoy them," Ms. Clayton said, her voice monotone as she continued to spin at her pinwheel absentmindedly. She had switched from being so offensive and firm to being calm and apathetic in the blink of an eye, and if I hadn't seen it myself, I never would have believed that she had actually claimed so boldly that all of us were involved with some greater conspiracy far beyond our understanding.
"In other words, you have no solid evidence to show that you were at the scene of the crime at all," I frowned. "The only thing that we can rely on at this point are your own words... This means that your testimony is no more reputable than what we have heard previously from the witnesses of yesterday's trial."
"If anything, it's even harder for us to believe what you have to say. You were alone, and there were three people involved with that testimony. As was previously stated, they likely would not have been able to collaborate on such an elaborate lie without being caught, and yet, they seem to be telling the truth," Prosecutor Shield declared. "If you have no evidence of your actions that day or testimony from others to reaffirm your words, then we have no choice but to-"
"Not believe me?" Ms. Clayton finished, and Prosecutor Shield nodded. She let out yet another heavy sigh, sending her pinwheel into a lazy twirl. "How unfortunate... You should hold all testimony on equal footing in a trial like this, though I suppose I can't make you do anything. It's frustrating, but... All you're doing is proving my points from before about your actions being unreliable and potentially catastrophic."
"We're not here for your opinions, witness. Please stick to the truth of what you saw that day... And be honest with the court about it," Judge Frost said with a heavy frown. "If you didn't see anything on the day of the murder, then-"
"I saw something," Ms. Clayton interrupted before she had the chance to finish. "I already made it perfectly clear what I saw, and unless you can find hard evidence to dispute my words, then you have no choice but to believe me. After all, you have no proof that I am lying, do you? Perhaps the burden of proof should lie on your shoulders. You're the ones involved with the legal processes, are you not?"
"In that case, I don't think that we should believe a word that you have to say," I announced. "Your behavior is so far beyond suspicious that we can't consider it logical or possible at all. You say that you were simply too frazzled to act, but I think that we should look at this in the way of how others have behaved when in a similar situation. Eventually, they all came around, and I believe that you would have as well if you were telling the truth."
"You act as if the truth has already been decided... You chose to believe that I'm lying, and you refuse to hear anything else. I can hardly say that I'm surprised given the circumstances, but I still find it highly unfortunate that you're unwilling to hear any other perspectives," Ms. Clayton frowned. "And my behavior can hardly be used in comparison to the way that others behave. We are different people, and as a result, we have different ways of thinking and acting."
"Still, I find it hard to believe that you wouldn't have kept an eye on this case. If you heard about the defendant being arrested, then you would have had a reason to come forward," I pointed out. "You wouldn't have just run away and not said a word. If the case was truly hanging over your head to such a worrying degree, then you would have wanted to stay up to date with everything that was happening. When the defendant was arrested, you would have had no reason to not come forward with your testimony, and yet, you chose to not get involved. Do you have an explanation for your behavior in that regard, witness?"
"I agree with the defense," Prosecutor Shield said before Ms. Clayton had the chance to counter her words. "You stated before that the reason you didn't want to talk about the case before now was because you were afraid of retaliation from the defendant, and yet, if it was such a major concern for you, then you would have come forward the instant that you heard of his arrest. Why would you wait so long?"
"The truth is clear to see, and we've been over this already," Chrysalis announced with a shake of her head. "The testimony seemed to come out of nowhere because it was fabricated for the sake of making the defendant seem wrongfully guilty. I can't say for sure why the witness would go out of her way to lie about something like this, but if you ask me, it wouldn't be all that hard to come up with a theory about the truth... Especially given what we already know about this case."
"What we already know about this case?" Judge Frost echoed. "Explain your reasoning at once, defense."
"Yesterday, we discussed the proposed motive for the defendant, and it involved the Emsthorpe assassins," I began, already knowing exactly what Chrysalis was trying to imply. "The defendant was said to have killed the victim because of his past affiliation with the assassins that murdered his father... But if you ask me, the motive doesn't have to end there."
"It should end there," Ms. Clayton frowned. "After all, he clearly has a reason to have killed the victim. I don't believe anybody else has a reason to wish for the victim's murder, so why would you ask questions about anything else?"
"The other proposal for a motive was that the Emsthorpe assassins themselves wanted to have him murdered," I explained. "He used to work with them, and if they realized that he held valuable information about what had happened within the organization in the past, then they would want him dead. If he was allowed to keep his life, then he could have gone behind their backs to reveal the truth of what they were doing... And that ultimately resulted in his murder."
"In other words, you firmly believe that the defendant was not the culprit because instead, someone else did it from within the Emsthorpe group," Judge Frost frowned. "It's certainly a possibility. Somebody who was working with them would have been able to easily take care of the crime, especially if they were watching him for enough time to figure out his habits."
"That seems obvious. The killer struck when they knew he was going to be alone and wouldn't have had anyone around," Prosecutor Shield said with a nod. "They knew for sure that he was going to be on his own at the time of his death, and that was how they were able to get away with it. Nobody was around to overhear the crime or see what was happening because he was on his own, and the killer must have known that in advance."
"The fact that they brought the murder weapon to the scene of the crime makes it clear that the murder was premeditated," Pieter agreed. "And if you think about it, there's only one person who could have been responsible for this... The person who was at the scene of the murder at the time of the crime and has admitted as much to the court freely already."
"The defendant wasn't at the scene of the murder, and we know that clear as can be from the testimony that we heard previously," I declared. I kept going before Ms. Clayton had the chance to interrupt me with words about how I was somehow twisting the situation away from her testimony. "However, our current witness has said already that she was there, and if the defendant hadn't yet left his position with the others he came to the park with, then it seems obvious what we're dealing with here."
"There's only one person who could have actually committed this crime, and it's just a matter of proving it," Chrysalis agreed with a nod. She glanced back to the center of the courtroom, and for a moment, she shared a look with Ms. Clayton. The woman's eyes narrowed in her direction, but Chrysalis didn't respond in the slightest, instead simply staring back at her. I had no idea what was going through Ms. Clayton's head, and I didn't even want to know to begin with.
I didn't bother to wait for Ms. Clayton to back down though, instead slamming my hands against the bench before me. "There's only one person who could have killed the victim that day, and the truth is clear as can be." I pointed at Ms. Clayton with all the force I could muster, my eyes narrowing with determination along the way. "You, Raelynn Clayton!"
my room is so hot
-Digital