At 10 o'clock the next day, Marie and Skyler sat in the waiting room of Skyler's doctor's office. Skyler was hunched forward in the chair. Marie was flicking through the magazines and tapping her foot. She finally threw the last magazine down and leaned back. "I've read all these. How hard is it for them to get the latest editions?"

Skyler didn't respond. Marie looked around the office, and then back at her. She put her hands on her knees, and sighed. "Do you remember when Hank and I had the kids and you were visiting one night, and you had Holly on your lap and we were talking. You were upset, and you said you didn't know what to do because every decision you made was wrong."

Skyler met Marie's eyes. "That was absolutely true."

"Yeah. You were right on with that one."

"Yeah."

"And then you said, 'There are things you don't know about, that if you knew, you would never talk to me again.' Do you remember that?"

Skyler nodded.

"And then I said, 'Try me.'" Marie smiled.

Skyler tried to smile too. She patted her sister's knee. "I don't deserve you."

"No, you do. I mean, I'm not always nice about it, I yell at you quite a lot and I always have. You used to yell at me too, and that was the only thing that I thought was good about what happened over the last few days was that you finally seemed to have some kind of passion back in your voice, and you were finally arguing about something."

"I don't know what's going on in my head, it's just a mess."

"Been going on for a while, right?"

Skyler nodded.

"Look I don't know how much they can achieve today, and I imagine whatever mental health care is provided in prison, if anything, is pretty substandard. So I'll look into finding a therapist to visit you in there."

"No, that's not -"

"You remember when Holly used to shout and scream and her little legs would be jiggling everywhere. And then she'd descend into this heavy sobbing wailing. That's what you were doing last night. It's a trauma reaction."

A grey-haired doctor appeared at the edge of the waiting room. "Skyler White?" she said. Everyone else in the waiting room turned and looked.

...

The medical certificate gave Skyler two days' recuperation time. She spent almost the entire time lying on her bed hugging a pillow and staring at the wall. On one of the afternoons she fell asleep, and Holly wandered in and found her. She brought in one of her teddies and placed it in Skyler's arms.

On Thursday, Mariano from the car wash and Huell Babineaux testified, and then a forensic accounting expert went into great detail on exactly how Skyler had layered the illegal profits of Walt's methamphetamine business through the books of A1A Car Wash. This was the final Prosecution witness, and on Friday morning it was on to the Defence. Flynn was first to be called. He stepped into the witness box, looked around and cleared his throat nervously.

He was lead through his oath to tell the truth, and then Kim stood and stepped towards him. "Can you state your full name for the court, please?"

"Flynn Henry Lambert."

"And you legally changed your name in February this year, is that correct?"

"Y-yes."

"Can you please state your former name for the record?"

"W-Walter Hartwell White Junior."

"And the defendant is your mother?"

"Yes."

"What's she like as a person?"

"Sh-she's really kind and caring. And she rarely takes…anything for herself but she does a-a lot for other people. She won't accept help herself, l-like if you try to offer her help, she will argue a lot. But usually y-you won't even notice that she needs help be-because…she just hides it. Anything she's suffering, sh-she just hides it. And she just focuses on other people all the time and…o-on what she can do to make life…easier for them, but not for herself."

"What was her relationship like with your father?"

"Well, Dad was quite a self-centred person. So since M-Mom does things for others…all the time, h-he used to benefit from that quite a bit a-and not give her…much back."

"Are you saying that he took advantage of her?"

"Yeah. N-not with everything, but…there were a lot of things that he would…just expect her to do, a-and she would just do them and not…question him."

"Did they fight?"

"Yeah, but I didn't see it. They kept that hidden from me. But I knew that she was…really upset with him for a…long time and I…didn't know why. When I l-look back, I can see that she was so…unhappy and so…so scared for so long, but sh-she never tells you things. She never wants to worry other people with her…problems, s-so she just keeps it to herself. So she never told me anything. Meantime Dad was just being n-nice to me all the time and just m-manipulating me into enjoying spending time with him without her. So when-when they were fighting, h-he would manipulate me into taking his side. It took me a long time to realise that h-he was always in control, not her."

"Did you ever hear your father say harsh words to her?"

"No, he didn't work like that. If he wanted…you to do something h-he would just manipulate you. He would tell you things th-that he thought you wanted to hear, and he was usually right, because he was really smart s-so he could figure out exactly what to say to people to…make them do what he wanted. He used to…do it to me as well, a-and I didn't even realise it was happening. Later, wh-when I found out what he really was and I looked back, I could see it, but when it…was happening, I couldn't see it."

"Can you give me an example?"

"Y-yeah, ok, one example is that w-when my Uncle Hank and Aunt Marie found out about Dad and wh-what he was doing, they wanted to tell me, be-because they thought I had a r-right to know and they…thought I could help them…r-rescue Mom and Holly. A-anyway, they wanted to tell me what was happening, s-so Aunt Marie called and asked…me to go over there, to their house, b-but Dad was home when she called, and h-he wasn't even in the living room, he was back in the bedroom or the bathroom, I wasn't even with him or talking to him at the time, b-but I knew he was home so I just…I just called out to him to t-tell him I was going to Uncle Hank and Aunt Marie's. And he rushed out of wh-wherever he was in the house, I re-remember him rushing down…the hallway, and I was at the door and I had…the door open, I was leaving, a-and he grabbed me and pulled me back inside – not in a mean way or a v-violent way, cos like I said, he didn't operate like that, but he was just l-like, 'Hey, son, I n-need to tell you something, come back inside.' So I went back inside, and he s-sat me down in the living room and he told me…that his cancer was back. H-he said that he'd had a scan, and his cancer was back and he was…back on chemotherapy. Now, my dad was a very closed off…h-hard walled sort of person. He-he did not like talking about himself…at all, and particularly with the cancer, h-he really hated that it made him…appear weak, and…h-he was just a really strong closed off person and he never liked talking about himself, especially never…never about his feelings or his...w-weaknesses or anything…like that. And when he first got…cancer, h-he never even told us for…a month. A whole month he…kept that from us. He didn't want us to know. And then wh-when we did know, a-and we would, like…ask him about his s-scans or treatment or whatever, he never wanted to talk about it. H-he just…he just hated talking about himself, and h-he never wanted to seem weak or like that.

"Except that one time. Th-that one time, when I had already said, 'I-I'm going to Uncle Hank and Aunt…Marie's,' and I was…already…ha-halfway out the front door, th-that one time he pulled me back into the house and he…told me that his cancer was back and he was b-back on…chemotherapy."

Skyler closed her eyes and put her hand over her mouth. She hadn't known about this. When she'd asked Walt how he'd stopped Flynn from going to Hank and Marie's house, he hadn't answered her. Skyler shook her head as she swallowed this new hurt. She leaned her arms onto her knees and looked up at her son.

"So you're saying that that was completely out of character for him," said Kim, "To talk about something personal that exposed his own weakness?"

"Yeah. Th-that was completely out of character."

"Why did he say it?"

"To stop me from going to Uncle Hank and Aunt Marie's. He-he knew that they knew and that they would…tell me…about him if I went there. S-so he told me about his cancer because he knew…th-that it would upset me."

"He said it to upset you?"

"Yeah, t-to make me concerned…for him. H-he knew that…if he told me about the cancer, I would be worried and I would want to…stay with him. Because when someone tells you something they…are suffering, y-you…you don't want to leave them alone right then, when someone has just told you something…"

"Something that made him vulnerable."

"Y-yeah, y-you don't…when someone has just told you that they're…vulnerable, y-you don't want to leave the house just then. And M-Mom wasn't home then, m-my mom and my sister were out, s-so it was just me and Dad in the house, so…h-he told me that to make me feel…like I had to stay there and take care of him. Which is the opposite of what Dad would normally want you to do!"

"So you're saying that Walter White, in contrast to his normal character, made himself appear vulnerable to you in order to manipulate you into not going to your aunt and uncle's house, where he believed you would be told the truth about his criminal activity."

"Y-yeah. That's what I'm saying."

"Did it upset you?"

"Yeah. It upset me, I was…really worried about him. That's why he said it, he wanted to upset me so…e-everything else would be pushed from my…mind, and so I would do wh-whatever he…wanted. He upset me so that I would do what…he wanted. A-and I think he did that with…Mom all the time, sh-she was really worried about him because she really loved him, and he was able to use that a-and manipulate…her into doing all sorts of things…for him, in just…just the same way."

"So would you say that he was a man who had an ability to manipulate the truth?"

"Oh yeah. Yeah. That's how he got-got away with it for so long as well. H-he would manipulate the…truth and manipulate…people. Especially the people closest to him, wh-which was me and…Mom."

"When did you realise that that was what he was doing?"

"N-not until after he left. When I found out…how much he'd been hiding from me, a-and that he was a violent criminal. And when I found out what he'd been doing to Mom. Then, wh-when I looked back on it, I realised that sometimes he…did it to me as well. J-just by saying something really simple, b-but it's designed to make you act the way he wants you to act."

Kim nodded, looked at her notes, and paused. "So how did you find out that your father was a criminal?"

"We were at the car wash one day when I was s-sixteen. Mom was actually teaching me to work at…the car wash. And Aunt Marie came in and sh-she and Mom went into the office and sh-she told Mom that Uncle Hank had arrested Dad. Then… they called me into the office and Mom told me. And she was crying, a-and I was angry and confused and I…didn't take it…very well, and I got a-angry at Mom at first, but…"

"Are you angry at her now?"

"No, not-not at all. At first I was shocked and…upset, and I g-got angry because it was kind of like a shoot the m-messenger kind of thing. Plus sh-she was there in the car wash and she…told me that Dad had…bought the car wash with the drug money, s-so at first it looked to me like it was…both of them…doing it. S-so I got angry at her. But then when-when we got home and…he was there, it became clear that sh-she was not in control of anything, that he was…making her do it and she was just…trying to keep me and my sister safe and j-just trying to keep…her head above water while he w-walked all over her."

"I'd like you to tell the court all about what happened that day, but first I'd like you to confirm the date."

"Sure, i-it was March 13th, 2010. The day that…Uncle Hank died."

"And you came home from the car wash with your mother and sister to find that your father was already there?"

"Yeah, despite the fact that he had s-supposedly just been arrested by Uncle Hank, th-there he was, free and…walking around our house. I didn't realise what that meant…at first."

"So starting from the beginning, what did you see when you pulled into the driveway of your home?"

"There was a big old truck there with a black…barrel and a-a couple other things on the tray. And as we pulled in, D-Dad came out of the house with some bags, like suitcases, a-and he put them on the tray of the truck. I jumped r-right out of the car and I wanted to talk to him, because I couldn't…really believe it yet, wh-what Mom and Aunt Marie had told me about him, s-so I wanted to ask him about it. I did ask him, but he didn't say anything, h-he just kind of waved me off and said that w-we all had to…go inside. So I followed him inside, and I was still trying to ask him questions, and he was still ignoring me. He wouldn't answer…any of my questions and he-he was just brushing me off and…telling me I had to go to my…room and pack my things b-because he said we had to leave. And I was just starting to ask him…why that was when Mom came in - sh-she was a little bit…behind us because she h-had to get Holly out of the baby seat in the car. H-Holly was only 18 months old then. So Mom came…into the…living room and sh-she said to Dad, 'W-where is Hank?' And he wouldn't answer…that question either. And she asked him m-multiple times and h-he still wouldn't tell her, and I still hadn't figured it out…yet but I could tell from the tone of Mom's voice that…something was really wrong. Then sh-she said to Dad, 'Did you kill him?' And that was the first I knew of that. M-Mom had figured out that because Uncle Hank had arrested Dad but Dad was n-now in our house, and he was not under a-arrest at the DEA, that Uncle Hank must be dead, a-and she was asking Dad if he had killed him because she…knew that he was…violent enough to d-do that. Dad j-just kept saying that we all had to leave and… I was still trying to ask him questions and…he yelled at me and said, 'Y-you have to go and get your things from your room!' And he l-lead me along the hallway to my bedroom b-but I didn't wanna…go and pack my things be-because I didn't wanna…go anywhere, so I followed him back towards the kitchen, and when we got there, Mom s-stepped out of the kitchen and she s-stepped in between me and Dad. And she held her hand up…to me, like she was holding me back, t-to protect me. And I realised that she w-was holding a knife in her other hand, and she w-was doing that because there was…no other way to make Dad listen. Sh-she held it up, a-and she said to him, 'Get out. G-get away from us.' Sh-she'd actually been wanting him to do that for months and m-months before that, and he'd refused. And finally things had gone catastrophic because she r-realised that Uncle Hank was dead and…Dad was trying to run away from the law, and he wanted to take us with him but we didn't…wanna go. H-he was charging around the house telling…us what to do and n-not listening to anything we were saying. So she pulled a knife out of the kitchen be-because she thought that was the only way to make him s-stop and listen. And she told him to get out."

Flynn swallowed, and looked over at his mother, who was hunched forward in the dock looking down.

"What happened next?"

"What happened next was…" Flynn cleared his throat. "Dad attacked her. He l-lunged forward and grabbed her arm, and then he grabbed-grabbed hold of her entire body, and the two of them were k-kind of stumbling and teetering, and sh-she was…s-screaming. And then he threw her…to the ground and jumped on…top of her, and at some point he got the knife, I don't know at what point th-that happened but I saw them…on the ground, h-he was kneeling on top of her and he had one hand on her chest j-just below her neck, j-just here -"

He showed the jury where by putting his own hand just below his neck.

"H-he was…pushing her into the ground with one hand, and in the other…hand he-he had the knife. He was…d-down on the ground with her, but he was…pushing her down so she couldn't move, and then he k-kind of righted himself on top of her and he moved his body up, and he was…pushing her into the ground with…one hand, and holding the…knife in the other hand. I jumped…in at that point, be-because the two of them had kind of separated s-slightly, I was able to throw myself at him and kn-knock him off her. A-and I…"

Flynn looked over at his mother, who was now hunched over even further, her face buried in her shaking hands. He swallowed. "I walk with crutches s-so it wasn't easy for me to do that, I couldn't gr-grab hold of him or do…anything really to…defend Mom, but I just p-put my body in front of her and we were both…crouching on the ground, and he stood up and stood over us…with the knife. And I pulled my phone out of my pocket and c-called 911. Mom, are you ok?"

Kim's head whipped around and she looked at Skyler, who was curled up in the dock shaking, her arms wrapped around her head. "Your Honour," said Kim, "Can we have a brief adjournment?"

"Mom!" Flynn's crutches banged against the partition of the witness box as he stumbled out of it and across the floor.

"We will adjourn for fifteen minutes, everyone clear the court please!" said the judge.

There was much scraping and murmuring as everyone began to get up and move out of the courtroom. A security guard stepped towards Marie, beginning to clear everyone out of the public gallery. Flynn arrived at the dock and wrestled to get the door open. "How does this open?" he yelled at the clerk of the court, who stepped forward and unlocked the door. Skyler was now curled up on the floor. Flynn leapt to the ground beside her and swept her into his arms. "Hey hey hey," he said. "It's ok." His own heartbeat was through the roof, his palms were sweating and he felt a tingling feeling all over his body. "It's ok," he said, rubbing his mother's back. "It's ok."